The great attraction of the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic concert under the baton of Giancarlo Guerrero will be the world premiere of the new version of Six Songs of a Fairy Tale Princessby Karol Szymanowski. The solo part will be sung by Iwona Sobotka.
The concert will begin with Alban Berg’s Sieben frühe Lieder. This Austrian composer is considered one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. The songs that will sound this evening were written in the middle of the first decade of the last century and were originally intended for voice and piano. At the end of the 1920s, Berg returned to them and developed a version for voice and orchestra – we will hear it during this concert. This music is dark, but at the same time colourful and sensual, perfectly reflecting the anxious twilight of a certain era.
Interludium, a short, late work by Witold Lutosławski, was intended by the composer to separate his two other works – Chain 2 and Partita. It is devoid of any contrasts, kept in quiet dynamics and a slow pace. The fantastic, oneiric mood created in it makes it one of Lutosławski’s remarkable works.
The next piece in the programme, Six Songs of a Fairy Tale Princess by Szymanowski, was written in 1915 to texts by the composer’s sister, Zofia. Long, arabesque vocalizations of the solo voice create an unreal, fairy-tale, exotic atmosphere. The individual sngsreceived the following titles: Lonely Moon, Nightingale, Golden Shoes, Dance, Song of the Wave and Feast.
The concert will end with the Second Serenade in A major, Op. 16 by Johannes Brahms. This is one of his early works, written from 1858–1859. Itsmood is serene, carefree and sunny. Perhaps it reflects the feelings Brahms had for Clara Schumann, a pianist, composer and Robert’s wife. The orchestration of this serenade is very interesting, as Brahms decided to exclude the violins, trumpets, trombones and percussion from the line-up.