The magician's apprentice (Dukas)
The most well-known work of the composer Paul Dukas the vertonung is that Ballade "the magician's apprentice" of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. This 1897 under the title "L'Apprenti more sorcier" developed Orchestra work heard to the category that Program music. It is a musical dressing of the history of the magician's apprentice, that without permission a broom bewitched, so that these waters for filling up a bath tub gets.
The music begins with a strained atmosphere: The master is away and the magician's apprentice is and clever whether the idea, to try in charms. Finally it cannot resist the temptation any longer. First by those Trumpet presented Motive is the spell.
On the spell rises one of Bassoon intonierte Melody: It is the broom, that only some steps practices, before it makes itself armed in inexorable speed with the buckets on the way. The broom characterizing Motive, that melodisch how rhythmically much stamping SAM is (the broom seems to hop a little), later by other instruments and pulls through untiringly the whole piece is taken up. Pouring the water into the tub becomes by the remaining Orchestra, primarily by those Caper instruments, audibly made, likewise swelling the water in the room, after the tub is filled. Dukas did not omit a passage from the Ballade: Even the scene, in that the broom the magician's apprentice fear makes ("oh, now becomes ever more baenger me! Which expression! which views!") is contained. The broom meckert the magician's apprentice occasionally rather impudently on.
In the midst of the piece - which is from the restlessly working broom water brought already in the whole room distributed - the motive of the magician's apprentice is to be heard again. However it comes strongly shortened, because the magician's apprentice forgot and tries the saying him now in several Kinds of clay/tone, therefore endeavors, to stop the happening. But after each wrong saying a new gush water pours into the area. Thereupon the music reaches a high point, because in its despair the magician's apprentice with the axe throws itself on the broom and two cracking "impacts" prepares for driving first an end.
But after a short break the bassoon rings out slowly with individual notes of the motive for broom. It seems, as if strive yourself the split broom, to come again on the legs, and during it still thereby is, one steps Clarinet in addition, in the distance the one Dezime the same musical movement carries out. It is the second half of the broom, to too own life finds. Again the motive of the broom sets intoniert by the bassoon. And hardly is the broom again on the way, steps one instant later this motive a second time in addition, intoniert by the clarinet on that Quinte beginning and the melody into those Subdominantenharmonie prominently: The second broom. It seems as if this only had itself to abgucken, which task it to perform applies and does it now first directly. So there is now two brooms, those run untiringly, in order to bring far waters. The music swells over on a further high point abruptly to end ever more on, everything sinks in itself together. The master is returned home and the chaos terminated. The magician's apprentice is zerknirscht, but its master leaves it with calmly spoken admonishments (conclusion passage before the 4 conclusion chords).
High Bekanntheitsgrad attained Dukas ' vertonung of the "magician's apprentice" by of Walt Disney 1940 produced film "Fantasia". No smaller one than Micky mouse plays the magician's apprentice, to Dukas the ' music against brooms and water fights.
