A STUDY OF THE COBLA - Thesis for the Degree of M. M. MICHSGAN STATE UNEVERSITY MAMA TERESA MILLER 1973 LLLLLLL TLLTTL TL LLLLL IL 1420 ABSTRACT A STUDY OF THE COBLA BY Maria Teresa Miller This thesis concerns the present situation of the cobla, a Catalan musical ensemble. This investigation was undertaken because of the historical significance and present possibilities of this unique ensemble; also, in view of the scarcity of information in English concerning the cobla. By studying fourteen full scores for cobla, seVeral reductions for piano, and recordings of sardanas, as well as symphonic compositions and folk dances—-called Catalan ballets-~the common usages and characteristics of the instruments and form of the scores written for the cobla were determined. Although a substantial amount of works for cobla are folk and light in nature, many have a more ambitious artistic-musical significance. As far as can be deter- mined, all literature for cobla is in traditional tonal language, with the single exception of a work by Robert Gerhard. Maria Teresa Miller The existence of different combinations of cobla T and other instruments, or even of two or more coblas, opens the door, perhaps, for future works that could be written in the latest techniques. A STUDY OF THE COBLA BY Maria Teresa Miller A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC Department of Music 1973 :1 3. . 1‘; .' 1“!) (7% Al meu espos, John H. Miller que admira i comparteix amb jo totes les facetes de la cultura catalana. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In appreciation to Doctor Paul O. Harder and all my professors in the Music Department for their help to me in pursuing the completion of my degree in music. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DEDICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS O O O O O O O O O O O O V 0 iii Chapter I. HISTORY OF THE COBLA . . . . . . . . 1 II. INSTRUMENTATION OF THE COBLA . . . . . . 19 III. MUSIC FOR THE COBLA . . . . . . . . . 39 IV. CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 iv CHAPTER I HISTORY OF THE COBLA Cobla is a Catalan word derived from the Latin copula to unite or join together.1 It has been used from the Middle Ages to the present day to designate a musical ensemble that through the centuries has changed in number of components, instruments, and purpose. In a modern dictionary from Mexico2 one finds the cobla defined as follows: Cobla ... En Catalufia (Espafia), pequefia orquesta popular formada por un flautin y un diminuto tambor (tocados ambos por un mismo ejecutante), dos tiples o tibles, dos tenores o tenoras (los cuatro instrumentos, especie de chirimias perfeccionadas, con llaves), dos trompetas, dos fiscornos, un trombon y un con- trabajo de tres cuerdas. El repertorio de estas orquestas esté formado en su mayor parte pgr las sardanas y las danzas populares catalanas. 1Josep Mainar and others, La Sardana, 3 vols. II:29. 2Diccionario Enciclopédico U.T.E.H.A. (Mexico: Union tipografica Editorial Hispano Americana, 1953), p. 251. 3Cobla. In Catalonia (Spain), small popular orchestra formed by a small flute and a little drum (both Ffliayed by the same person), two tiples or tibles, two texuores or tenoras (the four instruments are types of Chiirimia§_perfected with keys), two trumpets, two fluegel— hcfitns, a trombone and a three—string double bass. The relpertoire of these orchestras is formed for the most part of the sardanas and popular Catalan dances. (All trans— la1:ions in this paper are by the author.) Another definition of the cobla is found in a French dictionary:4 Cobla. Formation instrumentale tres répandue en Catalogne. Elle est constituée per le flabiol (sorte de flageolet) et le tambori (tambourin), joués par la méme personne, les tiples et tenoras (instru- ments de la famille des hautbois) auxquels on ajoute 2 cornetinos ou trompettes, 2 fiscornes, deux trombones et une contrebasse a cordes. La cobla s'gmploie spécialment pour accompagner la sardana. The two definitions are essentially the same; how- ever, there is one important discrepancy. The dictionary from Mexico mentions trumpets and one trombone but no cornets. Larousse de la Musique refers to two trombones and a choice of trumpets or cornets. Also there is no mention of the number of tibles or tenoras. According to Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla6 the instruments included in such ensemble are as follows: flabiol, tambori, two tibles, two tenoras, two trumpets, one trombone, two fiscorns and a string bass. 4Laroussedela Musique (Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1957), p. 251. 5Cobla. An orchestral group very pOpular in Cata- lonia. It consists of a flabiol (a sort of flageolet) and a drum (tambourin) played by the same person, the tiples, the tenoras (instruments of the oboe family) to which are added 2 cornets or trumpets, 2 fluegelhorns, two trombones éflui a double bass. The cobla is principally used to accompany the sardana . 6Joaquim Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a EEZEEIE (Barcelona: Graficas Marina, S.A., 1957), p. 5. The seating of the musicians for performing, with very few exceptions, is as follows: Trumpet I Trombone Fiscorn II 'A A A A A A Trumpet II Fiscorn I Double Bass A A A A A Flabiol Tible I Tible II Tenora I Tenora Er Tambori (audience) The main purpose of the cobla is to provide music for the sardana? but it is also used for concerts of other compositions, traditional folk dances, and nostalgic music of the last century. English sources with reference to the cobla are not common. Only the 1970 edition of the Harvard Dictionary of Music has an entry for the cobla. Cobla. (Cat.) the popular dance band of Cata— lonia (northeast Spain, Barcelona).’ It consists of pipe and tabor (fluviol i tambori), shawms, cornetts, horns, trombone and double bass. The use of pipe and tabor (formerly also bagpipes) indicates a very ancient tradition. The main dance played by the coblas is the sardana. See H. Basseler, 'Katalanische Cobla und Alta— Tanzkapelle.‘ This entry again mentions cornets but no trumpets anci furthermore the popular dance band in the American Selnse does not apply. 7A traditional dance of the Catalan people. In the 1968 edition of the same dictionary the cobla is not mentioned. The traditional use in the cobla of the tambori and flabiol demonstrates without doubt that this emsemble has its roots in the Middle Ages.8 The use of these two instruments by the troubadours all over Europe is well known. It is impossible to follow, through the centuries, the different purposes for which the cobla has been employed, but documents and paintings of the Burgundian court9 establish a well defined link between the cobla and the music bands used in the 15th century. Its main function was to provide music at dances and processions. A band of 0 this kind was called an "Alta dance band,"1 and its compo- nents were generally shawms, bombarda, and trombone. In Catalonia, during the second half of the 14th century such bands were very pOpular in the courts. Efforts were made to recruit shawm and bombarda players from Germany and Austria.11 The tradition, in the cobla, of using the tenora as the main instrument for the melody can also be found in the alta music band of the 15th century in which the cantus ‘ 8Jena Heinrich Besseler, "Katalanische Cobla und Alta-Tanzkapelle" in Report of the International Musico- fikaggical Society Fourth Congress held at Basel June 29- .EELQY 3, 1949 (Basel: Barenreiter-Verlag, 1949), pp. 59-69. 