Respighi wrote music of extraordinary color and orchestral brilliance, partly, no doubt, a consequence of his having studied orchestration with Rimsky Korsakov during the years he served as principal violist in the orchestra of the St. Petersburg opera. Though his best known works are the three large suites celebrating various facets of life in his native Rome (The Fountains of Rome, The Pines of Rome, and Roman Festivals), Respighi was also interested in early music, and this led to a number of hybrids between musicology and composition, arrangements of Italian Renaissance and Baroque music under the titles Ancient Airs and Dances and The Birds, derived from compositions for lute and harpsichord respectively. The Siciliana is an anonymous dance in a gently lilting pastoral character. It has been effectively and gracefully transcribed by Grandjany.

Siciliana - Respighi

Elizabeth Elgin