SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE

The evocation of Spanish imaginary from afar, by Robert Gerhard, and the transformation of French symphonic language in the nineteenth century are the main features of this programme. Gerhard’s Dances from Don Quixote is a suite in three parts, drawn from the ballet Don Quixote which the composer wrote in 1940 after going into exile in England because of the Spanish Civil War. On this occasion, as a way of introducing himself to the English musical establishment, Gerhard turned to Cervantes’ immortal classic, synthesising figures from the Spanish tradition with a very personal use of the twelve-tone technique. The characters are not portrayed via leitmotifs or recurring themes but through distinctive serialist sequences.