Respighi pines of Rome. Respighi - Roman trilogy: "The Pines of Rome", "Festivals of Rome", "Fountains of Rome"

French literature is one of the treasures of world culture. It deserves to be read in all countries and in all ages. The problems that French writers raised in their works have always worried people, and the time will never come when they will leave the reader indifferent. Eras, historical surroundings, costumes of characters change, but passions, the essence of relations between men and women, their happiness and suffering remain unchanged. The tradition of the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was continued by modern French writers, writers of the XX century.

Commonality of Russian and French Literary Schools

What do we know about European masters of the word in relation to the recent past? Of course, many countries have made a significant contribution to the overall cultural heritage. Great books were also written by Britain, Germany, Austria, Spain, but in terms of the number of outstanding works, Russian and French writers, of course, occupy the first places. The list of them (both books and authors) is truly huge. It is no wonder that there are multiple publications, there are many readers, and today, in the age of the Internet, the list of adaptations is also impressive. What is the secret of this popularity? Both Russia and France have long-standing humanist traditions. At the head of the plot, as a rule, is not a historical event, no matter how outstanding it is, but a person, with his passions, virtues, shortcomings, and even weaknesses and vices. The author does not undertake to condemn his characters, but prefers to leave the reader to draw his own conclusions about which fate to choose. He even pities those of them who chose the wrong path. There are many examples.

How Flaubert felt sorry for his Madame Bovary

Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in Rouen. The monotony of provincial life was familiar to him from childhood, and even in mature years he rarely left his town, only once having made a long journey to the East (Algeria, Tunisia), and, of course, visited Paris. This French poet and writer composed poems that seemed to many critics then (there is such an opinion today) too melancholy and languid. In 1857, he wrote the novel Madame Bovary, which was notorious at the time. The story of a woman who sought to break out of the hateful circle of everyday life and therefore cheated on her husband then seemed not only controversial, but even indecent.

However, this plot, alas, is quite frequent in life, performed by the great master, far goes beyond the usual obscene anecdote. Flaubert tries, and with great success, to penetrate into the psychology of his characters, towards whom he sometimes feels anger, expressed in merciless satire, but more often - pity. His heroine dies tragically, the despised and loving husband, apparently (this is more likely to be guessed by what is indicated in the text) knows about everything, but sincerely grieves, mourning the unfaithful wife. And Flaubert and other French 19th writers century quite a lot of works devoted to the issues of fidelity and love.

Maupassant

With light hand many literary writers he is considered almost the founder of romantic erotica in literature. This opinion is based on some moments in his works containing immodest, by the standards of the 19th century, descriptions of scenes of an intimate nature. From today's art criticism positions, these episodes look quite decent and, in general, are justified by the plot. Moreover, in the novels, stories and short stories of this remarkable writer, this is not at all the main thing. The first place in importance is again occupied by relationships between people and such personal qualities as depravity, the ability to love, forgive and just be happy. Like other famous French writers, Maupassant studies the human soul and reveals the necessary conditions for his freedom. He is tormented by hypocrisy public opinion”, created just by those who themselves are by no means perfect, but impose their ideas of decency on everyone.

For example, in the story "Zolotar" he describes the story of the touching love of a French soldier for a black resident of the colony. His happiness did not take place, his relatives did not understand his feelings and were afraid of the possible condemnation of the neighbors.

Interesting are the writer's aphorisms about war, which he likens to a shipwreck, and which should be avoided by all world leaders with the same caution as ship captains are afraid of reefs. Maupassant shows observation, opposing low self-esteem to excessive complacency, considering both of these qualities to be harmful.

Zola

No less, and, perhaps, much more shocked the readership of the French writer Emile Zola. He willingly took the life of courtesans (“Trap”, “Nana”), the inhabitants of the social bottom (“The Womb of Paris”) as the basis of the plot, described in detail the hard life of coal miners (“Germinal”) and even the psychology of a murderous maniac (“Man-beast” ). The general literary form chosen by the author is unusual.

