Bela Bartok (1881-1945) Violin Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 Enshrined in Hungary's history as its foremost composer, Bela Bartok continues to gain in popularity...
Bela Bartok
(1881-1945)
Violin Concertos Nos.
1 and 2
Enshrined in Hungary's history as its foremost composer, Bela Bartok
continues to gain in popularity as the century draws to a close. There can be
no doubt that his name will be included among the greatest composers from the
first half of the twentieth century and that his music will endure the changes
in taste that will inevitably occur in 'classical' music. His innovative use of
eastern European folk music as the most significant inspirational source has
left us a legacy of works which are highly individual and fresh even more than
fifty years after his passing. He remains without comparable peers in his
style, which transcends the barriers of art and folk, east and west. Some would
even argue that his influence can be observed in music which fuses classical
and jazz. As information continues to emerge of the details of his life and
character, we realise that this genius was not only a combination of composer,
performer, teacher and ethnomusicologist, but a man with strong interest in the
laws of nature and with some eccentric aspects to his personality.
A relatively youthful work, written in 1907-08, Bartok's first concerto
demonstrates considerable change in writing style since his earlier major work,
the symphonic poem Kossuth, of 1903. His folk-music collaboration with
Zoltan Kodaly had begun in 1905 and by the time work began on Violin
Concerto No. 1 he had already published his first Hungarian folksong
settings, had started to collect folk music with an Edison phonograph, and had
begun an investigation of Rumanian folk music. The influence of the music of
Debussy and Reger has also been noted in the compositions of this period.
One cannot discuss this work without reference to Stefi Geyer, the young
violinist with whom Bartok became totally besotted. During the composition
period he
was clearly deeply in love with her and this work, dedicated to her, is
undoubtedly the musical expression of his feelings. Geyer was later to describe
the first movement as 'the young girl whom he had loved' and the second as 'the
violinist whom he had admired'. Bartok himself described the first movement as
his 'most direct' music, 'written exclusively from the heart'. The opening D F#
A C# motif is the germ of the work and is alluded to in many instances in later
works, including his final work, the Viola Concerto of 1945. In its
minor form, C# E G# B#, Bartok described it in a letter to Geyer of September,
1907, as 'your leitmotif'. This motif was also used, probably coincidentally,
by Vernon Duke in I Can't Get Started (1935). Geyer never performed the
work and in fact it remained unplayed in its original two movement form until
after her death. The first performance in Basle on 30th May, 1958 featured the
violinist Hans-Heinz Schneeberger and conductor Paul Sacher. Prior to this the
first movement became, with minor modifications, the first of the Two
Portraits, the second movement being an orchestrated version of the last of
the Fourteen Bagatelles, renamed Grotesque.
Just as his first violin concerto was dedicated to a violinist, so too
was the second. The wording 'To my dear friend, Zoltan Szekely' shows
the depth of their friendship and professional relationship. After writing the Two
Violin Rhapsodies in 1928, Bartok invited Szekely to choose one as
dedicatee. He selected the second and the first was subsequently dedicated to
Szigeti.
The close involvement of Szekely in the genesis of the first violin
concertos is of particular interest. As he had commissioned the concerto, he
took a strong interest in its development and offered advice to the composer
during their violin and piano rehearsals. These suggestions included changing
and adding notes, altering articulations and even a reworking of some
structural aspects. Bartok originally proposed a one-movement work with
variations but Szekely objected, requesting a 'real' three-movement concerto.
In the original ending of the work there was no role for the solo violin. Again
Szekely requested that the work end 'like a concerto, not a symphony' Bartok
obliged and added an alternative ending, though leaving the original version
available. In spite of agreeing to write a three-movement work, Bartok had the
last word as shown in his letter to Szekely when referring to the third movement 'strictly
speaking, it is a free variation of the first movement (so I managed to outwit
you. I wrote variations after all)'.
While this work demonstrates highly sophisticated use of twelve-tone
structures, imitative devices and tonal and rhythmic features, its flavour is
inspired by folk music and the opening theme is derived specifically from folk
dances collected from Transylvanian peasant violinists.
Donald Maurice