Symphony No. 12
by Heitor Villa-Lobos
Heitor Villa-Lobos
CatalogueW539
Composed1957 (1957):
DedicationMindinha
Published1957 (1957): Paris
PublisherMax Eschig
Duration25 mins.
Movements4
Premiere
Date20 April 1958 (1958-04-20):
LocationLisner Auditorium, Washington, D. C.
ConductorHoward Mitchell
PerformersNational Symphony Orchestra

Symphony No. 12 is a composition by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, written in 1957. A performance lasts about twenty-five minutes.

History

Villa-Lobos composed his Twelfth Symphony in New York in 1957, completing it on his seventieth birthday, 5 March 1957. The score is dedicated to Mindinha (Arminda Neves d'Almeida), the composer's companion for the last 23 years of his life. It was first performed at Lisner Auditorium in Washington, DC, on 20 April 1958, by the National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Howard Mitchell. The European premiere occurred soon after, in Brussels on 22 September 1958, by the Grand Orchestre Symphonique de la Radiodiffusion Nationale Belge, conducted by the composer.[1]

Analysis

The symphony consists of four movements:

  1. Allegro non troppo
  2. Adagio
  3. Scherzo (Vivace)
  4. Molto Allegro

The form of the first movement resembles a five-part (ABACA) rondo, with a coda in which the main theme returns in augmentation .[2]

The second movement is in a ternary (ABA) design, and leads without break into the third movement.[3]

Like the first movement, the scherzo is in a five-part rondo form, except that the returns of the main A section are in different keys, and the second occurrence is immediately after the first: A A' B C A''.[4]

The finale is also in a modified five-part rondo form. As in the scherzo, the refrain returns in keys different from its initial appearance.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Villa-Lobos, sua obra 2009, p. 48.
  2. ↑ Enyart 1984, pp. 447–448.
  3. ↑ Enyart 1984, p. 456.
  4. ↑ Enyart 1984, pp. 460, 465.
  5. ↑ Enyart 1984, p. 472.

Cited sources

  • Enyart, John William. 1984. "The Symphonies of Heitor Villa-Lobos". PhD diss. Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati.
  • Villa-Lobos, sua obra. 2009. Version 1.0. MinC / IBRAM, and the Museu Villa-Lobos. Based on the third edition, 1989.

References

    • Béhague, Gerard. 1994. Villa-Lobos: The Search for Brazil's Musical Soul. Austin: Institute of Latin American Studies, University of Texas at Austin, 1994. ISBN 0-292-70823-8.
    • Peppercorn, Lisa M. 1991. Villa-Lobos: The Music: An Analysis of His Style, translated by Stefan de Haan. London: Kahn & Averill; White Plains, NY: Pro/Am Music Resources Inc. ISBN 1-871082-15-3 (Kahn & Averill); ISBN 0-912483-36-9.
    • Salles, Paulo de Tarso. 2009. Villa-Lobos: processos composicionais. Campinas, SP: Editora da Unicamp. ISBN 978-85-268-0853-9.
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