He combined most of his works into a twenty-volume collection, which received the general name "Rougon-Macquart". With all the variety of plots and expressive forms, it is something that should be taken as a whole. However, any of Zola's novels can be read separately, which will not make it less interesting.

Jules Verne, fantasy

Another French writer, Jules Verne, needs no introduction, he became the founder of the genre, which later received the definition of "science fiction". What this amazing storyteller did not think of, who foresaw the appearance of nuclear submarines, torpedoes, lunar rockets and other modern attributes that became the property of mankind only in the twentieth century. Many of his fantasies may seem naive today, but novels are easy to read, and this is their main advantage.

In addition, the plots of modern Hollywood blockbusters about dinosaurs resurrected from oblivion look much less plausible than the story of the antediluvian lizards that never died out on a single Latin American plateau, found by brave travelers (“The Lost World”). And the novel about how the Earth screamed from a ruthless prick with a giant needle completely goes beyond the genre, being perceived as a prophetic parable.

Hugo

The French writer Hugo is no less fascinating in his novels. His characters find themselves in a variety of circumstances, showing bright personality traits. Even bad guys(for example, Javert from Les Misérables or Claude Frollo from Notre Dame Cathedral) have a certain charm.

The historical component of the narrative is also important, from which the reader will learn many useful facts with ease and interest, in particular, about the circumstances French Revolution and Bonapartism in France. Jean Voljean from "Les Misérables" became the personification of ingenuous nobility and honesty.

Exupery

Modern French writers, and literary critics include all the writers of the “Heminway-Fitzgerald” era, have also done a lot to make humanity wiser and kinder. The twentieth century did not indulge Europeans in peaceful decades, and memories of the Great War of 1914-1918 soon received a reminiscence in the form of another global tragedy.

The French writer Exupery, a romantic, the creator of the unforgettable image of the Little Prince and a military pilot, did not stand aside from the struggle of honest people around the world against fascism. The posthumous popularity of this writer in the USSR of the fifties and sixties could be envied by many pop stars who performed songs, including those dedicated to his memory and his main character. And today, the thoughts expressed by a boy from another planet still call for kindness and responsibility for their actions.

Dumas, son and father

There were actually two of them, father and son, and both wonderful French writers. Who is not familiar with the famous Musketeers and their true friend D'Artagnan? Numerous film adaptations have glorified these characters, but none of them has been able to convey the charm of the literary source. The fate of the prisoner of If Castle will not leave anyone indifferent ("The Count of Monte Cristo"), and other works are very interesting. They will also be useful for young people whose personal development is just beginning; there are more than enough examples of true nobility in the novels of Dumas Père.

As for the son, he also did not disgrace the famous surname. The novels "Doctor Servan", "Three Strong Men" and other works brightly highlighted the features and bourgeois features of contemporary society, and "The Lady with the Camellias" not only enjoyed well-deserved reader success, but also inspired the Italian composer Verdi to write the opera "La Traviata", she formed the basis of her libretto.

Simenon

The detective story will always be one of the most read genres. The reader is interested in everything in it - and who committed the crime, and motives, and evidence, and the indispensable exposure of the perpetrators. But detective detective strife. One of best writers of the modern era, of course, is Georges Simenon, the creator of the unforgettable image of Maigret, the commissioner of the Parisian police. On my own artistic technique quite common in world literature, the image of a detective-intellectual with an indispensable feature of appearance and a recognizable habit has been repeatedly exploited.

Megre Simenon differs from many of her "colleagues" again in her characteristic French literature kindness and sincerity. He is sometimes ready to meet a stumbled person and even (oh, horror!) Violate individual formal articles of the law, while remaining faithful to him in the main thing, not in the letter, in his spirit ("And yet the hazel is green").

