martinu° Classics cello concertos cello concertino raphael wallfisch cello czech philharmonic orchestra jirˇí beˇlohlávek CHAN 10547 X Bohuslav Martinů in Paris, 1925 Bohuslav Martinů (1890 – 1959) Concerto No. 1, H 196 (1930; revised 1939 and 1955)* 26:08 for Cello and Orchestra 1 I Allegro moderato 8:46 2 II Andante moderato 10:20 3 III Allegro – Andantino – Tempo I 7:00 Concerto No. 2, H 304 (1944 – 45)† 36:07 © P.B. Martinů/Lebrecht© P.B. Music & Arts Photo Library for Cello and Orchestra 4 I Moderato 13:05 5 II Andante poco moderato 14:10 6 III Allegro 8:44 7 Concertino, H 143 (1924)† 13:54 in C minor • in c-Moll • en ut mineur for Cello, Wind Instruments, Piano and Percussion Allegro TT 76:27 Raphael Wallfisch cello Czech Philharmonic Orchestra Bohumil Kotmel* • Josef Kroft† leaders Jiří Bělohlávek 3 Miloš Šafránek, in a letter that year: ‘My of great beauty and sense of peace. Either Martinů: head wasn’t in order when I re-scored it side lies a boldly angular opening movement, Cello Concertos/Concertino (originally) under too trying circumstances’ and a frenetically energetic finale with a (war clouds were gathering over Europe). He contrasting lyrical central Andantino. Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra had become reasonably well established in set about producing a third version of his Bohuslav Martinů was a prolific writer of Paris and grown far more confident about his Cello Concerto No. 1, removing both tuba and Concerto No. 2 for Cello and Orchestra concertos and concertante works. Among own creative abilities; he was also receiving piano from the orchestra but still keeping its In 1941 Martinů left Paris for New York, just these are four for solo cello, and four in which much moral support from many French otherwise larger format: ahead of the Nazi occupation. As the war was the cello features in the concertante group artists, as well as from the Czech artistic I thinned out the chords in the trombones coming to a close, he received a commission (Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra, community in Paris at the time. Martinů and horns and re-orchestrated the for a new cello concerto at a time when his two Concertos for Piano Trio and Orchestra, had come to feel that the concerto could Concerto without changing the notes thoughts were inevitably turning towards and the Haydnesque Sinfonia concertante sustain greater instrumental forces and so very much; the solo part is practically home and the then real prospect of going in B flat for violin, cello, oboe, bassoon and he re-scored it for large orchestra: double unchanged and perhaps somewhat easier back to the country in which he had last orchestra). Of those for solo cello, three are woodwind and trumpets, four horns, three in the new orchestral arrangement. lived (except for holidays up to 1938) in 1923. presented on this recording – the missing trombones and tuba, timpani and percussion, Martinů dedicated this final version also to Owing to the post-war political events in his one is the Sonata da camera, written at with appropriate string forces – Martinů’s Pierre Fournier, who gave many performances native Czechoslovakia he was never able to Aix-en-Provence in November and December favourite orchestral piano still in attendance. of it and revised the cadenza in the last return to his homeland, but his music, to the 1940 for the Swiss cellist Henri Honegger. The new version was dedicated to Pierre movement. However, the first performance end, remained essentially Czech. Concerto No. 1 exists in three versions. Fournier, who gave the first performance in was given by the Czech cellist Miloš Sádlo Concerto No. 2 was the last of Martinů’s Martinů composed the first version in the spring of 1939 with the orchestra of the in Helsinki on 6 March 1956, with the Finnish four works for solo cello with orchestra (when his home-town of Polička and in Paris Société des Concerts du Conservatoire, Paris, Radio Symphony Orchestra under Paavo we take his chamber music into account, between August and October 1930. Scored conducted by Charles Münch. Berglund. With his Piano Concerto No. 2 (1934), Martinů wrote more than thirty works for solo for chamber orchestra with an important Taken up by some of the world’s leading Cello Concerto No. 1 remains one of Martinů’s cello). Martinů set about composing this work piano part, it was the first real attempt by cellists, the work in this form received most popular and successful examples in New York on 20 December 1944 and had the composer at a solo concerto, at the many performances over the next fifteen of the concerto form. It is built about the completed it by 26 February 1945. However, same time showing something of his later years. However, in 1955 a performance of beautiful central Andante moderato, whose because of some disagreement with the preoccupation with the concerto grosso. the concerto was broadcast on the radio broad, reflective