‘Smiling Bravely at the Night’: Roberto Gerhard’s Symphony No. 3, ‘Collages’, and Albert Camus’s ‘Retour à Tipasa’

A hidden narrative, parallel to Roberto Gerhard's explicit program for his Symphony No. 3 'Collages' (1960), emerges from correspondences with Albert Camus's essay 'Retour à Tipasa'. Both works share a dramatic structure unfolding from dawn to night, mirroring themes of human suffering and defiance. This hermeneutic analysis reveals a 'secret program' in Gerhard's composition, enriching its interpretation through the lens of Camus's meditative reflection on Tipasa. The study employs comparative textual analysis to uncover these striking parallels, offering new insights into the interplay between music and literature.

White, J. (2022). ‘Smiling Bravely at the Night’: Roberto Gerhard’s Symphony No. 3, ‘Collages’, and Albert Camus’s ‘Retour à Tipasa’. Roberto Gerhard, 238–252. https://doi.org/10.5871/bacad/9780197267134.003.0014