Just a wonderful writer.

gra

If we ignore the past centuries and again mentally return to the present, then the French writer Cedric Gras deserves attention, a great friend of our country, who devoted two books to the Russian Far East and its inhabitants. Having seen many exotic regions of the planet, he became interested in Russia, lived in it for many years, learned the language, which undoubtedly helps him to get to know the notorious “mysterious soul”, about which he is already finishing writing the third book on the same topic. Here, Gras found something that, apparently, he lacked so much in his prosperous and comfortable homeland. He is attracted by some "strangeness" (from the point of view of a European) national character, the desire of men to be courageous, their recklessness and openness. For the Russian reader, the French writer Cédric Gras is interested precisely in this “view from the outside”, which is gradually becoming more and more ours.

Sartre

Perhaps there is no other French writer so close to the Russian heart. Much in his work is reminiscent of another great literary figure of all times and peoples - Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. The first novel by Jean-Paul Sartre Nausea (many consider it the best) affirmed the concept of freedom as an internal category, not subject to external circumstances, to which a person is doomed by the very fact of his birth.

The position of the author was confirmed not only by his novels, essays and plays, but also by his personal behavior, demonstrating complete independence. A man of leftist views, he, nevertheless, criticized the policy of the USSR of the post-war period, which did not prevent him, in turn, from abandoning the prestigious Nobel Prize awarded for allegedly anti-Soviet publications. For the same reasons, he did not accept the Order of the Legion of Honor. Such a nonconformist deserves respect and attention, he is certainly worth reading.

Vive la France!

The article does not mention many other outstanding French writers, not because they are less deserving of love and attention. You can talk about them endlessly, enthusiastically and enthusiastically, but until the reader picks up the book himself, opens it, he does not fall under the spell of wonderful lines, sharp thoughts, humor, sarcasm, light sadness and kindness radiated by the pages . There are no mediocre peoples, but there are, of course, outstanding ones who have made a special contribution to the world treasury of culture. For those who love Russian literature, familiarization with the works of French authors will be especially pleasant and useful.

In the history of Italian music in the first half of the 20th century. Respighi entered as the author of bright program symphonic works (poems "Roman Fountains", "Pins of Rome").

The future composer was born into a family of musicians. His grandfather was an organist, his father was a pianist, he had Respighi and took his first piano lessons. In 1891-99. Respighi studies at the Music Lyceum in Bologna: playing the violin with F. Sarti, counterpoint and fugue with Dall Olio, composition with L. Torqua and J. Martucci. Since 1899 he has performed in concerts as a violinist. In 1900 he wrote one of his first compositions - "Symphonic Variations" for orchestra.

In 1901, as a violinist in the orchestra, Respighi came on tour to St. Petersburg with an Italian opera troupe. Here is a significant meeting with N. Rimsky-Korsakov. The venerable Russian composer coldly greeted the unfamiliar visitor, but after looking at his score, he became interested and agreed to study with the young Italian. The classes lasted 5 months. Under the direction of Rimsky-Korsakov, Respighi wrote Prelude, Chorale and Fugue for orchestra. This essay became his graduation work at the Bologna Lyceum, and his teacher Martucci noted: "Respighi is no longer a student, but a master." Despite this, the composer continued to improve: in 1902 he took composition lessons from M. Bruch in Berlin. A year later, Respighi again visits Russia with the opera troupe, lives in St. Petersburg and Moscow. Having mastered the Russian language, he gets acquainted with the artistic life of these cities with interest, highly appreciating Moscow opera and ballet performances with scenery and costumes by K. Korovin and L. Bakst. Ties with Russia do not stop even after returning to their homeland. A. Lunacharsky studied at the University of Bologna, who later, in the 1920s, expressed the wish that Respighi would come to Russia again.

Respighi is one of the first Italian composers to rediscover half-forgotten pages of Italian music. In the early 1900s he creates a new orchestration of "Ariadne's Lament" by C. Monteverdi, and the composition is successfully performed at the Berlin Philharmonic.

