Rhapsodie pour la Cité des Sacres - Concerto for Trumpet and Wind Band by Salvatore Caiazzo

Written originally for trumpet and wind orchestra, this composition was inspired by a visit to Reims, a city of profound historical significance, where the coronations of French kings were held at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Reims during the imperial era. Cast in a rhapsodic form, the work unfolds through three distinct musical episodes, with themes that interweave, develop, and recur through the leitmotif technique. The first episode portrays a promenade through the streets of Reims, introduced by a theme from the orchestra, later echoed by the soloist, reminiscent of the styles of late-Romantic and early 20th-century French Impressionist composers. The second episode evokes a Celtic (Gallic) ballad, enriched with variations and counterpoint, featuring dynamic exchanges between the soloist and orchestra. The final episode comprises two musical tableaux: the first focuses on a sacred chant performed by the solo trumpet, accompanied by the orchestra’s evocation of the Cathedral’s bells, notably a sequence (E-flat, F, G) linked to the Feast of St. John on June 24; the second tableau depicts a triumphant consecration and coronation within the Cathedral, reworking the religious chant from the preceding tableau.