Originally posted by Ein Heldenleben
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ARNOLD SCHOENBERG PIANO CONCERTO (1942)
"Life was so easy
Suddenly hatred broke out
A grave situation was created
But life goes on "
The pianist drew nourishment from these lines: are they autobiographical or a world history for the first half of the 20th century?
Pianist and conductor saw the ppening of the first movement through a neo-classical prism with piano and Orchestra in concert.
The two parties were in opposition in the slow movement with the piano leading the lyrical conflict and the orchestra resorting to percussive artillery.
Pierre-Laurent Aimard ensured that the third movement sparkled and glittered and the varied relaxed moods of the finale were projected with wit and clarity.
I was shocked to hear that the Royal Scottish National Orchestra had not played the Schoenberg during
most of its 82 years since it was written. That lack of acquaintance did not affect their crisp and well-projected contributions. I really enjoyed the performance
WITOLD LUTOSLAWSKI CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA (1950 -1954)
Lutoslawski was still finding his compositional identity when he wrote this work which became an attractive mash-up of BB, DSCH and Polish folk music. The brilliance of Lutoslawski's orchestration was innate so the concerto structural element provided a firm core. The orchestra under Elim Chan were both disciplined and having real fun. A winning climax to the second half of the evening's curate's egg.
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