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L'Arlésienne is incidental music composed by Georges Bizet for Alphonse Daudet's drama of the same name, usually translated as The Girl from Arles. It was first performed on 1 October 1872 at the Théâtre du Vaudeville in Paris.[1][n 1] Bizet's music consists of 27 numbers for chorus and small orchestra, ranging from pieces of background music (mélodrames) only a few measures long, to entr'actes.[2] The score achieves powerful dramatic ends with the most economic of means.[3] Still, the work received poor reviews in the wake of the unsuccessful premiere and is not often performed now in its original form, although recordings are available. However, key pieces of the incidental music, most often heard in the form of two suites for orchestra, have become some of Bizet's most popular compositions.

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L'Arlésienne
Incidental music by Georges Bizet
The composer
Key	B major then changes to D major
Based on	"L'Arlésienne" by Alphonse Daudet
Performed	1 October 1872 (1872-10-01): Paris
Movements	27
Scoring	chorus small orchestra

Composition history

In July 1872, Léon Carvalho, director of the Théâtre du Vaudeville in Paris, commissioned Georges Bizet to compose incidental music for his production of Alphonse Daudet's play L'Arlésienne.[2] Although the drama was based on the author's short story of the same name in his collection Lettres du mon moulin (Letters from My Windmill, 1869), the plot was originally inspired by a real event: the suicide of a nephew of writer Frédéric Mistral as a consequence of amour fou.[2]

L'Arlésienne, incidental music

Bizet composed 27 numbers for the play, which was presented in three acts and five scenes.[2] Half of the numbers, mostly mélodrames, designed to be performed as background music for spoken drama, are quite short (under 20 measures). On the other hand, seven numbers, including the overture, an intermezzo (the "Minuetto"), three entr'actes, one longer mélodrame (the "Adagietto"), and the Farandole, are striking and lengthy enough to stand on their own outside of their stage setting.

The drama is set in Camargue, south of Arles, in southwestern Provence. To help give the composition Provençal color, Bizet used three existing tunes from a folk-music collection found in the book Lou tambourin (The Tambourin, Avignon, 1864) by writer and tambourinaire François Vidal[2]: 

Vidal	Title (Provençal)	Title (English)	Notes
№ 3	Danso dei Chivau-Frus	Dance of the Frisky Horses	A brisk tune scored by Bizet for piccolo and tambourin (a Provençal drum); combined ingeniously with March of the Kings in the Farandole in Act 3 at the climax of the drama.
№ 7	Èr dóu Guet	Air of the Watch	Heard in the form of a brief berceuse in a mélodrame (No. 13) in Act 2.
№ 31	Marcho dei Rèi	March of the Kings	A Provençal Christmas carol from Avignon celebrating the Epiphany and the Three Kings; also identified as Marche de Turenne, supposedly composed by Jean-Baptiste Lully some 200 years earlier; quoted five times at the beginning of the Overture in different harmonizations and orchestrations, and reappears in Act 3.

The premiere took place on 1 October 1872 in the Théâtre du Vaudeville. Bizet's music is scored for chorus of 24 singers and an orchestra of only 26 players. Bizet played the harmonium backstage at the theater in support of the chorus. The play was staged as a last-minute replacement for another play, which had been banned by the censors, and the audience was less than favourably disposed to the new play.[1] The premiere was a failure and the production closed after 21 performances. Daudet later bitterly remarked: "It was a resounding flop amid the prettiest music in the world, silk and velvet costumes, and comic opera scenery. I came out of there discouraged, still hearing the silly laughter caused by the emotional scenes." "It was clear from the beginning that a drama of passion from the Camargue would not appeal to the sophisticated tastes of the Paris boulevards."

L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1

Bizet was encouraged by colleagues to assemble some of the best numbers for performance in the concert hall, and he originally planned a five movement suite: 1. Prélude, 2. Carillon, 3. Adagietto, 4. Minuetto, 5. Final (unidentified number).[2] Later he exchanged the positions of the 2nd and 4th numbers and jettisoned the final one, leaving a four movement orchestral suite[2]:

1. Prélude
2. Minuetto
3. Adagietto
4. Carillon

The order of the movements does not correspond to that of the stage version in either the original or final scenario, but conforms rather to the conventional character and tempo requirements of a short symphony. The original title was L'Arlésienne, suite d'orchestre, but after the appearance of a second suite, it would be known as L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1[2]. It was first performed on 10 November 1872 under Jules Pasdeloup of the Concerts populaires[2] in the Cirque d'Hiver with great success.

