Alkan - Suite No. 3 Op. 65 - Chants

Filename: Alkan - Suite No. 3 Op. 65 - Chants File author: Gennarino File uploaded: 02 Sep 2011 File category: Sheet Music In 1864 Charles-Valentin Alkan composed Op. 65, Recueil de Chants, also known as the Third Suite, probably the best of the five suites. The work consists of six movements, which are: - Vivante - E major - Esprits follets - A minor - Canon (En Canon à l'Octave) - A major - Tempo giusto - A major - Horace et Lydie - F# minor - Barcarolle - G minor The songs, as they are called, are all beautiful and the first five are probably less known than the sixth, which I want to propose to you tonight. As you will see (and can read), the Barcarolle is not in Alkan's typical brilliant style (such as Saltarelle, Chemin de fer, etc.), but retraces melancholy memories and mournful thoughts that, nonetheless, also echo in some of his other works. Regarding the Barcarolle, I propose Jack Gibbons' performance to you, but I remind you that there are also other beautiful performances, for example by Marc-André Hamelin or Jacqueline Méfano, for those who wish to listen to them. Bye, happy reading (the Barcarolle is on page 25) and happy listening. Click here to download the file

Dear Gennarino,

I have just listened to Alkan's Barcarolle. It is beautiful! It calls to mind the melancholic atmospheres of Neapolitan music.

Do you agree?

See you soon

It is true, on an auditory level.

On a technical level, I believe there are two reasons:

The first is that the continuous play between minor and major keys, in the sense used by Alkan, is found in many Neapolitan compositions.

The second is that the composition (it seems to me, I haven't studied harmony yet and I could be wrong! But there you have PianoExpert who is a master of harmony, so check with him!) makes discrete use of the so-called Neapolitan sixth (example, last measure of line 3). I hear it, even if it doesn't stand out well, because the chord on the left is developed according to the minor 3rd (E-flat), minor 6th (A-flat, which forms a minor second interval with the tonic) and the fundamental (C natural), instead of starting from the fundamental. But try playing starting from the second half-measure preceding the following basses (3/8): Eb, D, C, Bb and you will see. This type of harmony (along with the augmented fourth) characterizes Naples and many continue to use it even today.

Ciao!