Le bourgeois gentilhomme (Strauss)
Le bourgeois gentilhomme (The Bourgeois Gentleman) is a suite of incidental music composed by Richard Strauss in 1917 and 1918. It was written as accompaniment to a stage production of Molière's comedy of the same name, Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme.
The music was originally intended to be performed alongside Hugo von Hofmannsthal's adaptation of Molière's play, which also included an opera, Ariadne auf Naxos. The entire project premiered in 1912, but Strauss and Hofmannsthal were unhappy with the length and complexity of the combined work. As a result, they separated Ariadne auf Naxos from Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme.
In 1917-1918, Strauss reworked the music for Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme into a suite for orchestra. This suite comprises nine movements, drawing themes and inspiration from the play's characters and plot. The music is generally light and charming, reflecting the comedic nature of Molière's work. It incorporates elements of Baroque style, pastiche, and Straussian orchestration.
The movements typically included in the orchestral suite are:
- Overture
- Minuet
- The Fencing Master
- Entrance and Dance of the Tailors
- The Court Minuet
- Entrance of Cléonte
- Intermezzo
- The Dinner
- The Kitchen Boy
The suite is a popular concert work, offering a lighter and more accessible side of Strauss's compositional output compared to his operas and tone poems. It showcases his skill in writing for orchestra and his ability to evoke atmosphere and character through music.