João Guilherme Ripper: "Brazilian Landscapes no. 1" for Oboe, Clarinet, & Piano
Joao Guilherme Ripper was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1959.
Brazilian Landscapes n. 1 is a two-movement work for oboe, clarinet and piano where the composer tries to picture aspects of the country using popular rhythms and characteristic sonorities of Brazil. The first movement, Sonoro e misterioso, is reminiscent of the large seashore in Brazil with the deepness and mysterious beauty of the sea. A large section,Tempo di Choro - con umore, follows. There are playful dissonances in the dialogue between the instruments reproducing the informal atmosphere of a chorinho gathering, generally held in the streets of Rio. The second movement begins with a clarinet cadenza that leads into a dialogue with the oboe, "Seresta," a countryside type of romantic music generally sung by poets under the winds of their beloved ones. Next comes the "Danza" section where the composer explores the ornaments in the oboe and the clarinet and the dance patterns of Brazilian countryside, particularly the Northeast. The next section "Ricordando Villa-Lobos" is an obvious and necessary homage to Brazil's greatest composer ever, Heitor Villa-Lobos (1886-1959). The composer used some of his stylistic features to built an elusive passage, but one may recognize part of the theme of the "O Trenzinho do Caipira," from his Bachianas n. 2. An oboe cadenza prepares the return of the "Danza" section, here working as the closing section (ma con fuoco), with the original rhythmic alternation of 3/4 and 7/8 measures. Total duration is approximately 14 minutes.