Tartini the Virtuoso

If you’ve ever been to a dog park, you’ve likely come across the great pyrenees: a massive canine with the look of a dandelion puffball and the courage of an elephant. But have you ever met the Greatest Piranese? That honor is reserved for Giuseppe Tartini, a composer born in the small town of Piran (which was situated on the peninsula of Istria, and which is now a part of Slovenia).

In Tartini’s childhood, his native Piran was a part of the Republic of Venice, the local governor being an appointed man from Florence (Gianantonio Zangrando) and his wife Caterina (who was a descendant of one of the oldest aristocratic families in Piran). Tartini’s parents were set on him becoming a Fransiscan friar, and so they took the appropriate measures to ensure he was musically trained. But it soon became clear that Tartini was not destined for monastic greatness, as he had his eye set on law. Leaving Piran, he journeyed to the University of Padua, where he began to study law and hone his fencing skills.

The death of his father in 1710 prompted him to settle down, but he defied his parents’ expectations of him once more: he married Elisabetta Premazore, a woman his father would never have given him blessing to wed. Elizabetta’s lower social class and age difference to Tartini didn’t bother the latter one bit, and it seemed as though a happy ending were in store for the two newly-weds. That is, until the intervention of the powerful Cardinal Giorgio Cornaro!

Elizabetta was the apple of Cardinal Cornaro’s eye, and he promptly charged Tartini with abduction. Fleeing Padua and a distraught Elizabetta, Tartini took refuge in the monastery of St. Francis in Assisi in order to escape prosecution. It was almost as if his parents had been trying to help him avoid this traumatic turn of events all along. During his stay with the Fransiscan friars, Tartini began practicing the violin as a hobby.

But Tartini was competitive by nature, and when he heard Francesco Maria Veracini’s playing in 1716 (and realized he had a long way to go before reaching violin mastery), he fled the friars to find lodgings in Ancona. According to music historian Charles Burney, Tartini would lock himself inside his chambers for hours every day with his violin “in order to study the use of the bow in more tranquility, and with more convenience than at Venice.”

Tartini’s violin playing improved greatly over the next five years, so much so that he was appointed Maestro di Cappella at the Basilica di Sant’Antonio in Padua, the very same Padua he had fled at the “encouragement” of Cardinal Cornaro. His contract there allowed him to play for other institutions if he wished, and while in Padua he befriended fellow composer and theorist Francesco Antonio Vallotti. By now the Cardinal had all but forgotten about Tartini, and he was able to reinvent his life in Padua with a new friend by his side.

Tartini was the first known owner of a violin made by the famed instrument builder Antonio Stradivari. The violin itself was his pride and joy, fashioned in 1715 and passed down to Tartini’s student Salvini, who in turn gave it to Polish composer and virtuoso violinist Karol Lipiński upon hearing him perform. One of the most famous violins in the world, the instrument is known today as the Lipinski Stradivarius. Tartini was also fortunate enough to own and play another Stradivarius violin (the ex-Vogelweith) which had been fashioned in 1711.

Five years into his position in Padua, Tartini started a violin school which attracted students from across Europe. As he grew more proficient on the violin he became more fascinated in the theory of harmony and acoustics, and published treatises on this subject from 1750 to the end of his life. Giuseppe Tartini laid down his bow for the last time surrounded by friends and students in Padua. A statue of Tartini was erected in the square of the composer’s home town of Piran to commemorate him and all he contributed to the world of music during his lifetime. Not only that, they named the entire square and even a hotel after him! His birthday is celebrated by a concert in the main town cathedral to this very day.

While the vast majority of Tartini’s compositional output are violin concerti and sonatas, he did pen a few sacred works (such as Miserere, composed between 1739 and 1741 at the request of Pope Clement XII). Tartini’s music poses increasing problems for scholars and editors interested in sharing his music with the world, because the composer never dated his manuscripts. He also had the infuriating habit of revising his finished works, meaning that placing his compositions on a timeline is nearly impossible to do. The greatest effort made towards solving this problem was undertaken by scholars Minos Dounias and Paul Brainard (who have attempted to divide Tartini’s works into stylistic periods based on the musical characteristics of each individual piece.

