El sombrero de tres picos (The Three Cornered Hat) by Manual de Falla (1876 -1946) is an ballet that was commissioned by the famed Ballet Russes after their artistic director (Diaghilev) saw the proto-version (El corregidor y la molinera (The Magistrate and the Miller's Wife)). Diaghilev was so impressed with the work, that he commissioned de Falla to rework and rewrite the piece for full symphonic orchestra, instead of the original setting for a smaller string orchestra.

The ballet is unusual in the fact that it draws upon Spanish dance forms to inspire it's choreography instead of the normal classical ballet forms. The video above is a performance at the BBC Proms of the staged version of the ballet, whilst the video below is the un-staged symphonic suite.

Manuel de Falla was the foremost Spanish composer of the 20th century, although very few of his works grace the current modern concert halls. Perhaps the most well known piece is this featured ballet, El sombrero de tres picos (The Three Cornered Hat).

Despite being born in Madrid, and later studying and working in France, many of his works (this ballet included) draw upen the music and dances of Andalusia. Later in his life, he did end up moving to Granada (the capital of Andalusia) to further immerse himself in the music and culture of the area with which he drew so much inspiration.

After the victory of Franco in the Spanish Civil War, he exiled himself to Argentina where he built up a good reputation and quite some fame, even being offered a Knighthood and pension from his home country which he refused. He died in his adopted country, to have his remains returned back to Spain to be interred at the Cathedral in Cadiz.

Story Synopsis

Like most Classical opera/ballet stories, the plot is not really a huge literary masterpiece, instead it serves muster as a skeleton for the dance and stage to be performed against. The synopsis below is taken from the Wikipedia article on the piece.

Act I

After a short fanfare, the curtain rises revealing a mill in Andalusia. The miller is trying to teach a pet blackbird to tell the time. He tells the bird to chirp twice, but instead it chirps three times. Annoyed, the miller scolds the bird and tells it to try again. The bird now chirps four times. The miller gets angry at the bird again and his wife offers it a grape. The bird takes the grape and chirps twice. The miller and his wife laugh over this and continue their work.

Soon the magistrate, his wife, and their bodyguard pass by, taking their daily walk. The procession goes by and the couple returns to their work. The dandified, but lecherous, magistrate is heard coming back. The miller tells his wife that he will hide and that they will play a trick on the magistrate. The miller hides and the magistrate sees the miller's wife dancing. After her dance, she offers him some grapes. When the magistrate gets the grapes, the miller's wife runs away with the magistrate following her. Finally, he catches her, and the miller jumps out of a bush with a stick. The miller chases the magistrate away and the miller and his wife continue working.

Act II

That night, guests are at the miller's house. The miller dances to entertain them. His dance is interrupted by the magistrate's bodyguard, who has come to arrest him on trumped-up charges. After the miller is taken away, the guests leave one-by-one. The miller's wife goes to sleep and soon the magistrate comes to the mill. On his way to the door, the magistrate trips and falls in the river. The miller's wife wakes up and runs away.

The magistrate undresses, hangs his clothes on a tree, and goes to sleep in the miller's bed. The miller has escaped from prison and sees the magistrate in his bed. The miller thinks that the magistrate is sleeping with his wife and plans to switch clothes with the magistrate and avenge himself by seducing the magistrate's wife. The miller leaves, dressed as the magistrate, and the magistrate soon wakes up. He goes outside and sees that his clothes are gone, so he dresses in the miller's clothes.

The bodyguard comes and sees the magistrate dressed as the miller and goes to arrest him. The miller's wife sees the bodyguard fighting with what looks like her husband and joins in the fight. The miller comes back and sees his wife in the fight and joins it to protect her. The magistrate explains the entire story and the ballet ends with the miller's guests tossing the magistrate up and down in a blanket.

The Performers

In the first video (the staged version), the Mezzo-soprano Clara Mouriz joins conductor Juanjo Mena and the BBC Philharmonic for their performance at the BBC Proms. However, it is really the dancers (unfortunately, not attributed in the video description) that steal the limelight. The performance is good, but it is actually the first time that I have seen the staged version of the piece, despite having performed it several times!

The un-staged symphonic suite version (the second video) is by the Moscow City Symphony "Russian Philharmonic" with conductor David Handel from the United Stages of America. Unfortunately, although I enjoyed the performance, both the orchestra and conductor are not known to me (although, that doesn't mean too much as I hail from a different field of music!). After seeing the two videos side by side, I really feel the loss of the ballet dancers!

Previous Curating Music History posts

Oboe and Violin Double Concerto (JS Bach)

An American in Paris (Gershwin)

1st and 2nd Arabesque (Debussy)

Last movement from 6th Brandenburg Concerto (JS Bach)

Agnus Dei from Faure Reqiuem

Vivaldi double Cello concerto

Last movements from 2nd Sonata in a minor (Westhoff)

The Typewriter by Erik Satie

Children's Corner (Debussy)

Last movement from Brahms Violin Concerto

Finale from 4th Symphony (Tchaikovsky)

Last movement from "Jupiter" Symphony #41 (Mozart)

Overture to Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendelssohn)

Histoire du Tango: Cafe 1930 (Piazzolla)

Last movement from Violin sonata 2 (Prokofiev)

Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Britten)

'Sonata in d minor for violin and continuo" (Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre)

'Sonata duodecima' for Violin and Continuo(Isabella Leonarda)

Chaconne from Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme (Lully)

Alla Danza Tedesca from Beethoven String Quartet Op.130

6 Elizabethan Songs: Argento