Capriccio Italien

One would expect that someone's musings over the folk tunes of the Italian countryside to be light-hearted and jovial. However, Capriccio Italien was written by Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, and therefore, we can assume otherwise. Don't be mislead by me though; this piece certainly is lighthearted and jovial, however, only half of it is. In no way do I mean to mock Tchaikovsky's music either, for I am certainly a big fan of his music. Sometimes I wonder why some of his music expresses such extremes- of loneliness and hurt, and othertimes triumph and wonder. But through those extremes, I always feel like there is a sublime force pulsing through his music.

The beginning of this piece starts of with trumpet call, supposedly the Italian post's military bugle call. The strings then lead a somber melody, the woodwinds take over with the strings playing underneath and then the trumpet cuts through with the military call again. The winds finish this somber melody and the music slows down until it stops. Out of the silence, the oboes lead a folk tune. The strings then embellish this tune with ascending scales until the music changes themes into a full-out dance.

In case we had forgotten the melancholy theme from before, Tchaikovsky brings it back after such a jolly theme. Then, we get a sort of mix of the dance theme and the somber theme in a sort of tarantella. This tarantella is then turned into a new theme accompanied by heavy percussion and ends with a loud, brilliant flourish.

Here is Part One
Part Two

The Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra led by Antal Dorati