Today, musical scholars can all agree that Tartini’s most enduring work is the “Devil’s Trill Sonata”. This solo violin sonata requires a number of demanding double stop trills, difficult even by modern standards. An urban legend spread by the Russian Philosopher Madame Blavatsky claimed that Tartini was “inspired to write the sonata by a dream in which the Devil appeared at the foot of his bed playing the violin”. This hectic piece is daunting even to the most experienced violinists, and only played in public by those who are willing to risk carpal tunnel syndrome!

But Tartini’s genius was not merely reserved to his compositions for the violin. Tartini was also a music theorist, and is credited with the discovery of sum and difference tones. His treatise on ornamentation was eventually translated into French in 1771, and is still useful as the first published text devoted entirely to ornament. In modern times, this text has provided first-hand information on violin technique for historically informed performances. A later edition of this text includes a facsimile of the original Italian, copied in the hand of Giovanni Nicolai (one of Tartini’s best known students) and which features an opening section on bowing and a closing section on how to compose cadenzas not previously known.

A remarkable composer and violinist, Giuseppe Tartini will forever be remembered for his seemingly “supernatural” abilities on the violin, earned through a great deal of practice and dedication to his craft!

The Virtuoso Vivaldi

While some fans of rock music are more partial to an electric guitar solo, others prefer the passionate folk strummings of a well-loved acoustic. But all fans of virtuosic string playing owe a debt of gratitude to one rock star in particular: Antonio Vivaldi.

The year was 1700. Violin virtuosity had been steadily building for nearly a hundred years, with instrument builders like Antonio Stradivari, and Giuseppe Guarneri creating violins whose sound quality was unrivalled throughout all of Europe. With the music publishing industry taking off, composers from around the world saw an opportunity to create truly unique musical works. If you wanted to be known as a composer of merit during this period of music history, you needed to know how to write increasingly complex works for the orchestra. Enter the Venetian Virtuoso, Antonio Vivaldi…

Born in 1678, Vivaldi quickly established himself as a master of writing for the violin. A superbly innovative player himself, Vivaldi had an intimate understanding of those conventions of traditional violin playing which might be bent (or in some cases completely broken) in order to create the daring music people wanted to hear. His playing was lightning across a darkened sky, one contemporary of his going so far as to exclaim that the sounds he made on the violin were “terrifying”.

During his early years as a composer, Italian instrumental music was still held firm under the conventions of Arcangelo Corelli’s concerto form. Developing from the trio sonata (which featured two violins and one cello supported by strings and continuo), this form was regarded as highly-respected and tasteful for its time. It was daring… but not so much as to abandon the traditional aspects of string music. Vivaldi’s response to Corelli’s established form of concerto occurred in the former’s publication of Léstro armonico , something of a musical manifesto which changed violin-playing for all time.

L’estro armonico didn’t pull any punches, it set straight away at establishing new standards in violin playing for Vivaldi’s contemporaries. Some of the more revolutionary shifts Vivaldi incorporated into his compositional style included increasing the depth and singing quality of the violin’s voice in slower movements, and imitating the brassy qualities associated with a trumpet by way of arpeggios and quick repeated notes. This latter innovation encouraged violin players to insert bits of virtuosic passagework into their playing at a much more prolific rate than ever before.

