Notes

PROGRAM NOTES FOR OTTORINO RESPIGHI PUBLICATIONS

Overtura Respighiana (2008)

Salvatore Di Vittorio

Overtura Respighiana…Or…Rossiniana 2? In 2007, Salvatore Di Vittorio shared with Potito Pedarra (Respighi archive curator) the idea of composing an overture in homage to Ottorino Respighi, also as a thank you to the Respighi family heirs for their permission for the Chamber Orchestra of New York to honor the composer’s name and to promote his unpublished music.

Di Vittorio’s passion for the music of Respighi developed quite early, and without much of a struggle. He set out from the start to focus on orchestral composition, primarily interested in the program symphony (and the tone poem, as was Respighi) as well as opera.

As of today, a number of Di Vittorio’s premieres have been performed by small chamber orchestras in Italy, who have often programmed his music alongside Respighi. News reviews followed with related comments such as “a post-Mahlerian sound…and an outstanding re-orchestration of ancient Italian folk melodies…as if in the footsteps of Respighi” (Mark Greenfest, New Music Connoisseur).

Initial plans for this homage overture evolved, from a reworking of Respighi’s transcriptions based on Rossini’s piano music “Les Riens” (Rossiniana Suite and La Boutique Fantasque), to realizing a musical connection with Di Vittorio’s own Sinfonia No. 2. The Maestro had observed a strong resemblance between his nursery rhyme motif in the final movement of Sinfonia and Respighi’s ‘children’s theme’ at the beginning of Pines of Rome. If he could achieve a connection in the overture, both of his works could be performed in the same program. He now envisioned a performance of the overture with Sinfonia No. 2 after having received an invitation to perform his revised Sinfonia in Palermo.

As the newly titled Overture Respighiana developed, Mr. Pedarra grew more convinced that a season combining the music of Respighi and related works on Rossini, together with Di Vittorio’s own music on Respighi could realize “a real fusion"…of sound. The Overture and the completed Respighi Violin Concerto have clear musical links that connect them to each other as well as to Respighi’s famous work, Pines of Rome. Likewise, there is an obvious symbiosis between Sinfonia No. 2 and Overtura Respighiana.

Overtura Respighiana begins with a reflection on Pines of Rome, citing a reinvention of the principal motifs of Rossiniana and the ending of Sinfonia No. 2. Di Vittorio’s goal for the introduction was to capture Respighi’s orchestral aesthetic at the beginning of Pines of Rome, but with entirely different and original melodies and notes. This fanfare-like sound then develops into a variation of the well-known March from La Boutique Fantasque – the original source material for Di Vittorio’s originally intended plan to reconstruct the ballet with the same name. An interlude sarabande interrupts, derived from the Valse Lente movement of La Boutique, and then turns into a tarantella dance alla Rossini, with similar bells and whistles concluding with a Rossini crescendo or rocket. Di Vittorio’s original melody for this tarantella is based on the introductory motif which begins the Overture.

Overtura Respighiana fuses Rossini’s influence on Respighi, with their influence on Di Vittorio’s own orchestral musical language.

Concerto per Violino (1903; Completed 2009)

Ottorino Respighi - Salvatore Di Vittorio

Following meetings in 2007, Potito Pedarra entrusted Maestro Di Vittorio with copies of unpublished early Respighi manuscripts, in anticipation of their possible public premieres.

The following year, Pedarra acknowledged Di Vittorio’s inherent musical connection with Ottorino Respighi, and with the Respighi heirs invited the Maestro to complete Respighi’s first (unknown) Concerto per Violino (in A major).

Di Vittorio was incredibly impressed by the beauty of this lyrical and romantic work, left unfinished by Respighi in 1903, which pre-dates his three completed violin concerti: Concerto all’antica (in A minor) in 1908, Concerto Gregoriano in 1921, and the single movement Poema Autunnale in 1925. For Di Vittorio, this first Respighi Violin Concerto not only foreshadows the later Respighi known for Pines of Rome, but harks back to the concerto writing of such masters as Vivaldi if not Mendelssohn.