9 10 ll Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. firmus or main voice was retained in the bombarda (also called teneurs).12 Heinrich Besseler says that the cobla may be the only dance band in Europe which has a tenor instrument at its center point, and also that the tenora is without doubt, a descendant of the bombarda of the 15th century. The tenora has inherited the tenor function, and it is now, as it was before, the main instrument.13 Until the beginning of the 18th century the cobla of minstrels, in the North of Catalonia, consisted of flabiol and tambori, one or two tibles and the cornamussa (a kind of Spanish bag-pipe). It was used principally to play for the sardana dances.l4 In the Roussillon (South of France) the cobla pre- served the tenora until the beginning of the 19th century. The components were 'UWD tenoras, two tibles, flabiol, tambori and trombone.15 Antoni Toron of Perpignan, in the second half of the 19th century, gives the tenora its present form}6 and Pep Ventura is the one who incorporated the new tenora into the modern cobla. lZIbid. l3Ibid. l4Mainar, La Sardana, II:30. lSHenrylPepratx—Saissetq La Sardane (Toulouse: ImEDrimerie L.P., 1966), p. 20. l6Ibid.,-p. 9. Records exist of different components of the cobla during the 19th century. It varies from five to ten musicians, or occasionally even more. The number and timbre of the instruments used in the ensemble were often changed. Primarily, this involved the brass but the flabiol, tambori, tenor and tible were always retained. It is not well established when the string bass was incorporated, but by 1890 the components of the cobla were set, with one exception, as in the present form.17 The last change in instruments is the substitution of cornets for trumpets. This was done slowly by the com- posers. The last few decades prove that the change is permanent. In 1957 the Tractat d'Instrumentaci6 per a Egbla_was published, and the cornets are not mentioned. Also, all available recent scores have trumpet parts. Geographically, the cobla is used in Catalonia, Andorra and that part of southern France known historically as Rousillon or Catalan France.18 This area has approxi- mately six million inhabitants. The most recent statistics available put the number of coblas at 68 in 196419 performing throughout the year for sardanas, concerts, and other musical activities. 17Mainar, La Sardana, 11:40. 18Further identification of this area may be found in Basil Collier, Catalan France (London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1939). 19 Mainar, La Sardana, 11:199. Principally, these ensembles play in open spaces: such as streets, plazas, the countryside, etc. Other performances, mainly concerts, are done in concert halls, especially during the winter. It is impossible to estimate how many compositions are written for the cobla, but a conservative guess would be in the thousands. For the most part they are in manu- script. An attempt to preserve and catalogue all music for the cobla is done by the association L'Obra del Ballet Popular,20 the address of which is Montcada 20, Barcelona. In 1962 the Conservatory of Music in Gerona, Spain, began to teach the techniques of the tible and tenora. In the Municipal Conservatory of Music of Barcelona the typical instruments of the sardana were introduced into the curriculum in 1966. Prior to this time, all had to be learned from tutors or at private institutions. Like the majority of professional orchestra musi- cians:hnspain,those who play for the cobla do not make a living exclusively from it; they hold other jobs, sometimes unrelated to the field of music. More than one attempt has been made to form a cobla dedicated exclusively to concert music, but economic problems and other obstaclesrunmafrustrated the efforts.21 20Mainar, La Sardana, 1:215. 21Ibid., 11:72. All the musicians that form the cobla have formal training in basic rudiments of music, solfeggio and instrumental techniques. From about 1929, competitions for cobla music have been announced periodically by several groups interested in sardanas and the cobla.22 These contests have rules and regulations that cover a variety of styles and forms, ranging from folk and very light to more ambitious works. Prizes in certain cases are monetary and in others are honorific only. Many outstanding Catalan composers have dedicated their works to this ensemble. Among those of inter- national fame are Pau Casals and Robert Gerhard. An awareness of the determination to have good music for the cobla is shown in the code of regulation of ”L'Obra del Ballet Popular which contains the following statement: . . . In reference to the music of the sardana, we will refuse messy compositions that are written with no other purpose than that of giving satis- faction to base instincts. And we urgently petition the establishment on a permanent basis of an institution pedagogical and technical in nature, where the norms of composition and form of music for the cobla will be studied in a scien- tific and rational manner, which without imposing criteria on the composers, will provide them with the cognition that will not allow them to write music for the cobla lacking in a minimum of sin- cerity and musical honesty. . . .2 221bid., p. 75. 23Ibid., I:215. A step in this direction has been made with the publication of Metode de tenora i tible in 1950 by Josep C011 and Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla in 1957 by Joaquim Serra. CHAPTER II INSTRUMENTATION OF THE COBLA For the purpose of studying their characteristics and functions within the ensemble, one should divide the instruments of the'cobla into the following four small groups: (1) flabiol and tambori; (2) tenora and tible; (3) fiscorn, trumpet and trombone; and (4) the string bass. One of the oldest instruments of the cobla, and one that always has been present through the centuries, is the flabiol. It forms with the tamboril one of many vari- ations of pipe and tabor that can be found in many parts of Europe.) It must not be confused with other types and forms of flabiols that are used on both sides of the Pyrenees. The Catalan flabiol that is played in the cobla has its proper characteristics and form. The entry found in Marcuse's Musical Instruments 1 is as follows: Flaviol, (Cat., Prov.) a small flageolet of the Pyrenees that assumes 2 forms: 1. in Andorra and the Fr. Pyrenees it is a one-hand pipe, some 16 cm. (6 in.) long, devoid of keys, with l fingerhole, played together with a small lSibyl Marcuse, Musical Instruments (Garden City: Doubleday & Company, 1964), p. 507. 10 11 drum (tambori), a pipe and tabor combination that has remained in use since the 13th c.; 2. in Catalonia and Roussillon it forms part of the sardana cobla. Made of ivory, with 3 front fin- gerholes and 2 ventholes, a rear thumbhole and 2 rear vents, plus 3 closed keys. Compass g2 - g . 24 cm. (9 1/2 in.) long. In Cast. it is called flautilla; in the Basque country it lives on as chistu. Also called fabiol, flabiol, fluviol. The description under 2 has some irregularities. The flabiol (this is the present Catalan Spelling) is not made of ivory but ebony. It should not be confused with any of the Basque tabor pipes, which are large and have no keys. The two ventholes in the front can be used as fingerholes to obtain the lower pitches of which the instrument is capable. Of course, to do this, it is necessary to use both hands and take off the little plug at the end. Some flabiols have as many as five keys on the side. It is pitched on F, sounding an 11th. higher. 3% TH: Written pitch '1QJ VJ ."" *T‘t 'T' C The keys and the knife-edges of the whistle are made of metal; the best, of German silver.2 The flabiols are custom—made by private craftsmen, and in general are not sold in stores. They are not always tuned in standard pitch, and some of them need adjustments in order to be played with the other instruments of the cobla. 2Anthony Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," The Galpin Society Journal (1952), pp. 9—17. 12 Joaquim Serra in his Tractat d'Instrumentaci6 per a Cobla points out that the diatonic scales and arpeggios in the keys of C, F, B flat, and D major and their relative minors are easy and of excellent effect. Chromatic pas- sages in a quick tempo are difficult to play in tune, because some of the chromatic notes are obtainedcovering half of the holes. Also he mentions that all slurs are good for the flabiol except certain ones that go to E flat. Written pitch E¥2: The only intervals that are easy to play which go 1:"- n to this note are ascending perfect fourths, major and minor thirds, and major and minor seconds. The rest of the intervals in slur which go to this E flat are difficult. The following octave is also difficult: J) /’“_2?_ Written pitch Kg; 53 1 Some trills are not possible: \‘HT fab ha? ha mt halo NJ: fr. ‘ he. n. ~~ u-I-o >F.'