L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2

L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1 became so popular that the publisher Choudens commissioned a second set in 1879, four years after Bizet's untimely death. It is generally asserted that his friend Ernest Guiraud used the other three large scale movements, and added an extraneous number (the Minuet), to assemble and arrange another suite as follows:

1. Pastorale
2. Intermezzo
3. Minuet
4. Farandole

The choral parts of the Pastorale were arranged for orchestra. The Minuet was taken from Scènes bohémiennes, a suite of material originally composed for Bizet's 1866 opera The Fair Maid of Perth.[2] The Farandole (which is a Provençal dance) is a condensation of several numbers of the incidental music in which, once again, the choral parts were arranged for orchestra. Although L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2 is assumed to be Guiraud's work (his name is not mentioned in any scores[2]) and is not as unified as the first suite, it contains a large proportion of inspired Bizet material, and is therefore generally credited to Bizet.

Instrumentation

The score of L'Arlésienne makes novel use of the saxophone, at that time just being introduced after its invention. Bizet also specifies a tambourin (provençal), a tenor drum from Provence, not to be confused with the tambourine. In the absence of the genuine article, a tom drum or a snareless side drum might be substituted. Herbert von Karajan famously used an actual tambourine in more than one recording, giving the Farandole a much different ambiance.

Section	Incidental Music[2]	Suites[2]
Strings	• 4 violins I • 3 violins II • 1 viola • 5 cellos • 2 double basses	• violins I • violins II • violas • cellos • double basses
Woodwinds	• 2 flutes (second doubling piccolo) • 1 oboe (also cor anglais) • 1 clarinet • 2 bassoons • 1 alto saxophone	• 2 flutes (second doubling piccolo) • 2 oboes (second doubling cor anglais) • 2 clarinets • 2 bassoons • 1 alto saxophone
Brass	2 french horns	• 4 french horns • 2 trumpets • 2 cornets • 3 trombones
Percussion	• timpani (also tambourin, a Provençal drum)	• timpani • tambourin provençal • bass drum • cymbals
Additional	• piano (also harmonium)	harp or piano

Incidental music (1872)

Main Characters[2]

• Francet Mamaï (65), farmer of le Castelet, grandfather of Frédéri and L'Innocent
• Rose Mamaï (40), Francet's daughter-in-law, mother of Frédéri and L'Innocent
• Frédéri (20), the protagonist; obsessively in love with the Arlésienne
• L'Innocent (13), Frédéri's brother; regarded as a simpleton
• Balthazar (70), a shepherd
• La Renaud (70), Balthazar's love interest in earlier times, Vivette's grandmother
• Vivette (17), Rose's goddaughter, Frédéri's second love interest
• Patron Marc, Rose's brother, a Rhône sailor
• Mitifio (30), a Gardian

Synopsis

The Overture (№ 1) begins with five different orchestrations of the March of the Kings, and concludes with the first of several quotations in the score of L’Innocent’s theme, and Frédéri’s theme.

Act 1

Scene 1: The farm at Le Castelet

In the first mélodrame (№ 2) Francet Mamaï tells Balthazar and l’Innocent of Fredéri’s passion for a girl from Arles, while l’Innocent, whose theme dominates this and the next two numbers, tries to talk to the shepherd about a fable about a wolf attacking a goat.

The next mélodrame (№ 3) links the first and second scenes of the play, as Balthazar, continues telling the wolf story to l’Innocent. The third mélodrame (№ 4) accompanies an exchange between Vivette, Rose Mamaï’s god-daughter, and Balthazar, where the shepherd says he thinks something is stirring in l’Innocent’s mind.

After a gay offstage chorus, a mélodrame (№ 5), introduces the theme of Mitifio, who reveals that the Arlésienne has been his mistress for two years. In the mélodrame and final chorus (№ 6), Frédéri is about to go off to Arles, but Francet tells him what Mitifio said. The chorus bursts in with a reprise of "Grand soleil de la Provence", and Frédéri’s theme accompanies his collapse by the well.

