Overture Magazine: 2016-2017 Season May-June 2017 | Page 24

{ program notes
T ill E ulenspiegel ’ s M erry P ranks
Richard Strauss
Born in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, June 11,
1864; died in Garmisch-Partenkirchen,
Germany, September 8, 1949
Richard Strauss’ ticket to international
fame at the age of 24 was his extraor-
dinarily vivid orchestral tone poem
about the world’s most infamous lover,
Don Juan. Some six years later, in 1894,
another legendary anti-hero seized his
imagination: the peasant rogue Till
Eulenspiegel.
The real Till lived in 14 th -century
Brunswick, Germany and died, some
say, of the Black Fever. Many stories
sprang up about him in the following
centuries, and Strauss had read the
Belgian Charles de Coster’s 1865 version
and had seen a newly composed opera
on the subject.
Strauss considered writing a Till
opera, but the recent failure of his opera
Guntram suggested the orchestral tone-
poem genre might be a better fit. Till
Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, After the
Old Rogue’s Tale, Set in Rondo Theme for
Large Orchestra — to give the composer’s
unwieldy full title — premiered in
Cologne on November 5, 1895 and has
been celebrated ever since for its exuber-
ant musical delineation of character as
well as its orchestral wizardry.
Till is a true folk hero:
a crafty, quick-witted peasant
who delights in making
fools of the rich,
learned and powerful.
Till is a true folk hero: a crafty, quick-
witted peasant who delights in making
fools of the rich, learned and powerful.
Strauss gave his career a new ending:
death on the gallows. But that was not
because he didn’t love the character; he
simply loved a dramatic ending more.
After a “once-upon-a-time” string
opening, Till’s principal theme is
introduced: a mocking (and devilishly
hard to play!) horn theme, repeated
by other woodwind instruments.
Till’s own instrument — the small,
squeaky-toned clarinet in D — soon
enters with a shorthand version of
his theme: a quick down-and-up
flip. Till rides pell-mell through the
marketplace on a (presumably stolen)
horse, masquerades as a priest with an
unctuously pious viola tune, enjoys a
little love scene (solo violin) and has
other adventures. The music graphically
portrays his narrow escapes and cackling
laugh. But at the height of his deviltry,
with his themes running riot in the
orchestra, the law closes in. With an
ominous drum roll and heavy blasts
of horns and trombones, his judges
pronounce the death sentence, while the
Till clarinet squeaks his defense. Till’s
body flies up on the gallows. But Strauss
provides a happy epilogue: a reprise of
the once-upon-a-time opening music and
a last laugh from Till’s irrepressible spirit.
Instrumentation: Three flutes, piccolo, three
oboes, English horn, two clarinets, E-flat
clarinet, bass clarinet, three bassoons, con-
trabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three
trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, strings.
Notes by Janet E. Bedell, Copyright ©2017
The BSO
The real Till lived in
14 -century Brunswick,
Germany and died
in his bed, some say of
the Black Fever.
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