La Folia (literally "madness") was a Portuguese dance from the renaissance, and it has been used by many composers in the ensuing centuries.
This extravaganza involves various forces each exploring different facets of "folia" ranging from the baroque original style, expanded upon by a guitar quartet, on to a slightly zany exploration of the octatonic mode, then a 5 time string quartet followed by the sad (Ophelia) and the madcap (improvisation and Pathelin), and ending with a variation that pays homage to the Brazilian bossa nova, thus bringing us back to the Portuguese original in modern garb.
I might add a few other movements later in the year, but with 8 movements lasting 27 minutes, this might be enough for now . . .
Stream the whole Suite1st movement: "Let's sing la Folia"
Download "Let's sing La Folia"Stream "Let's sing La Folia"This is for voices and guitars. It introduces the theme as a repeated verse on voice 1 and then adds a couple of vocalize additions above and below it.The cuckoo style interpolations by voice 3 presages the madness of the third movement. . . . !
2nd movement: Guitar Quartet
Download La Folia Guitar QuartetStream La Folia Guitar Quartet
Score - free pdf downloadThis re-introduces the theme and then adds various neo-renaissance divisions, ending up with the main theme a quaver apart between parts to give the effect of dreaming empty headedness (or possibly even madness itself?).The guitarists are also asked occasionally to tap their guitars, hence that knocking sound!
3rd movement: mad multimodal variation
Download La Folia MultimodalStream La Folia Multimodal
This a-cappella version uses three altos and one (sort of) bass, a cappella, i.e. me singing on multitrack. It explores a couple of alternative modes for the theme: Octatonic and Dorian
and it also explores the theme of madness a little. Beware!
4th movement: String quartet
Download La Folia String quartetStream La Folia String quartetThis string quartet version starts in the major (Ionian) mode in a fast 5 time and explores some slightly Brittenesque ideas.After a short interlude which grasps helplessly for the home key the time changes to 7/8 and the mode returns to a sort of minor (aeolian) and the feeling of madness becomes almost "acceptable". The major theme in 5 time returns and we get a foretaste of the movements to come!
Score - free pdf download(email me for parts if required)
5th movement: Ophelia's distraction
More details about "Hamlet"
Download OpheliaStream OpheliaThis version of la Folia (or Faronell's ground, as we English used to call it) is based on the scene in which Ophelia makes her last appearance in Shakespeare's play Hamlet, mourning the death of her father Polonius. I was having difficulty wiping away the tears as I set these amazingly powerful words.
The closer I got into the meanings of the words and the references to the events in the play the more I empathised with dear sweet innocent Ophelia (pity my voice isn't quite feminine enough - ah well!) . . . (BTW I also play Laertes in this scene!).
To follow the words, click here for the text file (opens in a new window)
6th movement: Improvised version of La Folia
Download Impro-FoliaStream Impro-FoliaInfluenced in part by the madcap antics of Michael Bentine and the Goons, this improvisation involves a guitar, a tapping finger, two temple bells and four eunuch flutes at various pitches (including my bottom note!)
[Eunuch flutes are an ancient and probably inauthentic equivalent of the kazoo - mine is made of olive wood and the "membrane" is from an old plastic shopping bag, as advised by the maker!]
7th movement : The Mad Scene from the Farce of Pierre Pathelin
Download Pathelin's mad sceneStream Pathelin's mad scene
The scene that I have chosen from this farce from 15th century France is the one in which Pierre Pathelin pretends to be on his deathbed hallucinating, in order to persuade the draper that he cannot have seen him at the market and he cannot have given him that cloth for which he is demanding payment.
This "modernised" version that I have created shows Pathelin stealing jeans rather than cloth, and hallucinating in various languages rather than merely various French dialects, mainly to give it a more global appeal. But it follows the original quite strictly in most other respects. Honest! ;-)
(Crosses fingers behind back!)
(er well... come to think of it, it's probably worth looking at the text file to get all the multilingual jokes, anyway!)
For the text of my "modernised" version please click here: Pathelin modernised version
For the original text of the whole play, please click here: Philip Stewart's transcription
For a Portuguese translation of the whole play, with very useful annotations (if you can read Portuguese!), and some rather nice original woodcuts, please click here: Portuguese translation and woodcuts etc
The instrumentation supporting the spoken voices comprises guitar and two eunuch flutes.Seems appropriate!
8th movement: Bossa Nova
Download Baroque-Bossa Nova of La FoliaStream Baroque-Bossa Nova of La FoliaThis uses: flute, oboe, violin, cello and jazz band
In view of the Portuguese origin of the tune, it seems appropriate to end with a Brazilian dance style!
For other variations in all styles on "La Folia" by various composers, and a discussion of the theme,
please see the La Folia site
[Other spellings I've seen in my search engine stats: la foglia, la folla, la follia, lafoglia, lafolla, lafollia, lafolia, la folie, lafolie: Madness!]
