Philharmonia Orchestra: Infernal Dance: Bartók and Stravinsky

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Infernal Dance: Bartók and Stravinsky

Royal Festival Hall
Thu 10 Feb 2011 7:30pm

Esa-Pekka Salonen

conductor

Attila Fekete

tenor

Michele Kalmandi

baritone

Coro Gulbenkian

Bartók

Cantata profana

Bartók

Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta

Stravinsky

The Rite of Spring

The Meyer Foundation

This evening’s programme pairs two of Bartók’s most important works with one of the seminal musical icons of the 20th century. Cantata profana is a truly monumental choral work, rarely performed due to the sheer scale of its vocal and orchestral writing. Based on a Romanian ballad sung at the time of the winter solstice, it tells the story of nine sons who are turned into stags when they cross a haunted bridge while out hunting. By contrast with this rich tapestry of choral sound, the Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta is sparse, eerie and other-worldly, using rhythmic power rather than melody to communicate its themes. The same rhythmic intensity, albeit a far more primal version, could also be said to characterise The Rite of Spring; Stravinsky’s ballets had a major influence on Bartók’s compositional style.

Infernal Dance is supported by The Meyer Foundation