Canción y Danza No. 6 (1943/2023)
A wind band transcription of the original work for solo piano of the same title by Federico Mompou.
Catalan composer Federico Mompou (1893-1987) was born in Barcelona and educated at the Barcelona Conservatory. A skilled pianist, Mompou’s extremely shy demeanor prevented him from being a concert performer and he focused instead on composing. Mompou is known as a miniaturist, one whose compositional characteristics tend toward shorter, stand-alone works for small forces. He wrote almost exclusively for solo piano and guitar, with his works becoming popular during the inter-war years in Paris. Mompou moved from Paris back to Barcelona in 1941, and remained there until his death.
Noted music critic and pianist Dean Elder wrote this description of the composer:
“Mompou’s music is introspective, personal, sensuous, sometimes song-like, sometimes dance-like, with popular folk quality. Often tinged with sadness, the music is dreamy and impressionistic, but always melodic and colorful – exquisite miniatures. For students Mompou is a delightful discovery, and for concert artists he is a beloved friend.”
This particular piece is the sixth in a series of fifteen songs and dances which Mompou wrote over the course of his career. Spanning from 1918 to 1972, each of the pieces in the series presents a slow song and lively dance. Song and Dance number six contains all original musical content, and was dedicated to the famed concert pianist Arthur Rubinstein who would frequently perform it as an encore. It is the hope of the transcriber that the translation of Mompou’s work to wind band will encourage audiences to seek out and enjoy his compositions which are relatively unknown outside the world of solo piano performance. The band transcription was premiered on October 26, 2023 by the Indiana University Wind Ensemble, Christopher M. Nelson, transcriber and conductor.
Score and sound not available due to licensing restrictions. A recording of the original work, performed by Mompou himself, can be found at the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW7qrf3aWG0
Catalan composer Federico Mompou (1893-1987) was born in Barcelona and educated at the Barcelona Conservatory. A skilled pianist, Mompou’s extremely shy demeanor prevented him from being a concert performer and he focused instead on composing. Mompou is known as a miniaturist, one whose compositional characteristics tend toward shorter, stand-alone works for small forces. He wrote almost exclusively for solo piano and guitar, with his works becoming popular during the inter-war years in Paris. Mompou moved from Paris back to Barcelona in 1941, and remained there until his death.
Noted music critic and pianist Dean Elder wrote this description of the composer:
“Mompou’s music is introspective, personal, sensuous, sometimes song-like, sometimes dance-like, with popular folk quality. Often tinged with sadness, the music is dreamy and impressionistic, but always melodic and colorful – exquisite miniatures. For students Mompou is a delightful discovery, and for concert artists he is a beloved friend.”
This particular piece is the sixth in a series of fifteen songs and dances which Mompou wrote over the course of his career. Spanning from 1918 to 1972, each of the pieces in the series presents a slow song and lively dance. Song and Dance number six contains all original musical content, and was dedicated to the famed concert pianist Arthur Rubinstein who would frequently perform it as an encore. It is the hope of the transcriber that the translation of Mompou’s work to wind band will encourage audiences to seek out and enjoy his compositions which are relatively unknown outside the world of solo piano performance. The band transcription was premiered on October 26, 2023 by the Indiana University Wind Ensemble, Christopher M. Nelson, transcriber and conductor.
Score and sound not available due to licensing restrictions. A recording of the original work, performed by Mompou himself, can be found at the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW7qrf3aWG0