Release Date: 12 January 1999
Label: Naxos - Nxc / Naxos Classics
Packaging Type: Jewel Case
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 636943418321
Genres: Classical
Composer/Series: BARTOK
Description
Bela Bartok(1881-1945)Concerto for Viola andOrchestra, (revised edition)Two Pictures, Op.10Sz. 46Concerto for Viola andOrchestra, Sz. 120 (completed by Tibor Serly) Tibor Serly(1901-1978)Rhapsody for Viola andOrchestraBela Bartok arrived in New York on 30th October, 1940 and remained inAmerica until his death on 26th September, 1945. These final five years werenot a particularly happy time for him, having left his beloved Hungary as arefugee, fleeing the impending Nazi occupation, and being immersed in a cultureboth foreign and not entirely palatable to him. In spite of the hardshipsendured during this time he wrote his Concerto for Orchestra, Sonata forsolo violin and the Third Piano Concerto. In addition he left behindan unfinished Viola Concerto, which had been commissioned by theScottish viola virtuoso, William Primrose. The Hungarian-born composer, violistand conductor, Tibor Serly, was asked by the Bartok family to bring the work toa publishable form. This task he undertook between 1945 and 1949, resulting inthe version that has been widely performed for the last half century. Since thefirst performance in December 1949 it has remained a controversial work withopinions ranging from its outright dismissal as a work of Bartok, through to itbeing a fine, but incomplete example of his final period. Over the last twentyyears the scholarly research of violists, notably Atar Arad, Csaba Erdelyi andthe present writer, has led to significant amendments to the work of TiborSerly which, while executed in performances, have not been published owing tothe restrictions of copyright. It was with considerable pleasure that the violacommunity welcomed the release in 1995, by Peter Bartok, the composer's son, ofthe manuscript sketches in a facsimile edition, prefaced by the acclaimedHungarian Bartok scholar, Laszlo Somfai. Inassociation with this release, Boosey & Hawkes published a new revision,prepared by Nelson Dellamaggiore under Peter Bartok's supervision, with violistPaul Neubauer as editorial adviser. The question which immediately comes tomind when producing a double recording such as this is as to what thedifference is between the two version. In response one must point out that manyof the changes are so subtle that even veteran performers of the work may notimmediately perceive them. In particular these types of changes relate tosubtle differences in orchestration and note corrections in the orchestraltexture. To those who already know this work well, the more obvious changes arethe numerous corrected notes in the solo viola part, comprising over 180changed pitches and well over 200 notes moved to different octaves. Theconnoisseur will also detect the removal of some thirty bars which were addedby Tibor Serly for reasons he felt were well justified The other features, whichmay perhaps be viewed more in the realm of the individual performer'sinterpretation, are those relating to speeds of the various passages and thechoices of dynamics. These differ
Tracklisting
Dariia Lytvishko
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; Marin Alsop
Alice Di Piazza; Basel Sinfonietta; NDR Bigband; Titus Engel
Anna Alas i Jove; Miquel Villalba
David Childs; Black Dyke Band; Nicholas Childs
Zenz:Cathariou:Iacovidou
Zahir Ensemble
Yun-Yi Qin
