Banjo and Berlioz: The Matilda Fugue

In 1831, at the age of twenty-seven, Hector Berlioz wrote the “Intrata di Rob-Roy MacGregor”. He began composing the overture in May at Nice, and completed the orchestration in June when he was in Italy.

Walter Scott’s novel Rob Roy was first published in 1817. Scott’s metrical romances and novels were a phenomenal success in Europe and America; Berlioz was an avid reader of Scott’s work. In May 1828 his Waverley Overture had been performed in Paris.

At the nucleus of the Rob Roy Overture are two melodies, one of which is immediately recognisable. It is borrowed from “Scots Wha Hae”, a famous song associated with Scotland’s national hero Robert the Bruce. The other melody, romantic and delicate, is introduced by harp and cor anglais. An Australian listening to the tune for the first time may find in it something familiar, as a well-known refrain starts to form in their mind: “Waltz-ing / Waltz-ing / Who’ll come a-waltzing Matilda with me? / Waltz-ing /…