LINDA SEYMOUR (Contralto) MAURICE COLE (Pianoforte)
THE WIRELESS MILITARY BAND
Conducted by B. WALTON O'DONNELL
DRECIOSA, begun in 1820, a few weeks after
The Marksman (Der Freischütz) was finished, is in complete contrast to that Opera of German legend and homely sentiment. Preeiosa is a gipsy maid of Madrid, and the Overture to the Opera gives the Spanish atmosphere, its themes being derived from or founded on tunes that Weber got from Spanish soldiers after the Peninsular War. It brings in, according to Weber's fashion, some of the chief airs from the Opera. First we have a section in the' rhythm of the Spanish Bolero dance, then a march founded on a gipsy air, and finally, a fiery wind-up, ' indicating,' aa Weber himself said, 'the happy end of the piece, and endeavouring to bring together the characteristics of Spain and of Preciosa.'