Sinfonieorchester Basel
Lucas & Arthur Jussen, piano
Erik Nielsen, conductor
Paul Dukas:
Symphony in C major
Bohuslav Martinů:
Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra, H 292
Maurice Ravel:
Boléro
Fotos: © Marco Borggreve
Full of energy is Martinůs Concerto for two pianos and orchestra, about whose explosive effect the Martinů biographer James Rybka wrote: «He uses the pianos like fighter planes fighting each other to create a whirlwind of excitement in the finale.»
Ravel remarked about his most successful work to his colleague Arthur Honegger: «I have only made one masterpiece, that is the Boléro; unfortunately it contains no music.» He is not entirely wrong: one single rhythmic model repeated 169 times in 15 minutes. The ecstatic force that results is unique.
In plain language:
Bohuslav Martinů was a Czech composer. He composed the concerto during the Second World War. Maybe that is why the two pianos sound like two fighter planes.
Boléro
Symphony Concert
Donnerstag, 05 November 2020
19:30
06:30 PM: Introduction to the concert (in German) in the Hans Huber-Saal with Benjamin Herzog