Heitor Villa-Lobos

Heitor Villa-Lobos (March 5, 1887 - November 17, 1959) was a Brazilian composer.

Major works

Villa-Lobos was notoriously prolific, though he probably himself exaggerated the number of works he wrote. Many works are arrangements of earlier pieces. Especially in his final years, Villa-Lobos did a lot of re-composing.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The works below represent his musical legacy. Except for the lost works, they are well represented on the world's recital and concert stages and on CD. Even the Symphonies are now available in an integral recording on the cpo label - see http://www.rdpl.org/villa/stuttgart.html. Exceptions include the Nonetto and the operas.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Villa-Lobos' most popular work is the 5th Bachianas Brasileiras, written for voice and eight cellos, but performed in many other instrumental combinations. Close runner-ups would include the music for solo guitar, including the preludes, etudes and Choros 1. The greatest music is included in the Choros, Bachianas Brasileiras and String Quartet series, while a number of works for solo piano - Choros 5 and Bachianas Brasileiras 4, for example - are highly prized by pianists and audiences alike.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Bachianas Brasileiras

• No. 1 for 8 cellos (1932)
• No. 2 for chamber orchestra (1933)
• No. 3 for piano and orchestra (1934)
• No. 4 for piano (1930-40); orchestrated in 1942
• No. 5 for voice and 8 cellos (1938)
• No. 6 for flute and bassoon (1938)
• No. 7 for orchestra (1942)
• No. 8 for orchestra (1944)
• No. 9 for chorus or string orchestra (1944)

Choros

• Intoduction to Choros for guitar & orchestra (1929)
• No. 1 for guitar (1920)
• No. 2 for flute & clarinet (1921)
• No. 3 for male chorus & wind instruments (1925)
• No. 4 for 3 horns & trombone (1926)
• No. 5 for piano (1926) "Alma Brasileira"
• No. 6 for orchestra (1926)
• No. 7 for winds, violin & cello (1924)
• No. 8 for large orchestra & 2 pianos (1925)
• No. 9 for orchestra (1929)
• No. 10 for chorus & orchestra (1925) "Rasga o Coraçao"
• No. 11 for piano & orchestra (1928)
• No. 12 for orchestra (1929)
• No. 13 for 2 orchestras & band (1929) - LOST
• No. 14 for orchestra, band & chorus (1928) - LOST
• Choros bis, for violin & cello (1928)

Concertos

• Suite for Piano and Orchestra (1913)
• Cello Concerto no. 1 (1915)
• Momoprécoce, fantasy for piano and orchestra (1921)
• Fantasia de Movimentos Mistos, for violin & orchestra (1921)
• Ciranda das Sete Notas for basson & string orchestra (1933)
• Piano Concerto no. 1 (1945)
• Piano Concerto no. 2 (1948)
• Piano Concerto no. 3 (1952-57)
• Piano Concerto no. 4 (1952)
• Piano Concerto no. 5 (1954)
• Fantasia for soprano saxophone, three horns & strings (1948)
• Concerto for Guitar (1951)
• Harp Concerto (1953)
• Cello Concerto no. 2 (1953)
• Fantasia for Cello and Orchestra
• Harmonica Concerto
• Concerto Grosso for wind quartet & wind ensemble (1959)
• Chôros no. 11 and Bachianas no. 3 are also concertante pieces for piano and orchestra

Symphonies

• No. 1 O Imprevisto, The Unforseen (1920)
• No. 2 Ascenção, The Ascension (1917)
• No. 3 A Guerra, The War (1919)
• No. 4 A Vitória, The Victory (1919)
• No. 5 A Paz, The Peace (1920) - LOST
• No. 6 Montanhas do Brasil, The Mountains of Brasil (1944)

No. 7 (1945)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• No. 8 (1950)
• No. 9 (1951)
• No. 10 Sumé Pater Patrium, Amerindia (1952)
• No. 11 (1955)
• No. 12 (1957)

Other Orchestral Works (including Ballet scores)