As a whole, L’estro armonico served to establish Vivaldi’s preference for three contrasting movements (fast-slow-fast) while utilizing the ritornello form in new and exciting ways. Ritornello (which translates to “return”) constituted a sort of musical interlude which functioned as a refrain, and Vivaldi was brilliant enough to see how it might be used as the standard form for all concerto movements. Ensemble ritornello sections in Vivaldi’s music begin in a tonally stable fashion, establishing the home key at the start and end of each movement. The solo sections which are scattered among these movements, however, are tonally unstable: they leap, dive, and soar through key modulations to increase tension and build the

In Vivaldi’s music for concerto, ensemble ritornello sections are tonally stable to establish the home key at the start and end of the movement and reinforce each change of key during the movement. The solo sections, in turn, are tonally unstable, modulating between keys, which amps up the tension during the daring solo passages. Just as we can’t look away from a tight-rope walker as they perform their daring act under a circus big-top, so too were Vivaldi’s audiences mesmerized by the sheer musical bravery and bravado these solo sections demonstrated.

They were lucky instrumentalists indeed, those who were the first to play Vivaldi’s glorious new music… customized as it was for a bold new breed of concerto. Those who criticized his musical vision early on would come to adopt the spirit of his instrumental virtuosity later in their careers as composers and music-makers. Antonio Vivaldi died penniless in Vienna, having invested all his wealth of musical experience in bringing a clear structure and dynamic power to the Baroque concerto. His work for the violin made him a household name, a true Baroque star. So we say long live the King of the Strings, Viva Vivaldi!

Adriana Isabel Figueroa Mañas

One of Argentina’s most celebrated female composers, Adriana Figueroa Mañas is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist who graduated with a licentiate in music and flute from The National University of Cuyo’s School of Music in 1997. She pursued further studies at her Argentine alma mater, completing Masters courses in Latino-American music as well as several courses in jazz, improvisation, chamber music composition and orchestration.

Mañas served as flautist to several professional orchestras in Mendoza, Argentina, before establishing her own studio to offer flute, saxophone, and composition instruction. A member of the West Jazz Band and Camerata Barroca, she has also lent her incredible musical talents as a cellist to the Academic Orchestra of Mendoza.

Accepted as an associate member of the Latin Grammy Academy for her contributions as a composer, she has also served as media composer and musical producer to Film Andes. A member of the Argentinian Foundation of Women Composers, she helps to promote the music of female composers throughout Argentina so that they can receive a wider audience.

Her symphonic works have premiered throughout South America, Spain, Canada, Germany, Italy, Australia, China, Sweden and the United States. Some of the more notable orchestras who have had the honor of debuting her work include: I Solisti Veneti, The Symphonic Orchestra of Unicamp, The Arizona Southern Symphonic Orchestra, and Artura Toscanini. In addition to producing original music for animations, video games, film, and television, since 1992 Mañas has devoted herself to the formation of instrumental groups for children, and has recorded several children’s albums to date.

She received a plaque of recognition for her contribution to the art and culture of Mendoza, Argentina, in 2009. The international chamber music festival “Por los Caminos del Vino” honored her music in 2014, and she provided scoring for the documentary “La mirada del colibri” in 2016. Her 2009 composition for flute, violin, and cello, (“Misteros Urbanos”) constructs a sprawling array of exciting musical architecture in its opening bars: a city of music coming to life before your very ears! And when this city goes to bed, a captivating blanket of stars slowly flit across the night sky…

Misteros Urbanos incorporates jazz elements and constructs a musical narrative through which the listener is exposed to all sides of this remarkable painted city. It utilizes dissonance to provoke wonder, finding beauty in the strangest of shapes. The first rays of the sun break over the hill, led by passionate rumbling passages from the piano, and a new day breaks fresh and clean over the silent city. An invigorating wind is blown through the clouds by a cluster of flutes, and you can taste the romance in the air. A percussive and undulating finale is sure to leave you feeling warmed from head to toe…and utterly inspired. Don’t miss your ticket to Buenos Aires, where your Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra will bring Adriana Figueroa Mañas’ “Misteros Urbanos” to life!

Local Gift Guide

We asked our musicians and staff to come up with their favourite local spots for holiday shopping.

Looking for some last minute gift ideas? Check out our local gift guides!

You can visit our retail page for gift cards, prints, and more!