theme, characterised by intended soloist, the work lay unplayed for This version received its premiere in Berlin on from Paris. Hearing his music anew while in Martinů’s rhythmic shifts from bar to bar, is the next twenty years before being taken 13 December 1931 with Gaspar Cassadó as Nice, Martinů was unhappy with it, receiving introduced by the clarinet and expanded by up by the Czech cellist Alexander (Saša) soloist. The second version was prepared at ‘a shock at the bad orchestration of the other woodwind and solo trumpet. When the Večtomov. He gave the first performance the beginning of 1939, by which time Martinů whole work’. As he told his first biographer, cello enters, the theme takes on an aspect in the South Bohemian town of České 4 5 Budějovice on 25 May 1965, with the Prague Concertino for Cello, Wind Instruments, Piano angular rhythms, with one particular figure performed works by Barber, Dohnányi, Grieg, Symphony Orchestra (FOK) conducted by and Percussion giving a sense of unity to a work largely Kabalevsky, Menotti, Prokofiev, Respighi and Zdeněk Košler. Martinů made his very first attempt at a work built on sonata form principles. Following Richard Strauss. Many of Britain’s leading The scoring is similar to that of the in the concerto genre the year after he had the presentation of two initial ideas by way composers have written works for him, final version of Martinů’s First Concerto moved from Prague to Paris, intending to of exposition, a broader melody serves in including Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, James but whereas the first lasts just over study with Albert Roussel. Stanislav Novák, place of the development and acts as a sort MacMillan, Paul Patterson, Robert Saxton, twenty-six minutes, the second is about ten his lifelong friend, and sometime leader of of slow movement. After an equally short Robert Simpson, Giles Swayne, Sir John minutes longer. While not so immediately the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, founded ‘recapitulation’ a short cadenza brings this Tavener and Adrian Williams. A passionate approachable, it is a work which repays a string quartet in which the cellist was the lively work of 1920s Parisian impressions to teacher, Raphael Wallfisch is in great demand repeated hearing, and into which Martinů Dutchman Maurits Frank, and it was for Frank a close. all over the world, and holds professorships put his intimate feelings of longing for home. that Martinů at the end of 1924 wrote his Cello at the Zürich Winterthur Konservatorium and © Graham Melville‑Mason While it displays his typical rhythmic and Concertino. Although Martinů completed the the Hochschule Mainz. He currently plays a harmonic shifts, it is an essentially lyrical work in December 1924, like Cello Concerto cello made by Gennaro Gagliano in 1760. work: the reflective first movement carries No. 2 it had to wait a long time for its first Born into a family of professional musicians, strong echoes of the traditional Czech performance – in this case, twenty-five Raphael Wallfisch discovered the cello at Antonín Dvořák conducted the very first pastoral Christmastide music of Ryba, years. The premiere was given in Prague on the age of eight. While studying with Gregor concert of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra Linek and their contemporaries – which is 24 March 1949 by Ivan Večtomov (father of Piatigorsky in California he was chosen to on 4 January 1896 in the Rudolfinum. The not surprising, given the time of year when Saša Večtomov who was to give the belated perform chamber music with Jascha Heifetz Orchestra was directed by Ludvík Čelanský Martinů was writing it. The central movement premiere of Cello Concerto No. 2) and the in the informal recitals that Piatigorsky and Vilém Zemánek, as well as, briefly, Oskar also has a slowish tempo indication, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by held in his home. At the age of twenty-four Nedbal, before the Chief Conductor’s baton Andante poco moderato, but it is not a slow Václav Neumann. he won the Gaspar Cassadó International was taken up by the first internationally movement in the usual sense, being rather Martinů chose to score the work for a Cello Competition in Florence. Since then known conductor, Václav Talich, in 1919. a lightweight, steady scherzando. The last typical Stravinskian chamber ensemble, both he has performed continually worldwide. This great personality was succeeded by movement has Martinů’s typical energy fashionable and economically necessary His extensive discography features works outstanding conductors such as Rafael but less of the nervous tension that marks at that time, requiring piccolo, two oboes, by a wide range of British composers, Kubelík (1942 – 48), Karel Ančerl (1950 – 68) similar movements in the works written in the two clarinets, bassoon, horn, trumpet, including concertos by Bax, Bliss, Delius, and Václav Neumann (1968– 90).