The folk music of Hungary has long had a powerful influence on Western art music.
Brahms, although he had no real intimate knowledge, was infatuated with it.
Liszt was among the first to truly investigate the actual folk traditions, but it was not until
Bartók and
Kodály took to the tiny remote villages of Hungary with manuscript paper and wax cylinders that a true knowledge of Hungarian and Gypsy folk music came to pass. This PentaTone Classics album features five compositions heavily influenced by this research:
Bartók's Deux Portraits, Op. 5, and the First Rhapsody for violin and orchestra,
Kodály's Dances from Galánta, the incidental music from Háry János, and Ligeti's Concert Românesc. With all this focus on Hungarian works, listeners may be surprised to discover the Portuguese
Gulbenkian Orchestra directed by
Lawrence Foster performing. In fact, this little-known orchestra delivers a remarkably powerful, gripping reading of these dynamic compositions and one of the best in memory.
Foster captures the very essence of these scores: the importance of rhythmic precision, the emphasis of augmented intervals, and the indispensability of a wide dynamic range. Listeners will also enjoy hearing the inclusion of the cimbalom (a dulcimer-like instrument) in the brilliantly executed First Rhapsody. The only thing slightly lacking in this otherwise exemplary disc is a more present sound in concertmaster Mihaela Costea's performance in the First Rhapsody. PentaTone's sound is rich and vibrant; the multi-channel SACD layer is especially spacious.