Free Christmas Streams

We knew our holiday concerts would be special, but we were blown away by the response!

Our two December live streams had a combined viewership of nearly 12,000 people from across the province and all over the world – thank you for making our spirits bright! Live streaming in this pandemic has meant a lot of hard and challenging work to bring the music to life, both on screen and off, and we’re so grateful to see the response.

It has been a pleasure to bring this music to you when we can’t be together to make music again. The launch of our Digital Concert Stream has been transformational for the SSO, and to show our thanks we’re giving you a special Christmas gift.

From December 24th (at noon) until January 1st you will be able to stream our holiday concerts for free right here on our website!

The two concerts showcase both sides of Christmas music – fun and festive, and traditional and timeless. The SSO is conducted by William Rowson, and over the course of the two concerts is joined by guests Casey Peden, Lisa Hornung, Spencer McKnight, and Dean McNeill, with special performances by the SSO Brass and the SSO Winds, conducted by Brian Unverricht.

On top of A Night at the North Pole and A Candlelight Christmas, we’ve included special interviews, behind the scenes footage, and even a couple of extra never before seen performances!

We’re excited to feature Aurora Voce, conducted by Jennifer Lang, in a special performance of Joni Mitchell’s timeless classic River in an arrangement we commissioned for them by Saskatoon’s own Andrew Kesler (Accent). As well we have the SSO’s own Stephanie Unverricht in an intimate solo performance filmed in the stunning St John’s Cathedral from the night before our Candlelight Christmas concert.

Whether you’re watching them for the first time or watching them again, please feel free to share these free holiday streams with your loved ones and let their days be merry and bright!

We couldn’t have done anything this fall without the incredible support of our patrons – there are no words to properly express how grateful the musicians and staff of the SSO are that you have adapted and supported us through this challenging year.

From all of us at the SSO to you and yours, happy holidays – let your hearts be light!

Sachertorte for a Watch Party

For our year of musical tourism as part of our reimagined 90th season, we have been so thrilled to see people enjoy fondue for a trip to Paris, bison meatballs for Paris of the Prairies, and pretzels for our Oktoberfest event. Now that we’re off for a Visit to Vienna, there’s a few tasty treats you can try….but one of them is a must!

When in Vienna, you become intimately familiar with Wiener Schnitzel (it even has Vienna in its name!), apple strudel, spargel, tafelspitz, and of course enjoying their addition to Melange.

No trip to Vienna would be complete without enjoying a piece (or two…or three….) of Sachertorte.

Popular all across Austria, this rich chocolate cake is as important to a trip to Vienna as seeing the works of Klimt and hearing the Vienna Phil!

SACHERTORTEN Ingredients
130 g – dark couverture chocolate (min. 55% cocoa content)
1 – Vanilla Pod
150 g -softened butter
100g – Icing sugar
6 – Eggs (its definitely an indulgent cake!)
100 g – Castor sugar
140 g – Plain wheat flour

FAT AND FLOUR FOR SPRINGFORM
200 g – apricot jam
200 g – castor sugar
150 g – dark couverture chocolate (min. 55% cocoa content)

Unsweetend whipped cream to garnish

Ok – here we go!

Preheat oven to 170°C. Line the base of a springform with baking paper, grease the sides, and dust with a little flour.
Melt couverture over boiling water. Let cool slightly.
Slit vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out seeds. Using a hand mixer with whisks, beat the softened butter with the icing sugar and vanilla seeds until bubbles appear.
Separate the eggs. Whisk the egg yolks into the butter mixture one by one. Now gradually add melted couverture chocolate. Beat the egg whites with the castor sugar until stiff, then place on top of the butter and chocolate mixture. Sift the flour over the mixture, then fold in the flour and beaten egg whites.
Transfer the mixture to the springform, smooth the top, and bake in the oven (middle rack) for 10–15 minutes, leaving the oven door a finger’s width ajar. Then close the oven and bake for approximately 50 minutes. (The cake is done when it yields slightly to the touch.)
Remove the cake from the oven and loosen the sides of the springform. Carefully tip the cake onto a cake rack lined with baking paper and let cool for approximately 20 minutes. Then pull off the baking paper, turn the cake over, and leave on rack to cool completely.
Cut the cake in half horizontally. Warm the jam and stir until smooth. Brush the top of both cake halves with the jam and place one on top of the other. Brush the sides with the jam as well.
To make the glaze, put the castor sugar into a saucepan with 125 ml water and boil over high heat for approximately 5 minutes. Take the sugar syrup off the stove and leave to cool a little. Coarsely chop the couverture, gradually adding it to the syrup, and stir until it forms a thick liquid (see tip below).

HOW TO TEST WHETHER THE GLAZE HAS THE RIGHT CONSISTENCY
Let a little of the glaze run over a wooden cooking spoon. It should now be covered by a layer of glaze approximately 4 mm thick. If the glaze is too thick, add a few drops of sugar syrup to dilute it (to do so, loosen any remaining sugar in the saucepan with a little hot water). Make sure the glaze does not get too hot, or it will be dull when cooked and not glossy.

We know that this is a big baking challenge, but Sachertorte is worth every single ounce of love put in to it! Let us know how you made out with your torte by tagging us in your photos on social media @ssoyxe #SSOVienna

Happy baking!

Composers Series – Brahms

In 2016 the SSO reached out to artist Denyse Klette to pitch the idea of having her create an portrait of Mozart to help the SSO celebrate its Mozart Festival in 2017 – what was originally a simple one-off idea for promotional piece became a multi-year project that has been remarkably rewarding for both parties.

First came Mozart in 2017, then in 2018 an exceptional portrait of Joni Mitchell for our concert “Don’t Give Yourself Away – the Music of Joni Mitchell”. Then in 2019 we unveiled Denyse’s now iconic image of Beethoven that adorns the SSO’s windows at our offices on 51st street. It was sometime in 2019 that we realized this had to be a long term project together that would be added to each year.

And now for our Visit to Vienna concert, we’re thrilled to unveil Denyse’s Brahms.

Romantic. Passionate. Indulgent.
Johannes Brahms is a towering figure of the romantic era – passionately taking the structures and forms of the music before him and tearing it into a new romantic future. A lover of nature and long walks, the composer gained himself the nickname “the hedgehog” due to his almost nightly visits to the Viennese pub “The Red Hedgehog”.

Brahms’ music is at once full of colour and full of reverent restraint. It is completely caught up in heart-on-sleeve romance while finding the struggle between old forms and new sounds. He lived a life that was the stuff of legends, and his story is forever intertwined with Clara Schumann. The tenderness in their letters shows a man who loved with his whole heart.

An exceptional pianist, gifted with a sense of melody and harmony, Brahms’ music is evergreen and never loses its lusture.

Denyse Klette is one of Saskatchewan’s most celebrated artists; her work hangs in homes, galleries, and public spaces across the globe. Denyse is Canada’s only Disney Artist, and her work is full of colour and life that captures her joyous personality.

The Composers series are available in limited edition canvas prints. They’ll soon be available for purchase on our website.
To find out more, please email us at office@ saskatoonsymphony.org

Pretzels for Oktoberfest!

Well it isn’t Oktoberfest without a Bavarian pretzel – the tasty golden brown salty treat is iconic. If you’re like us, you’re too intimidated to make them from scratch…but thanks to a friend of the SSO we found out it’s easier than we thought.

Educator, author, and illustrator Peter Cowan helped us build our kids show Little Ludwig (released in just a few weeks!), and now he’s helping us learn how to make delicious Bavarian pretzels. We’re grateful that he let us invade his home to learn how to make amazing pretzels!

