NOSPR / Wacławik / Bialic / A Play of Moods and Emotions - NOSPR

The title Scherzo capriccioso suggests a playful musical joke, yet in Dvořák’s hands (1883) appearances quickly give way to a more ambiguous narrative. Beneath its apparent lightness and waltz-like ease, shadows begin to emerge, flashes of the grotesque appear unexpectedly, an undercurrent of disquiet makes itself felt, and a persistent tension continues to pulse under the surface. The composer plays with the colours of the orchestra and constructs a form with a scope far greater than that of a typical symphonic scherzo. It is from the late-Romantic tradition that Horatio Parker takes inspiration for his Organ Concerto in E-flat minor (1902). Today remembered chiefly as Charles Ives’s tutor, this American composer offers music of generous breadth, in which the organ and orchestra engage in dialogue and together propel the narrative forward. One hears both a fascination with the instrument’s monumental sound and a concern for textural clarity, alongside a wide range of moods: from the dark opening, through lyrical episodes, to an energetic and virtuoso finale. Szymanowski’s Nocturne and Tarantella, in turn, presents a diptych of sharply contrasting states: the stillness of nocturnal contemplation and the frenzy of the dance. The first part unfolds in long, sensuous phrases, carrying the composer’s characteristic aura of exoticism and shimmering harmonies. The second part unleashes an entirely different elemental force: an unrelenting pulse, mounting virtuosity, and ever-denser rhythms. Grzegorz Fitelberg’s orchestration (1937) brings out an additional dimension in this music: it illuminates the nocturne with subtle layers of colour, and adds sharpness and brilliance to the tarantella.

Piotr Matwiejczuk (Polskie Radio)

Concert duration: approximately 70 minutes

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