Twin Cities and Three Bs

MD Series

Twin Cities and Three Bs


2019-06-28 Fri 19:30National Concert Hall 400 700 1000 1200 1500Buy
SHAO-CHIA LÜ, conductor
PAUL HUANG, violin

BÉLA BARTÓK: Dance Suite、Violin Concerto No.1, Sz.36
JOHANNES BRAHMS: Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn, Op.56a
ALBAN BERG: 3 Pieces for Orchestra, Op.6

Vienna and Budapest lie only about 200 kilometers apart, and are linked by the Danube River. Both are capital cities boasting rich historical traditions, grand palaces, and splendid museums. But the three composers we hear on this program – two from Vienna, one from Budapest – couldn't be more different in their styles. There are two works by Bartók: his Dance Suite, full of vigorous rhythms, attractive melodies and colorful orchestration; and his early, seldom-heard, richly romantic First Violin Concerto, replete with autobiographical references. From Brahms we hear the Variations on a Theme by Haydn, a superb example of the variation form. Another Viennese composer, Alban Berg, is represented by his Three Pieces for Orchestra, music of sonorous density; Pierre Boulez described the third piece, (March) as "demented intoxication of the dramatic gesture."