Presents
Carlos Gomes
Sonata "O burrico de Pau"
For 2 Violins, Viola, Cello & Bass or String Quartet
Antonio Carlos Gomes (1836-1896) was the first Brazilian composer whose operas became well-known in Europe. They enjoyed great success during the golden age of opera in Italy and were often compared favorably with those by Verdi and Puccini. Gomes was born in city of Campinas about 60 miles from Sao Paulo. He initially received musical instruction from his father and older brother Jose Pedro de Sant'Ana Gomes, also a composer. Upon performing for the Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro II, he received a scholarship to study at the Rio de Janeiro Conservatory. After graduating he immediately began composing operas that became immensely popular. As a result, he received a scholarship from the Emperor which allowed him to travel to Italy and study at the Milan Conservatory. After graduating, he composed an opera, Il Guarany, which dealt with Brazilian Indian themes. It premiered in May 1870 at the La Scala Theater in Milan and its success was so enormous that critics immediately called him the equal of Rossini and Verdi. It was subsequently performed throughout Europe and made him famous. During the next several decades, he continued composing operas and traveled back and forth between Italy and Brazil. In 1894, Gomes was offered the directorship of the Belem Conservatory and returned to Brazil to teach there.
His Sonata para cordas (Sonata for Strings) was composed in 1894 toward the end of his life. It appears to be the only chamber work that he wrote. He dedicated it to the Music Club of Campinas of which his brother was the director. It is scored for 2 violins, viola, cello and bass. However, the work can be and usually is performed as a string quartet as the bass part is essentially an ad libitum part. It is in four movements-Allegro animato, Allegro scherzoso, Largo-Adagio and Vivace, which Gomes subtitled O burrico de pau, in English the wooden donkey. The opening Allegro is lively and filled with gorgeous melodies. It combines the quality of an opera overture and a serenade. The Allegro scherzando which follows is partially a scherzo but there are also lovely aria interludes. The third movement begins with a Largo introduction that ends with a very brief cello cadenza which reaches into the stratosphere. The main section, Adagio lento e calmo, is beautiful and song-like. The finale, Vivace, as noted was subtitled O burrico de pau. Why the wooden donkey? It was meant to depict a dream in which Gomes saw himself going to heaven on a wooden donkey. Here, he is having fun creating musical sounds meant to imitate a donkey braying----hee--haw, hee--haw. This is done by the use of large intervals, first in a very high register, then in a low register. The movement begins with a constant galloping rhythm, then eventually the donkey protests and we hear the braying, but then the journey continues once again to an exciting conclusion.
It is a tour de force and brings audiences to their feet and because of this, one often hears the fourth movement played by itself as an encore.
Parts: $29.95
Parts & Score: $39.95
