Respighi’s Pines of Rome premiered in 1924 in Rome, making its 100^th anniversary coincide with the Fort Smith Symphony’s 100^th Season. That first performance brought both boos and cheers as Respighi combined old traditional Italian themes into scenes with modern music.

Born in Bologna in 1876 but living most of his life in Rome, Respighi sought to combine the colors of Italy’s operatic legacy with the old Italian music of the distant past, in an attempt to establish in Italy an orchestral tradition in the early twentieth century. The most prominent examples of his effort, likely influenced by his former teacher Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, was the Roman Trilogy. Comprised of three symphonic poems composed from 1918 to 1928, they featured what Respighi considered to be the beauty and legacy of Rome. The second of these was Pines of Rome.

The trees in the Pines of Rome, as Respighi wrote, have dominated the Roman landscape for centuries and bear witness to many principal events in Roman life. He described the scenes presented in each of the four movements as follows:

1. “The Pines of Villa Borghese” - Children are at play in the pines of Villa Borghese. They dance round in circles. They play as soldiers marching and fighting, shrieking like swallows at evening. They come and go in swarms.
2. “The Pines Near a Catacomb” - The scene suddenly changes. We see the shadows of pines overhanging the entrance to a catacomb. From the depth rises a chant, echoing like a solemn hymn that gradually and mysteriously goes silent.
3. “The Pines of the Janiculum” - In the trembling air, the full moon reveals the distinct outline of the pines of Janiculum Hill. A nightingale sings.
4. “The Pines of the Appian Way” - Misty dawn on the Appian Way, solitary pine trees guard the tragic landscape. Indistinctly, the ceaseless rhythm of innumerable footsteps. The poet has a vision of past glories. Trumpets sound and, in the brilliance of the rising sun, the consular army bursts forth toward the Sacred Way, climbing in triumph to the Capitol.

The Pines of Rome is notable for the first use of recorded sampling. Respighi, wanting a more realistic sound of a nightingale singing than mere instrumental imitation, recorded actual nightingales singing to be played back in the third movement. The audience at the premiere performance expressed their displeasure at this innovation with boos. However, Respighi won back their appreciation receiving thunderous applause after the fourth movement.

Notes by Robert Fann