• Tédio de Alvorada, symphonic poem (1916)
• Naufrágio de Kleônicos, symphonic poem (1916)
• Dancas Africanas (1916)
• Sinfonietta no. 1 (1916)
• Iára (1917)
• Amazonas, ballet & symphonic poem (1917)
• Uirapuru, ballet (1917)
• Danca Frenetica (1918)
• Danca dos Mosquitos (1922)
• Francette et Piá (1928, orch. 1958)
• Rudepoema (1926, orch. 1932)
• O Papagaio do moleque, the Kite of the Guttersnipe, a symphonic episode (1932)
• Caixinha de Boas Festas, symphonic poem & ballet (1932)
• Evolução dos Aeroplanos (1932)
• Danca da terra, ballet (1939)
• Mandú-Cárárá, Profane Cantata / Children's Ballet for mixed choir, children's choir & orchestra (1940)
• Suite Saudade da Juventude nr. 1 (1940)
• Madona, symphonic poem (1945)
• Sinfonietta no. 2 (1947)
• Erosão, Erosion, symphonic poem (1950)
• Rudá, symphonic poem & ballet (1951)
• Ouverture de L'Homme Tel (1952)
• Alvorada na Floresta Tropical, ouverture (1953)
• Odisséia de uma raça, symphonic poem (1953)
• Gênesis, symphonic poem & ballet (1954)
• Emperor Jones, a ballet (1956)
• Fantasia em Três Movimentos (in body of choros)(1958)
• Suite no. 1 for chamber orchestra (1959)
• Suite no. 2 for chamber orchestra (1959)

Chamber Music

• Sonate-fantaisie no. 1 for violin and piano, Désespérance, Despair (1913)
• Sonate-fantaisie no. 2 for violin and piano (1914)
• Sonata for violin and piano no. 3 (1920)
• Trio for piano and strings no. 1 (1911)
• Trio for piano and strings no. 2 (1915)
• Trio for piano and strings no. 3 (1918)
• Sextuor Mystique, for flute, oboe, saxophone, harp, celesta and guitar (1917)
• Quarteto Simbolico, for flute, alt saxophone, harp, celesta and female voices (1921)
• Trio for oboe, clarinet & bassoon (1921)
• Nonetto, Impressão rápida de todo o Brasil, A Rapid Impression of All Brazil (1923)
• Quinteto em forma de choros, for flute, oboe, clarinet, English horn or horn and bassoon (1928)
• Quatuor, for flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon (1928)
• Assobio a Jato (The Jat Whistle,)for flute and cello (1930)
• Distribuição de Flores for flute and guitar (1937)
• Trio for violin, viola and cello (1945)
• Divagacao for cello, piano and bass drum (adlib.) (1946)
• Duo for violin and viola (1946)
• Fantaisie concertante for piano, clarinet and bassoon (1953)
• Duo for oboe and bassoon (1957)
• Quinteto Instrumental, for flute, violin, viola, cello and harp (1957)
• Fantasia Concertante for 16 or 32 cellos (1958)
• Choros no. 2,3,4,7 and Bachianas 1&6 are scored for various instruments in chamber style

String Quartets

• No. 1 (1915)
• No. 2 (1915)
• No. 3 (1917)
• No. 4 (1917)
• No. 5 (1931)
• No. 6 (1938)
• No. 7 (1942)
• No. 8 (1944)
• No. 9 (1945)
• No. 10 (1946)
• No. 11 (1948)
• No. 12 (1950)
• No. 13 (1951)
• No. 14 (1953)
• No. 15 (1954)
• No. 16 (1955)
• No. 17 (1957)
• Sketches are all that remain of the 18th Quartet.

Operas

• Izaht (1914)
• Magdalena (1948)
• Yerma (1955)
• Daughter of the Clouds (1957)

Ballets

• see: other orchestral works

Music for Films

• Descobrimento do Brasil (1938)
• Green Mansions (1959) - (adapted as the concert work Forest of the Amazon)

Works for Guitar solo

• Choros no. 1 (1920)
• Suite populaire Bresilienne (1928)
• Twelve Etudes (1929)
• Five Preludes (1940)

Music for Piano solo

• Ibericarabe (1914)
• Ondulando (1914)
• Danças Características Africanas (1915)
• Suite floral (1918)
• Histórias da carochinha (1919)
• A Lenda do Caboclo (1920)
• Carnaval das crianças (1920)
• Prole do Bébé, first series (1920)
• Prole do Bébé, second series (1921)
• Prole do Bébé, third series (1926) - LOST
• A Fiandeira (1921)
• Rudêpoema (1921-26)
• Sul America (1925)
• Cirandinhas (1925)
• Cirandas (1926)
• Saudades das Selvas Brasileiras (1927)
• Bachianas Brasileiras no. 4 (1930-40)
• Francette et Pià (1932)
• Valsa da dor (1932)
• Guia Prático (1932-49)
• Ciclo brasileiro (1936-37)
• Plantio do caboclo, The Peasant's Sowing
• Impressões seresteiras, The Impressions of a Serenade Musician
• Festa no sertão, The Fete in the Desert
• Dança do Indio Branco, The Dance of the White Indian
• As Três Marias (1939)
• New York Sky-Line Melody (1939)
• Poema Singelo (1942)
• Homenagem a Chopin (1949)