LUCERNE FESTIVAL ACADEMY Orchestra
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Pierre Boulez
conductor
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Hae Sun Kang
violin
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Yefim Bronfman
piano
Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)
Sinfonietta for orchestra
Edgar Varèse (1883-1965)
“Déserts” for ensemble
Alban Berg (1885-1935)
“Kammerkonzert” for piano and violin with accompaniment of thirteen wind instruments
The desert as an image of the human mind? “I chose the title Déserts,” Varèse once explained, “because for me it is a magical word, suggesting correspondences with infinity. Déserts means to me not only physical deserts of sand, sea, mountains and snow, outer space, deserted city streets, not only those destructive aspects of nature which evoke sterility, remoteness, timelessness – but also this distant inner space which no telescope can reach, where man is alone in a world of mystery and essential solitude." The première, in December 1954, unleashed a scandal, but today it is accepted that Varèse, in Déserts, produced a forward-looking masterpiece of great genius. The same seal of approval applies to Leoš Janácek's Sinfonietta, a work inspired by the sound of the Czech language and the charm of the Moravian countryside. Alban Berg similarly entered uncharted territory when he composed his Chamber Concerto.
Artephila Foundation – Partner of the LUCERNE FESTIVAL ACADEMY