10 episodes
| Series | Episode | First Broadcast | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20070618 | Bartok was born into a time of intense political turmoil in Hungary. During his formative years, he was caught up in a surge of nationalism that gripped his homeland and informed many of his early compositions. But, as Donald Macleod discovers, it wasn't long before another, stronger influence was to transform his life and work. Ha kimagyek arr' a magos tetore (If I climb the rocky mountains, Eight Hungarian Folksongs) Julia Hamari (mezzo-soprano) Ilona Prunyi (piano) Kossuth Budapest Festival Orchestra Ivan Fischer (conductor) Two Portraits Chantal Juillet (violin) Orchestre symphonique de Montreal Charles Dutoit (conductor) Seven Sketches, Op 9b (Nos 1,2 and 4) Jeno Jando (piano) String Quartet No 1 (last movement) Takacs Quartet. | ||
| 20070619 | One of the outstanding features of Bartok's genius is the febrile musical imagination he demonstrated in his three intense, fantastical and often disturbing dramatic works. Donald Macleod looks at the vivid imagery that Bartok conjured up in his works for the stage. Allegro Barbaro Bela Bartok (piano) Duke Bluebeard's Castle (excerpt) Bluebeard....John Tomlinson (bass) Judith....Anne Sofie von Otter (mezzo-soprano) Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Bernard Haitink (conductor) The Wooden Prince (excerpt) Chicago Symphony Orchestra Pierre Boulez (conductor) Miraculous Mandarin Suite Philharmonia Orchestra Neeme Jarvi (conductor). | ||
| 20070620 | Bartok's all-consuming passion for collecting and arranging folksongs faltered over a crisis in his own compositional style. He was so confused by the rapidly changing musical landscape around him that for a few years he stopped composing altogether. Donald Macleod looks at Bartok's middle years as he struggled to find his own voice. 8 Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs (No 2) Murray Perahia (piano) Out of Doors (Nos 1, 3 and 6) Joanna McGregor (piano) String Quartet No 3 Emerson String Quartet Piano Concerto No 2 Zoltan Kocsis (piano) Budapest Festival Orchestra Ivan Fischer (conductor). | ||
| 20070621 | By the 1930s, Bartok's international reputation as both a composer and pianist was at its peak, but in his homeland he was still struggling to gain the recognition he deserved. Donald Macleod explores the years leading up to the Second World War, when Bartok began to realise his future may lie elsewhere rather than in his beloved Hungary. Cantata Profana Tamas Daroczy (tenor) Alexandru Agache (baritone) Choir of Hungarian Radio and Television Budapest Festival Orchestra Georg Solti (conductor) Wandering; Loafer's Song (Two and Three-part Choruses) Chamber Chorus of the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music Antal Dorati (conductor) Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Seiji Ozawa (conductor). | ||
| 20090216 | Donald Macleod explores the life and music of composer, pianist and folksong collector Bela Bartok. He examines music inspired by his failed love affair with violinist Stefi Geyer, as well as an excerpt from his only opera. The composer had to wait eight years to see it staged for the first time. Fourteen Bagatelles (No 2) | ||
| 20090217 | Donald Macleod introduces the suite Bartok created from his ballet The Miraculous Mandarin, which caused a riot at its premiere, plus an excerpt from his earlier ballet The Wooden Prince which, in spite of disapproval from the conservative faction in the audience, was Bartok's first popular success. Az en szerelmem, Op 15 No 1 | ||
| 20090218 | Donald Macleod explores Bartok's life and music, introducing the colourful suite he composed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the unifaction of Budapest, which cemented his reputation as a major figure in contemporary music, as well as an evocative choral work inspired by an ancient Romanian Christmas carol. Three Village Scenes (Lad's Dance) | ||
| 20090219 | Donald Macleod explores the life and music of Hungarian composer Bela Bartok. He introduces a complete performance of Bartok's Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste, considered one of the masterworks of the 20th Century, plus an excerpt from his Second Piano Concerto and a chamber work played by the two musicians who commissioned it, with the composer himself at the piano. Romanian Whirling Dance | ||
| COTW | 05 LAST | 20070622 | With no desire to stay in a country for which his unwavering loyalty apparently counted for nothing, Bartok finally turned his back on Hungary for good, to make a new life for himself and his wife in America. Donald Macleod looks at this poignant final episode in the life of one of the 20th Century's greatest composers. Seven pieces from Mikrokosmos for 2 pianos (No 2) Bela Bartok, Ditta Pasztory-Bartok (piano) Contrasts (1st mvt) Bela Bartok (piano) Benny Goodman (clarinet) Jozsef Sigeti (violin) String Quartet No 6 (3rd mvt) Takacs Quartet Concerto for Orchestra Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra Antal Dorati (conductor). |
| COTW | 05 LAST | 20090220 | Donald Macleod introduces music from Bartok's final years after his emigration to America. Donald Macleod explores the life and work of Bela Bartok, introducing music from the final years of his life following his emigration to America. Including the work which was described by Koussevitsky as 'the best orchestral piece of the last 25 years', plus a selection of pieces from Mikrokosmos and the final movement of the original version of his sonata for two pianos and percussion. Mikrokosmos (No 142) |
Cast and Crew
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