''Cydalise et le chèvre-pied'' ("Cydalise and the goat-foot" or "Cydalise and the satyr") is a two-act

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

originally choreographed by

Léo Staats Léo Staats (1877 - 1952) was a French dancer, choreographer and director. Life and career Léo Staats studied ballet with Francis Merante, a dancer at the Paris Opera, and reportedly made his debut in 1887. In 1908 he became Ballet Master at th ...

to a score by

Gabriel Pierné Henri Constant Gabriel Pierné (16 August 1863 – 17 July 1937) was a French composer, conductor, pianist and organist. Biography Gabriel Pierné was born in Metz. His family moved to Paris, after Metz and part of Lorraine were annexed to Ger ...

. The libretto was written by Gaston Arman de Caillavet and Robert de Flers, based on

Remy de Gourmont Remy de Gourmont (4 April 1858 – 27 September 1915) was a French symbolist poet, novelist, and influential critic. He was widely read in his era, and an important influence on Blaise Cendrars and Georges Bataille. The spelling ''Rémy'' de Gour ...

's ''Lettre d'un satyre''. Though it was composed between 1914 and 14 February 1915, its Paris Opera premiere was delayed due to the conditions of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

until 15 January 1923. The use of the French term "chèvre-pied" (goat foot) to refer to the

satyr In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, σειληνός ), is a male nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, exa ...

is distinct to this composition. The ballet remains one of the Pierné's most popular compositions. The music is of the impressionist era, though it contains elements of

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

, Neoclassicism, and Neo-Baroque music. Three years after the premiere Pierné extracted two suites from the work, the first of which includes sections from the first two tableaux while the second comprises the entire third tableau. One of the most recognizable pieces in the ballet, "L'École des Ægipans," also known as "The Entry of the Little Fauns" or "The March of the Fauns," is occasionally excerpted and performed separately.

The music

Structure

Act I

Tableau I *Introduction *Danse des Dryades *Apparition de la Source *L'École des Ægipans *La Leçon de flûte de Pan *L'École des Nymphes *La Leçon de danse *Scène *Styrax

Act II

Tableau II *Entrée des Danseurs *Entrée de Styrax *Entrée de Cydalise *Ballet ''La Sultane des Indes'' **Entrée **Pantomime **Pas des Apothicaires **Danse des Esclaves **Variations de Cydalise **Final du Ballet *Danse de Styrax Tableau III *Entrée de Cydalise *Entrée des Suivantes *Pas des billets doux *Entrée de Styrax et danse *Final

Style and influences

''Cydalise et le Chèvre-pied'' makes use of

modes Mode ( la, modus meaning "manner, tune, measure, due measure, rhythm, melody") may refer to: Arts and entertainment * '' MO''D''E (magazine)'', a defunct U.S. women's fashion magazine * ''Mode'' magazine, a fictional fashion magazine which is ...

and lush harmonies characteristic of impressionist music. The opening moonrise scene, highlighted by a wordless chorus, uses techniques similar to that of Maurice Ravel's ''

Daphnis et Chloé ''Daphnis et Chloé'' is a 1912 ''symphonie chorégraphique'', or choreographic symphony, for orchestra and wordless chorus by Maurice Ravel. It is in three main sections, or ''parties'', and a dozen scenes, most of them dances, and lasts just u ...

'' (1912). ''Cydalise'', however, differs in its adherence to shorter musical numbers and closed form composition. The ballet also references styles customary to the Classical and Baroque musical eras, employing a magnified woodwind section emphasizing flutes and piccolos, and even a contemporaneously uncommon use of the harpsichord in Act II.

Discography

*1976: ''Orchestra suites no. 1 and 2'' (+ ''

Ramuntcho ''Ramuntcho'' (1897) is a novel by French author Pierre Loti. It is a love and adventure story about contraband runners in the Basque province of France. It is one of Loti's most popular stories—"love, loss and faith remain eternal themes"—wit ...

''), performed by the Paris Opera, Jean-Baptiste Mari (dir.) -

EMI Classics EMI Classics was a record label founded by Thorn EMI in 1990 to reduce the need to create country-specific packaging and catalogues for internationally distributed classical music releases. After Thorn EMI demerged in 1996, its recorded mus ...

. *2001: ''Cydalise et le Chèvre-pied'', performed by the

Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra The Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra ( lb, Lëtzebuerger philharmoneschen Orchester, french: Orchestre philharmonique du Luxembourg), abbreviated to OPL, is a symphony orchestra based in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. The orchestra formerly perfor ...

, David Shallon (dir.) - Timpani Records.

In popular culture

''Cydalise et le Chèvre-pied'' was among '' Toccata and Fugue in D minor'', ''

Nutcracker Suite ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaiko ...

'', ''

Night on Bald Mountain ''Night on Bald Mountain'' (russian: Ночь на лысой горе, translit=Noch′ na lysoy gore, links=no), also known as ''Night on the Bare Mountain'', is a series of compositions by Modest Mussorgsky (1839–1881). Inspired by Russian ...

'', ''

Ave Maria The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's ...

'', ''

Dance of the Hours ''Dance of the Hours'' (Italian: ') is a short ballet and is the act 3 finale of the opera '' La Gioconda'' composed by Amilcare Ponchielli. It depicts the hours of the day through solo and ensemble dances. The opera was first performed in 1876 ...

'', '' Clair de Lune'', ''

The Rite of Spring , image = Roerich Rite of Spring.jpg , image_size = 350px , caption = Concept design for act 1, part of Nicholas Roerich's designs for Diaghilev's 1913 production of ' , composer = Igor Stravinsky , based_on ...

'', and ''

The Sorcerer's Apprentice "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" (german: "Der Zauberlehrling", link=no, italic=no) is a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe written in 1797. The poem is a ballad in 14 stanzas. Story The poem begins as an old sorcerer departs his workshop, leaving ...

'' as the original planned line-up for

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

's '' Fantasia'' (1940). However, both it and ''Clair de Lune'' were removed from the program late in the writing process and ''Cydalise et le Chèvre-pied'' was ultimately replaced with sections from

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's ''

Pastoral Symphony The Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, also known as the ''Pastoral Symphony'' (German: ''Pastorale''), is a symphony composed by Ludwig van Beethoven and completed in 1808. One of Beethoven's few works containing explicitly programmatic con ...

''.Gabler, p. 308

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cydalise et le Chevre-pied Compositions by Gabriel Pierné 1915 compositions 1923 ballet premieres Ballets premiered at the Paris Opera Ballet Compositions for symphony orchestra