Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra

Bartók’s beloved Hungary had become an ally of Nazi Germany, and as an antifascist, Bartók saw no other way out than to emigrate to the US. He had trouble acclimating to his new home country, and he began having symptoms of what would eventually be diagnosed as leukemia. In the midst of this darkness, a prestigious commission came up in 1943: conductor Serge Koussevitzky wanted an orchestral work for his Boston Symphony Orchestra. Perhaps the distance from his native country gave the influence of folk music such a central role in the Concerto for Orchestra? 

French-born Betsy Jolas’ (b. 1926) best advice to her students is to be inspired by art and literature, and not to worry so much about labelling their music. She composed A Little Summer Suite as a commission for the Berlin Philharmonic, and the piece premiered a few months before her 90th birthday.

Alain Altinoglu is chief conductor of the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels. He frequently guest-conducts ensembles including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, and at the Metropolitan in New York and festivals in Bayreuth and Salzburg.