RAVEL 150

Košice State Philharmonic
Christian ØLAND , conductor
Zlata CHOCHIEVA , piano

Program:

Maurice Ravel: Concerto for piano and orchestra in G major. 25'
Gustav Mahler: Symphony no. 5 cis mol. 75'

The concerto for piano and orchestra in G major by Maurice Ravel was characterized by the author himself as "a concerto in the narrowest sense of the word, written in the spirit of the Mozart and Saint-Saëns concertos." It is virtuoso and literally brimming with life. It consists of three relatively short parts. The first movement of the Allegramente is brilliant and features a fine weave of melodic motifs. It requires virtuoso pianistic dispositions and at the same time brings an equally demanding orchestral part. The orchestra presents the first, cheerful theme interwoven with shimmering figurations and piano glissandos. The calmer second theme is introduced by a piano solo. The cadence is originally conceived with impressive thematic trills of the right hand against the background of extended chords of the left hand.

While in the second to fourth symphonies Gustav Mahler also used singing in the musical texture, the three following works, starting with Symphony no. 5, are purely instrumental compositions. Their common features are unusual dimensions and persistence in non-musical programs or ideological contexts. Symphony no. 5 cis mol is a five-part work. The first consists of a mournful march opened with a fanfare of trumpets, this music is also the entrance to the image of the dramatic battle forming the second part. Here, within the sonata allegro, motifs and themes already known from the funeral march are developed. The third movement is a wide-ranging Scherzo with two contrasting trios. The fourth, the most famous part, is presented only by string instruments and the harp. The sonically beautiful Adagietto, imbued with deep feeling and full of lyrical expression, is often performed as a stand-alone piece. The final Rondo with a masterly, strongly polyphonic texture brings back the music of the entrance march and the impressive theme of the Adagietto.