---'vr Staccato passages and combinationscflfstaccato and short slurs are common in flabiol parts. lSerra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a Cobla, p. 6. 13 The tone color of the flabiol is pastoral, simple and joyful. It is incapable of any nuance of expression, and in a tutti is very ineffective because it is drowned by the other instruments. .9. b14125; 1' . . weak notes most used range shrill notes It is often used in trill passages, short, gay melodies, and as a florid counter melody to a solo instru- ment. Examples. Sant Marti del Canigo Pau Casals +K ,/”—_“*' *1: 14 Vallgorguina Enric Morera Sol Ixent Eduard Toldra The flabiol is essential to the sardana. It is charged, by tradition, with playing the introit to that dance and also the contrapunt, which divides certain por- tions of the sardana. The history of the introit to the sardana is related to an old religious dance of the North of Cata- lonia, called the contrapés, which has not survived to the present day. 15 Basically, the introit is always the same. It is never written in the score and its small variations depend on the player. In some instances it is played as if it had no time signature, as a joyful quick recitative (in rhythmic groupings which stress the 12th, 22nd, 32nd, and 52nd notes). At other times, the 6/8 time signature is maintained with regular stresses. Two introits to the sardana, copied from reduced piano scores, are as follows: L'Arch de San Marti Pere Rigau Piano l6 Camprodon Joan Manen (““351 The contrapunt, like the introit, is not written in the score, and its function in music for the sardana is to tell the dancers the different parts of the dance. It is two measures long with a structure pattern descending from tonic to dominant. The melody is isorhythmic with stress on the last note. It is also a descendant of the old religious dance called contrapas. l7 Traditionally, the flabiol is played with the left hand, while the right hand plays the tambori with a wooden stick. The tambori is a very small two-headed conical drum, which is suspended by a cord around the neck and rests on the forearm. The head is made of goatskin. At one time it was made entirely of wood with the membrane stretched by cords in a W design, but at present they are built like a modern small drum. Marcuse comments as follows on the tambori: Tambori. Cat. equivalent of tamboril; it accompanies the flaviol in coblas. The word tamboril, in Spanish, is used to name different sized drums throughout the northern regions of Spain. The entry that follows in the same dictionary for tamboril does not correspond to the little drum of the cobla. Tamboril, very small cylindrical drum of Spain, with 2 laced heads and a snare; it serves to accompany the one—hand gaita or pito. Its diam. is about the same as its height. Also played on the Balearic Islands. It corresponds to the tabor.5 ' The tambori of the cobla does not have any snares, and is different from the one that is played with the gaita, which according to P. José Antonio de Donostia 4Marcuse, Musical Instruments, p. 507. 5 Ibid. l8 and Juan Tomas,6 is approximately twenty inches in diame- ter and depth. Invariably, the tambori part is notated under the first line of the flabiol staff. Because it is played with only one hand, the tambori has its limitations of rhythm patterns. In the Tractat d'Instrumentacié per a Cobla,7 four patterns which are easy to play are given. It is quite common in many scores not to notate the tambori part, which is left to the discretion of the player of the flabiol. This is done without any indica— tion on the paper, and accepted as part of tradition in the music for sardanas. Nevertheless a substantial number of good composers note the tambori part quite carefully. 6José Antonio de Donostia and Juan Tomas, "Instru- mentos de mfisica popular espafiola," Anuario Musical, 11 (1947), pp. 105—52. 7Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacié per a Cobla, p. 7. 19 La Processo de San Bartomeu Antoni Catala Vallgorguina Enric Morera St. Marti del Canigo Pau Casals Joaquim Serra, in his instrumentation treatise points out that the following rhythm is difficult to sustain for more than a few measures at a time. 20 Four shawms—-two tibles and two tenoras-4form.the second group of the cobla. The tible is a wooden double-reed instrument with a conical bore. It is a descendant of the 16th century tible shawm mentioned by Praetorius.8 The present day tible is 22 inches long, made of jujube wood, and has modern keywork.9 It has a wide reed made from cane, quite different from those of the oboe family. Baines describes it as follows: . . . their reeds are short and triangular, and have a wider opening than any other kind of double reed. Bach reed is made on a short peg-like wooden mandrel which is kept in the reed until it is to be used. The reed is then placed upon a short conical staple upon which is permanently mounted a thick wooden cylinder, the tudel, better known to wind-instrument historians by the old French term for it, pirouette. The pirouette is recessed on its upper surface to make room for the base of the reed, and the player, holding the instrument well up, almost horizontally, rests his lips against it while also gripping and control- ling the reed like an oboist. With this arrangement he can keep the strong reed vibrating at its full power without his embouchure muscles quickly becoming tired. Detailed instructions and illustrations on how to 'make these reeds are found in the first pages of the method for tible and tenora of Josep Coll.ll 8Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," p. 9. 9Joseph Coll, Metode per tenora i tible (Cassa de la Selva: Private publication, 1950), p. 1. 10Anthony Baines, Woodwind Instruments and their History (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1963), p. 114. llColl, Metode per tenora i tible, pp. 4-5. 21 The entry in Marcuses's Musical Instruments is as follows: Tiple . . . 3. tenor chirimia of N. Catalonia, prominent in the cobla (band), pitched in F, a 4th above the oboe, treated as a transposing instr., with a compass dl—g written aO-d . Like the tenora, the tiple was modernized in the 19th c. and fitted with keywork. Played with a wide double reed recessed in a pirouette; 56 cm. (22 in.) long.12 Except for naming the tible "tenor chirimia," the above information is correct. The name tenor chirimia corresponds to the tenora (the other shawm in the cobla). Chirimia is the Spanish form of the Catalan word xirimia which was used in the past to name the tible and tenora. As previously stated, the tible is a transposing instrument in F sounding a 4th above. Written range: :edtt. 34—13:. With all chromatic Piercing. intervals. According to Josep Serra,l3 certain intervals are difficult to obtain in slur because of technical problems. 12Marcuse, Musical Instruments, p. 516. l3Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, p. 8. 22 Digital difficulties: Lip difficulties: Trills that are not possible: 0 4R 4;} 41% H :— N T3=1 : : 1E; ‘3 En: Staccato passages for the tible are very effective and precise. It is a fairly agile instrument, but in a rapid tempo (according to Serra) it is better not to go lower than C. —e- A description of the color timbre of the tible is gi‘fen by Baines as follows: 23 The tiple and the tenora are by far the loudest -of all our woodwind. Marsenne's shawms were almost as loud as his ringing natural trumpet; the Catalan shawms, in their ff, are literally as loud as the modern valved trumpet, and very stirring it is to hear, for once, a woodwind instrument possessing this real open-air sonority.l4 Baines elsewhere says: . . . their effect is of tremendously loud, full-throated oboes--the tiple the clearer and more trumpet-like, and the tenora the more sensuous and reedy. Serra describes the tible in this manner: The sound of the tible is very effective to play joyful passages, and also simple and tender ones. . . . The lower notes have a very dramatic effect that a skilled composer can use in a very effective manner. The extreme registers cannot be played softly, but the tible, in its most used tessitura, has a full dynamic range. Second only to the tenora, the tible occupies a prominent place in the cobla. Often it is used for short melodies in response to the tenora, in duet form with each other, and as a soloist. p. l4Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," p. 15, 15Baines, Woodwind Instruments and their History, 115. l6Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, p. 8. 