Act 2

Scene 1: At the Lake of Vaccarès

The Pastorale (№ 7), the first movement in the second suite, with offstage chorus and accompaniment, sets the scene. In Mélodrame (№ 8) Balthazar and l’Innocent enter (using the latter’s theme), and (№ 9) marks the exit of Rose. The next mélodrame (№ 10) accompanies the discovery of Fréderi in the shepherd’s hut, angry because everyone is spying on him. As wordless offstage chorus sing (№ 11), Balthazar leaves, having failed to make Frédéri destroy the letters from the Arlésienne which he reads night and day. Mélodrame (№ 12) is only six bars; l’Innocent cannot recall the story he wants to tell his brother. In the next mélodrame (№ 13, Èr dóu Guet) described as a berceuse, l’Innocent falls asleep while telling his story. A nine-bar mélodrame (№ 14) evokes Rose’s desperation at Fréderi’s frame of mind.

Scene 2: The kitchen at Castelet

The next music (the Intermezzo used in the second suite) depicts Vivette, the local girl who wants to marry Frédéri, preparing her parcels to take on the Rhône ferry (№ 15). After men prepare to go out shooting game Rose and the others fear that Frédéri might kill himself. At the end of the act (№ 16) when Frédéri decides that Vivette can help him forget his obsession, Balthazar and Rose express their relief.

This is followed by the Minuet (№ 17) and the Carillon (№ 18), both used in the first suite.

Act 3

Scene 1: The Castelet farm courtyard

A 6/8 Andantino Mélodrame (№ 19) marks the entrance of Mère Renaud in Scene III, and in the following Adagio (the Adagietto in the first Suite) Balthazar and Renaud reminisce about old times. As all move off to eat, there is a reprise of the Andantino. Another Andantino follows the exit of Frédéri and Vivette as they declare their love (№ 20). The farandole (№ 21, Danso dei Chivau-Frus) which begins quietly and builds to a climax sees Frédéri respond with fury to Mitifio who has come to tell Balthazar that he will run off with the girl from Arles (№ 22).

Scene 2: The Magnanery

The farandole is heard, then the March of the Kings is sung by the chorus, after which the two are combined (№ 23); there is reprise for chorus of the March of the Kings (№ 24). In (№ 25) l’Innocent ‘awakens’ showing he understands his brother’s problem. In mélodrame (№ 26) Rose is momentarily reassured as the clock strikes three, while the Final is a powerful tutti version of Frédéri’s theme (№ 27) which brings down the curtain.

Structure

Source: Piano vocal score, Choudens, Paris (ca. 1885)

