Zenón Rolón
Encyclopedia
Zenón Rolón was an Afro Argentine
musician and composer. Born in Buenos Aires
, he composed approximately 80 works including opera
s, operetta
s, zarzuela
s and sacred music. Rolón also founded a music publishing company which published numerous works by contemporary Argentine composers. Many of his manuscripts are now held by the Instituto Nacional de Estudios de Teatro, in Buenos Aires, and by the Museo Histórico de Morón
, the city where he died at the age of 45.
to an Afro Argentine
family and first studied music in his native city with Alfredo Quiroga, a fellow Afro Argentine and organist of the (Church of Our Lady of Mercy). In 1873, when he was only 17 years old, he went to Florence
for further study and remained there until 1879. In 1877 he wrote (Two Words to My Brethren), a political pamphlet on the role of Afro Argentines in wider Argentine culture. When it was published in , an Afro Argentine newspaper in Buenos Aires, he was severely criticised, but opinion changed in his favour upon his return from Italy. Once back in Buenos Aires, he continued to study music, this time with Basilio Basili
, and composed a funeral march
in honor of José de San Martín
(Argentina's national hero). Rolón himself conducted its premiere performance when San Martín's remains were repatriated to Argentina in 1880.
Rolón married María Quiroga, the sister of his first teacher, and had two children, and (Daphnis and Chloe
). In the meantime, his musical career began to thrive. In addition to his composing, he also conducted regular concerts at the and the in Buenos Aires (beginning in 1880 and continuing until 1900). In 1881 he founded a music publishing company, Rolón y Oca, where he published many works by contemporary Argentine composers, and in 1885 he founded a social club for Afro Argentines. Two years later, he was appointed Professor of Music by Concejo Nacional de Educación. Amongst his students were Justin Clérice, Antonio Restano, Prudencio R. DenÍs, and Enrique García Velloso.
Rolón composed about eighty works during his lifetime, including Symphony (1879); the operetta
s (1885), (The Enchanted Castle) (1887), and (Nannetta's Stratagem) (1887); the opera
s (date unknown) and (1899); the zarzuela
s Chin Yonk (1895), (The Rehearsal of a Creole Opera) (1899), and (An Improvised Joke) (1900); and the cantata
s, (Star of Italy) (1891) and (Farewell to the Virgin) (1900). He also composed numerous waltz
es, polka
s, marches
, and barcarolle
s (several of which were published in Florence during his time there). His sacred music included hymn
s, music for Holy Week
(1893), (1901 o 1902), and a Kyrie
for three voices (1902), which was probably his last composition.
Rolón died in Morón, Buenos Aires
on 13 May 1902 shortly before his 46th birthday and was buried in the Cementerio de La Recoleta in Buenos Aires. Many of his manuscripts were later donated by his children to the Museo Histórico de Morón. There are also some of his works at the Instituto Nacional de Estudios de Teatro, in Buenos Aires.
Parts of this article were translated from Zenón Rolón on the Spanish Wikipedia where the following further sources were given:
Afro Argentine
The black population resulting from the slave trade during the centuries of Spanish domination of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata had a major role in Argentine history...
musician and composer. Born in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, he composed approximately 80 works including opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s, operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
s, zarzuela
Zarzuela
Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance...
s and sacred music. Rolón also founded a music publishing company which published numerous works by contemporary Argentine composers. Many of his manuscripts are now held by the Instituto Nacional de Estudios de Teatro, in Buenos Aires, and by the Museo Histórico de Morón
Morón, Buenos Aires
Morón is a city in the Argentine province of Buenos Aires, capital of the Morón Partido, located in the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area, at...
, the city where he died at the age of 45.
Biography
Rolón was born in Buenos AiresBuenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
to an Afro Argentine
Afro Argentine
The black population resulting from the slave trade during the centuries of Spanish domination of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata had a major role in Argentine history...
family and first studied music in his native city with Alfredo Quiroga, a fellow Afro Argentine and organist of the (Church of Our Lady of Mercy). In 1873, when he was only 17 years old, he went to Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
for further study and remained there until 1879. In 1877 he wrote (Two Words to My Brethren), a political pamphlet on the role of Afro Argentines in wider Argentine culture. When it was published in , an Afro Argentine newspaper in Buenos Aires, he was severely criticised, but opinion changed in his favour upon his return from Italy. Once back in Buenos Aires, he continued to study music, this time with Basilio Basili
Basilio Basili
Basilio Basili was an Italian tenor and composer.Basili was born in Macerata. In 1827 he moved to Madrid where he debuted on September 14 at the Teatro de La Cruz singing Otello by Rossini. He moved permanently to Madrid in 1837, where he was a professor and served as a conductor and an...