24 Examples. La Processé de St. Bartomeu Antoni Catala Written pitch ml. La Processo de St. Bartomeu Antoni Catala E1 Bac de les Ginesteras Eduard Toldra 25 Almogaverenca Josep Grivé The tenora is the principal instrument of the cobla. Composers, in general, have given to it a predomi- nant role. The first tenora player is often listed just below the name of the cobla. Some of these performers, including Pep Ventura, Albert Marti, and Josep Coll, became famous virtuosi. Together, the tenora and tible give to this Catalan music ensemble its characteristic timbre. Certain techni- cal characteristics make it possible for these double reed instruments to occupy a predominant role and to with- stand long sessions of playing. Baines describes this as follows: The embouchure is most interesting, especially in view of the traditional textbook assumption that the reed of a shawm is totally engulfed in the mouth cavity, and beyond all control by the lips. On the tiple and the tenora the player's lips are curled over the teeth and grip the reed near its 26 base just as on the bassoon. The pirouette pro- vides some light extra support for the 1ips--not an unreasonable provision when one considers how orchestration treaties stress the necessity for giving an oboist large expanses of silence during which to recover his strength: whereas these shawms (and the ancient ones too) are blown as continuously as a cornet in a brass band, seldom finding more than eight bars or so of rest in a number. Lip con- trol is very important in the shawm as in all woodwind. A huge dynamic range, from piano to triple fortissimo, is continually in use; this, as every woodwind player knows, involves very exact lip control, and these Catalan bandsmen are very particular about their intonation. Musical Instruments has this entry: Tenora (Sp.: tenor), tenor chirimia of N. . Catalonia, leading instr. of the cobla (band), shawm pitched in B flat, a tone below the oboe, with a compass eO—c3 notated f#O-d3. In the 19th c. the tenora was fitted with keywork and now has 6 fingerholes and 9 keys. The wooden body termi— nates in a long metal bell. A short wide double reed is recessed in the pirouette. It is 84-86 cm. (33-34 in.) long.1 The only necessary rectification of the entry is to point out that the tenora is not exclusively played in the north of Catalonia, but throughout the four Catalan provinces. Like the tible, the tenora is usually made of jujube wood with the bell made of metal. A detailed description is given by Baines: The bore of the tenora is throughout its wooden part about 3 mm. wider than that of an oboe. To repeat the method of description used by Eric Halfpenny in the second issue of this Journal, 5/16" diameter is reached at 2.2" from the upper end to the tube (excluding the l7Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," pp. 13-14. 18Marcuse, Musical Instruments, p. 516. 27 pirouette): 2/3" at 4.4"; 7/16" at 6.5”; 1/2" at 8.3"; 9/16" at 11.4"; 5/8" at 13.8"; ll/16" at 17.2"; 3/4" at 19.1"; and 12/16" at 24.0", which brings us to the end of the bottom tenon. Thence the bell begins to flare immediately, reaching 1" internal diameter at 25.1", and ending at 4 7/8" at the bell mouth, 34.8" from the tOp end. These dimensions are of an instru- ment built to standard concert pitch (as are also those illustrated). A pitch war is still in progress between two pitches which the musi— cians call 'brillante' and 'normal'; some coblas play at the former, which is approximately equal to British sharp pitch (about 3'= 452), whereas others play at a' = 440, the international standard pitch. Josep Coll, first tenora of the Cobla Barcelona until his death, played a tenora made entirely of metal. As mentioned before, the tenora is pitched in B-flat sounding a major second down. Written pitch: tit-3: 3 8% Joaquim Serra, in his Tractat d'Instrumentaci6_per a cobla, mentions that some tenoras do not have the note M15- 19Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," p. 12. 20Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, 28 and gives examples in which certain pitches cannot be played in slur, because of difficulties in lip position or fingering. Difficult to.obtain because of fingerings: .- J) ' -. "\ ,A II F‘ J I I .1 *cfl 16 we as e — 'T Difficult to obtain because of lips: Trills that are not possible: 41:5: E: Trills that are difficult: in,” :1 Hr: EH11 fi 29 . Staccato passages for tenora are less precise than the ones for the tible. Chromatic and diatonic scales can be performed in fast tempo. The tenora is extremely expressive; the virtuosi of this instrument can obtain the most elaborated nuances in tone color phrasing and dynamics. Each register has its own characteristics. :2: A? A dark sweet intense solemn . reedy passionate Baines describes the sound of the tenora as follows: The sound of these shawms is unbelievably exci- ting. Constant Lambert and de Sévérac are two discriminating musicians who have lauded it. Their effect is of tremendously loud, fullthroated oboes . . . the tenora the more sensuous and reedy. Yet on both, the players command a full dynamic range down to mezzo-piano, which the first tenora con- tinually exploits with uninhibited abandon in the solo passages, of which he has the lion's share and delivers with a rich oboist's vibrato. The instru- ments have, indeed, the full expressive range of the oboe stepped up to outdoor strength, and great would be the day if ever they came to be tried in the northern countries, to add their fiery glow to the rather pallid hues of our military bands. Joaquim Serra comments in his book of instrumenta- tion for the cobla that the tenora can express joy, sorrow 23 and passion in a marvelous and unequivocal manner. This 22Baines, Woodwind Instruments and their History, p. 115. 23Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, p. 10. 30 could be one of the reasons why so many composers of cobla music favor this instrument for solo passages. Examples: Rapsodia Empordanesa Lluis Albert ,r””"ri I“‘\ If“ Sol Ixent . Eduard Toldra A 31 St. Marti del Canigo Pau Casals If “as“: 32 La Competéncia J. M. Ruera m ”f \ 93V. / L'adéu J. Grivé 00V. (’P‘ 33 The only instrument of the cobla's small brass section that is not generally used in the band or orchestra is the fiscorn. Fiscorn is the Catalan word corresponding to the Spanish fiscorno, Italian flicornio, French bugle, and English (according to Baines) flugel horn. He describes it as follows: . . . bass flugel horns or fiscornos (this form of the word prevails locally) are rotary-(3)-valved Czechoslovak instruments in C which, held up like enormous bugles, present a curious appearance on first sight.2 The entry in Musical Instruments states: Bass flugelhorn, Brit. name of a bugle shaped brass instrument of tenor range, pitched in C, similar to the euphonium. Heinrich Besseler signs an entry in Die Musik26 in which he names the fiscorn tenorhorn in German. The Harvard dictionary gives tenorhorn as a translation of baritone. Some confusion in naming this instrument is evident. Adam Carse explains this problem: The naming of these instruments has always been inconsistent and confusing, but it may be said that on the continent generally, those which'are des- cribed as being basses or baritones are the equivalents of the English euphonium, and that 24Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas," p. 11. 25Marcuse, Musical Instruments, p. 42. 26Die Musik (Basel: Barenreiter-Verlag Kassel, 1952): P. 1518. 