Description
This brisk orchestral work is a spin-off of a one-act opera, "Arlecchino, oder Die Fenster (eines theatralisches Capriccio, " op 50, K 270 (1914-1916. (Harlequin, or The Windows (a theatrical caprice)). The subject of the opera is the traditional commedia dell-arte triangle of Matteo, his wife Columbine, and Harlequin. By the end, Harlequin has absconded with Columbine. A sketch for a section of the opera suggested itself to Busoni as an independent orchestral work. While it has some musical connections with the opera, it is not a suite or excerpt of it; it is more like a separate sculpture or carving made from the same piece of marble or wood. The opera and the orchestral piece share a light-hearted, breezy tone which demonstrated that this highly intellectual composer could write music that was basically fun. It was dedicated to the conductor Frederick Stock, but was not heard until Stock conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in it on April 5, 1929, about five years after the composer's death.
Busoni headed the score with a motto: "In motley garb / A supple body, / A sprightly and darting spirit...." He explained that this was a metaphorical description of the music. The "free and fantastic form of the composition" was the "motley garb"; the "supple body" refers to the lithe and athletic tempos and rhythms; and the "content of the piece" is its description of Harlequin's "sprightly and daring spirit." Busoni's program is musical rather than a portrayal of the plot of the opera. He described it in terms of discourse by Harlequin through the members of the orchestra: insisting with the trumpet, whistling in the piccolo, seeking freedom in the nimble violins. ~ All Music Guide