Act/Scene	No.	Title	Bars	Tempo	Bars	Prominent Instruments	Repeating Themes	Suites
Overture	1	Ouverture	148	Allegro deciso—Tempo di Marcia	17	Strings	Marcho dei Rèi	Suite 1, № 1 'Prélude'
					17	Woodwinds
					17	Tambourin, orchestra
				Andantino	17	Bassoons, horns, cellos
				Allegro deciso—Tempo di Marcia	25	Orchestra
				Andante	23	Saxophone, clarinet, orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
				Un peu moins lent	32	Violins, orchestra	Frédéri's theme
Act 1 Le Castelet	2	Mélodrame	7	Andante	7	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	3	Mélodrame	11	Andante	11	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	4	Mélodrame	10	Andantino sostenuto	10	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	5	Chœur et Mélodrame	35	Allegro moderato	20	Chorus, piano	Grand soleil de la Provence
				Largo	15	Saxophone, horn	Mitifio's theme
	6	Mélodrame et Chœur final	31	Largo	5	Saxophone, horn	Mitifio's theme
				Allegro	10	Orchestra	Grand soleil de la Provence
				Allegro deciso	8	Chorus, piano
				Plus lent	8	Orchestra	Frédéri's theme
Act 2, Scene 1 L'Étang de Vaccarès	7	Entr'acte et Chœur: Pastorale	108	Andante sostenuto assai	44	Orchestra		Suite 2, № 1 'Pastorale'
				Andantino quasi allegretto	64	Chorus, piccolo, piano
	8	Mélodrame	9	Andantino	9	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	9	Mélodrame	14	Allegretto	14	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	10	Mélodrame	9	Andante	9	Orchestra	Frédéri's theme
	11	Chœur	10	Adagio	10	Chorus, orchestra
	12	Mélodrame	6	Andante	6	Orchestra	Frédéri's theme
	13	Mélodrame	18	Andante assai	18	Orchestra
	14	Mélodrame	9	Allegro	9	Chorus, piano or harmonium
Act 2, Scene 2 La cuisine de Castelet	15	Entr'acte	53	Maestoso	15	Orchestra		Suite 2, № 2 'Intermezzo'
				Allegro moderato	30	Clarinet, saxophone, orchestra	Intermezzo
				Maestoso	6	Orchestra
				Beaucoup plus lent	2	Orchestra	Intermezzo
	16	Final	14	Quasi-andante	14	Orchestra	Intermezzo
Intermezzo	17	Valse-Menuet	162	Allegro giocoso	162	Orchestra		Suite 1, № 2 'Minuetto'
Act 3, Scene 1 La cour du Castelet	18	Entr'acte: Carillon	148	Allegretto moderato	60	Horns, orchestra		Suite 1, № 4 'Carillon'
				Andantino	45	Woodwinds, orchestra	Andantino
				Allegretto moderato	43	Horns, orchestra
	19	Mélodrame	99	Andantino	43	Orchestra	Andantino
				Adagio	34	Violins, violas, cellos	Adagietto	Suite 1, № 3 'Adagietto'
				Andantino	22	Orchestra	Andantino
	20	Mélodrame	11	Andantino espressivo	11	Orchestra	Intermezzo
	21	Farandole	68	Allegro vivo e deciso	68	Tambourin, piccolo, orchestra	Danso dei Chivau-Frus	Suite 2, № 4 'Farandole'
Act 3, Scene 2 La Magnanerie	22	Entr'acte	34	Adagio	34	Orchestra	Adagietto
	23	Chœur	78	Allegretto giocoso	24	Tambourin, piccolo, orchestra	Danso dei Chivau-Frus	Suite 2, № 4 'Farandole'
				Tempo di marcia molto moderato	33	Chorus, piano	Marcho dei Rèi
				Allegretto giocoso	21	Tambourin, piccolo, chorus, piano	Danso dei Chivau-Frus Marcho dei Rèi
	24	Chœur	9	Large	9	Chorus, piano	Marcho dei Rèi
	25	Mélodrame	31	Andante assai	31	Orchestra	L'Innocent's theme
	26	Mélodrame	24	Adagio	24	Orchestra	Frédéri's theme
	27	Final	7	Large	7	Orchestra	Frédéri's theme

Suite No. 1 (1872)

The suite opens with a strong, energetic theme, which is based on the Epiphany carol "March of the Kings", played by the violins. (This tune had also been used two centuries earlier in Jean-Baptiste Lully's Marche de Turenne.) Afterwards, the theme is repeated by various sections. After reaching a climax, the theme fades away. It is followed by the theme associated with L'Innocent (the brother of Frédéri, the hero). The Prélude concludes with the theme associated with Frédéri himself. The second movement, resembles a minuet, while the third is more emotional and muted. The last movement, Carillon, features a repeating bell-tone pattern on the horns, mimicking a peal of church bells.

Movements

• I. Prélude, Allegro deciso (the March of the Kings)

• II. Minuet, Allegro giocoso (The ending of this movement is slightly expanded from the version in the incidental music.)

• III. Adagietto (In the incidental music, this number is preceded and followed by a melodrama that, in the suite, forms the central section of the concluding Carillon. For this purpose it is transposed up a semitone.)

• IV. Carillon, Allegro moderato (Expanded as indicated above.)

Suite No. 2 (1879)

The second suite begins with an introduction by the wind section, followed by the melody in the strings. The melodies are repeated by various sections throughout the first movement. In the suite, the opening section returns and concludes the piece. In the original version, the "central" section, which was a wordless chorus sung by women, ends the piece. The second movement intermezzo features utilization of low tones and begins with the wind section. Guiraud adds twelve additional bars to the concluding section. Sometime after this second suite was prepared from the L'Arlésienne music, Guiraud extracted the Intermezzo movement, added the Latin sacred text of the Agnus Dei to it, and published it as yet another "new" work of Bizet. The menuet, which is not from L'Arlésienne, but from Bizet's 1866 opera The Fair Maid of Perth, features solos by harp, flute, and, later, saxophone (this replacing the vocal parts of the original); it is the most subdued and emotional movement. The finale, the farandole, incorporates the theme of the March of the Kings once again. This is an expanded combination of numbers 21 and 23-24 of the original incidental music, in which the farandole appears first on its own. It is afterwards briefly combined with the march.

