Composer

:

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

Genre

:

Vocal

Style

:

Song

Compose Date

:

1865 - 1866

Publication Date

:

1866

Average_duration

:

3:19

"Eastern Song: The nightingale enslaved by the rose, Op. 2/2" is a composition by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, a Russian composer and member of the "Mighty Handful" group of composers. The piece was composed in 1875 and premiered in the same year in St. Petersburg, Russia. The composition is a song cycle consisting of three movements, each of which is based on a poem by the Persian poet Hafiz. The first movement, "The Nightingale and the Rose," tells the story of a nightingale who falls in love with a rose and sings to it all night, only to find in the morning that the rose has withered and died. The second movement, "The Enchanted Garden," describes a magical garden where the nightingale and the rose are reunited in death. The final movement, "The Lament of the Nightingale," is a mournful song in which the nightingale laments the loss of the rose. The composition is characterized by Rimsky-Korsakov's use of exotic scales and harmonies, which give the piece a distinctly Eastern flavor. The first movement, for example, features a melody that is based on the Persian mode known as "mahur," while the second movement uses a scale known as "hijaz" to create a sense of mystery and enchantment. Overall, "Eastern Song: The nightingale enslaved by the rose, Op. 2/2" is a beautiful and haunting composition that showcases Rimsky-Korsakov's skill as a composer and his fascination with Eastern music and culture.

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