In 1914, Respighi is already the author of three operas, but work in this area does not bring him success. On the other hand, the creation of the symphonic poem The Fountains of Rome (1917) put the composer in the forefront of Italian musicians. This is the first part of a kind of symphonic trilogy: The Fountains of Rome, The Pines of Rome (1924) and The Feasts of Rome (1928). G. Puccini, who knew the composer closely and was friends with him, said: “Do you know who is the first to study Respighi's scores? I. From the Ricordi publishing house I receive the first copy of each of his new scores and more and more admire his unsurpassed art of instrumentation.

Acquaintance with I. Stravinsky, S. Diaghilev, M. Fokin and V. Nijinsky had great importance for creativity Respighi. In 1919 Diaghilev's troupe staged in London his ballet The Miracle Shop, based on the music of piano pieces by G. Rossini.

Since 1921, Respighi has often performed as a conductor, performing his own compositions, touring as a pianist in Europe, the USA, and Brazil. From 1913 until the end of his life, he taught at the Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome, and in 1924-26. is its director.

Respighi's symphonic work uniquely combines modern writing technique, colorful orchestration (the aforementioned symphonic trilogy, "Brazilian Impressions") and a tendency to archaic melody, ancient forms, i.e. elements of neoclassicism. A number of the composer's works were written on the themes of Gregorian chant ("Gregorian Concerto" for violin, "Concerto in Mixolydian mode" and 3 preludes on Gregorian melodies for piano, "Doria Quartet"). Respighi owns free adaptations of the operas The Servant-Mistress by G. Pergolesi, The Feminine Tricks by G. Cimarosa, Orfeo by C. Monteverdi and other works by ancient Italian composers, orchestration of five Etudes-Paintings by S. Rachmaninov, an organ passacaglia in C minor J. S. Bach.

Among the composers of the generation of the 1880s, Ottorino Respighi occupies a special position. Having appeared together with Pizzetti, Malipiero and Casella in the struggle for "arte di avangardia" ("avant-garde art"), he was far from extreme forms of stylistic innovation. His work is based on a kind of fusion of elements of late romanticism (in particular, R. Strauss's symphonic program), Debussy's impressionism, Rimsky-Korsakov's orchestral style. In relation to neoclassicism, Respighi was somewhat at odds with his Italian contemporaries, speaking in defense of romantic traditions, warning against excessive rationalism. He was far from the profound psychologism and grotesque of Malipiero, as well as from the religious aspirations of Pizzetti.

After Puccini, Respighi was the first Italian composer to gain wide recognition throughout the world. But, unlike the author of Tosca, he gained fame primarily for his symphonic works.

Respighi was born on July 9, 1879 in Bologna into a family of musicians. In 1891, at the age of twelve, he entered the music lyceum, where he studied violin and viola, and also studied music theory and composition in the classes of the outstanding connoisseurs of early music L. Torquay and J. Martucci. He thoroughly studies the classics, especially Beethoven and Wagner, and also plays the piano. In 1899, Respighi graduated from the Lyceum in the violin class and began working as a violinist. In the same year, his Symphonic Variations were performed in Bologna - the result of classes in composition.

Having received an invitation to the orchestra of the Italian Opera in St. Petersburg, Respighi worked in this theater for two seasons - 1900/01 and 1901/02. Staying in Russia played a huge role in shaping his creative personality. Five months of studies with Rimsky-Korsakov in 1901 had a particularly great influence on him. In addition to this, the impact general atmosphere Russian artistic life, extremely intense at the beginning of the 20th century. Rapprochement with S. Diaghilev introduced Respighi into the environment of the "World of Art", where he got acquainted with the works of A. Benois, K. Korovin, L. Bakst. He heard outstanding Russian singers (including Chaliapin), an opera orchestra led by Napravnik, symphony concerts Petersburg. All this noticeably influenced the composer: the juiciness, brightness of his orchestral color, a sensitive approach to folk song material, a peculiar coloring of the major-minor with archaic modal turns - in all this one can feel Russian influences.

