Alexandre Levy (10 November 1864 – 17 January 1892) was a Brazilian composer, pianist and conductor. Born in São Paulo, he pioneered a fusion of classical composition with Brazil's popular folk music and rhythms. His hometown grants a prestigious award in his name.
His Jewish family came from France and was musically active. His father, Henrique Luís Levy, was a musician who founded , a leading music store in São Paulo.
Darius Milhaud, in his ballet Le Bœuf sur le toit, borrowed a theme from Levy's Tango Brasileiro.François Laurent, in Diapason, October 2012, p. 114.
Selected list of works
Orchestra Andante para cordas in E-flat major (1887) for String Orchestra (1887) Werther, Symphonic Poem in E-flat major after Goethe (1888) Marcha com coros, Orchestral Cantata (1888) Hymne à 14 Juillet (1889) Symphony in E minor (1889) Largo - allegro molto Andante Scherzo. Allegro vivo Allegro molto vivo Comala, Symphonic Poem (1890) Suite Brésilienne (1890) Prélude Dansa rustica: Canção Triste (lost) A beira do regato: Idyllio Sentimental Samba Symphonic Poem (unnamed; n.d.) Oedipe, Orchestral Cantata (n.d.)
Chamber Music Fantasia brillante sull'opera 'Il Guarany' for two pianos, Op. 2 (1880) Piano Trio No. 1 in B-flat major, Op. 10 (1882) Allegro Andante Scherzo - Fugato Finale Les jeux des Sylphides for four-hand piano (1884) Scherzo valse, Op. 9 (1885) String Quartet in A minor (1885) Allegro comodo Scherzo Adagio molto Finale Andante for String Quartet in E-flat minor (1887; also adapted for string orchestra) Rêverie for string quartet in G major, Op. 19 (1889) Piano Trio No. 2 in D minor (1889) (Lost) (Lost) Scherzo Finale En mer, Musical poem for four-hand piano (n.d.) Depart. Mer Calme Le Ciel s'assombrit. Tempête Clair de Lune. Idylle Fugitive Romance' (n.d.) Fantasie brillante for four-hand piano, Op. 5 (n.d.) Scène à la mer for cello and piano (n.d.)
Piano solo List of Piano Works , Laboratorio de Musica Latinoamericana para Piano
Fantasia para dois pianos a partir de temas da ópera O Guarany (1880) Impromptu-Caprice, op. 1 (1881) Fosca, fantasia brilhante, op. 3 (1882) 3 Improvisations, op. 4 (1882) Romance sans paroles (1882) A la Hongroise (1882) Pensée fugitive (1882) Valsa-Capricho, op. 5 (1882) Mazurca n. 1, op. 6 no 1 (1882) Mazurca n. 2, op. 6 no 2 (1882) Recuerdos - Polca de Salão (1882) Causerie (1883) Cavalcante (1883) Collin Maillard (1883) Étude (1883) Je t'en prie (1883) Petite marche (1883) Plaintive (1885) Scherzo-valse, op. 9 (1885) Improviso n. 2 (1887) Trois Morceaux, op. 13 (1887) Coeur blessé (1887) Amour passé (1887) Doute (1887) Allegro Appassionato, op. 14 (1887) Variations sur un thème populaire brésilien (Vem Cá, Bitu) (1887) Tango Brasileiro (1890) Samba (Suite Brésilienne, IV.) (1890) Schumanniana, op. 16 (1891) Allegretto, ma un poco agitato Allegro moderato Lento Allegretto giocoso Moderato assai Allegro Moderato Allegro molto - Presto Papillonnage (n.d.)
Further reading Bettencourt, Gastão de. Temas de música brasileira. Rio de Janeiro: Ed. A Noite, 1941. Mariz, Vasco. História da Mùsica no Brasil. Rio de Janeiro: Nova Fronteira, 2005. 6ª edição, pp. 116–8. Cacciatore, Olga Gudolle. Dicionário biográfico de música erudita brasileira. Rio de Janeiro, Forense Universitária, 2005.
References
External links Biografia na página da Academia Brasileira de Música