Catalogue W527 Composed 1955 (1955): Publisher Max Eschig | Genre Symphony Published 1955 (1955): Paris | |
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Dedication Serge and Natalie Koussevitzky | ||
Symphony No. 11 is a composition by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, written in 1955. A performance lasts about twenty-five minutes.
Contents
History
On 29 October 1954, along with a number of other prominent composers, Villa-Lobos was commissioned jointly by the Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress and the Boston Symphony Orchestra for a work to celebrate that orchestra's 75th anniversary. In response, he composed his Eleventh Symphony, which was completed in 1955 (Peppercorn 1984, 29). The autograph manuscript of the score, held by the Library of Congress, Washington, DC, is dedicated to Serge and Natalie Koussevitzky. The symphony was first performed in Symphony Hall, Boston, on 2 March 1956 by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the composer (Villa-Lobos, sua obra 2009, 47). The performance was warmly received in the press (Béhague 1994, 28).
Instrumentation
The symphony is scored for an orchestra consisting of 2 piccolos, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, tuba, tímpani, tam-tam, cymbals, triangle, matraca (a wooden rattle), bass drum, marimba, xylophone, celesta, vibraphone, 2 harps, piano, and strings.
Analysis
The symphony is in four movements:
- Allegro Moderato
- Largo
- Scherzo (Molto vivace)
- Molto Allegro