España is one of the representative works of the composer Emmanuel Chabrier, who was active in France in the latter half of the nineteenth century, and it remains an important part of the orchestral concert repertoire today.Chabrier composed the work based on his impressions during an extended stay in Spain. The piece is marked Allegro con fuoco, in 3/8 time and F major, and is structured in an approximate three-part form. In the recapitulation, the work concludes with increasing excitement and richer color through skillful changes in orchestration. The hemiola rhythm is distinctive, and the piece gives the impression of rushing forward energetically for six minutes without any change in tempo.In arranging the work for a small ensemble, fine rhythmic figures such as sixteenth-note triplets in the accompaniment have been simplified. In some passages, the arrangement differs from the wind parts in the original orchestral score so that the melodic lines can be heard more clearly. The harp solo is assigned to the marimba; however, if a harp is available, please refer to the original orchestral score. As the percussion parts seemed to require a relatively large number of players despite having many measures of rest, instruments not found in the original score, such as castanets, have been added.

(Hirokazu Fukushima)