34 those named tenors are instruments of the narrower-bored type with only three valves, which we in England call baritones. The Harvard dictionary gives the following defini- tion of the flfigelhorn: Flfigelhorn (F. bugle; It. flicorno). An instrument similar in design and size to the cor- net, but with a wider bore. It is usually built in B flat, more rarely in C. Its sound is somewhat similar to that of the horn, but lacks the latter's mellowness. The instruments named subsequently are larger sizes constructed after the principles of the flfigelhorn. They might be considered as form- ing a family for which the generic name "bugles" is often used. The largest members of the family are the tubas and these are the only ones used in the orchestra.28 It seems appropriate to translate fiscorn, which is played in the cobla, as bass flugel horn as Baines has mentioned. The range of the flugel horn in C used in the cobla is: Alain-:9. Q 1 if I E , b—a-h-r r-e- difficult Tpedal no intervening with all chromatic note notes intervals Advice for scoring this instrument is given by Serra. He points out that the following trills are not feasible: 27Adam Carse, Musical Wind Instruments (London: MacMillan and Co. Limited, 1939), p. 299. 28Harvard Dictionary of Music, ed. by Willie Apel (2nd ed.; Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1970); s.v. "Brass instruments." 35 A. a 8’ He does not recommend using a mute for the fiscorn. He also states that the pedal note is of good effect. Bellicose passages are not very suitable for the instrument, but slurred ones are very effective and expressive.29 Even though a certain amount of scoring for the fiscorn is for the purpose of filling in the harmony, solo lines are not rare in music for the cobla. Examples. Castell d'Aro M. Cano 29 pp. 13-14. Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacié per a cobla, 36 St. Marti del Canigé Pau Casals .1111 Dalt les gavarres Juli Garreta a3 ”V I1 La Processo de St. Bartomeu Antoni Catala 37 The trumpet in B flat is the one generally used in the cobla. All the scores examined are written for this instrument, and also the Tractat d'Instrumentacié per a cobla30 mentions only the B flat trumpet. Nevertheless, Baines comments as follows on the cobla trumpet: The trumpets are standard French pattern, in either B flat or C and the valved trombone is simi- lar, usually in B flat but sometimes in C. The tenor trombone used in the cobla is described by Serra32 as having the same fingering and range as the fis- corn. Leekr=+—__—--._'—:- # H :9: "sh; '3; He points out that the fiscorn can be used in all its ranges with ease, but the trombone should not be scored lower than B flat without a great deal of care. The same list of trills that are difficult to play on the fiscorn is also given for the trombone. Usually the double bass played in the cobla has three strings, tuned A—D-G, but it is not uncommon to use a four-stringed one. 3OSerra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, PM 11. 31Baines, "Shawms of the Sardana Cobla," p. 10. 32Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, p.1Ju 38 Tenora Tible i . Flabiol Tambori Fiscorn CHAPTER III MUSIC FOR THE COBLA At present, there are two distinct types of music composed for the cobla: (1) scores written primarily to provide music for dancing, and (2) scores written mainly for concerts. Like other musical ensembles of the Renaissance and later, one of the purposes of the cobla was to provide dance music for the Catalan court. It is in this role that the populace kept the ensemble alive throughout the centuries, using it primarily for dancing the old sardana, called sardana curta.l At the beginning of the present century, after the components had been established as eleven musicians play- ing twelve instruments.and the new sardana called sardana llarga2 had developed, the Catalan composers found in the sardana form a vehicle for their artistic expression and, from a rhythm and tune carrier, the sardana developed to a more ambitious artistic form. Late Romanticism and a very exuberant nationalism, which in Catalonia is known as 1This is the short sardana, which consisted of a fixed number of measures. 2Long Sardana. 39 4O Renaixenca,3 provide the essence that move the composers to use the sardana and the cobla to express its manifes- tation. The sardana occupies the main bulk of cobla compo- sitions. Its form is a strict binary with arigid formula of repetitions that is religiously kept, which is as follows: Introit ":A:":B:'|One measure rest'|:A:T|:B:ll Contrapunt B B Contrapunt Both sections, in general, are harmonically closed. The A section is called curts4 and the B,.11args.S As the name indicates, the A section usually is one-third to one- half shorter than the B section. The number of measures in the score studied varies between 20 and 45 measures for the A, and 51 to 155 for the B. The time signature of the sardana is always duple simple or duple compound. The so- called sardana tempo is approximately J= 112 orJo = 112. A complete score for cobla has only the “:A:||:B:|| section, no introit and no contrapunts. Its repetitions are not indicated, but without exception, when the music is played for-dancing, the formula of repetitions is always kept. A last chord which is called cop final6 is 3Catalan word for rebirth. 4Catalan word for shorts. 5Catalan word for longs. 6Catalan phrase for last blow. 41 sometimes included. If the composition does not have it, the last chord is repeated on the first downbeat. This is essential to the dancer, because it is then that he changes the vertical position of his arms to a horizontal to conclude the dance. The ability of the composer is sometimes demon- strated by imposing a ternary form over the strict binary, using themes of the A section at the end of the B. La Processé de St. Bartomeu A. Catala .The beginning of the A section: Tibles in F. The last measures of the B section: Tibles in F. 42 .In general the beginning of the B Section is in contrast to the end of the A in tone color, mood and rhythmic pulsation, giving, in that way, a hint to the dancer to know that the new section has begun. Dalt les Gavarres Juli Garreta Tempo de Sardana Flabiol in F. Tambori Tible I in F Tible II Tenora I Tenora II in B flat Trumpet I Trumpet II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I 11 String Bass 43 Flabiol in F. Tambori Tible I in F Tible 11 ' Tenora I Tenora II in B flat Trumpet I Trumpet II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II String Bass 99 In the last example, the contrast between the A and B sections consists of a change from a contrapuntal and static texture, with piano dynamics, to a fortissimo tutti in unison. In the next one, the contrast is from a joyful melody treated in imitation to a collective rhythm in the‘ minor mode where the brass predominates. 44 La Competencia J. M. Ruera Flabiol in F Tambori “ Tibles I II in F. Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet 1 II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II String Bass 45 Flabiol in F Tambori Tible I II in F. Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I 11 String Bass 46 Flabiol in F Tambori Tible I II in F. Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet 1 II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn 1 11 String Bass 47 In the next example, the main contrast between sec- tions is in the instrumental color and character. The A section finishes with a brilliant energetic melody in tutti and the B begins only with brass in a reflective choral mood. La Processo de St. Bartomeu A. Catala Flabiol in F Tambori Tible 1 II in F. Tenora 1 II in B flat Tnmmetl II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I 11 String Bass 48 Flabiol in F Tambori Tible I II in F. Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II String Bass 49 Flabiol in F. Tambori Tible I II in F. Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II Double Bass One of the characteristics of the dance is that the dancer must know the number of measures that the sar- dana has, because he needs to adjust his steps to them in accordance with the rule that the dance in certain repe- titions must begin and end with the left foot: the number of measures is never announced by the musicians; this would be an insult, and the dancers must count from the beginning. 