A stay in Berlin (1902) gives Respighi the opportunity to come into close contact with the work of R. Strauss and other German masters, to continue his professional development with M. Bruch. Meanwhile, he is increasingly trying his hand at composing. In 1902, by the end of the lyceum, he presented the score written in St. Petersburg - Prelude, chorale and fugue for orchestra. His next opuses were the Piano Concerto (1902), Five Pieces for Violin and Piano (1904), Nocturne (1905) and Burlesque for Orchestra, a number of romances. The most significant work of these years is the comic opera "King Enzo" (1905), performed by students of the University of Bologna, with whom Respighi struck up friendly relations (among his friends were A. Lunacharsky, who was studying in Bologna at that time, and the young Spanish composer Joaquin Ning).

Since 1906, Respighi has been participating as a performer on viola and viola d "amour in the Ensemble of Early Music B. Mugelini, and since 1908 he has been working as a pianist at the School of Singing in Berlin. The activity of a professional performer leads him to a deep study of domestic musical classics. For some time he busy editing the works of old Italians.Following the processing of Monteverdi's Lament of Ariadne, he makes transcriptions of Tartini's Pastoral for violin and string quintet, Vitali's Chaconne for violin, string quintet and organ; his adaptations of the solo sonatas of Locatelli, Tartini, Veracini for violin and piano also appear And in 1908 Respighi creates an original Concerto in the old style for violin and orchestra.

Returning to Italy in the middle of 1909, the composer composes a second opera, Semiramide. Its premiere soon took place in Bologna and caused conflicting responses. With its dramatic intensity and complexity of the orchestral fabric, "Semiramide" was reminiscent of "Salome" by R. Strauss, but the vocal parts remained within the limits of traditional Italian melos. The failure befell the composer in the next opera - "Marie-Victoire" (was not staged).

A noteworthy work of 1911 was the poem for mezzo-soprano and orchestra "Arethusa" to the text of P. B. Shelley, marked by the subtle brilliance of orchestral writing.

Although Respighi's works were still little performed at that time, his authority as a composer and performer was already quite high. The individual features of his style were also determined, which were further enriched: expressive, plastic melody (rather instrumental than vocal), diatonic ladotonal thinking, a significant role of harmony, acting as an active factor in shaping and timbre dramaturgy. The richness and variety of texture and rhythm also attracted attention. The most significant achievement of the composer during these years was his mastery of instrumental writing, both orchestral and chamber-ensemble. His instrumental creativity demonstrated bright artistry, virtuosity, timbre richness, perfection of form. However, his style was still largely eclectic.

After moving to Rome in 1913, Respighi became head of the composition class at the Musical Lyceum at the Roman Academy of Santa Cecilia. In the same years, he met Stravinsky, Fokine, Nijinsky and Casals during their visits to Italy. He closely studies the works of Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky, but ignores the experiments of the noise music of the Italian futurists, being indifferent to the work of the composers of the Novovensk school.

Of his works during the First World War, it is worth noting the suite Ancient Songs and Dances for lute created in 1917 (transcription for orchestra). The experience of processing lute music was continued in the second (1923) and third (1931) similar suites.

1917 is a significant date in the work of Respighi. The composer is finishing the four-part symphonic poem " Fountains of Rome"- a work in which his original talent as a symphonist was clearly revealed. From now on, the theme of Rome is affirmed in his art, which will repeatedly declare itself in subsequent works. The first performance of the poem was not very successful, the response of the public was restrained, the reviews of critics were contradictory, in some judgments an obvious misunderstanding of the significance of this innovative program for the Italian program was expressed. symphonic music works. A year later, the great Toscanini conducted The Fountains of Rome, and this time they evoked an enthusiastic reception from the public and critics and brought wide fame to the author of the poem.

