The Sorcerer's Apprentice Flashcards
Who by and when was The Sorcerer’s Apprentice composed?
1897 by Paul Dukas
What is the programme of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice?
- Young aprentice uses magic to bring a broom alive to fetch water
- The spell goes out of control flooding the area
- Sorcerer returns to restore order
What influences does The Sorcerer’s Apprentice have?
Romanitc + impressionistic
Based on a poem by Goethe
Dukas was a perfectionist
What are the 4 main themes in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice?
- Broom theme
- Apprentce Theme
- Water theme
- Sorcerers call
Give details about The Broom Theme in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Used as the 1st theme of the sonata
- Played first slowly in clarinet
- Ostinato
- Repetitive lumbering theme on basssons in exposition (comically awkward)
- Mostly homophonic + block chords
- Passed from strings onto muted trumpet
- Mimics marching movement of brooms carrying water
- Builds gradually, increasing intensity to full orchestra
Give key details about The Apprentice Theme in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Suddenly introduced at Vivo (lively) tempo
- Playful, mischeavous melody on clarinet
- Represents apprentice’s curiosity
- Arrives in dominant key in exposition
Give key details about The Water Theme in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Connects themes together (not a main focus)
- Exotic harmony but never developed
- Subtly introduced in texture
Give key details about The Sorcer’s Call Theme/Motiff in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Always contains apprentice theme underneath
- Only appears in sepcific moments (end of development + end of recapitulation
- Legato to show magic
Give key details about rhythm and tempo in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Constantly changing meter
- Dotted woodwind + brass whythm related to opening motif in development
- Staccato transformed motif in development
- Imitation between wind + strings
- Irregular phrases + syncopation
Give key details about orchestration + texture in The Sorcerer’s Apprenticem
- Ethereal high tremelo strings in introduction
- Harp harmonics in introduction give mystical feeling
- Intro uses muted strigs for duller + thicker sound
- Hand stopping in bras creates raspy tone
- Bow bounced on strings for addded texture
- Descending sequence in strings + rising sequences in woodwinds
- Contrabassoon + bass clarinet after development creates grotesque atmosphere
- Rising homophonic fanfare played 3x as apprentice’s panic increases
- Timpani used to clearly end introduction
- Lots of sudden dynamic contrast
Give key details about the structure and form of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Loose Sonata form
- Slow intro presents all 4 themes one by one (like in classical symphonies) - story unfolds after
Exposition
- Introduces main themes +they battle for dominance
Recapitulation
- Broom reawakens + battle resumes
- Broom + sorcerer’s call act in counterpoint
- Sorcerer eurpts in brass ff fanfare
Coda
- All themes presented partialy and/or completely
- Water theme in viola
- Broom theme in bassoon
- Solo viola plays fragments of apprentice theme
- Ends with famous final broom stroke
Give key details about the development section of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Begins piano
- Themes confront each other
- Water theme interjects themes with chromatic accompaniment
- Themes fragmented + altered
- Articulations change (staccato becomes legato)
- Increased chromaticism increases instability
- Climax at sorcerer’s call with ascending scale to add tension
- Shortens note values to add sense of acceleration
- Tempo gradually slows after + contrabasson + bass clarinet create dark, eerie atmosphere
Give key details about harmony and tonality in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Main key: Fmin + Cmin
- Tonality not established in intro - dim7th chord used
- Apprentice theme first played in Gmin
- Broom motif uses pedal point
- Chromatic passing chords
Comparisons that can be made to The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
- Dramatic orchestration + vivid storytelling reminiscent of Berlioz Symphony Fantastique
- Colourful woodwind writing simrilar to Tchaikosvsky’s The Nutcracker
