1865–1935 · Late Romantic
Paul Dukas
1 work
Dukas was born and died in Paris. He was a perfectionist who destroyed many of his works, so few survive. His music draws on Beethoven, Berlioz, Franck, d'Indy and Debussy. Besides The Sorcerer's Apprentice (1897) he wrote the Symphony in C (1895 to 1896), a Piano Sonata, the opera Ariane et Barbe-bleue (premiered 1907) and the ballet La Péri (1912). He also taught composition, and Messiaen was among his pupils.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice (L'apprenti sorcier) is a scherzo for orchestra based on Goethe's 1797 poem Der Zauberlehrling. It is descriptive programme music that follows the events of the poem closely, unlike a looser tone poem such as Debussy's La mer. In the poem an apprentice enchants a broom to carry water, cannot stop it, and the workshop floods until the master returns. The score was published in 1897 and first performed in Paris on 18 May 1897, conducted by Dukas.
The orchestra has the usual winds and brass, with glockenspiel, cymbals, harp and strings, and a contrabassoon among the bassoons. Disney's Fantasia (1940), in which Mickey Mouse plays the apprentice, brought the piece to a much wider audience.
What to listen for
- Follow the poem as a story: the quiet start, the spell, the broom at work, the growing chaos and the master's return.
- A theme that is repeated and grows louder and thicker as the spell runs out of control.
- The colour of the low woodwinds, with the contrabassoon, against the bright glockenspiel and harp.
Sources: Paul Dukas (Wikipedia), The Sorcerer's Apprentice (Dukas) (Wikipedia)