Movements

• I. Pastorale

• II. Intermezzo

• III. Minuet

• IV. Farandole

Recordings

Audio

Incidental Music

Year	Conductor	Orchestra and Choir	Notes	Label
1957	Albert Wolff	Unidentified studio orchestra and choir	Dramatization by Max de Rieux with actors Mary Marquet, Berthe Bovy, Maurice Chambreuil, Pierre Larquey, Hubert Noel and Fernand Sardou	Decca LXT5229-30 Naxos 9.80151-52
1985	Michel Plasson	Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse Orfeon Donostiarra	Complete incidental music	EMI
1986	John Eliot Gardiner	Orchestre de l'Opera de Lyon	Orchestral excerpts (10 numbers)	Erato 2292-45298-2
1991	Robert Haydon Clark	Consort of London Consort of Voices	Complete incidental music	Collins Classics
1991	Christopher Hogwood	Saint Paul Chamber Orchesta	Excerpts	Decca
1996	Helmuth Froschauer	Kölner Rundfunkorchester Kölner Rundfunkchor	In German; with narrators	Capriccio
2004	Jean-Claude Malgoire	Orchestre de Chambre National de Toulouse Ensemble Vocal Jean Sourisse	Complete incidental music; with narrator	Auvidis Valois
2004	Christopher Hogwood	Kammerorchester Basel	Excerpts (9 numbers)	Arte Nova
2008	Marc Minkowski	Musiciens du Louvre	Excerpts	Naïve

Suites

Year	Conductor	Orchestra	Notes	Label
1957	Thomas Beecham	Royal Philharmonic Orchestra	Contains both Suites 1 & 2	EMI

Video

• 1922, film directed by André Antoine with Jean Jacquinet as Marc, Maguy Deliac as Vivette, Gabriel de Gravone as Frédéric, Charles de Rochefort as Mitifio.
• 1930, film directed by Jacques de Baroncelli with Jim Gérald as Marc, Germaine Dermoz as Rose Mamaï, Blance Montel as Vivette, José Noguero as Frédéric, Charles Vanel, as Mitifio.
• 1942, film directed by Marc Allégret with Raimu as Marc, Gaby Morlay as Rose Mamaï, Gisèle Pascal as Vivette and Louis Jourdan as Frédéri; Paul Paray conducted Bizet’s score.[4]

Notable uses

Music from the L'Arlésienne suites was played extensively in "Hammer into Anvil", an episode of The Prisoner.

The "Carillon" and "Farandole" were used on two episodes of Disney Junior's Little Einsteins.

The "Carillon" was used in a very successful media campaign in Puerto Rico, launched in the late 1980s by the local importers of Finlandia vodka. It featured French-born photographer Guy Paizy playing the role of a sophisticated, womanizing classical orchestra conductor. The campaign is still remembered in the island nation, almost two decades after its inception.

Albanian dictator Enver Hoxha adopted the First Suite's "Prelude" as a military march during his reign.

The Japanese group Mihimaru GT uses the theme of the "Farandole" for their song "Theme of mihimaLIVE 2".

American songwriter, composer, and arranger Ben Homer created a jazz arrangement "Bizet Has His Day" from Georges Bizet's "Farandole" from L’Arlésienne, (1945).

Jazz musician Bob James arranged and recorded a jazz version of "Farandole" on his album Two (1975).

French choreographer Roland Petit created a ballet L'Arlésienne in 1974 which has been performed throughout the world, based on Daudet's short story and set against a Van Gogh landscape.[5]

A rock version of "Farandole" appears in the Catherine video game by Atlus.

The song tune is also used in a character song called "England's Evil Summoning Song" from an anime called Hetalia: Axis Powers and was performed by Noriaki Sugiyama, who provided vocals for Arthur Kirkland/England. According to an interview with Noriaki in Hetalia Character CD Perfect Guide, the lyrics were entirely made up by the performer as the performance went on.

References

Notes

Further reading

• New York City Opera: Georges Bizet
• L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1, Classical Notes
• Suite No. 1, L'Arlésienne

External links

• L'Arlésienne (Bizet): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project

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