Vytautas Bacevičius - Orchestral Music (Various Artists)

Information

Composer: Vytautas Bacevičius

1. Poème Électrique
2. Concerto No. 1 for Piano and Orchestra, Sur les thèmes lituaniens
3. Symphony No. 2, Della Guerra: I. Allegro
4. Symphony No. 2, Della Guerra: II. Andante funebre
5. Symphony No. 2, Della Guerra: III. Allegro molto
6. Symphony No. 6, Cosmique
7. Graphique

Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra

Aidas Puodžiukas, piano / Martynas Staškus, conductor (2)

Vytautas Lukočius, conductor

Date: 2000

Label: Toccata

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Review

Vytautas Bacevicius was born into a Polish-Lithuanian family in Lódz, Poland, in 1905, but emigrated to the then Lithuanian capital, Kaunas, in 1926. He studied in Paris with Tcherepnin (1927-31) and was much influenced by Scriabin and, later, Varèse and Jolivet. A fine pianist, Bacevicius thought of himself foremost as an orchestral composer.

The four sections of the single-span first of four piano concertos (1929) mirrors a traditional sonata-style layout in which folk material forms the motivic basis set in Scriabinesque harmonies. The concluding Allegro moderato, however, is almost jazzlike in its rhythmic élan – an echo, perhaps, of his Parisian sojourn. More impressive still is Poème électrique (1932), a highly coloured contribution to the short-lived machinist fad of the times. Closer to The Steel Stride than Pacific 231 or Iron Foundry, it is a most effective concert opener.

When the Second World War overtook Lithuania and Poland in 1939, Bacevicius was on tour in South America and he remained an exile (mostly in the US) until his death in 1970. The programmatic Second Symphony (1940) records his feelings at the invasion of his homelands in a simplified musical language, conceived (unsuccessfully) for America, that failed to secure attention. In the late 1950s he returned to a more advanced style, a “cosmic music” (of the inner cosmos of Man rather than Space), represented here by the turbulent Sixth Symphony (1960) and brilliant Graphique (1964) – the latter in particular showing what a fine composer Bacevicius was at his best. These fine performances and recordings (from 2003‑05) give this colourful music the best possible platform.

— Guy Rickards

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Vytautas Bacevičius (9 September 1905 – 9 September 1970) was a Lithuanian composer, brother of Polish composer Grażyna Bacewicz. Educated in Łódź and at the Paris Conservatory under Nikolai Tcherepnin, he established a career as a composer, pianist and teacher in Lithuania, eventually heading the Lithuanian Section of the ISCM. Stranded in Argentina during World War II, he emigrated to the United States in 1940. Based in New York, he maintained active teaching studios and performed at Carnegie Hall. Known for his unique style and "cosmic music" theory, he drew creative inspiration from Scriabin, Jolivet and Varèse.

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Vytautas Lukočius (born 1975) is a Lithuanian conductor. He trained at the M.K. Čiurlionis Art Gymnasium, the Lithuanian Academy of Music and the Sibelius Academy under mentors including Leif Segerstam and Jorma Panula. His accolades include winning the 2006 Jorma Panula Competition. Lukočius served as assistant chief conductor of the Lithuanian State Symphony and conductor of the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra. His repertoire spans major operas and operettas, including works by Verdi, Wagner and Britten. He regularly guest-conducts prominent Nordic and Baltic orchestras alongside international soloists.

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