La Folia, a 16th-century street dance from the Iberian Peninsula, has over time become St. Pierre’s “folly” (in the sense of apparent obsession). It was featured in the 1991 film, Tous les matins du monde, as well as in The Addams Family movie, also from 1991. Beethoven quoted it in the second movement of his Fifth Symphony. It is also the tune to the Taizé hymn, Laudate Dominum.
He has composed over thirty variation sets on it, some for solo instruments, others for chamber groups, string orchestra, and concert band.
However, unlike traditional sets, his are mostly fantasy variations; that is, there is no note-for-note, bar-for-bar correspondence between the theme and the variation. He moves freely from one key, tempo, and meter to another, and modulates liberally between keys within variations.
…the intricacy of most Folia variations … lends them to repeated listens. The exact same tune repeated over and over quickly gets dull. But when a composer picks up a theme and plays with it, toying with the harmonies or the instruments, we fall under its spell. …when a melody is “buried” it can sustain longer engagement across multiple repetitions.
La Folia is surely proof of this: it has been passed down and used by countless musicians in their own way, like a family cookbook where everyone adds their own recipe. The point, though, is that the basic ingredients are always the same. In this way, La Folia spirals on to new things, unforgettable even at the start of its seventh century.
Excerpt from article at BBC: Culture
26 July, 2019
FOLIA VARIATIONS
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ARPAFOLIA (2019)
SIX VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR RECORDER & HARP
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, RECORDER
JACQUELINE GORING, HARP
A Suite of Follies (2021)
courtly dances in the style of FranÇois Couperin, but employing a modern harmonic palette
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Anthony St. Pierre, piano
Bassafolia (2021)
four variations on ‘La Folia’ for unaccompanied double bass
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Jesse Dietschi, double bass
Bassonafolia (2022)
six variations on ‘la folia’ for unaccompanied bassoon
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christian sharpe, bassoon
BrassAfolia (2020)
nine variations on ‘La Folia’
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Toronto Brass Quintet
canzona on ‘la folia’ (2022)
A CANZONA IN THE EARLY 17-c. ITALIAN FORM WITH ANACHRONISTIC HARMONIES
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, organ
CELLOFOLIA (2022)
five variations on ‘la folia’ for unaccompanied cello
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amahl arulandandam, cello
CLARIFOLIA (2022)
FIVE VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR UNACCOMPANIED CLARINET AND BASS CLARINET
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pETER STOLL, CLARINET
CORFOLIA (2022)
six VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR UNACCOMPANIED horn
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jessie brooks, horn
FANFARE, FOLIA, FORLANE & FURIA (2019)
‘LA FOLIA’ APPEARS ALONG WITH FRAGMENTS OF TUNES BY BACH, COUPERIN AND RAVEL
PERFORMED BY SINFONIA TORONTO & CONDUCTED BY NURHAN ARMAN
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*****RECORDING GENEROUSLY FUNDED BY KURT AND MAURA JUNG*****
FIESTA FOLLIES (2019)
SEVEN VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR RECORDER & GUITAR
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, RECORDER
RAFFI ALTOUNIAN, GUITAR
FOBOLIA (2022)
six variations on ‘la folia’ for unaccompanied oboe
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clare scholtz, oboe
folia for flute (2022)
seven variations on ‘la folia’ for unaccompanied flute and piccolo
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laura chambers, flute
FOLLIES FACILES (2021)
FOUR EASY VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’
suitable FOR INTERMEDIATE PIANO STUDENTS
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE. PIANO
FOLLIES FOR MALLETS (2021)
six variations on ‘la folia’ for solo mallet percussion
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Daniel Morphy, mallet percussion
forays on ‘LA Folia’ (2022)
FIVE VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR ORGAN (MANUALITER)
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, ORGAN
LA FOLIA À TRE CORNI (2022)
FIVE VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR HORN TRIO
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JESSIE BROOKS, DAVID QUACKENBUSH, CHRISTINE PASSMORE – HORNS
LA FOLIA VARIATIONS & FUGHETTA FOR ORGAN (2004)
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WILLIAM O’MEARA, ORGAN
mÉtamorphose des dominos (2022)
Variations on François Couperin’s ‘Les Follies françaises’
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, piano
PHOLIA (2006)
NINE VARIATIONS ON ‘LA FOLIA’ FOR RECORDER & PIANO
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ANTHONY ST. PIERRE, RECORDER
LARRY GREEN, PIANO
Sassofolia (2021)
five variations on ‘La Folia’ for unaccompanied alto saxophone
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Mike Wark, alto saxophone
SAXOFOLIA (2021)
SIX Variations on La ‘FOLIA’ FOR SAXOPHONE QUARTET
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tORONTO SAX QUARTET
Trompetafolia (2021)
five variations on ‘La Folia’ for unaccompanied trumpet
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Katherine Moffatt, trumpet
tubafolia (2021)
FIVE variations on ‘La Folia’ FOR UNACCOMPANIED TUBA
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JEN STEPHEN, TUBA
viofolia (2022)
eight variations on ‘La Folia’ FOR UNACCOMPANIED violin
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wendy rose, violin
violafolia (2022)
seven variations on ‘La Folia’ FOR UNACCOMPANIED viola
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anthony rapoport, viola
FOLIAS FOR RECORDERS
Alto & harp (Arpafolia)
Alto & piano (Pholia)
Alto & tenor
Alto, tenor, bass
Sopranino & percussion (Percufolia)
Sopranino or piccolo (solo)
Soprano, alto, tenor, bass
Tenor/alto & guitar (Fiesta Follies)
Various stand-alone
FOLIAS FOR VARIOUS ENSEMBLES
Brass quintet
Concert band
Horn trio
Saxophone quartet
String orchestra
SOLO FOLIAS
Strings
Violin
Viola
Cello (coming soon)
Double bass
Woodwinds
Piccolo or sopranino recorder
Flute
Oboe
Clarinet/bass clarinet
Bassoon
Saxophone
Brass
Horn (coming soon)
Trumpet
Trombone (coming soon)
Tuba
Percussion
Mallet percussion
Keyboard
Organ
Piano
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