Bartók's Village Scenes is described as being 'somewhere between song cycle and operatic scena', presenting events in a woman's life with rustic, macabre humor.
Composition History
Béla Bartók teamed up with ethnographer-composer Zoltán Kodály to collect folksongs they believed were threatened by modern ways of life.
Performer Biography
Pianist Yefim Bronfman was completely taken by mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená's voice and expressivity when they first worked together in Verbier in 2002.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Modest Mussorgsky wrote the lyrics for his song cycle The Nursery himself, aiming to capture everyday speech and match it with music that stayed true to spoken delivery.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Modest Mussorgsky, a Russian composer, was determined to resist German musical influences and cultivate a native Russian style, a common aim among many of his contemporaries.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Johannes Brahms, a German composer, was drawn to poems by people he knew and famous lyrics, often selecting folkish poetic and musical themes for his songs.
Composer Biography
Béla Bartók, a Hungarian composer, was influenced by Brahms's music as a student but later became intrigued by 'peasant' music during his travels in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
