Capriccio (Janáček)

Capriccio for piano (left hand) and chamber ensemble (sometimes titled Defiance, in Czech: "Vzdor") is a composition by the Czech composer Leoš Janáček. The work was written in the autumn of 1926 and is remarkable not just in the context of Janáček's output, but it also occupies an exceptional position in the literature written for piano played only by the left handScore, p. XXI.] . The piece is scored for piano, flute, two trumpets, three trombones and tenor tuba.

Background

The work was composed at the request of pianist Otakar Hollmann, who lost his right hand during World War I. In the early 1920s he tried to persuade contemporary composers for collaboration in composing pieces for left hand, and gradually enlisted the help of Jaroslav Tomášek, Václav Kaprál, Erwin Schulhoff, Bohuslav Martinů and finally Leoš Janáček. It was not easy, as during the first meeting Janáček refused to write such a work, declaring: "But, my dear boy, why do you want to play with one hand? It's hard to dance when you have only one leg."Score, p. XVI.] However, he later agreed and in the summer of 1927 Hollmann started to study the new composition. The first private hearing of the work took place on February 6, 1928 at Janáček's apartment in Brno, to Janáček's satisfaction. The preparations for the premiere of Capriccio were led by the conductor Jaroslav Řídký. Janáček observed with humour that the trombonists were forced to practise their parts at home.Score, p. XIX.]

The premiere took place on March 2, 1928 in the Smetana Hall of the Municipal Cultural Center in Prague, with conductor Jaroslav Řídký and five Czech Philharmonic members: Václav Máček (flute), Evžen Šerý and František Trnka (trumpets), Antonín Bok, Jaroslav Šimsa and Gustav Tyl (trombones) and with Antonín Koula (tenor tuba).

Janáček often called the piece "Vzdor" (Defiance) in his letters to Kamila Stösslová.

The first edition of the Capriccio was prepared by Jarmil Burghauser in 1953. Nowadays it is played regularly at concerts and for recordings.

Structure

The composition consists of four movements:

# Allegro
# Adagio
# Allegretto
# Andante

The work shows typical traits of Janáček's mature creative period. All parts are composed in a fairly free form, with the first and last movement having outlines of the sonata form. The elements of structure are divided among all of the instruments and, unlike other works (as in the case of his Concertino) the piano does not always have a leading role. The composer made all the instruments parts equally important.

In the work very unusual demands are placed on the individual instruments, with the brass parts in particular containing difficult passages.

Footnotes

References

*Janáček, Leoš: "Capriccio for piano (left hand) and wind ensemble". Full score and parts. Prague: Editio Bärenreiter, 2001. H 7826 (BA 6856). ISMN M-2601-0126-5

External links

* [http://www.almanachlabyrint.cz/knihy/32106/capriccio-pro-klavir-levou-rukou-a-soubor-dechovych-nastroju/ Czech info]