Description
The French composer and respected music critic Paul Dukas (1865-1935) was also immensely self-critical – to the point that he destroyed many of his manuscripts. Today just 15 of his works survive, but it is fair to say that his fame rests entirely with a single orchestral work: the symphonic poem The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (L’apprenti sorcier) (1897). It was well known even before its notable use in the Walt Disney 1940 animated film Fantasia , in which Mickey Mouse assumes the role of the apprentice.
Dukas’s work is based on a poem by Goethe and closely follows its storyline:
An old wizard leaves his apprentice to clean up his workshop. Tired of fetching and carrying pails of water, the lazy apprentice uses the wizard’s magic to enchant a broom to do it for him. However, he soon loses control and the floor becomes flooded. In a desperate attempt to stop the broom the apprentice uses an axe to split the broom in half. For a short while that works, but soon the two pieces revive and continue their work at twice the speed. Eventually the wizard returns and breaks the spell, with the reminder that it is only him that can command the spirits.
This version tells the whole magical story: At five minutes long this condensed version of the piece includes all of the important bits and incorporates elements of the opening and closing sections, bringing the whole story to life. This makes this piece particularly suitable for performances to children/education purposes – especially around Halloween. Of course, it’s really good fun too!!
There is also a version for four bass clarinets.
