The middle period works of Roberto Gerhard utilize the Spanish musical past through borrowing pre-existent material. His attitude toward Spanish music, both art and popular, was instilled in Gerhard by his teacher Felipe Pedrell. Gerhard then transformed this musical material to represent a universal significance. Some works simply demonstrate the influence of folk material in melodic shape and intervallic content, while others employ borrowed folk songs. Gerhard utilized folk material in a substantial number of compositions in folksong settings and other works. Through his study with Arnold Schoenberg, Gerhard was able to incorporate this preexistent material into his newly acquired technique, for example in the Sardanas where he modifies the form and harmonic content of the dance. In works such as Don Quixote and Pandora, his borrowing reveals a symbolic feature that he retains in many other compositions. His opera The Duenna, a Spanish national opera in many respects, utilizes popular and art music traditions. Gerhard also subjected the borrowed material to twelve-tone procedures, for example in the Harpsichord Concerto and Cello Sonata. In his later, more abstract works, this Spanish identity becomes subtler, as in the Concerto for Orchestra and Symphony No. 4.

Works: Gerhard: Seven Haiku (3), Dos Apunts (3), Cantata: L'Alta Naixença del Rei en Jaume (4, 6), Albada, Interludi I Danza (4, 7), Pedrelliana (4), Sardanas (6), Don Quixote (7), Pandora (8), Violin Concerto (8-9), The Duenna (9), Three Impromptus (10), Harpsichord Concerto (11), Cello Sonata (11), Nonet (12), Symphony No. 4 (12-13).

Sources: La Tornada del Pelegri (3); El Mal Rico (3); El Cotiló (4, 6, 13); La Cinta Dauvada (6); El Carbonerot (6); L'Escolta (6); El Bon Caçador (7); Assassi per Amor (7); Chacona de Palació (7); Rosa del Folló (8); El Mestre (8); La Germana Rescatada (8); Ad Mortem Festinamus (8, 10); La Marseillaise (9); Sevillanas del 18 siglo (9); Cançó de Batre (10); Las Tres Hojas (10); Copla de Columpio (10); El Contrabandista (10); Los Pelegrinitos (10, 11); Copla de Corro (11); El Paño (12); Retraídaestá la Infanta (12); Salinas: Cantilena Vulgar (7), Canción Muy Popularizada (7); Alicante: Antón Pirulero (8); Grimau: Tirana del Zarandillo (9).

Index Classifications: 1900s

Contributed by: Christopher Holmes