Silesian String Quartet and Guests / First Concert in the Series: Alexandre Tansman in France - NOSPR

The Silesian String Quartet first encountered the music of Alexandre Tansman at the very beginning of its artistic journey. In their own concert series, the musicians return to the work of a composer who has remained an important source of inspiration. The concerts under the title Alexandre Tansman in France form a coherent portrait of the Łódź-born composer who found his artistic home among the Parisian intellectual circles of the early 20th century. Together with invited guests, the Silesian String Quartet reveals the richness of Tansman’s chamber music while exploring the work of other composers from his French circle.

‘The string quartet is the purest musical form – there is nowhere to hide’, Tansman used to say. His output includes no fewer than nine string quartets. The Second Quartet was written in Paris in 1922 and dedicated to his future wife, Anna Eleonora Brociner. From the very beginning, critics praised its lyrical qualities and the clear influence of Polish folk music. Despite spending many years abroad, Polish culture remained an important point of reference for Tansman. In 1949, commissioned by UNESCO to mark the centenary of Chopin’s death, he composed Tombeau de Chopin, a short work whose very structure pays tribute to the Romantic master’s style through its Nocturne, Mazurka and Postlude. A contrasting sound world is offered by Igor Stravinsky’s Three Pieces for String Quartet of 1914, in which echoes of the colours and rhythms of The Rite of Spring, composed just a year earlier, can already be heard. The programme concludes with César Franck’s Piano Quintet. Coolly received by its contemporaries, the work is compelling proof that not every masterpiece finds its audience in its own time. Today, its symphonic breadth, wealth of invention and compositional mastery continue to captivate listeners.Top of Form

Julia Broniowska / NOSPR

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