Un pensiero a San Francisco (1903)
Introduction
Un pensiero a San Francisco is a fragment for piano composed
by Mascagni on February 20, 1903 during his stay in San Francisco.
The title translates into English as A Thought for San
Francisco. Mascagni wrote this piece as a thank you to the
city and people of San Francisco who had welcomed him with
warmth after an otherwise catastrophic North-American tour. A
copy of the manuscript of the piece was published in the San
Francisco Examiner (and not the Chronicle as
initially believed) on February 21, 1903. On March 14, 1903, a
newspaper clipping of the score made it to the Library of
Congress.
Recording
The recording available below in MP3 and Ogg format is probably
the world's first recording of the piece! You can listen to it
online or download it for personal use. Contact Mascagni.org for other
uses.
| Performers |
Place and Date |
Duration |
Download / Play |
| Piano: David Vine
|
Auditorium of the National Library of New Zealand, May 9, 2003 |
1: 04 |
|
Recording acknowledgements: National Library of New Zealand,
Te Puna Mautaranga; Bronwyn Officer; Claude Tabner; Ross
Thornton; David Vine; Roger Flury.
Score
We provide below three versions of the score:
- A scan of the original newspaper clipping. The paper has
aged and the impression is difficult to read, but this is the best
known source for the piece. The original manuscript may have been
lost.
- A modern facsimile of the original score. This version
attempts to reproduce the score in a legible way, while keeping
Mascagni's markings.
- A modern piano version. This version uses a notation
closer to what a modern pianist expects.
Click on the individual images to access them online in several
resolutions through the Mascagni.org book reader.
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Original Newspaper Clipping (1903)
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Facsimile Score (2003)
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Modern Piano Score (2003)
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The modern score is also available in a convenient, printable PDF format:
NOTE: Care has been taken proof-reading the score and
comparing it against the original, but errors are still possible.
Please submit any comments and
corrections you may have.
Acknowledgements
Many people have contributed to this page, including: Roger
Flury (initial copy of the piece, proof-reading, recording
coordination), John Mucci (first computer transcription), David
Vine (piano recording, proof-reading), and Erik Bruchez
(putting all the pieces together!).
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