Fête-Dieu à Seville

From Wind Repertory Project
Isaac Albeniz

Isaac Albéniz (trans. Lucien Cailliet)


The title translates from the French as "Feast Day in Seville." It is the third movement of the composer's Ibéria.


General Info

Year: 1909 / 1968
Duration: c. 9:10
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Piano
Publisher: Sam Fox
Cost: Score and Parts – Out of print.

For availability information, see Discussion tab, above.


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
English Horn
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Clarinet
E-flat Contra-Alto Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Bass Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III
B-flat Trumpet I-II
Flugelhorn I-II
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Contra-Bass
Harp
Timpani
Percussion I-II, including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Mallets
  • Snare Drum
  • Tambourine
  • Triangle


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Fêté-Dieu à Séville is the longest movement of Iberia, a collection of twelve virtuosic pieces for piano and one of Albéniz’s most notable works. Iberia was written over a four-year period from 1905 to 1908, and was published in four volumes, or “Books,” each containing three “impressions.” Each of the Books was premiered by French pianist Blanche Selva between 1906 and 1909. Albéniz planned to transcribe Iberia into a suite for orchestra but eventually asked his friend and fellow composer, Enrique Fernández Arbós, to orchestrate the work instead. Arbós completed his setting of five of the twelve pieces for orchestra in 1925, and Carlos Surinach later orchestrated the remaining eight.

The third impression from Book I, Fêté-Dieu à Séville (Feast Day in Seville), is a programmatic work which depicts the Catholic Church’s feast day of Corpus Christi as celebrated in Sevilla. The feast day, known for its vibrant atmosphere and its use of vividly colored flowers, occurs sixty days after Easter and includes a procession through the streets to the church, followed by a celebration and dancing. This version was completed by Lucien Cailliet, who first transcribed the work for the Philadelphia Orchestra in the early 1930s, and later arranged it for band.

- Program Note by J. Benjamin Jones for the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, Wind Ensemble concert program, 21 November 2019


Ibéria is a suite for piano composed between 1905 and 1909 by the Spanish composer Isaac Albéniz. It is composed of four books of three pieces each; a complete performance lasts about an hour and a half.

Fête-dieu à Seville (F-sharp minor – F-sharp major) (alternative titles sometimes found: "Corpus Christi"; "El Corpus en Sevilla") is the third movement of Book I of Ibéria. It describes the Corpus Christi Day procession in Seville, during which the Corpus Christi is carried through the streets accompanied by marching bands. Musically, this piece consists of a processional march that eventually becomes overwhelmed by a mournful saeta, the melody evoking Andalusian cante jondo and the accompaniment evoking flamenco guitars. The march and saeta alternate ever more loudly until the main march theme is restated as a lively tarantella that ends abruptly with a flamboyant fort-fort-fort-fortissimo climactic chord; the piece concludes with a gentle coda again evoking flamenco guitars along with distant church bells.

- Program Note from Wikipedia


Media


State Ratings

  • Florida: VI
  • Iowa: V
  • Michigan: Senior High AA
  • Minnesota: I
  • Mississippi: VI-A
  • North Carolina: VI
  • Oklahoma: V-A
  • Tennessee: VI
  • Virginia: VI


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • University of North Texas (Denton) Wind Ensemble (Daniel Cook, conductor) – 22 February 2023
  • Southeast Iowa Band (Mount Pleasant) (Michael Knight, conductor) – 13 November 2022
  • University of North Carolina, Greensboro, Wind Ensemble (J. Benjamin Jones, conductor) – 21 November 2019
  • Emory University (Atlanta) Wind Ensemble (Paul Bhasin, conductor) – 14 November 2017
  • Valley Winds (Massachusetts) (Brian Messier, conductor) – 2015


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources