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Program Notes

Scheherazade

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908)

Premiere: November 3, 1888, in St. Petersburg, Russia

Approximate performance time is 42 minutes

Behind the Music

The fantastic collection of tales known as The Arabian Nights, or A Thousand and One Nights, has captivated readers for centuries. The ancient stories, mostly of Arabic, Indian, or Persian origin, were first presented to European readers in an early 18th-century French translation by Antoine Galland. In the late 19th century, British explorer Sir Richard Burton created a popular English-language version. To this day, such tales as “The History of Aladdin, or the Wonderful Lamp,” “The History of Sinbad the Sailor,” and “The History of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” continue to weave their magical spell.

Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov created his Scheherazade, Symphonic Suite after “A Thousand and One Nights,” in the summer of 1888. During that same period, Rimsky-Korsakov completed his brilliant Russian Easter Overture. In speaking of Scheherazade, as well as his Capriccio espagnole and Russian Easter Overture, the composer proudly acknowledged: “My orchestration had achieved a considerable degree of virtuosity and bright sonority.” Rimsky-Korsakov’s deployment of orchestral forces — coupled with his unerring sense of dramatic contrast and impressive melodic gifts — have assured continued affection for Scheherazade by musicians and audiences alike.

In the Composer's Words
In a preface to his score, Rimsky-Korsakov provided the following program for Scheherazade:

The Sultan Schahriar, convinced of the perfidy and faithlessness of women, vowed to execute each of his wives after the first night. But the Sultana Scheherazade saved her own life by interesting him in the tales she told him through 1001 nights. Impelled by curiosity, the Sultan continually put off her execution, and at last entirely abandoned his sanguinary resolve. Many marvels did Scheherazade relate to him, citing the verses of poets and the words of songs, weaving tale into tale and story into story.

While You Listen

Throughout the work’s four movements, the solo violin represents Scheherazade, narrating her fantastic tales.

I. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship
II. The Story of the Kalendar Prince
III. The Young Prince and the Young Princess
IV. The Festival of Baghdad — The Sea — The Ship Goes to Pieces Against a Rock Surmounted by a Bronze Warrior

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