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Russlan and Ludmilla (tr Rhea)

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Mikhail Glinka

Mikhail Glinka (trans. Timothy Rhea)


General Info

Year: 1846 / 2016
Duration: c. 5:45
Difficulty: V (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: Timothy Rhea
Cost: Score and Parts (print or PDF) - $200.00


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
Contrabassoon
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Saxophone
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani


Errata

The spelling of the transliteration of the title of Glinka's opera is uncertain. The Encyclopedia Britannica, International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) and Wikipedia prefer Ruslan and Lyudmila. However, some arrangers and publishers have used Russlan and Ludmila.


Program Notes

Russlan and Ludmilla is an opera in five acts composed by Mikhail Glinka between 1837 and 1842. The opera is based on the 1820 poem of the same name by Alexander Pushkin, the father of Russian literature. Pushkin's death in the famous duel prevented him from writing the libretto himself as planned. Today, the best-known music from the opera is its overture, which Glinka is said to have composed in 24 hours. He became the first composer in the classical tradition to incorporate the whole-tone scale.

This wind band transcription was completed in 2016 by Timothy Rhea, director of bands at Texas A&M University (College Station), for the Texas A&M University Wind Symphony.

- Program Note by transcriber


Unlike Glinka's very successful A Life for the Tsar, the opera Russian and Ludmilla (1837—42) was not a resounding success. The libretto, based on his friend Alexander Pushkin’s fairy tale, had been poorly adapted by various authors until its “wretched completion," as Glinka himself described it. Furthermore, the opera's premiere had been marred by a poor cast. Even with this inauspicious start, the quality of the musical score was undeniable. This became immediately evident to several prominent composers and conductors, including Franz Liszt and Hector Berlioz, who conducted later performances. The overture from the opera has especially endured as one of his most popular and has become a staple of the classical concert repertoire.

- Program Note from U.S. Marine Band concert program, 14 December 2016


Media

(Needed - please join the WRP if you can help.)


State Ratings

None discovered thus far.


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) - 14 February 2019 (2019 TMEA Conference, San Antonio)
  • Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) – 18 November 2018
  • University of Florida (Gainesville) Wind Symphony (John M. Watkins, Jr., conductor) – 11 January 2018
  • Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor) – 2016 *Premiere Performance*


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources