Bohuslav Martinů - Variations on a Slovak Folksong for cello & piano, H. 378 (1959) I. Theme: Poco andante, rubato II. Variation I: Moderato III. Variation II: Poco allegro IV. Variation III: Moderato V. Variation IV: Scherzo, Allegretto VI. Variation V: Allegro Christian Benda, cello Sebastian Benda, piano Martinů wrote his Variations on a Slovakian Theme in March 1959 at Pratteln in Switzerland, where, now seriously ill, he was a guest of Paul Sacher and his wife. The folk-song Kde bych ja veděla (If I had known) provides the theme, heard from the cello after the short piano introduction. The syncopations of the first variation and the intensity of its central section are followed by a version that makes use of a repeated rhythmic motif and double-stopping. The third variation opens with solemn piano chords, followed by the cello in melancholy intensity, the fourth variation offering a contrast as a scherzo, before its final rhetoric. The set ends with a vigorous final derivative of the theme, now with asymmetric rhythms, in true Slovak style. [naxos]
Posted on: Thu, 30 Oct 2014 02:15:48 +0000
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