In Rome, a city where the past and present of Italian culture are intricately intertwined, Respighi found for himself inexhaustible source inspiration. In this case, his attention was drawn to the fountains, which are considered one of the main attractions of the Italian capital. As an essential detail of architecture, they decorate squares, gardens, facades of palaces, streets, successfully fitting into the ensemble of the city and the surrounding landscape. The composer made four famous fountains "heroes" of his first symphonic poem and, according to this plan, prefaced its parts with the following headings: "Fountain "Balle Giulia" at dawn", "Fountain" Triton "in the morning", "Trevi Fountain" at noon " , "Fountain of the Villa Medici at the setting sun."

"Balle Giulia", one of the most ancient Roman fountains, according to the author's program is associated with the landscape of the city outskirts. The Triton Fountain is located in Piazza Barberini; it is characterized by sculptural images of mythological creatures - bizarre figures of tritons, naiads and sirens, which seem to be moving through jets of water. The Trevi Fountain - the most famous of the Roman fountains - was built to decorate one of the facades of the Polo Palace; the center of its composition is a mighty statue of the god of the seas, Neptune, standing on a huge shell-chariot and ruling eight giant seahorses. The fountain of the Villa Medici is a single ensemble with the villa itself.

The first part of the poem is an impressionistic landscape, which is created with the help of subtle orchestral colors; it is one of the first prominent examples of impressionistic writing in Italian music. The second part is solved in a different way: here the static-landscape character of the music is replaced by dancing. This fantastic scherzo is the most dynamic part of the poem. It begins with a quick introduction, creating the impression of a powerful rise of the fountain jet. the main role in achieving this effect belongs to the horns, whose loud cry is emphasized by the rapid ascent of the rest of the instruments of the orchestra.

During the First World War, when the possibilities of concert activities were greatly reduced, Respighi worked a lot on translations into Italian language"Mobile counterpoint of strict writing" by Taneyev and "Teachings on Harmony" by Schoenberg (although these translations were not completed). He does not leave creativity either: in 1917 he composed a magnificent Sonata for violin and piano and five romances, in 1918 - chamber poems "Sunset" and "Mimosa" to Shelley's verses for voice and string quartet. Then, commissioned by Diaghilev, he wrote the ballet The Shop of Miracles (based on piano pieces by Rossini), which was successfully presented in London in June 1919*.

* The Shop of Miracles was the second of the ballets ordered by Diaghilev, based on the processing of works by the old masters of Italian music: in 1917 in Rome, his troupe performed for the first time V. Tommasini’s ballet “Women of good character” (after C. Goldoni) to music sonata D. Scarlatti; the third "Italian" ballet was Stravinsky's "Pulcinella" to the music of Pergolesi (the premiere took place in Paris in 1919).

In 1920, responding to the revival of interest in the ballet genre in Italy, caused by the impressions of the performances of the Diaghilev troupe, the composer wrote the ballet The Magic Pot (based on Russian musical material).

Respighi's instrumental creativity is also developing. In 1920, he created the orchestral Ballad of the Dwarfs, and in 1921, the Three Preludes on Gregorian Melodies for Piano, remarkable for their subtlety, were created. No less remarkable in terms of poetry and wise brevity of writing are Four Armenian Songs for voice and piano (1921). The undoubted achievements of the composer are the Gregorian Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (1922), which is an attractive and sensitive interpretation of the old mode, and the Dorian Quartet for Strings (1924), which is severe in color. They are followed by the Piano Concerto in the Myceolydian mode (1924) and the brilliant symphonic poem Pines of Rome, which was performed in the Augusteum hall under the baton of Toscanini with a triumphant success.

Simultaneously with the creation of the above-mentioned instrumental works, in 1921-1923 Respighi worked on the comic opera Belfagor after G. Hauptmann, the libretto of which was written by his friend, writer C. Guastalla, who became the librettist of all subsequent operas of the composer. In Belfagor, Respighi draws on the principles of the musical dramaturgy of Verdi's Falstaff. And in his further operatic work, the principles of late Verdi's operatic dramaturgy played a decisive role.

