Siciliana

Loosely associated with Sicily, the siciliana evokes a pastoral mood, and is often characterized by dotted rhythms that can distinguish it within the broader musical genre of the pastorale.

Another siciliana written for guitar (with vocal) is Franz Xaver Gruber's renowned Christmas carol, "Silent Night".

[5][9] At the beginning of the Romantic period, John Field inserted a refined siciliana ("Siciliano") in G minor in his Fourth Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (1814).

Hélène's aria, "Merci, jeunes amies" ("Thank you, beloved friends") from Verdi's opera Les vêpres siciliennes is another example of a siciliana, suited to its setting, and is referred to as such in the score, even though it is popularly called a bolero.

The orchestral suite from Pelléas et Mélisande by Gabriel Fauré includes his well-known Sicilienne, which he had composed for an incomplete project in 1893.

5) contains a Sicilienne notable for its Impressionist harmonies,[11] and another prominent example is the middle movement of Paul Hindemith's Organ Sonata No. 2.

[12] Hungarian composer György Kurtág references the style in a surprising way in his 1987 magnum opus, Kafka-Fragmente Op.

[13] "Hedwig's Theme", composed by John Williams for the Harry Potter films, is also in the siciliana genre, with a particular similarity to Fauré's Sicilienne.

[14][15] Other notable examples of siciliana style include the "Intrada" and "Rhapsody" from Gerald Finzi's 1939 cantata Dies Natalis.