Paul Dukas
Paul Dukas was born in Paris, France, on October 1, 1865. After attending the Paris Conservatory, where he won prizes in counterpoint and fugue as well as the second Prix de Rome, he served as music critic for several Parisian journals. From 1910 to 1912 he was professor of orchestration at the Paris Conservatory, and from 1927 until his death its professor of composition. His first successful work was a concert overture, Polyecute, introduced in Paris in 1892. His Symphony in C major, first heard in 1897, enhanced his reputation while his orchestral scherzo, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, also introduced in 1897, made him famous. Being exceptionally fastidious and self-critical, Dukas did not produce many compositions, but the best of these are works so aristocratic in technique and subtle in musical content that they make a direct appeal only to sophisticated music lovers. These works include the opera Ariane et Barbe-bleue, first performed in Paris on May 10, 1907; the ballet, La Péri, introduced in Paris on April 22, 1912; and some piano music. Towards the end of his life, Dukas destroyed several of his earlier works deeming them unsuitable for survival. He was one of France’s most revered musicians. He was made Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1906, and in 1918 elected a member of the Conseil de l’enseignement supérieur at the Paris Conservatory. He died in Paris on May 17, 1935.
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (L’Apprenti sorcier), scherzo for orchestra (1897), is Dukas’ most famous composition, the one that made him known throughout the world of music. It is so witty, so vivid in its pictorial writing that it has become a favorite of both the very young and the mature. The program, which the music follows with amazing literalness, comes from Goethe’s ballad Der Zauberlehrling which, in turn, was adapted from a famous folk tale. The story goes something like this: An apprentice to a magician has come upon his master’s secret formula for turning a broom into a human being and making it perform human tasks. The apprentice decides to try out this incantation for himself while the master is away, and watches with amazement as the broom acquires human powers. He orders the broom to fetch water, a command meekly obeyed. Pail after pail of water is carried into the magician’s shop by the broom until the place is rapidly being inundated. The apprentice now tries to arrest the water-fetching activity of the broom, but he does not know the proper incantation to achieve this, or to strip the broom of its human powers. In terror, the apprentice attacks the broom with a hatchet. The broom, split into two brooms, now becomes two humans performing the ritual of bringing water into the den. In despair, the apprentice cries out for his master who arrives in time to bring the broom back to its former inanimate state, and to restore order.
The atmosphere of mystery and peace prevailing in the magician’s den is created in the opening measures with a descending theme for muted violins, while different woodwinds give a hint of the principal subject, a roguish tune describing the sorcerer’s apprentice; this subject finally appears in the double bassoon, and is then repeated by the full orchestra. The call of trumpets suggests the incantation pronounced by the apprentice; a brisk theme for bassoons against plucked strings describes the parade of the broom back and forth as it brings the water; and arpeggio figures in the orchestra depict the water itself. The music then portrays the mounting terror of the apprentice as he is unable to arrest the march of the broom. After an overwhelming climax, at which point the apprentice splits the broom into two with a hatchet, the saucy march tune is doubled to inform us that two brooms are now at work. A shriek in the orchestra simulates the panic-stricken call of the apprentice. After the master arrives and sets things in order, the music of the opening measures is repeated to suggest that once again the magician’s den is pervaded by peace and mystery.
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice was made into an animated motion picture by Walt Disney, the Dukas music performed on the sound track by the Philadelphia Orchestra under Stokowski; it was part of a program collectively entitled Fantasia which came to New York on November 13, 1940.