Violin Concerto (Sibelius)
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The Violin Concerto in D minor, opus 47 by Jean Sibelius premiered in 1904 in Helsinki. Sibelius withheld this version from publication and made substantial revisions. The new version premiered in 1905, in Berlin, with Richard Strauss conducting and Karel Halir as soloist (see the FMIC link). The initial version was noticeably more demanding on the virtuosic skills of the soloist and has been resurrected in recent years for some special interest recordings. The revised version is considered one of the world's most important concertos. Jascha Heifetz is generally considered to have resurrected the concerto, which he considered one of the great concertos in the violin repertoire[citation needed].
Like most concertos, the work is in three movements:
- Allegro moderato in D minor and in 2/2 time
- Adagio di molto in B-flat major and in 4/4 time
- Allegro, ma non tanto in D major and in 3/4 time
This is the only major work for solo instrument and orchestra (concerto) that Sibelius wrote, though he composed several other pieces for orchestra and solo instrument. One noteworthy feature of the work is the way in which an extended cadenza for the soloist takes on the role of the development section in the sonata form first movement. Donald Francis Tovey dubbed the final movement a polonaise for polar bears. Much of the violin writing is virtuosic, but even the most showy passages alternate with lyrical, melodic sections.
The first movement, marked Allegro moderato, opens with a cushion of pianissimo strings pulsating gently. The soloist then enters with a characteristic IV-V-I phrase, in D minor G-A-D. The violin announces the theme and is echoed by clarinet briefly, then continues into developmental material. More low woodwind and timpani accompany the soloist in virtuosic runs. Almost cadenza-like arpeggios and double-stops and more runs are accompanied by more woodwind restatements of the theme. The strings then enter brazenly for the first time, announcing a second theme. Developmental material leads to a difficult cadenza which then opens into the recapitulation. The coda ends with numerous restatements of past themes, in which the soloist and orchestra complement each other with differing themes played simultaneously.
The second movement is lyrical. A short introduction by the full orchestra leads into a singing solo part over pizzicato strings. Beautifully dissonant accompaniments by the brass dominate the first part of the song-like movement.
The third movement opens with another solo violin announcement of the theme. The second theme is taken up by the orchestra and is almost waltz-like in sound, and the violin takes up that theme in variations, with arpeggios and double-stops. Another virtuosic semi-cadenza full of double-stops and runs returns the first theme to the violin, but is rudely interrupted by more runs and double-stops and runs to harmonics. Another orchestral interlude involves the violin as accompanist, as the solo part takes up trills and harmonics. Broken octaves and more virtuosic material keep the soloist busy while the orchestra takes care of the rising action. The concerto ends in a brief arpeggiated run to a high D, and the orchestra helps close the piece with a simple unison D.
