Krzysztof Penderecki (b. 1933)
Concerto for viola and orchestra (cello version)

Concerto for viola and orchestra was created in 1983 on commission from the government of the Republic of Venezuela. Although the original commission was for a cantata for the 200th anniversary of the birth of Simon Bolivar, we owe one of the composer’s most beautiful works to his breach of contract. From the very start, it existed in two versions, symphonic and chamber, similarly to its transcriptions for cello, made by Boris Pergamenschikow in 1988 and for clarinet (1996). Another cello version, this time by Art Noras, almost entirely preserves the structure of the viola part. The premiere of the version for viola and symphony orchestra took place in Caracas on July 24th, 1983.
The concerto only lasts some 20 minutes, but its emotional intensity makes time flow independently of the clock. It consists of six combined segments. In the prologue, the main idea with the characteristic “sighing” motif (a falling semitone), gradually extended, is introduced by the solo instrument. The orchestra joins after a while, leading to the first climax, followed by a solo cadence. The second segment, still in a slow tempo (Lento) is dominated by a dramatic cantilena. The third (Vivace) has the character of a demoniac scherzando. The virtuoso solo part is at times accompanied by single groups of instruments; at times, the orchestra come in ritornellos of a structure suggesting fuging technique, occasionally rising in violent climaxes. The background also contains subtle sonorist effects, very naturally blending into the course of music in its precisely-defined pitch – a course revolving around multiple expositions of a minor third. The main idea (inverted to a rising semitone) appears against the background of the still-rushing solo part in a low register. This is the beginning of the fourth segment (Lento), that runs among recitatives and cadences; in the last of these, the tempo accelerates again, and series of minor thirds lead to the fifth section (Vivo), connoting with its character to the tradition of the final rondo. Polyphonic structures and minor third courses reappear, but the vivid tone soon breaks down in a highly dissonant tutti, followed by the main idea in the initial tempo. This time, semitone sequences are directed up and down in turn. The work thus reaches its epilogue. The solo part and that of the orchestra move apart, the whole is permeated with a mood of destruction and loneliness. Only in the final bars do the two voices converge again in a dwindling unison, a tritone away from the first note of the composition.

Maciej Negrey