, and composed a funeral march
Funeral march
A funeral march is a march, usually in a minor key, in a slow "simple duple" metre, imitating the solemn pace of a funeral procession. Some such marches are often considered appropriate for use during funerals and other sombre occasions, the most well-known being that of Chopin...
in honor of José de San Martín
José de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
(Argentina's national hero). Rolón himself conducted its premiere performance when San Martín's remains were repatriated to Argentina in 1880.
Rolón married María Quiroga, the sister of his first teacher, and had two children, and (Daphnis and Chloe
Daphnis and Chloe
Daphnis and Chloe is the only known work of the 2nd century AD Greek novelist and romancer Longus.-Setting and style:It is set on the isle of Lesbos during the 2nd century AD, which is also assumed to be the author's home. Its style is rhetorical and pastoral; its shepherds and shepherdesses are...
). In the meantime, his musical career began to thrive. In addition to his composing, he also conducted regular concerts at the and the in Buenos Aires (beginning in 1880 and continuing until 1900). In 1881 he founded a music publishing company, Rolón y Oca, where he published many works by contemporary Argentine composers, and in 1885 he founded a social club for Afro Argentines. Two years later, he was appointed Professor of Music by Concejo Nacional de Educación. Amongst his students were Justin Clérice, Antonio Restano, Prudencio R. DenÍs, and Enrique García Velloso.
Rolón composed about eighty works during his lifetime, including Symphony (1879); the operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
s (1885), (The Enchanted Castle) (1887), and (Nannetta's Stratagem) (1887); the opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s (date unknown) and (1899); the zarzuela
Zarzuela
Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance...
s Chin Yonk (1895), (The Rehearsal of a Creole Opera) (1899), and (An Improvised Joke) (1900); and the cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
s, (Star of Italy) (1891) and (Farewell to the Virgin) (1900). He also composed numerous waltz
Waltz
The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
es, polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
s, marches
March (music)
A march, as a musical genre, is a piece of music with a strong regular rhythm which in origin was expressly written for marching to and most frequently performed by a military band. In mood, marches range from the moving death march in Wagner's Götterdämmerung to the brisk military marches of John...
, and barcarolle
Barcarolle
A barcarole is a folk song sung by Venetian gondoliers, or a piece of music composed in that style...
s (several of which were published in Florence during his time there). His sacred music included hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
s, music for Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
(1893), (1901 o 1902), and a Kyrie
Kyrie
Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek κύριε , vocative case of κύριος , meaning "Lord", is the common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, which is also called the Kýrie, eléison ....
for three voices (1902), which was probably his last composition.
Rolón died in Morón, Buenos Aires
Morón, Buenos Aires
Morón is a city in the Argentine province of Buenos Aires, capital of the Morón Partido, located in the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area, at...
on 13 May 1902 shortly before his 46th birthday and was buried in the Cementerio de La Recoleta in Buenos Aires. Many of his manuscripts were later donated by his children to the Museo Histórico de Morón. There are also some of his works at the Instituto Nacional de Estudios de Teatro, in Buenos Aires.
Sources
- Baker, Theodore (1900/2008) "Clérice, Justin" in A Biographical Dictionary of Musicians. Read Books. ISBN 1443728470.
- Casares, Emilio, López-Calo, José, et. al. (eds.) (1999). "Denis, Prudencio" in , Volume 4. Madrid: . ISBN 8480483032 (in Spanish).
- Cirio, Norberto Pablo (2009). . Buenos Aires: Teseo. ISBN 9871354371 (in Spanish).
- Cortés, Eladio and Barrea-Marlys, Mirta (2003). "García Velloso, Enrique" in Encyclopedia of Latin American Theater. Westport CT: Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0313290415.
- Crétel, Bernard (2008) "Justin Clérice", originally published in Opérette n° 119 (in French).
- de Estrada, Marcos (1979). Argentinos de origen africano. Buenos Aires: Universidad de Buenos Aires (in Spanish).
- Gesualdo, Vicente (1961). . Buenos Aires: Beta (in Spanish).
- Petriella, Dionisio and Sosa Miatello, Sara (eds.) (1976). "Restano, Juan Bautista" in . Buenos Aires: (in Spanish).
Parts of this article were translated from Zenón Rolón on the Spanish Wikipedia where the following further sources were given:
- Andrews, George Reid (1989). . Buenos Aires: (in Spanish). Also available in English as The Afro-Argentines of Buenos Aires, 1800-1900, University of Wisconsin Press, 1980.
- García Acevedo, Mario (2002). "Rolón, Zenón" in . Madrid: . Volume 9, p. 352 (in Spanish).