FOR THE PRETZELS:

3/4 cup milk, lukewarm
1/2 cup water, lukewarm
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar or malt extract
2 1/2 tsp instant or active dry yeast
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp table salt

FOR THE BATH:

4 cups water
3 Tbsp baking soda

TOPPING:

2 Tbsp coarse salt (we used Maldon salt as we find it works the best)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment combine lukewarm milk, water, and brown sugar. Stir together with a fork then sprinkle instant (or active dry) yeast on top. Give it a swirl with the fork and let sit for about 5 minutes until foamy.

2. In the meantime melt the butter over low heat, then let cool for a few minutes.

3. Add flour, melted butter, and salt to the bowl with the yeast and knead for 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover bowl with plastic wrap put it in a warm place and let the dough rise until doubled (about 1 hour).

4. Punch down the dough and divide it into 8 equally sized pieces. Roll each piece into a 16-inch (40cm) long rope, the middle part (about 2 inches or 5 cm) should be bulged to a diameter of about 1.2 inches and the ends should be thinned out to about 0.3 inches (0.75 cm).

5. Bring the ends together so the dough forms a circle. Twist the ends together twice then fold them down onto the bottom curve. Press ends into the dough and shape into a perfect pretzel shape.

6. Let the pretzels rise uncovered for 30 minutes in a warm place.

7. In the meantime preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C) with a baking sheet inside in the lower third.

8. Once the pretzels have risen, put them next to an opened window so the surface dries out and the pretzels develop a skin. This step is important for the texture.

9. Bring 4 cups water in a medium pot to a boil then add the baking soda. With a slotted spoon dip the pretzels one at a time carefully into the simmering water.

10. Take them out after about 5 seconds and place on a sheet of parchment paper.

11. Sprinkle with a little bit of salt and cut the dough with a sharp knife about 0.2 inches deep in the thick middle part at the top-back.

12. Transfer the parchment paper with the pretzels onto the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes until nicely browned. You want them to be really brown and not golden.

13. Remove pretzels from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. If you want them to be shiny brush them with a little bit of melted butter.

Make sure you plan for some mustard or cheese dip to go with them – click for dip ideas

Give it a try – its not too hard!
Making these soft pretzels and enjoying a beer is the ultimate way to enjoy the SSO’s Night at Oktoberfest

What’s with all the clapping for Radetzky

The year was 1848. Revolution shook Europe with wave after wave of civil unrest. Territories then occupied by the Austrian Empire (and today a part of Italy) decided to make a push for independence. The Imperial-Royal Army (led by Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz) was having none of that guff and was dispatched to quell the uprising.

Gathering near Verona on the 24th of July, Field Marshal Radetzky’s troops defeated the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia in the Battle of Custoza. The Italians, fearing more bloodshed, had no choice but to agree to a truce with the Austrian Empire. It is against this imperialistic backdrop that Johann Strauss Sr. drummed up his Opus 228: a march commissioned to honor the 81-year-old Radetzky and the Imperial-Royal Army while benefiting wounded war veterans at their victory celebration in Vienna.

The city hosted this bombastic gathering on the 31st of August, 1848, and Field Marhsal Radetsky arrived in full military dress to greet the throngs of people who had come to celebrate his decisive victory. His personal courage on the field of battle, especially at such an advanced age, had cemented his reputation among the men he commanded. When someone in their 80’s risks being stuck on the end of a bayonet after refusing to succumb to Mediterranean heatstroke, you throw them a party just because.

A massive success, the gathering was highlighted by the premier and command repeat performance of Strauss’ Radetzky March. The soldiers present loved Strauss’ composition so much that they began wildly clapping during its first performance to show their approval.

This is a tradition that has been passed down to every audience since then, particularly when the piece is played at the Neujahrskonzert held in Vienna every New Years Day. During performances of the Radetzky March, it is traditional for the audience to clap along with the beat of the second (louder) repetitions of the chorus.

The popularity of the March’s musical structure is owed to two important decisions made by its composer. First, Strauss recycled the theme of his Jubel-Quadrille (Op. 130) for the March. It was a risky move, but ultimately one that paid off. The rousing theme simply functions better in the context of a march, in addition to the fact that most people nowadays forget what a “Jubel-Quadrille” is (or how to spell it).