Far from political life, during the years of fascism, Respighi remained aloof from the spiritual struggle of the oppositional Italian intelligentsia. At the same time, the authority of the world-famous composer helped him maintain some creative independence.

Since 1924, Respighi, overburdened with the duties of rector of the Santa Cecilia Conservatory *,

* In 1919, the Musical Lyceum at the Santa Cecilia Academy was transformed into a conservatory.

writes almost nothing. However, in the second half of the 1920s, he returned to creativity. In 1927 he completed the four-act opera The Sunken Bell based on Hauptmann's drama of the same name (libretto by Guastalla). It was staged with great success in November of the same year in Hamburg, and then on a number of opera stages in Europe, the USA and Argentina. But Respighi's most significant achievements were in the field of symphonic music. First of all, the Botticelli Triptych for string orchestra (1927) should be mentioned here, the figurative content of which is inspired by Botticelli's paintings "Spring", "Adoration of the Magi", "The Birth of Venus". It is impossible not to admire the refined skill of the composer, who based the first part of the triptych folk dance genres, the second - folk Christmas songs, the third - the captivating melody of cellos based on ancient Greek modes. The orchestral suite "Church Stained Glass" (1926) is attractive, consisting of the parts "Flight into Egypt", "Archangel Michael", "Morning of St. Clara" and "St. Gregory the Great". Her music, imbued with high poetry, is marked at the same time by features of naive archaism and immediacy; the sense of sound color peculiar to the author, virtuoso mastery of orchestral means, was fully manifested in it.

In 1927, Respighi wrote the Birds suite for small orchestra - another example of the creative rethinking of borrowed old material, characteristic of the era (remember Stravinsky) and for Respighi himself. The suite opens with a short Prelude on a theme by the 17th-century composer B. Pasquini, followed by the play Dove, based on an adaptation of an elegant theme by the 17th-century French lutenist A. Gallo; the third part - "Chicken" - is written on the theme of J.-F. Rameau, the fourth - "The Nightingale" - on the theme of an unknown English lute player of the 16th century (Respighi introduces a witty parody of Wagner's "Rustle of the Forest" into its development). The Toccata that concludes the suite is written on the theme of Pasquini's Cuckoo.

In 1929 Respighi completed the monumental symphonic poem " Roman festivities”, which together with the “Fountains of Rome” and “The Pines of Rome” formed a symphonic trilogy.

It is in the "Roman festivities" that the most vividly manifested national traits music of Respighi. The composer makes extensive use of Italian folklore, the expressive possibilities of which are skillfully revealed by means of modern musical writing. From folklore, he borrows intonation-rhythmic features, genre imagery, which he skillfully implements with the help of bold methods of orchestral writing, based on the virtuoso use of the expressiveness of instrumental timbres. The huge orchestra of the poem is notable for the expansion of the percussion group (due to the large role of the rhythmic beginning in this work) and woodwinds, the use of such unusual instruments like mandolin, soprano buccin, piano, organ.

The first part of the poem - "The Circus Spectacle" - introduces the Roman crowd into the atmosphere of rampant passions, waiting in the circus for the start of a cruel, bloody performance. It is built on a contrasting opposition of images hostile to each other - Christian martyrs, animals and the crowd. The second part - "Jubilee" - takes listeners to the Rome of the Middle Ages *.

* Jubilee - a holiday introduced by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300 to attract pilgrims (those who visited Rome in the jubilee year were forgiven for all sins). Initially, it was held once every hundred years, but then, in an effort to receive huge incomes that the visits of pilgrims brought to the Catholic Church, they began to organize the Jubilee celebration after fifty and even twenty-five years.