50 With a good sense of rhythm and a sharp ear they must dis- tinguish the A section from the B, the number of measures in each, and readjust their steps. It is due to this peculiarity of the dance, that the internal structure of the A and B sections are built. In general, the composer strived to give the A and B sections their own personality so that the dancer would not be con- fused. Certain sardanas called reversses7 exist, and are composed with the purpose of confusing the dancer between the A and the B sections. It is a challenge tofind where one ends and the other begins. Such sardanas are only played occasionally in contests. It proved impossible to obtain a score of this type for study at the present. time. Apart from maintaining the length and the clear definition of the A and B sections, the composer is free to use any thematic, contrapuntal, and harmonic technique available, which, as far as can be said, has been until now in the traditional system. The use of melodic themes is as unlimited as the composer's imagination. The majority of sardanas have their melodic roots in Catalan folk melodies, but many can be mentioned that are not of folk origin. There is one in particular that has as its main theme a Mozart melody. The name of this sardana is La meva filleta by Narcis Paulis. 7Catalan word for backward. 51 Usually the B section has much more melodic material than the A, commonly two or three melodic themes. A prevalent rhythm in the sardana form, which Besseler calls Catalan changing rhythm,8 consists of: J.J.=JJJ JI’JJ‘sJJ’JJ This type of rhythm and other variants are not .kept on a regular basis but recur sporadically. El Bac de Les Ginesteres E. Toldrh A section Flabiol in F Tambori Tible I II in F. Trumpet I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II Double Bass 8Besseler, "Katalanische Cobla und Alta-Tanskapelle," p. 68. 1 52 La Competéncia J. M. Ruera B section Tible I II Trumpet I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn Sol Ixent E. Toldra B section Tenora I II in B flat Trmqmtzr II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II Double Bass 53 Dalt les Gavarres ‘ Juli Garreta B section Flabiol in F Tambori Tible I II in F Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet I 11 in.B flat Trombone Fiscorn I 11 Double Bass 95‘ 3. Even though this rhythm is considered to be one of those characteristic of the dance and has been carried over from the old contrapas and the sardana curta, some composers do not use it. More than a few sardanas could be mentioned that do not have it. 54 Another rhythm, more commonly associated with the dance, but even less representative, is the pattern J” J m repeated for a few measures normally in the B section as a rhythmic pulse to a melody. St. Marti del Canigo Pau Casals Tenora I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn I II Tenora I II in B flat Trombone Fiscorn 1 II 55 Vallgorguina E. Morera Tenora I 11 in B flat Trumpets I II in B flat Fiscorn I II Double Bass Tenora I II in B flat Trumpet I II in B flat Fiscorn 1 11 Double Bass 56 According to Serra9 the tonalities most suitable . for cobla are C, G, F, B flat and E flat major and their rela- tive minors. The harmonic language of the sardana music for Cobla has a wide range, from the simple IV-V-I to the more elaborated harmonies of the beginning of this century. It should be pointed out that sardana music is com- posed for a people who like to dance: not a select group of the elite,but one including a wide range of all social strata. In consequence, no experimentation in non-tonal music has been accepted yet. The use of elaborated harmonies or simple ones does not indicate periods, but only the composer's taste, ability and knowledge of music. The two following sardanas were written a few years apart during the first quarter of this century, one by the conductors of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Barcelona, and the other by a fiscorn player in one of the coblas. Continuitat V. Bou Piano reduction Inorgz'o [—T—j - r’”?'7 => >.. >7’ \ >-=> >" ff > 9Serra, Tractat d'Instrumentacio per a cobla, p. 41. 57 decz'dz't. sec. 58 l'l‘onou 50!! ‘ ' - y _ ' . —o-—-‘*——‘O<“~ 'creixent a p00 a p00. ...... -.--.-----UC I A A : S9 - Tpts 60 E1 Bac de les Ginesteres E. Toldra Flab. Tib. Ten. Trb. Fisc Ten. Trb. Fisc Flab. Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb. Fisc. Tib. Ten. Tpts Trb. Fisc 62 A F Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb. Fisc. Flab. Tib. ' Ten. Tpts. Trbl Fisc. 63 Flab. Tib. Ten . Tpts. Trb. Fisc Tib. rvcuio ‘ Ten. " express? Tpts Trb. Fisc 64 1 m Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb . Fisc. Flab. Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb. Fisc. D.B. 65 Flab. Tib. 'Ten. 5 t P T Trb. Fisc.' D.B. Flab. Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb. Fisc. 66 Flab Tib. Ten. Tpts. Trb. Fisc. I L I O s A.“ ft )< 67 Together with the music for dancing, the arrange- ments for cobla of old Catalan folk dance tunes should ' be included. Those dances are not participatory, but are performed for an audience and some of them are chore- ographed for stage. They should not be confused with the sardana, which as a dance is never performed for an audi- ence. Such arrangements are skillfully done in tradi- tional tonal languageiand have three or four repetitions of the melody with different instrumental arrangements, some; times done in variation style. Ordinarily they are not. called folk dances, but Catalan ballets. It has not been possible to study any scores, but the following records-- Alhambra MCP 10033, Columbia SCGE 81015, and Columbia SGAE C. 7012—-make up a good selection. The second group of music for cobla is, as already stated, the compositions to be performed in concerts held in open Space or concert halls. Such compositions devel- oped from the sardana music. As the sardana for choir and cobla began to be written and the music for the Catalan ballet also developed, the composers began to be aware of the possibilities of writing music for cobla with less restricted form. At the same time certain sardanas, because of more elaborated music language, were less popular with the dancers, and began to be performed only for listening. 68 It is due to these circumstances that, during approximately the last thirty years, literature for cobla-- as a chamber ensemble for concert--has begun to accumulate. Experiments combining the cobla with other instru- ments have been carried out. their works for two or more coblas. La Sardana,10 the literature available. Glossesll for one cobla: Els fadrins de Sant Boi El Maridet Cants de Mallorca Els es L'here tudiants de Tolosa u Riera El Bal 1 de Gegants Catari na d'Alié Ballet de Deu Moixiganga de Sitges L'hermosa Antonia Canco de lladre L'adéu Gracieta Dansa de Fadrins En Pere Galleri Els geqans de Vilanova Nadala L'eixida de Thrreqa Tradicio Glossa for two coblas: La rei na i e1 trobador 10 11 Mainar, La Sardana, II:69-71. Catalan word for variations. Also, some composers score A list compiled from however incomplete it may be, illustrates Frances Pujol Francesc Pujol Francesc Pujol Francesc Pujol Josep S. Marraco Josep S. Marraco Antoni Catala Antoni Catala Antoni Catala Antoni Juncé Antoni Junca Joseph Grivé J. Blanch i Reynals Joaquim Serra Joaquim Serra Eduard Toldra Francesc Basil Lluis Moreno Josep Gravalosa F. Martinez Comin 69 Suites: Tres impresions per a cobla Impresions camperoles RetauIa'bergueda Cinc peses en forma de suite Miniatures Colonico Suite pairal Suite Catalana Suite Montblanquina La Roureda Suite en tres temps Suite for two coblas and timpani: Suite number I Symphonic Poems: El pastor de la Cortada Idil-li entre campanes La preso de Lleida Pugsoliu Remor de festa a la pineda Setgjgrns Festa La Vall d'Aran Symphonic poems for three coblas: Tardé i Primavera La malediccié del Conte Arnau Symphonic compositions: El timbaler del Bruc (3 coblas) Empordaneses Almogaverenca (2 coblas and timpani) Tres impresions de la vida de l'Escala La fira La filadora Rapsodia Empordanesa (2 coblas and timpani) San Ramon de Penyafort Augusti Borgunyo Joaquim Serra Rafael Ferrer- Francesc Basil Francesc Alid Lluis Moreno R. Suriol Josep Maria Pla Bonastre Agusti Borgunyo Marimon Josep Maria Bernat J. Sancho Marraco Cassia Casademont Joaquim Serra Joaquim Serra M. Casas i Bell Tomas Gil Narcis Bonet Josep M. Tarrides Eduard Toldrh Josep M. Vila Joseph Grivé Josep Grivé ( Augusti