The second decision Strauss made to guarantee the widespread appeal of his Radetzky March was to copy aspects of the music of Franz Joseph Haydn. The rhythmic upbeat of the Radetzky March is eerily similar to the second theme from the “Allegro” in Haydn’s Symphony No. 100, a piece of music composed nearly 100 years earlier. It goes without saying that if you can copy Haydn and get away with it, you are probably doing something right as a composer (they don’t call him “Papa” Haydn for nothing!).

A memorable passage of Strauss’Radetzky March is its Trio, the inspiration for which the composer derived from an old folk melody with two known titles: “Alter Tanz aus Wien” (Old Dance of Vienna) and “Tinerl-Lied” (Tinerl-Song). In the time of Richard Strauss Sr., a “tinerl” was the name given to any contemporary Viennese song originally composed in 3/4 time. It is said that the soldiers of Field Marshal Radetzky were singing this popular tune as they marched back to Vienna after winning the battle of Custoza, making its partial recapitulation during their victory celebration even more personalized.

How the elder Strauss was able to observe them singing this melody while miles away in Vienna is unknown, but he somehow cottoned on to its importance to the soldiers in Radetzky’s regiment and converted their song into 2/4 time for inclusion in his March. The piece is still lauded today as being one of the finest pieces of music ever penned by Strauss Sr., and it continues to get the hands clapping and the feet stomping to this very day. After all, who doesn’t like to feel like they’re part of a winning team?

You can hear the Radetzky March as part of our Night at Oktoberfest!

Piaf and La Vie en Rose

Imagine falling in love in Paris: a delicate series of scenes painted in soft pastels, where romance shines through every innocent moment of discovery in that bright and historic city. Do you hear the music? It is very likely that the melodies your mind instinctively conjures are a melodic throwback to a classic staple of French songwriting: “La Vie en rose”. The lyrics to this lush piece of Parisian music were penned by French singer-songwriter, cabaret performer, and film actress Edith Piaf.

Immortalized as France’s national chanteuse, Edith Piaf’s remarkable vocal stylings gave birth to a career peppered with high points, and the immediate commercial success of La Vie en rose was certainly one of them. It was the song that made Piaf internationally famous, with its lyrics expressing the joy of finding true love and appealing to those who had survived the difficult period of World War II.

Popularized in 1946, it was released as a single in 1947 to widespread acclaim, with seven versions of the song topping the Billboard charts in the United States alone. The song was popularly covered by Dean Martin, Louis Armstrong, Donna Summer, and Latin singer Thalia. Even Bing Crosby hopped on the musical appreciation train bound for France when he recorded his 1953 album “Le Bing: Song Hits of Paris”.

As is the case with most secret sauces, the harmony between distinct flavors (musical or otherwise) makes all the difference. Similarly, the success of La Vie en rose is owed not only to Piaf’s sparkling lyricism, but also to the subtlety of composer Louis Guglielmi’s musical design. His orchestration deepens our immersion into the musical imagery that makes Piaf’s performance so captivating. Known by his nom de plume “Louiguy”, Guglielmi was no stranger to delightful combinations (himself being a Spanish-born French musician of Italian descent).

Having studied at the Conservatoire de Paris alongside the likes of Maurice Baquet, Henri Dutilleux, and Paul Bonneau, Guglielmi was also responsible for penning the 1950 Latin Jazz hit “Cerisier rose et pommier blanc” (a popular song which would eventually be reconfigured as a mambo smash-hit for Perez Prado). Guglielmi created nearly three dozen film scores during his life, but the musical partnership he showcases with Piaf on “La Vie en rose” is a timeless sort of beauty that sets itself apart. Like Paris itself, this renowned ballad is in a class of its own.

The SSO is living La Vie en Rose and performing it as part of our Postcards from Paris