The composer here refers to the Gregorian chant, on the intonations of which the main topic this part. The music depicts a crowd of pilgrims heading towards the center of the Catholic world and wearily singing a sad choral tune. Gradually, as they approach Rome, the pilgrims are seized with spiritual uplift and the chorale turns into a jubilant hymn. The third part of the poem - "October Holiday" - takes us to the Renaissance, it draws folk fun, which is contrasted with episodes that convey the atmosphere of poetically sublime feelings and thoughts of people of that time. This movement is based on a whimsical alternation of episodes freely passing into each other, forming a kaleidoscopically bright musical form free in structure. The poem ends with a picture of a mass celebration in one of the large squares of Rome ("The Feast of Baptism"). In the finale, the image of the people is vividly captured - the true owner of the great city. We are presented with an amazing picture of exuberant, diverse in nature folk jubilation, masterfully conveyed by the composer with the intonations of Italian song and dance.

subtle understanding musical styles different eras brilliantly manifested itself in two orchestral transcriptions of Respighi - Chaconne by J. S. Bach (1929), performed at the request of Toscanini and took a firm place in the programs of the great conductor, and orchestral adaptation of five etudes-paintings by Rachmaninoff, which aroused the delight of their author. In addition to the Chaconne, other Bach transcriptions were also created: Prelude and Fugue in D-dur (1930), Three organ chorales (1931), Passacaglia in c-moll (1934). In terms of style of writing, the original work of 1930 adjoins them - Metamorphoses fanned with archaic poetry in the XII mode (theme with variations). The latest work, which completed the instrumental line of Respighi's work, was the Concerto for oboe, horn, violin, double bass, piano and string orchestra (1934), written in the concerto grosso genre. Let us mention the theatrical works of these years: the ballet Balkis, the Queen of Sheba (1931) based on the motives of Arabic and Jewish folklore, as well as the mystery Mary of Egypt (1932).

In 1932, Respighi, along with a group of other composers, published a manifesto calling for strengthening ties with national traditions. The manifesto also contained a call for the revival of the romantic culture of feelings and a protest against withering rationalism. modernist movements(First of all, the dodecaphony of the Novovensk school was meant, but criticism was also directed against neoclassicism, which caused Respighi to diverge from Casella and Malipiero). Under the conditions of the fascist dictatorship, the manifesto had a dual meaning: a call to follow national traditions played into the hands of the nationalist tendencies of the regime, while the desire to return music to the emotionality of a romantic plan should have warned composers against the danger of abstract rationalism.

Also in 1932, Respighi was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Italy. The onset of heart disease severely limited his concert activity, and on April 18, 1936, he died in Rome. His last musical and stage work - "Lucretia" (according to the author's genre definition, "story") to the libretto by Guastalla - remained unfinished and was completed by the composer's wife and student Elsa Respighi. Among the composer's later works, mention should be made of his free reconstruction of Monteverdi's opera Orpheus, as well as the arrangement of B. Marcello's cantata Dido (1935).

In the history of Italian music in the first half of the 20th century. Respighi entered as the author of bright program symphonic works (poems "Roman Fountains", "Pins of Rome").

Acquaintance with I. Stravinsky, S. Diaghilev, M. Fokin and V. Nijinsky was of great importance for Respighi's work. In 1919 Diaghilev's troupe staged in London his ballet The Miracle Shop, based on the music of piano pieces by G. Rossini.

V. Ilyeva

O.Respighi Symphonic poem"The Pines of Rome" (1924)

1. Pines of Villa Borghese

2. Pines at the Catacombs

3. Pine trees on Janiculi

4. The pines of the Appian Way

In Rome, a city where the past and present of Italian culture are intricately intertwined, Respighi found an inexhaustible source of inspiration for himself. It is noteworthy, however, that by depicting the city in the famous triptych of symphonic poems ("The Fountains of Rome", "The Pines of Rome", "Roman Festivals"), the composer is far from the motives of modern urbanism. His Rome is a city of fountains adorned with pines, Rome "eternal", not modern. The four parts of the "Pinias" refer not so much to urban landscapes as to Roman history.

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