IDAGIO | Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin - Concerto for Orchestra 747313120178

Featuring

Gerard Schwarz
Seattle Symphony
Seattle Symphony Chorale
Béla Bartók

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Composition History

Bartók's pantomime, The Miraculous Mandarin, was banned immediately after its first performance in Cologne in 1926 on moral grounds by Mayor Konrad Adenauer.

Compositional Technique

The Miraculous Mandarin, a pantomime rather than a ballet, focuses on the irreconcilability of intuitive nature and corrupt civilization, as conceived by scenario writer Menyhért Lengyel.

Composer Biography

Bartók emigrated to the United States of America in 1940 due to dissatisfaction with the Hungarian government's association with National Socialist Germany.

Composition History

Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra was commissioned by the Koussevitzky Music Foundation in 1943 in memory of Nathalie, the wife of conductor Sergey Koussevitzky.

Compositional Technique

The Concerto for Orchestra displays the virtuoso talents of different sections of the orchestra through textural and dynamic contrast, justifying its title.

Composer Biography

Béla Bartók, a Hungarian composer, developed a deep interest in the folk music of his own and adjacent countries, extending his research to Anatolia.

Performer Biography

Gerard Schwarz, the conductor for this album, was Music Director of the Seattle Symphony from 1985 to 2011 and has received two Emmy Awards and thirteen GRAMMY® nominations.