La Tregenda
Giacomo Puccini (ed. Robert E. Foster)
Subtitle: Witches' Dance from the Opera, Le Villi
General Info
Year: 1883 / 1996
Duration: c. 2:55
Difficulty: V (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: Wingert-Jones
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $70.00 | Score Only (print) - $10.00
Instrumentation
Full Score
Flute I-II
Oboe
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III
B-flat Trumpet I-II
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium I-II
Tuba
Timpani
Percussion, including:
- Bass Drum
- Crash Cymbals
- Snare Drum
- Suspended Cymbal
- Tam-tam
- Triangle
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
Taken from Puccini's first opera, this is the frenzied dance of the witches as they cast an evil spell on an unsuspecting victim. The fiery dance builds in speed and intensity providing a dazzling display of energy and excitement. While it's absolutely faithful to the original orchestral work, it makes a wonderful transcription for the concert band repertoire.
- Program Note from publisher
Originally written as a one-act opera performed in 1884, Puccini was asked by the publisher Ricordi to expand it to a full opera. It premiered in Hamburg in 1892 with Gustav Mahler on the podium. Poet Heinrich Heine wrote this description of the fairy figures called La Villi (The Willis): “Willis are betrothed maidens who died before their weddings. These poor creatures cannot find rest in their graves. In their dead hearts, in their dead feet, the passion for dancing lives on, a passion that they could not satisfy in their lifetime. At midnight they appear in groups along country lanes. Woe betide the young man that encounters them! He will be forced to dance with them, and he must dance until he drops dead!”
Puccini wrote La Tregenda as one of two movements to be used as symphonic intermezzi between the two acts of the opera. The legend of La Villi is explained: When a woman dies of a broken heart, the fairies force the heartbreaker to dance himself to death.
- Program Note from Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music
Commercial Discography
- Audio CD: Texas A&M University Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) - 2010
Media
State Ratings
- Minnesota: II
- Mississippi: II-A
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) – 18 December 2010 (2010 Midwest Clinic)
- Banda dell'Esercito Italiano (Rome) (Fulvio Creux, conductor) - 11 April 2008
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Angelo del Cielo (arr. de Meij) (1917/2007)
- Ch'ella Mi Creda (arr. de Meij) (1910/2008)
- Christmas Scene from "La Bohème" (arr. Morita) (1896/2002)
- Corazzata Sicilia (ed. Creux) (1897/2017)
- Donde Lieta from "La Bohème" (arr. Kreines) (1896/)
- Edgar (arr. de Meij) (1889/2008)
- Fantasy on "Madama Butterfly" (arr. Goto) (1904/2000)
- Gianni Schicchi (arr. Suzuki) (1918/2015)
- Highlights from Act 1, "Tosca" (arr. Goto) (1900/2014)
- Intermezzo from "Manon Lescaut" (arr. McBeth) (1893/1984)
- Kyrie from Messa di Gloria (tr. Paxton) (1980/2015)
- La Bohème (arr. Stebbing) (1896/1948)
- La Bohème (arr. Dawson) (1896/1992)
- La Fanciulla del West (arr. de Meij) (1910/2008)
- La Tregenda (arr. Beck) (1883/2012)
- La Tregenda (arr. Foster) (1883/1996)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Bocook) (1926/2003)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Beringen) (1926/1991)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Cray)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Hattendorf) (1926/2007)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Rossi) (1926/2008)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Turrin) (1926/2010)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Vinson) (1926/2009)
- Nessun Dorma (arr. Williams) (1926/2000)
- Nessun Dorma (tr. Patterson) (1926/)
- Nessun Dorma from "Turandot" (arr. Rickard) (1926/1993)
- O Mio Babbino Caro (arr. Balmages) (1918/2000)
- O Mio Babbino Caro (arr. Vinson) (1918/2011)
- O Mio Babbino Caro from "Gianni Schicchi" (arr. Kondo) (1918/2010)
- O Mio Babbino Caro from "Gianni Schicchi" (arr. Kreines) (1918/)
- Puccini's Arias Fantasy (arr. Yamazato) (2012)
- Quando me’n vo (arr. McLain) (1896/2011)
- Scenes from "La Bohème" (arr. Hanna) (1896/)
- Scossa Elettrica (arr. King) (1896/2019)
- Scossa Elettrica (arr. Yates) (1896/2001)
- Te Deum (tr. de Meij) (1900/2010)
- Tosca Fantasy (arr. Gee) (1900)
- Tosca Fantasy (arr. Hermann) (1900/1972)
- Turandot (arr. Goto) (1926/2007)
- Two Scenes from "Tosca" (arr. Hanna) (1900/)
- Un Bel Di (arr. Spaniola) (1904/1997)
- Vogliatemi Bene from "Madama Butterfly" (arr. Odom) (1904/)
- Witches' Sabbath, The (arr. de Meij) (1892/2010)
Resources
- Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music. "Giacomo Puccini." Accessed 29 June 2021
- Le Villi, Wikipedia Accessed 29 June 2021
- Puccini, G.; Foster, R. (1996). La Tregenda : The Witches' Dance from the Opera, Le Villi [score]. Wingert-Jones Music: Kansas City, Mo.