Walton: Cello Concerto (Arr. for Viola by Anna Serova) - Molinelli: Lady Walton's Garden
11/10/2023, 8 Tracks, 1:15:31
Featuring
Anna Serova
Roberto Molinelli
Donald Maurice
Riccardo Bertozzini
Sigi Velásquez
Sonia Maurer
Antonio Ippolito
Gianluca Persichetti
Stefano Rossini
Orchestra Haydn di Trento e Bolzano
Sir William Walton
Did you know?
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Composer's Artistic Vision
Walton considered his 1956 Cello Concerto to be the best of his three concertos for string instruments, which also include a Violin Concerto (1939) and a Viola Concerto (1929).
Interpretation
This album features the rarely performed Cello Concerto in a new transcription for viola by Anna Serova, which fully exploits the viola's timbral and virtuosic possibilities while remaining faithful to the original.
Compositional Technique
Roberto Molinelli's 'The Missing E' is inspired by a spelling mistake on Susana Walton's memorial, where the letter 'E' was missing, leading him to compose a piece entirely without the musical note E until the very end.
Compositional Technique
The Cello Concerto balances contrasting elements, from Romanticism and lyricism to challenging rhythms, and from chamber-music intimacy to 20th-century exuberance, offering continuous virtuoso passages.
Composition History
Walton's Cello Concerto was commissioned by Gregor Piatigorsky, a Russian-born, naturalized American cellist, and Walton corresponded closely with him during its composition, incorporating his advice.
Composer Biography
Sir William Walton, one of the greatest English composers of the 20th century, lived for 35 years on the Italian island of Ischia with his wife Susana, where they developed their home La Mortella and its gardens.
Composition History
Roberto Molinelli's 'Lady Walton's Garden' is a viola concerto dedicated to Lady Susana Walton, with movements named after exotic plants in the La Mortella garden she created.
