William Tell Overture
The William Tell Overture is the instrumental introduction to the opera Guillaume Tell (in English, William Tell) by Gioachino Rossini. William Tell premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, after which he went into semi-retirement, although he continued to compose cantatas, sacred music and secular vocal music. The overture is in four parts, each following the next without pause. There has been repeated use (and sometimes parody) of parts of this overture in both classical music and popular media, most famously as the theme music for the Lone Ranger radio and television shows. Franz Liszt prepared a piano transcription of the overture in 1838 (S.552) which became a staple of his concert repertoire.[1] There are also transcriptions by other composers, including versions by Louis Gottschalk for two and four pianos and a duet for piano and violin.[2]
Contents |
[edit] Instrumentation
The overture is scored for: a piccolo, a flute, two oboes (first or second oboe doubles a cor anglais), two clarinets in A, two bassoons, four horns in G and E, two trumpets in E, three trombones, timpani, triangle, bass drum and cymbals, and strings.
[edit] Structure
The overture, which lasts for approximately 12 minutes, paints a musical picture of life in the Swiss Alps, the setting of the opera.[3] It was described by Berlioz (who usually loathed Rossini's works) as "a symphony in four parts",[4] but unlike a symphony with its discrete movements, the overture's parts transition from one to the next without any break.
- Prelude, Dawn
The Prelude is a slow passage in E major, scored for five solo cellos accompanied by double basses. It begins with a solo cello which is in turn 'answered' by the remaining cellos and the double basses. An impending storm is hinted at by two very quiet timpani rolls resembling distant thunder. The section ends with a very high sustained note played by the first cello.[5]
- Storm
This dynamic section in E minor is played by the full orchestra. It begins with the violins and violas. Their phrases are punctuated by short wind instrument interventions of three notes each, first by the piccolo, flute and oboes, then by the clarinets and bassoons. The storm breaks out in full with the entrance of the horns, trumpets, trombones, and bass drum. The volume and number of instruments gradually decreases as the storm subsides. The section ends with the flute playing alone.[5]
- Ranz des Vaches
This pastorale section in G major signifying the calm after the storm begins with a Ranz des Vaches or "Call to the Cows", featuring the cor anglais (English horn). The horn then plays in alternating phrases with the flute, culminating in a duet with the triangle accompanying them in the background.[5] This segment is often used in animated cartoons to signify daybreak, most notably in Walt Disney's The Old Mill.[6]
- Finale
The Finale (in E major like the Prelude), "March of the Swiss Soldiers" is an ultra-dynamic "cavalry charge" galop heralded by trumpets and played by the full orchestra. This segment is often used in popular media to denote galloping horses, a race, or a hero riding to the rescue, and it became the Lone Ranger theme music.[7] It is also quoted by Dmitri Shostakovich in the first movement of his Symphony No. 15.[8]
[edit] Cultural references
 |
The United States Marine Corps Band performs a brass band transcription of the complete William Tell Overture
|
| Problems listening to this file? See media help. | |
Described by David Wondrich as a "frequent target of plunder by brass bands in the years during which they dominated the American musical landscape", the overture features prominently in Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse cartoon, The Band Concert.[9] It has also been used in cartoons parodying classical music (e.g. Bugs Bunny's Overtures to Disaster in which the overture's finale is performed by Daffy Duck and Porky Pig) or Westerns (e.g. Bugs Bunny Rides Again).[10] In Yankee Doodle Daffy, the title character even gives lyrics to the finale.
One of the most frequently used pieces of classical music in American advertising, the overture (especially its finale) appears in numerous ads,[11] with psychologist Joan Meyers-Levy suggesting that it is particularly suitable for those targeting male consumers.[12] It was used in a hip-hop version by DJ Shadow to accompany the 2001 "Defy Convention" advertisement campaign for Reebok athletic shoes, in an electronic version for a 2008 Honda Civic campaign and the video game Catherine.[13][14]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Hamilton, Kenneth (2005). The Cambridge Companion to Liszt. Cambridge University Press, p. 82. ISBN 0521622042
- ^ Starr, S. Frederick (2000). Louis Moreau Gottschalk. University of Illinois Press, pp. 84 and 180. ISBN 0252068769
- ^ Kinscella, Hazel Gertrude (1941/2005). Music and Romance. Kessinger Publishing, pp. 389-390. ISBN 1417995947
- ^ Rous, Samuel Holland (1921). The Victrola Book of the Opera 6th Edition. Victor Talking Machine Company, p. 426
- ^ a b c Rudel, Anthony J. (1995). "William Tell Overture" in Classical Music Top 40. Simon and Schuster, pp. 271-276. ISBN 0671794957
- ^ Tietyen, David (1990). The Musical World of Walt Disney. Publisher H. Leonard. ISBN 0881884766
- ^ Studwell, William Emmett (1997). The Americana Song Reader. Routledge, pp. 90-91. ISBN 0789001500
- ^ Greetham, David (2010). The Pleasures of Contamination: Evidence, Text, and Voice in Textual Studies. Indiana University Press, p. 2. ISBN 0253222168
- ^ Wondrich, David (2002). "I love to hear a minstrel band: Walt Disney's The Band Concert" in The Cartoon Music Book (edited by Daniel Goldmarkand Yuval Taylor), pp. 67-72. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 1556524730
- ^ Goldmark, Daniel (2005). Tunes for 'toons: music and the Hollywood cartoon. University of California Press, p. 39. ISBN 0520236173
- ^ Twitchell, James B. (1996). Adcult USA: The triumph of advertising in American culture. Columbia University Press, p. 27. ISBN 0231103247.
- ^ Meyers-Levy, Joan (1993). "Gender Differences in Cortical Organization: Social and Biochemical Antecedents and Advertising Consequences" in Attention, Attitude, and Affect in Response to Advertising (edited by E. Clark, T. Brock, and D. Stewart). Routledge, p. 117. ISBN 080580756X
- ^ Hickey, Lisa (2002). Design secrets: 50 real-life projects uncovered. Rockport Publishers, p. 145. ISBN 1564966631
- ^ Alana Semuels, Alana (October 13, 2008). "New way to tout cars: a musical road". Los Angeles Times
- Further reading
- Kirby, Percival R. (1952). "Rossini's Overture to 'William Tell'", Music & Letters, Vol. 33, No. 2 (April 1952), pp. 132–140 (subscription required)
"Rossini's Overture to 'William Tell in Harmonica'"
[edit] External links
- William Tell. Free scores at the International Music Score Library Project, including Rossini's original score and variations and transcriptions by Louis Niedermeyer, Louis Gottschalk, and Franz Liszt.
|
||||||||||||||
