ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK: Czech Suite, Op. 39
ZOLTÁN KOVÁCS: Dream Dances – clarinet concerto with string accompaniment
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GABRIEL FAURÉ: Pelléas and Mélisande – suite, Op. 80
CLAUDE DEBUSSY: Petite Suite (arranged for orchestra by Henri Büsser)

Gábor Varga clarinet
Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra

Conductor: Máté Szabó Sipos

Looking back over the centuries, there are many examples of composers who were also musicians. Today, however, this kind of versatility is rare, which is why it is notable that the composer Zoltán Kovács is also a bassoon player for the Hungarian Opera. For this concert by the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra, we can look forward to an interpretation of the clarinet concerto Dream Dances by the clarinetist Gábor Varga, accompanied by the string ensemble. The other three pieces in the programme are all suites, albeit with three distinct styles. Dvořák’s Czech Suite is of a national character, Fauré’s Pelléas et Mélisande Suite is a selection of excerpts from a piece of theatrical incidental music, while Debussy’s Petite Suite is a series of short character pieces. The conductor is Máté Szabó Sipos.

How many different meanings lie behind the name of the genre known as the suite? Music listeners can ponder this question during the third concert for the Hungarian National Philharmonic Lukács season ticket. With Máté Szabó Sipos conducting, the first piece to be performed will be Antonín Dvořák’s 1879 composition Czech Suite, where the focus is on national character, with the series showcasing Czech dances such as the Sousedská and the Furiant. The start of the second half will feature excerpts from a piece of theatrical incidental music with Fauré’s Pelléas et Mélisande Suite (1898), which was written for Maurice Maeterlinck’s symbolist play. Finally, we will see a performance of Debussy’s Petite Suite (1886/89), which was originally conceived as a cycle of piano pieces. Here, the four movements are four atmospheric, descriptive character pieces, just as the titles indicate: En bateau, Cortège, Menuet and Ballet. Before the break, the audience will have the chance to encounter the work of a contemporary Hungarian composer, Zoltán Kovács, as the clarinettist Gábor Varga takes to the stage as soloist for the clarinet concerto Dream Dances.