A King's Lie, Stan Nieuwenhuis. Brass Band

A King's Lie

A King's Lie was commissioned by Brassband Hombeek and dedicated to Michel Leveugle, former conductor and chairman of Brassband Hombeek, for almost thirty years of devotion to the band.

A King's Lie is based on the story of 'Floire et Blancheflor'. Both of them grow up at the court of a muslim King in Spain, Floire is the King's son. Even though Blancheflor is a Christian girl, they become friends and eventually fall in love. When the King discovers this, he plots a scheme to drive them apart. He sends the girl away, when his son is studying abroad and constructs a fake grave for her.
He then tells his son the girl is dead. Floire is desperate and decides to kill himself. The King then tells his son the truth, Floire departs on a journey to get his Blancheflor back. He finds her at the court of an
Emir in Babylon, the girl is kept as a slave in a prisonlike tower, full of women. Floire manages to get inside this tower and is reunited Blancheflor. The Emir discovers the two lovers in bed and wants to kill both of them. They get a public trial, in which a young girl stands up to their defence, she asks the Emir to forgive them, because they are young, innocent and very much in love.

The title of the piece refers to the lie the king tells his son Floire when he says Blancheflor died and shows Floire her fake grave. This dramatic turn in the story influenced Stan Nieuwenhuis to write this piece.

A King's Lie is written in 3 consecutive movements, each symbolizing a part of the story. The first movement stands for the childhood of Floire and Blancheflor at the court. The opening symbolizes the official character of the court. After that, a more uptempo part shows the friendship of Floire and Blancheflor that evolves into love.

The second movement symbolizes their separation with mourning soli for the Flugelhorn (Blancheflor) and the Euphonium (Floire). The climax of the this second movement symbolizes Floire's unbearable situation and his desicion to return to the court to be with Blancheflor.

In the third movement Floire is searching for Blancheflor. The chaotic part near the end of the piece symbolizes that they get caught in the tower of the Emir and the trial that follows. This stops abrupt when a little girl stands up from the crowd to ask forgiveness for the couple.