As for the original manuscript of this Concerto per Violino, Respighi had completed the first two movements and begun the third movement in piano reduction, with only a few measures orchestrated.

Maestro Di Vittorio realized that it would be ideal to maintain the nature and musical integrity of the work, which Respighi himself had demonstrated through his original manuscripts. Di Vittorio modeled the third movement as a sort of rondo of musical ideas, culminating from the newly-revised first two movements. Respighi had already inspired this by creating a third movement principal theme which resembled the thematic material of his first movement. With this in mind, Di Vittorio extended this introductory theme along with others from earlier movements, through a series of developing variations and reinvention.

The concluding work embraces Respighi’s vision. And historically, Respighi’s ending in the first movement foreshadows the great master’s later orchestral colors, trills and fanfares, in his arguably greatest work, Pines of Rome.

Aria (1902; Transcribed 2010)

Ottorino Respighi (Trans. Di Vittorio)

In 2007 Mr. Pedarra entrusted Maestro Di Vittorio with numerous copies of unpublished early Respighi manuscripts, in anticipation of their possible public premieres in New York.

One of these manuscripts was Respighi’s Aria per archi (for strings), which dates to 1902 – or (arguably) 1901, a one movement work. The Aria was also included as one of the final movements of Respighi’s Suite No. 2 for flute and strings (1906).

This beautiful Aria clearly shows Respighi’s affection for the music and composers of the Baroque, especially Vivaldi, Corelli and Frescobaldi. The work is a towering lyrical statement by the young Respighi, who was only at the threshold of what would become a prolific output of 180 works, over 36 transcriptions and several dozen unpublished and unfinished works.

Maestro Di Vittorio has recently transcribed the Aria for publication, making the work accessible for not only string orchestra but string quintet, so that it may be performed more regularly at music conservatories and schools worldwide.

The Chamber Orchestra of New York had introduced the Aria to a private audience at the Italian Cultural Institute of NY on the occasion of their Holiday Concert on December 10, 2008. Tonight marks the official US Premiere of the Aria per archi, recently transcribed by Di Vittorio.

Suite per archi (1903; Revised 2010)

Ottorino Respighi (Rev. Di Vittorio)

The Suite per archi is another unpublished early Respighi manuscript that Di Vittorio received from Mr. Pedarra in Italy. The Suite for strings dates to 1902, and was composed in six movements in the style of the Baroque.

The Ciaccona begins in a reflective manner, a bold and serious music, with an underlying harmonic progression (as with the Baroque chaconne), before shifting to more quick tempi for its remaining variations. The Siciliana, second movement, is light and graceful with its pastoral almost jig-like dance, high soaring notes and melodic turns.

The Giga immediately establishes its quick meter in a scurry of counterpoint. Although an early work of Respighi, the middle section of this movement foreshadows the composer’s later use of trills and tremolos as key effects throughout the orchestra. Nonetheless, with all the excitement in the music, Respighi’s lyricism commands control over all other aspects of his composition. His gift of lyricism is perhaps even more apparent in the Sarabande, with its ever-present tied beats and other sustained sounds. The five movement Burlesca remains playful from beginning to end, rich of ornamentation and introduces the finale Rigaudon – which interupts the previous music with a lively duple meter and declamatory melodies.

The Suite for strings not only introduces us to an incredibly exciting music, which Respighi considered his own Baroque style treatment and homage to the string music of Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), but also allows us keen insight of the master who later composed the well-received Ancient Airs and Dances No. 3 for strings. In effect, the Suite remains a precursor to the third Ancient Airs Suite.

Maestro Di Vittorio has recently revised the Suite in the version we are hearing tonight, for publication as a set together with the Aria, to help the Respighi family heirs promote the earlier works of their great uncle Ottorino Respighi to other professional orchestras around the world.