Barbarossa
Barbarossa was
a product of politics. In 1897, the Austrian Prime minister, Casimir Badenyi’s Languages’
Equality Act tried to put German and Czech on an equal footing. The de facto
result punished German-speakers, as many Czechs already spoke German; few
Germans spoke
His indignation at the perceived
injustice to the German minority led him to thoughts of the emperor Friedrich
Barbarossa and the distant days of glory under his reign. Barbarossa and his
retinue are said to lie sleeping on stone tables inside the
Musically, these thoughts took the
form of a symphonic poem in three movements: The Distress of The People, The
Magic Mountain and The Awakening. The first movement has a slow introduction,
describing an idealized German landscape, then an allegro section, representing
the woes of the people. Amidst the strife, a vision of the emperor appears. But
the time is not yet right and the movement ends in a mood of desperation.
The
The Awakening opens with an outcry
of frustration; the distress of the people is at its most intense. Yet, we hear
distant trumpet calls growing nearer till, at last, the mountain splits open
and Barbarossa emerges, ready to do battle. He and his knights
drive out the oppressors; at last, the people are free. The work ends with a
reprise of the introduction to the first movement, now transformed into a hymn
of victory and thanksgiving.
Hausegger
wrote Barbarossa between
Piccolo,
2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 3 bassoons
(contrabassoon)
4 horns,
4 C trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba
Tympani, 3 percussion- bass drum, 2 snare drums, crash and suspended cymbals, triangle, gong, glockenspiel
Harp
(doubled or more if possible) 62 strings