CLAUDE DEBUSSY: La mer
MAURICE RAVEL: Piano Concerto in G major

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BÉLA BARTÓK: Concerto for Orchestra, Sz. 116, BB 123

Mihály Berecz piano

Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra

Conductor: János Kovács

The Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra traditionally holds its season-opening concert on the date before the day of the anniversary of the death of Béla Bartók, thus paying tribute to the work of the composer who wrote music ‘from a pure source.’ On the programme this year is Bartók’s masterpiece Concerto for Orchestra, created during his period of exile in America, preceded by works by the French composers Debussy and Ravel, whose work Bartók knew well and esteemed highly. The soloist for the concert, Mihály Berecz, is one of Hungary’s most outstanding young pianists, and conductor János Kovács is unquestionably a treasure of the Hungarian music world.

In 1905, Claude Debussy completed his set of three symphonic sketches entitled La Mer, which is notable not only for its sensually beautiful nature poetry, but also for being one of the most modern orchestral compositions of its time in terms of both form and harmony. The Piano Concerto in G major composed between 1929 and 1931 by Debussy’s contemporary Maurice Ravel, his junior by 13 years, was not only inspired by the purity and sophistication of Mozart’s ideal of beauty, it also vividly reflects the influence of the fashionable jazz music of the time, creating a special mix of styles. Commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky on behalf of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Béla Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra received its premiere in 1944. The five-movement symphonic orchestral work, featuring numerous representative instrumental solos and chamber music passages, is one of the most significant works in the artist’s output, a moving document of homesickness and patriotism. Born in 1997 pianist Mihály Berecz has successfully participated in many international competitions, while the 71-year-old conductor János Kovács is known for grounding his work in every style and genre in the utmost degree of professional research and artistic humility.