Masques et Bergamasques op. 112 N 185b

In the style of commedia dell'arte

In 1918 Gabriel Fauré, then 73 years old, received a commission from Prince Albert I of Monaco to write stage music invoking the atmosphere of the “commedia dell’arte”. The four-movement orchestral suite op. 112, consisting of “Ouverture”, “Menuet”, “Gavotte” and “Pastorale”, combines previously unpublished parts of this stage music.

The “Pastorale” of 1919 was Fauré’s last composition for orchestra, the “Ouverture” originated in a piece of 1864 for piano duet and the original version of the “Gavotte” was written for piano as early as 1869. The op. 112 orchestral suite demonstrates how the composer, now older and more experienced, reworked and improved his earlier music.

This scholarly-critical edition of the four-movement “Masques et Bergamasques” op. 112 is based on “Gabriel Fauré The Complete Works”, Volume IV/2.