Bartók and Eötvös. The 20th century and the present day. Being both Hungarian and an international figure. Modernity and tradition. Reality and allure. This concert addresses lovers of 20th-century and contemporary music. As an overture, we'll hear a world première written and conducted by Péter Eötvös. This will be followed by an earlier concerto by the composer, and then two works by Bartók: a youthful one, and then his famous Cantata profana. If we look carefully, all four works reveal both some kind of duality and some kind of temptation to which the composer succumbs.
First off the bat will be Eötvös's new work, of which the composer writes, 'For millennia, the most famous singers in mythology have been the sirens: murderous birds with women's heads. My work Sirens' song was inspired by three writers. Homer had these creatures luring sailors to them with the enchanting voices, before killing them. As a precaution, Odysseus plugged his ears with wax, so that he wouldn't hear the sirens. In Kafka's account the sirens trapped Odysseus even more slyly, by not sin...ging to him. The sirens are the muses of the underworld. It was not only James Joyce that they enticed, but all those composers who have attempted to make audible that which Odysseus never heard.' The dialogue with the sirens permeates the other works as well: in the Cello Concerto Grosso, the cello converses with the solo instruments and the full orchestra, while in Bartók's Four Pieces for Orchestra, the composer gives in to the temptation of impressionism, and his Cantata profana has orchestral instruments playing the sounds of the world of folk legends.
Presented by: Pannon Philharmonic
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