Lucien Caillet
Lucien Caillet was born in Dijon, France on May 22, 1891. After attending the Dijon Conservatory he came to the United States in 1918 and settled first in Pennsylvania, and later in California. He has distinguished himself by his skilful symphonic transcriptions of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach, Mussorgsky, and others. In his own works he frequently makes skilful use, and astute adaptations, of some famous pieces of popular music.
The Fantasia and Fugue on Oh, Susanna! (1942) for orchestra has for its point of departure the famous song of Stephen Foster, “Oh, Susanna!” Caillet’s composition begins with a preface: a tutti for orchestra which quotes the melody only partly. This leads into a fantasia section featuring the solo string quartet and presenting a quiet version of the melody. A fugue follows, the germ of the “Susanna” melody found in first and second violins in unison.
In Pop Goes the Weasel for orchestra (1938) Caillet brings the full resources of his harmonic and instrumental skill to a famous American folk tune. “Pop Goes the Weasel” is a Western two-part melody, long a favorite of country fiddlers since before the Civil War. After presenting this melody, Caillet subjects it to intriguing variations, sometimes with comic effect.