Zigeunerweisen

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Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs) (Op. 20) is a piece for violin and orchestra (or violin and piano) by the Spanish composer and virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate. It is Sarasate's most popular composition and is a favorite among violin virtuosos. It has been recorded many times by such notable violinists as Zino Francescatti, Jascha Heifetz, Itzhak Perlman, Kyung-Wha Chung, Midori Goto and Anne-Sophie Mutter. It has also been played in the 2003 film, Together.

Written in 1878 and premiered in Leipzig that year, Zigeunerweisen is based on themes of the Roma people, specifically the rhythms of the csárdás. Zigeunerweisen is in C minor. A performance will usually take about eight minutes.

[edit] Composition

Zigeunerweisen is a piece in one movement, but can be divided into four sections based on the tempi:

1. Moderato: an imposing, virtuosic introduction with slow majestic energy by the orchestra, then a little softer by the violin itself.
2. Lento: the violin plays in lugubrious lento 4/4. This section has an improvisational quality; the melody, which essentially consists of pairs of 4-bar phrases, is punctuated with difficult runs and other technically demanding figures, including flying spiccato and ricochet bowings.
3. Un poco più lento 2/4 - The muted soloist plays a melancholic melody with the so-called reverse-applied dotted note (1/16 + dotted 1/8 rhythm).
4. Allegro molto vivace 2/4 - At this point, the piece becomes extremely rapid. The challenging solo part consists mainly of long spicatto runs, along with double stops, artificial harmonics and left-hand pizzicato.

[edit] External links

• Bojidara Kouzmanova Playing Zigeunerweisen