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Hispaniola
Dedicated to my granddaughter Lianne
I wrote Hispaniola in 2006 on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the death of Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), who discovered America in 1492. Columbus was born in Italy, but as a young man, he settled in Lisbon, from where he undertook voyages of discovery, including to Africa. Inspired by the new theory that the earth was round, he attempted to reach Asia by sailing west. In 1492, he set out under the Spanish flag, and two months later, he discovered the first islands in the Caribbean Sea. He believed he had reached the Indies and therefore called the native people ‘Indians’. One of the islands, present-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic, he named La Española, which in Latin means ‘Hispaniola’.
The composition consists of three interconnected movements. In the first movement, the preparation for the voyage is reflected, alternating with a relaxed Spanish atmosphere that conveys the industriousness of the time. The second movement is fast in tempo and full of rhythmic surprises, symbolizing the long, dangerous, and unpredictable sea voyage. After the ship’s bell rings at “Land ho!”, the third movement begins. The long-drawn-out theme represents the coast slowly rising from the sea, after which the euphoria of discovering the new land is expressed with a great musical climax at the end.
| Composer: | Jan de Haan |
| Instrumentation: | Concert band |
| Genre: | Concertwork |
| Level: | 4 |
| Duration: | 13:00 |
| Download score: | |
| Publisher: | De Haske Order this work |
