Capricorn Concerto
Encyclopedia
Samuel Barber
's Capricorn Concerto (Op
. 21), completed 8 September 1944 is a chamber piece for flute
, oboe
, trumpet
and strings
. It was premiered by Saidenberg Little Symphony at Town Hall 8 October 1944. It lasts approximately 14 min.
The concerto was written when Barber was still serving in the army but at a point of time when he was granted time and freedom to compose. Hence the piece was composed in and named after the house "Capricorn", acquired by Barber and Gian Carlo Menotti
in 1943 and so-named for the maximum sunshine it got during the winter (Heyman 1992, 239).
The Capricorn Concerto is designed like a Baroque concerto grosso
and scored with the same instruments as Bach
's Brandenburg Concerto No. 2: three solo instruments—flute, oboe and trumpet—and strings. The piece is a departure from Barber's previous language, being neither atonal nor polytonal, but written in a contemporary tonal
style. Rhythmically nervous with frequent shifts of tempi
, it may be characterized as neo-classical
and was strongly influenced by Stravinsky (Heyman 1992, 243).
The work has three movements
:
The concerto was recorded by the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra
, conducted by Howard Hanson
.
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
's Capricorn Concerto (Op
Opus number
An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
. 21), completed 8 September 1944 is a chamber piece for flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
, trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
and strings
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
. It was premiered by Saidenberg Little Symphony at Town Hall 8 October 1944. It lasts approximately 14 min.
The concerto was written when Barber was still serving in the army but at a point of time when he was granted time and freedom to compose. Hence the piece was composed in and named after the house "Capricorn", acquired by Barber and Gian Carlo Menotti
Gian Carlo Menotti
Gian Carlo Menotti was an Italian-American composer and librettist. Although he often referred to himself as an American composer, he kept his Italian citizenship. He wrote the classic Christmas opera, Amahl and the Night Visitors, among about two dozen other operas intended to appeal to popular...
in 1943 and so-named for the maximum sunshine it got during the winter (Heyman 1992, 239).
The Capricorn Concerto is designed like a Baroque concerto grosso
Concerto grosso
The concerto grosso is a form of baroque music in which the musical material is passed between a small group of soloists and full orchestra...
and scored with the same instruments as Bach
Bạch
Bạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
's Brandenburg Concerto No. 2: three solo instruments—flute, oboe and trumpet—and strings. The piece is a departure from Barber's previous language, being neither atonal nor polytonal, but written in a contemporary tonal
Tonality
Tonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
style. Rhythmically nervous with frequent shifts of tempi
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
, it may be characterized as neo-classical
Neoclassicism (music)
Neoclassicism in music was a twentieth-century trend, particularly current in the period between the two World Wars, in which composers sought to return to aesthetic precepts associated with the broadly defined concept of "classicism", namely order, balance, clarity, economy, and emotional restraint...
and was strongly influenced by Stravinsky (Heyman 1992, 243).
The work has three movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
:
- Allegro ma non troppo
- Allegretto
- Allegro con brio
The concerto was recorded by the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra
Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, Monroe County, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music....
, conducted by Howard Hanson
Howard Hanson
Howard Harold Hanson was an American composer, conductor, educator, music theorist, and champion of American classical music. As director for 40 years of the Eastman School of Music, he built a high-quality school and provided opportunities for commissioning and performing American music...
.
Discography
- Samuel Barber: Capricorn Concerto. Julius BakerJulius BakerJulius Baker was one of the foremost American orchestral flute players.He was well known as a teacher and served as a faculty member at the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, and Carnegie Mellon University...
(flute); Mitch MillerMitch MillerMitchell William "Mitch" Miller was an American musician, singer, conductor, record producer, A&R man and record company executive...
(oboe); Harry Freistadt (trumpet); Saidenberg Little Symphony; Daniel Saidenberg, cond. (With William SchumanWilliam SchumanWilliam Howard Schuman was an American composer and music administrator.-Life:Born in Manhattan in New York City to Samuel and Rachel Schuman, Schuman was named after the twenty-seventh U.S. president, William Howard Taft, although his family preferred to call him Bill...
