Description
This album presents recordings of two important works by Polish composer Krzysztof Meyer, an artist born during World War II. It is therefore no coincidence that one of the compositions, Symphony No. 6, Op. 57, also called the Polish Symphony, was created in 1982, at a difficult time of martial law in Poland, which put an end to the liberation movements of Solidarity. Although the piece is not programmatic in the formal sense of the word, the composer quotes motifs of Polish songs therein, thus symbolically referring to the issue of the loss of freedom.
The second of the compositions is the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 46, a piece of a completely different nature, on which Meyer worked in 1979–1989, not content with the initial version. We will find here a varied texture, an impressive display of piano virtuosity, influences of various music genres (including jazz), a playful take on form, and sonic experiments. Listening to both compositions and discovering different facets of the composer's creative talent will undoubtedly be an interesting experience.
Pavel Gililov can be heard on the piano here. Gililov is an Austrian-based pianist of Russian origin, the first performer of Meyer's Piano Concerto. He is accompanied by the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Polish Radio and Television Orchestra in Cracow under conductor Antoni Wit.
