Front cover of the piano transcription of Bizet’s L’Arlésienne , reflecting the work’s popularity beyond the theatre. The Second Suite from L’Arlésienne was compiled after Georges Bizet ’s death by Ernest Guiraud , a close friend and collaborator of the composer. Drawing material from Bizet’s original incidental music for Alphonse Daudet’s play, Guiraud selected three movements and—somewhat unexpectedly—added a Menuet borrowed from Bizet’s rarely performed opera The Fair Maid of Perth (1866). Although the suite lacks some of the stark dramatic tension and rural tragedy that permeate the original stage music, it remains a brilliantly crafted orchestral work , immensely popular in the concert repertoire for its color, vitality, and melodic charm. Movements : I. Pastorale The opening Pastorale is orchestral scene-painting at its finest. A firm, almost relentless rhythmic motion evokes villagers returning from the fields under the oppressive midday sun. This earthy momentum is ...
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