: Symphony No. 5. Concert Hall String Symphony; Edgar Schenkman, cond.) LP recording, mono, 12 in. Gold Label Series. Concert Hall CHS-1078. New York: Concert Hall, [1950s]. Capricorn Concerto reissued on CD Samuel Barber: Premiere Recordings (Also with The School for Scandal Overture, Op. 5; Sonata for Cello and Piano, Op. 6; Symphony no 1, Op. 9; Essay for Orchestra no 1, Op. 12; Dover Beach, Op. 3; Adagio for Strings). Pearl CD 49. - Samuel Barber: Capricorn Concerto, Essay No. 1 for Orchestra. Louise DiTullio (flute); Allan VogelAllan VogelAllan Vogel is an American oboist and educator. He is currently Principal Oboe of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.-Education:Vogel originally studied piano and voice at the New York High School for Music and Art, but eventually changed his focus to oboe. "From the moment I heard it, I fell in...
(oboe); Anthony PlogAnthony PlogAnthony Plog is a renowned American conductor, composer and trumpet player.The music of Anthony Plog has been performed in over 30 countries around the world...
(trumpet,); Pacific Symphony Orchestra; Keith Clark, cond. Pacific Symphony American Music Series. LP recording. Andante AD 72406. North Hollywood, Calif.: Andante, 1983. - Barber: Violin Concerto, Cello Concerto, Capricorn Concerto. Jacob Berg (flute); Peter Bowman (oboe); Susan Slaughter (trumpet); St. Louis Symphony Orchestra; Leonard SlatkinLeonard SlatkinLeonard Edward Slatkin is an American conductor and composer.-Early life and education:Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His father Felix Slatkin was the violinist, conductor and founder of the Hollywood String Quartet,...
, cond. CD recording. RCA Victor Red Seal 68283. - Barber: Capricorn Concerto, Adagio for Strings, Serenade for Strings. (With works by Arthur FooteArthur FooteArthur William Foote was an American classical composer, and a member of the "Boston Six." The other five were George Whitefield Chadwick, Amy Beach, Edward MacDowell, John Knowles Paine, and Horatio Parker.The modern tendency is to view Foote’s music as “Romantic” and “European” in light of the...
, Aaron CoplandAaron CoplandAaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other American music. He was instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, and is often referred to as "the Dean of American Composers"...
, and Charles IvesCharles IvesCharles Edward Ives was an American modernist composer. He is one of the first American composers of international renown, though Ives' music was largely ignored during his life, and many of his works went unperformed for many years. Over time, Ives came to be regarded as an "American Original"...
.) János Bálint (flute), Reinhold Friedrich (trumpet), Lajos Lencsés (oboe); Budapest Strings; Károly Botvay, cond. CD recording. Capriccio Records 0505. - Music For The Theatre Vol 2. Samuel Barber: Capricorn Concerto for Flute, Oboe, Trumpet and Strings, op. 21. Omar Zoboli (oboe), Isabelle Schnöller (flute), Reinhold Friedrich (trumpet); Basel Chamber Orchestra; Christopher HogwoodChristopher HogwoodChristopher Jarvis Haley Hogwood CBE, MA , HonMusD , born 10 September 1941, Nottingham, is an English conductor, harpsichordist, writer and musicologist, well known as the founder of the Academy of Ancient Music.-Biography:...
, cond. (With music by Aaron Copland.) CD recording. Arte Nova 506930. [n.p.]: Arte Nova, 2006.
Further reading
- Crafton, Jason Allen. 2010. "A Trumpeter's Guide to Samuel Barber's Capricorn Concerto". DMA diss. Denton: University of North Texas.
- Wright, Jeffrey Marsh II. 2010. "The Enlisted Composer: Samuel Barber's Career, 1942–1945". Ph.D. diss. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.