Borgunyo Joaquim Serra Francesc Alio Lluis Albert Bonastre 70 Madrigal en forma de sardana Xavier Montselvatge Festa a la ciutat Martinez Comin Serenata lamentable d'un galan desdenyat . Francesc Pujol Cobla and other instruments: Rapsodia (cobla and piano) Manuel Orta Retaula Nadalenc (cobla, oboe, bassoon, and percussion) Emili Salut Fra Gari (cobla and harp) Martinez Comin Cantada de Cap d'any (3 coblas and chorus) Francesc Pujol Sant Jordi triunfant (cobla ' and chorus) Francesc Pujol Sardanas for two or more coblas: La nina i el moliner Joaquim Serra Narcisa Sancho Marraco Esplendorosa . Francesc Pujol Primaveral Joaquim Serra La competencia (3 coblas) . Josep M. Ruera Apart from the works already mentioned, the best of the sardana compositions are also performed in concerts with the repetitions reduced to A A, B B. With the exception of a sardana written by Robert Gerhart, all these compositions are written in tonal style. The Gerhart sardana was performed only once in 1928. Its premiere was a scandal in the concert hall of Barcelona. The majority of critics and public protested, and it has never been performed again. It was not possible to obtain the score for this composition, which according to Lluis 12 Albert was written in serial technique. 12Mainar, La Sardana, 11:82. 71 All the scores for cobla are in manuscript. The only music that has been published consists of reduction or arrangements of sardanas. Obtaining copies of scores of concert music for coblas proved to be somewhat difficult. It has been possible to study only five of them. They‘are L'Adéu, glossa for one cobla y Josep Grivé; Almogaverenca sardana for two coblas and timpani by the same author; Narcisa (1959), sardana for two coblas and timpani by Sancho Marraco; Rapsodia Empordanesa (1957) for two coblas and timpani; and Puigsoliu (1957), small poem for one cobla by Joaquim Serra. The forms of all five vary in accordance to their own characteristic which molds, to a certain degree, the mood of the piece. Themes, rhythm, and harmony in the two sardanas are traditional, but because they are scored for two coblas and timpani, they are not typical. In Narcisa the coblas are scored for an antiphonal effect. Instructions are given to have the coblas in two separated groups. In the sardana Almogaverenca, the two coblas are mixed together and written in the score as a homogenic group. The longest last approximately seven minutes, without counting repetitions. All of them are single movement works. 72 The tambori has not been scored in any of these com- positions. In the two sardanas, and the rhapsody, this omission might be motivated by the use of the timpani. 1n the other two, the absence of any notation for tambori could be a mistake of the copyist. It is impossible, without the original, to make a judgment. A brief analysis of the melodic lines seems to indi- cate that in all of them, Catalan folk material is the source or the inspiration. Rhythmically, the only one that does not fall into the usual rhythmic patterns in music for cobla is the rhapsody. A very slow tempo in the opening measures, frequent meter changes, and accents on weak beats offer a somewhat refreshing novelty in music for cobla. The harmonic language of all the compositions is tonal with different degrees of color and functional pro- gressions. Where there is scoring for timpani the instruments are tuned to tonic and dominant, and only two are used. Of all five, the most striking is the rhapsody, which makes use of two coblas in a homogenic way and exploits them to the fullest to obtain complete harmonies in the woodwinds and also in the brass. 73 Tible I Tible II in F. Tible I Tible II Tenora I Tenora II in B flat Tenora I Tenora II \_/ \w "" £8 J, MoTQ Trumpet I Trumpet.II in B flat . ‘ .1 ., ocKoI Trumpet I M H :7 Trumpet II 0 Q V v Mackinaw Also, in this piece, even the tempo and the changing mode, F major F minor, B flat major B flat minor, give to the composition a progressive character; the use of tradi- tional themes makes it unmistakably Catalan, or what can be recognized as characteristic of cobla music. The only recording of a work that has been avail- able for study is of the poem for one cobla, Puigsoliu by Joaquim Serra, the score of which follows. Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 74 75 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 76 77 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 78 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 79 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 1L 2:. a". 133;: L? ‘4 J . t ’0‘ u L‘. T L \ ..L: I. , 43...? T I" 80 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 81 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 82 83 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 84 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 85 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 86 Flabiol Tibles Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II dry—At-‘w't-‘TE" “r v r r 87 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 88 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trombone I Fiscorns II 89 Flabiol Tibles II' I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 90 'g 3 322' T p9¥r~ . I- :2." Flabiol 1*" -. —-- I Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets 2 II Trombone Fiscorns II Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone Fiscorns II 91 L %v_—r ‘L-—-—-——~——J--u -4 ..-E— m :d—.— ;: .:~ .— txp-~—J«~1;1 - L .——----. fiva-fiu ...—flu-.- ~ l hv—awrefl 4 r T T . —-———. --.—‘4'. ...—.- v L L ' 423.41 :E~;:r£-.:;:; ! 1 ’f ."1E:£1’€.EIZL__ 2 .1 I .-._.__ _—..._. ._ - L l L —— ‘ ' ---—--—--- ....._ “A , I _. 5 ——]~ L ::r::::n‘**'““* 92 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 93 94 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 95 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 96 ..P060 memo mossa Flabiol Tibles II ?000 meno mosso 2 we... -———- Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 97 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 98 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II 1 Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 99 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II D. B. 100 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 101 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 102 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 103 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 104 Flabiol I Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I , ,. Fiscorns .21: ; g '$ 11 2 .- ‘X f -, “ - L — I; — .. —- r%' _' -: *‘- —--— —-————~—E—“ .— J9————- L. ...—.1343 -----—--——-—1 L} : '7‘le 4T .“ y .’ D B. 4.”- ......____ l {- r g. f - 6%; 4 Tit-~*—"Tu‘~—4——:fzr ~+--4_r—~—T I 105 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 106 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II ‘ > Trombone .Tth—j: TL-o—L—E—'m i—Erbp ‘ a? TI . T I Fiscorns II T 6’ > lww’ D- B- .--iTi‘i 1,141.1 Lac»-.. 9; j- - ---—----“:= j 107 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II D. B. 108 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 109 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 110 Flabiol Tibles I Tenoras II Trumpets Trombone I Fiscorns . . ' . ’- -' - ‘——~— — -L —-I ~ -—I——- —1*—- ———* - -—r — -—--— D. B. 31_L_LJ:11_:L____AQ¢Ltay_1__, :f I. ...-b— ———.—O- 111 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 112 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 113 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II- 114 A . <5 1 ‘ I ' f ...-rL- 11.1%ng I,” .— L—~———;-.. slew-.1110. m f T'TLTRfl't Tt__ 1.. .. Tenoras II I Trumpets . II Trombone I Fiscorns L II - ... -_"':.. .. 113...}.-- 1' U“"L;*J’f\—J—‘7\ " ‘1, (31-1544"- :2 LN- L L L‘ ..L 115 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 116 Flabiol uni V 9 2 ' - ' ' T - '37??le - ---... Ag: I A: a l - T ' ‘ I --Rfi_4'—-F—l—i__”fp______iE;E:L;E_Li___ VLILI__ Tibles I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II “mire unite, mama 117 T H --. Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 118 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II I Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 119 Flabiol Tibles II I Tenoras II Trumpets II Trombone I Fiscorns II 120 A brief thematic analysis of Puigsoliu is as follows: Form: A-B-A', Coda Tonality: D Aeolian and Harmonic minor. The A section begins with Theme 1, which is the unified element of the piece. It is in D Aeolian, and even though it has a fast rhythm, its mood is introspective. It is four measures long, with a three-measure extension. The trumpet and fiscorn present it at the octave. A complementary phrase follows, stated by the woodwinds. After Theme I is repeated using a v—VI of the Aeolian scale as a deceptive cadence, an amplification of the complementary phrase follows, stated by the woodwinds pausing in a half cadence in A minor with no third. An episode begins at rehearsal number two using elements of Theme 1. Theme 11 appears four measures before rehearsal number three, also in D Aeolian. This second theme is in contrast to the first, it being very lyrical and expressive. The tenora introduces it, followed by the tible. At rehearsal number four, an episode based on Theme 1 begins which lasts eight measures. With the exception of the trumpet, all instruments participate in this episode. Theme III is introduced by trumpet and trombone at the octave. It is joyful and energetic with a style very common in sardana music. It uses D Aeolian and harmonic 121 minor scales. A return to Theme 1, stated in the woodwinds with a perfect authentic cadence in D minor, concludes this section. A one-measure link precedes the B section which begins at rehearsal number five. This section starts with a change of mode and a five-measure prelude before Theme 1 is introduced. This theme is pastoral in nature; it is presented by the tenora over a static D major chord given by the brass. The same theme is repeated, transposed a perfect fourth higher over a static G major-major seventh chord. The theme is manipulated and becomes a short episode which returns to D minor. It cadences in B-flat, but the cadence is extended by the sonorities of G minor- minor seventh chord and G-sharp diminished-minor seventh chord. A small codetta with a half cadence on a C major- minor seventh chord prepares the next theme of Section B. Theme 11, in F major is introduced by the tenora in a slow tempo. It is twelve measures long and could be subdivided into sections of three measures each. It has the flavor of an old Catalan folk tune; it tonicizes B-flat and it is presented twice. It ends with an extended cadence in F major. Section A' begins at rehearsal ten with an episode based on Theme 1 of the A section in A Aeolian. If it could be possible to consider sonata form for this piece, this episode could be called a development, with momentary 122 tonicization of B-flat major, C major and A Aeolian. Theme III appears as it was used in the first A section. This episode--or development--finishes with the restatement of Theme 1, the unified element, on D Aeolian as it was a few measures before rehearsal three. It could be called a recapitulation. Theme 11 is restated as it was in the first A. The episode that follows is exact, too. The only difference is the extended cadence which resolves in a D major chord with a perfect cadence. This D major chord is used as an elision to begin the coda. The theme of the coda begins at rehearsal number 12, and is the same as Theme 11 in the B section. This section has a slower tempo, the theme is transposed and it has a solemn mood.. It finishes with a plagal cadence in D major at rehearsal number 13, which is extended ten measures by several embellishment sonorities of minor-minor seventh, and major-major seventh chords, resting finally in a D major chord. Theme 1. Episode. Theme 11. Episode. Theme 111. Theme 1. Prelude. Theme B—I. Episode. Theme B-II. Episode. (development) Theme 111. Theme 1. Theme 11. Episode. Coda. 123 Diagram of the Preceding Analysis Section A. (a, b, a', b') D Aeolian. a minor 7. Measures 1-43. Half cadence in A minor, D minor. Measures 44-65. D minor, F major, B—flat major. Measures 66-85. B-flat. Measures 86-93. D Aeolian and harmonic minor scales. Measures 94-112. Perfect authentic cadence. 113-119. D minor. Measures Section B. D major. Measures 121-125. D major. Measures 126-142. B major, D minor, half cadence on C major- minor seventh chords. Measures 142-174. F major, B-flat major, authentic cadence in F major, Measures 175-210. Section A'. B-flat major, C major, A Aeolian. Measures 211-240. D Aeolian and harmonic minor. Measures 241- 267. D minor. Measures 268-277. D minor, F major. Measures 278-290. B-flat and D minor, perfect cadence in D major. Measures 291-311. D major, plagal cadence in D major. Measures 312—340. CHAPTER IV CONCLUSION The purpose of the present study has been to acquire and share with others the basic information needed to write music for cobla, and to focus attention on one of the most viable musical expressions in Spain, which is somewhat neglected or overlooked in the international world of music. Possibilities of using the cobla for contemporary music language are numerous. The search for uniqueness of sound by the contemporary composer could be fulfilled with the remarkable tone color of the tenora and tible. Also the availability and flexibility for combining this singu- lar ensemble with other instruments, plus the extreme national and professional pride of its musicians, make a ready combination for the composer who is willing to use it. During the last decade, arguments have been made judging the cobla as an obsolete ensemble. Some present Catalan composers alienate themselves from it, feeling that it is too limited, and can only be used as a folk expression. This does not seem to this writer to be a valid judgment. The fact that the repertoire for cobla does 124 125 not have the most recent innovative techniques of composi- tion does not imply that it is not suitable for them, only that the composers have not utilized it. Artists through the centuries have produced high quality works with the possibilities at hand and their ingenuity. The cobla is there:fl1rthose who are willing or able to use it as a vehicle of contemporary artistic musical expression. The opportunity exists; if it is to be grasped by the composer of Catalan, Spanish, or some other nationality, only time will tell. Two quotations from Mainar's book La Sardana seem appropriate at this time. Ateneu Barcelonés. 19 marc 1924- Recepcié a Strawinsky amb un recital de sardanas dels millors autors, de Pep Ventura a Morera i Garreta. El mestre, entre sorpres i maravellat, al final reclama més obres: Garreta, més Garreta! Es el mejor empacte rebut com a oient de mfisica. Em donaria per molt honorat de firmar una partitura com aquestes. 2 Richard Strauss (1927) lAteneu Barcelonés, 19 March 1924. Reception for Stravinsky and a recital of sardanas by the best authors, from Pepe Ventura to Morera and Garreta. The master, between surprise and wonder, at the end requests more works: "Garreta, more Garreta!" 2It is the greatest impact 1 have received in hearing music. It would give me a great honor to sign a score like these. Richard Strauss (1927) BIBLIOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY Baines, Anthony. Musical Instruments through the Ages. New York: Walker and Company, 1961. Baines, Anthony. "Shawms of the Sardana Coblas." The Galpin Society Journal, 5:9-16. Baines, Anthony. Woodwind Instruments and their History. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., Inc., 1963. Bessler, Jena Heinrich. "Katalanische Cobla und Alta- Tanzkapelle." Report of the International Musicological Society Fourth Congress held at Basel June 29-July 3, 1949. Basel: Barenreiter— Verlag, 1949. Capdevila, Manuel. Eduardo Toldré musico. Barcelona: Ediciones Unidas S. A., 1972. Carse, Adam. Musical Wind Instruments. London: MacMillan and Co. Limited, 1939. Chase, Gilbert. The Music of Spain. New York: Dover Publication Inc., 1959. Coll, Josep. Metode per tenora i tible. Cassé de la Selva: Private publication, 1950. Collier, Basil. Catalan France. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1939. Coromines, Pere. Vida d'en Pep de la tenora. Barcelona: Editorial Barcino, 1953. 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