Petrassi - Quarto Concerto/Bartok - Divertimento/Hoddinott: Scena for Strings/Martin: Etudes/Hartmann: Symphony nr. 4

We are inching our way through the Petrassi Concertos. The Fourth (1954) concludes the first CD. It's a weird work, written for strings only. Again, as with the previous two concertos it is not easy to put exactly the finger on what the weirdness is about. The musical idiom is approachable and relies on a loose and expressive twelve-tone technique. Formally, one senses an interesting combination of compositional rigour and improvisatory flair. The music commences somberly with a questioning, arch-like theme that seems to anchor a quasi-monothematic edifice. After a scherzo-like menacing 'allegro inquieto' the musical fabric starts to disintegrate until it is sucked up by a giant black hole, the 'lentissimo'. Here the musical process comes almost to a complete standstill. It's a night music of great intensity that explodes in an anguished climax. The finale is an energetic and tight-lipped 'allegro giusto' that towards the end returns to a serene reprise of the questioning theme with which the work started. All this is played without breaks between the movements. The overall shape of the work does remind somewhat of the Third Concerto, where the energetic opening also leads to a progressively more transparant and hesitant musical process.

According to Paolo Petazzi, who wrote the liner notes of the CD, the Quarto Concerto confronts itself with the model of Bartok. After having heard the Concerto five or six times during the last couple of days, I don't think that connection is obvious. In conjunction with the Concerto I listened in quick succession to a couple of other works for string orchestra: Bartok's Divertimento (1939), Martin's Etudes for string orchestra (1955-1956), Hoddinott's Scena for Strings (1984) and K.A. Hartmann's Symphony nr. 4 (1947-48). It's fair to say that there is something of all of these works in the Petrassi. I think Hoddinott's dreamy, shadowy Scena, Hartmann's somber, ruminative symphony and the dark slow movement of Bartok's Divertimento connect very well to the overall sense of deep and meandering meditation that pervades the Concerto. But there is neoclassical lightness and poise too, as in Martin's Etudes, and a sense of rythmic propulsion as in the fast movements of the Divertimento. truth be told, I think that amongst all of these works the Bartok Divertimento sticks out as the most accomplished achievement. It is such a wonder of balance, movement and colour. After having listened to it quite intensively a few weeks ago, it was refreshing to return to it once again. Now I listened to the phenomenal recording with Zehetmair and the Camerata Bern,on ECM.

Listening to the Hartmann symphony was a first for me. I had the full set of 8 symphonies with Ingo Metzmacher and the Bamberg SO already for a while but have not listened to it. It definitely seems worthwhile stuff, although I must admit to finding the Fourth rather longish. However, I am suspending judgment for the time being. Meanwhile I ordered the version on ECM with Christopher Poppen and the Münchner Kammerorchester to hear another take on this at first sight rather inscrutable work. Incidentally, Hartmann's Fourth Symphony and Petrassi's Fourth Concerto where both premiered by Hans Rosbaud.