Belkis, Regina di Saba
Ottorino Respighi (tr. Yoshihiro Kimura)
The title translates from the Italian as "Belkis, Queen of Sheba."
General Info
Year: 1931 / 1995
Duration: c. 23:00
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: De Haske
Cost: Score and Parts (print; two sections sold separately) - $227.00 (each) | Score Only (print) - Unknown
Movements
1. The Dream of Solomon – 7:45
2. War Dance – 2:50
3. The Dance of Belkis at Dawn – 7:20
4. Orgiastic Dance – 5:10
Instrumentation
Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
English Horn
Bassoon I-II
Contrabassoon
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet Solo-I-II
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III-IV
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Harp I-II
Celesta
Timpani
Percussion I-II-III, including:
- Bass Drum
- Crash Cymbals
- Glockenspiel
- Snare Drum
- Suspended Cymbal
- Tambourine
- Tamburo Arabo (Darabucca) (2)
- Tamburo di Guerra (War Drum) (2)
- Tam-tam
- Triangle
- Xylophone
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
In 1931 Ottorino Respighi began composing the music for his most ambitious theatre work: Belkis, regina di Saba. The ballet describes the journey of Belkis, the Queen of Sheba, to Solomon, the King of Israel, with whom she was in love. She travels with a large caravan including elephants, camels, slaves and many valuable treasures, through the desert. Kimura has arranged this colorful Oriental suite for wind band.
- Program Note from publisher
Among Respighi’s splendidly orchestrated works, perhaps the richest and most colorful is this four-movement suite drawn from a full-length ballet based on the most erotic story of the Bible, that of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Respighi himself confected his suite from the full ballet score three years after the original presentation in Milan, with two lush and evocative slow movements, and two energetic dances, freely sewing different sections together.
The suite begins with Ii Sogno di Salomone (Solomon’s Dream). In the ballet, Solomon calls on the Queen to travel to Jerusalem after he experiences a vision informing him that she is in love with him from afar. A dark-toned opening prelude depicts the desert sky and Solomon’s solitude. The music of the suite then segues to a later episode when Solomon actually greets the visiting Queen who, overcome with his splendor, falls at his feet.
La Danze di Belkis all’aurora (The Dance of Belkis at Dawn) is the parallel scene for the Queen. In her palace by the Red Sea she dreams of Solomon, then awakens to discover her servants have left the scroll from Solomon summoning her. She then dances in praise of the morning sun.
Danza guerresca (War Dance) begins a pair of movements depicting ceremonies in Solomon’s palace. Some conductors place it second in order to provide a slow-fast-slow-fast structure. In it, nearly naked athletes dance on immense drums. The final Danza orgiastica (Orgiastic Dance) is a sensuous and majestic finale celebrating the union of the two monarchs.
Belkis has long been a favorite large production work in Japan, performed by secondary, collegiate and community wind orchestras for festival and regular concerts alike.
- Program Note from Tokyo Geidai Wind Orchestra concert program, 17 December 2016
Media
- Audio CD: Osaka Municipal Symphonic Band (Yoshihiro Kimura, conductor) - 1998
- Audio CD: Royal Military Band of Nederlands (Jan de Haan, conductor) - 1995
State Ratings
- Florida: VI (1-2 or 3-4)
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- Tokyo (Japan) Geidai Wind Orchestra (Masaharu Yamamoto, conductor) - 17 December 2016 (2016 Midwest Clinic)
- University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa) Wind Ensemble (Kenneth B. Ozzello, conductor) - 13 April 2015
- Banda de Música de Salcedo (Spain) (José Alfredo Sánchez Murcia, conductor) – 17 November 2013
- University of Georgia (Athens) Wind Symphony - February 2004 (CBDNA 2004 Southern Division Conference, Atlanta, Georgia)
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Airs of the Court (arr. Longfield) (1931/2009)
- Ancient Airs and Dances, Suite I (tr. Johnson)
- Ancient Airs and Dances (arr. Marlatt) (2008)
- Belkis, Regina di Saba (arr. Kimura) (1931/1995)
- Belkis, Regina di Saba (trans. Nefs) (1931/2016)
- Bergomasca from Ancient Airs
- Church Windows (arr. Schyns) (1926/2007)
- Feste Romane (arr. Van Grevenbroek) (1928/2013)
- Feste Romane (arr. Kimura) (1928/2006)
- Feste Romane (arr. Schaefer) (1928/1976)
- Fontane di Roma (arr. Van Grevenbroek) (1916/2013)
- The Fountains of Rome (arr. Junkin) (1916)
- The Fountains of Rome (tr. Odom) (1916)
- Huntingtower (1932)
- Huntingtower (orch. Cesarini) (1932/1987)
- Huntingtower (arr. Suzuki) (1932/2001)
- Huntingtower (ed. Binney) (1932/1991)
- I pini della via Appia (arr. Suijkerbuijk) (1924/1987)
- La Boutique Fantasque (as arranger; tr. Mahaffey) (2009)
- La Boutique Fantasque (as arranger) (1922)
- Pines of Rome (arr. Curnow) (1924/2012)
- Pines of Rome (arr. Kimura) (1924)
- Pines of Rome (trans. Duker) (1924/1966)
- Pines of the Appian Way (ed. Leidzen) (1924/1948)
- Pini di Roma (arr. Van Grevenbroek) (1924/)
- Pini di Roma (tr. Nefs) (1924/2012)
- Roman Festivals (arr. Patterson) (1928)
- Trittico Botticelliano (arr. Hanna) (1927/201?)
Resources
- Perusal score (in Attachments)
- Respighi, O.; Kimura, Y. (1995). Belkis, Regina di Saba: Belkis, Queen of Sheba : Suite for Symphonic Band [score]. De Haske: Heerenveen, Netherlands.