Ravinia 2019, Issue 7, Week 13

GYÖRGY LIGETI (1923–2006) Molto vivace from Concert românesc Scored for two flutes and piccolo, two oboes and English horn, two clarinets, two bassoons, three horns, two trumpets, suspended cymbals, crash cymbals, snare drum, bass drum, and strings György Ligeti was born to a family of Hungarian Jews living in a region of Transylvania that later became part of Romania. He attended conser- vatories in Cluj (studying with Ferenc Farkas) and Budapest (with Pál Kadosa, Sándor Veress, and Pál Járdányi), but in 1944, required military service interrupted his education. Ligeti left his army unit shortly before its capture and incar- ceration at the Mauthausen concentration camp and returned to Budapest to resume musical studies. After graduation, he collected Hungar- ian folk songs for one year. In 1950, Ligeti re- ceived a faculty appointment at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, teaching courses in harmo- ny, counterpoint, and formal analysis. Ligeti retained that position until 1956, when he and his wife fled their native country after the unsuc- cessful Hungarian Uprising against the Soviets in October and November. Hungary remained relatively segregated from the rest of Europe during his six-year tenure at the academy, an isolationism that naturally lim- ited exposure to contemporary trends in music. Ligeti experimented with novel compositional procedures, beginning with “simple structures of rhythm and sound in order to build up a new music from nothing. My method was Cartesian to the extent that I considered all the music that I already knew and loved as not binding to me— even as invalid.” Once in the West, Ligeti quickly gained recognition for his distinctive blend of contrapuntal techniques, atonal pitch language, and static atmosphere containing small, almost undetectable changes in pitch and instrumental color—what he termed “micropolyphony.” This unique aural imagination produced such cele- brated works as Atmosphère and Requiem , both of which were used in the 2001: A Space Odyssey soundtrack. Ligeti composed Concert românesc (Romanian Concerto) in 1951, during a highly repressive era in Hungary. He had recently completed a period of research at the Folklore Institute in Bucharest, collecting Romanian and Hungarian folk music in Cosavint and Inaktelke. The Concert româ- nesc , which integrated several authentic folk melodies, was Ligeti’s unsuccessful attempt at So- cialist Realism, the aesthetic policy of the USSR that extended to most satellite Soviet states. “This orchestral composition was one of the ‘camou- flage pieces,’ used to evade the imposed dictator- ship in the field of arts,” he explained in 2000. “Though quite conforming to the rules, the piece nevertheless turned out to be ‘politically incor- rect’ because of some forbidden dissonances (e.g., F-sharp in B major). For today’s listener, it is hardly understandable that such minor tonal jokes were declared subversive. The Romanian Concerto reflects my deep love of Romanian folk music (and of Romanian-language culture absolute). The piece was banned at once and not performed until many decades later.” JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833–97) Violin Concerto in D major, op. 77 Scored for pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, timpani, strings, and solo violin The tiny village of Pörtschach on the Wörther- see provided Brahms a secluded spot for a se- cret project, a violin concerto for his longtime friend Joseph Joachim. Portions of the opening movement and finale were sketched before he announced the new work to Joachim in a letter dated August 21, 1878. Composer and perform- er worked together closely on the concerto. Brahms solicited Joachim’s advice regarding all matters of technique and substance, want- ing a “bold and severe” critic in the violinist. In return, Joachim offered alternatives to the “difficult, awkward, impossible” passages. This collaboration between composer and performer was rare during the 19th century. Numerous letters between Brahms and Joachim provide a revealing glimpse into the evolution of the Violin Concerto in D major. Four move- ments were planned, but Brahms “stumbled over the Adagio and Scherzo [the middle move- ments]” and replaced them with a single Adagio movement, which he considered “poor.” Sensing his work time dwindling away, Brahms tried unsuccessfully to delay the scheduled premiere. Joachim composed a cadenza for the first move- ment. Revisions continued for seven months af- ter the first performance. A seamless integration of solo and orchestral material resulted from the unified efforts of two skilled symphonic composers. Brahms had com- pleted his Symphony No. 2 the previous year, a work that shares its spirit and key with the Vi- olin Concerto. By 1878, Joachim listed three overtures and three works for violin and orches- tra among his own compositions. He dedicated the Concerto in the Hungarian Manner , op. 11, to Brahms. Mixed reactions greeted Brahms’s sym- phonically conceived concerto. Josef Hellmes- berger remarked that it was a “concerto not for, but against the violin.” The composer himself expressed uncertainty to Joachim: “Is the piece really good and practical enough to be print- ed?” Encouragement from his friends, especially Clara Schumann, strengthened his commitment to the work, which was published in 1879. The Allegro non troppo opens with a delicately scored first theme, immediately repeated by the full orchestra. A soft, chromatic passage con- trasts with louder, marcato music in preparation for the solo violin’s entrance. Brahms considered the solo violin an additional orchestral color; its writing is lyrical but not overtly virtuosic. Brahms added variety to his orchestral writing by scoring the opening of the Adagio for wind band. The solo violin responds, accompanied by the strings. The rondo finale is imbued with a gypsy spirit. Joachim was of Hungarian stock and performed with an exciting rhythmic free- dom and noble bravura that Brahms admired. To capture the necessary gypsy spirit, Joachim suggested the tempo marking Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo vivace (fast and playful, but not too lively). GYÖRGY KURTÁG (b. 1926) Selections from Signs, Games, and Messages Scored for solo violin or string trio György Kurtág was born in Lugoj, Romania, became a naturalized citizen of Hungary after World War II, and lived many years in France. This genuine citizen of the contemporary mu- sical world has refined a distinctive musical language celebrated as much for the breadth of stylistic influences as its highly concentrated material. After completing studies at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music, Kurtág spent a year in Paris following the Hungarian Uprising of 1956. György Ligeti Johannes Brahms AUGUST 26 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2019 | RAVINIA MAGAZINE 91