
Istrian Rhapsody - Dejan Lazić
Featuring
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1/7Compositional Technique
Dejan Lazić's Concerto in Istrian Style for Piano and Orchestra incorporates small-scale motifs that are tributes to important composers and pianists, such as 'B-A-C-H' for Johann Sebastian Bach and 'D-S-C-H' for Dmitry Shostakovich.
Instruments
The sopila, a double-reed instrument belonging to the shawm family, is played in pairs in Istrian folk music, with a small sopila accompanied by a large one, tuned in the hexachordal Istrian scale.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Dejan Lazić, the pianist and composer on this album, was inspired by Istria's unique musical culture and traditions, which have remained idiosyncratic despite being situated between Slavic, Latin, and Germanic spheres of influence.
Composer Biography
Natko Devčić (1914-1997), considered the most important Croatian composer of the 20th century, used Istrian folk music as inspiration, especially in his early works, while also educating future generations of musicians.
Compositional Technique
The 'Istrian scale' (Istarska ljestvica) is a non-tempered sequence of six whole and half tones found exclusively on the Istrian peninsula and around the Kvarner Gulf.
Compositional Technique
Dejan Lazić's Alterations on the Istrian Folk Anthem explores the theme through twelve variations, using various scales and musical forms like canon, chorale, and march, sometimes scored for solo, chamber, or full orchestra.
Compositional Technique
The 'Istrian Folk Anthem' is unique among European folk anthems because it is written in a Dorian-Istrian key, rather than a major or minor key.

















