Piano Concerto - Alan Bush
Channel: Sergio Cánovas
Date: 19/06/2023

BBC Symphony Orchestra & Apollo Voices conducted by Leonard Slatkin. Ashley Holland as the baritone and Rolf Hind as the pianist.

I - Con moto moderato ma deciso (♩ = 72) - Tranquillo: 0:00
II - Con vivacita, ma non troppo allegro - Un pochissimo meno mosso (♩ = 64) - Un pochissimo più mosso, quasi tempo primo: 15:23
III - Grave (♩ = 50) - Poco più lento - Molto lento (♩ = 60) - (attacca): 22:45
IV - Allegro vigoroso ma non troppo - Animato - A tempo giusto - Più largamente - Più tranquillo - Animato - A tempo definitivo (meno allegro): 34:06

Bush's Piano Concerto was composed between 1935-7, being premiered on March 4 of 1938 at the London Broadcasting House. It was performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Male Voice Chorus conducted by Sir Adrian Boult, along the composer at the piano and with Dennis Noble as the baritone. Although the press reviews that followed were favourable, subsequent performances have been few and far between, with a centenary revival being the most important.

The works length and choral finale invites comparisons with Busoni's Piano Concerto in C major: the largest work in the genre. However, while Busoni's work is an apotheosis of a delirious romanticism unbound by any sense of logic or constrain, Bush's works is an apotheosis of Marxist ideology. In this case, to separate the man and his political views are virtually impossible. The finale uses a text from English communist poet Randall Swingler, reflecting on the state of the world with a revolutionary approach.

The first movement slightly resembles sonata form. It begins with a rhythmic main theme of martial nature, presented by the piano over pizzicati and soon taken by strings. A more melodic second theme then appears, offering the adequate contrast. A vigorous development, based on the main theme, then begins. More calm and colourful passages are put against restless transformations of the main material in a tightly constructed manner. The recapitulation brings back the main themes, which leads to a cadenza-like passage for the soloist and brasses. A firm coda ends the movement.

The second movement is an unusual monothematic scherzo. A nervous main theme is introduced by the pianist, presented in a light and mercurial manner. Gradually, more motives and elements are added on this basic material. The music gradually becomes more dissonant and dark. The theme is then transformed into cascading arpeggio figures in the upper regions of the keyboard and seems to become a wild, stratospheric ostinato. A more lyrical idea appears on the woods, before a sudden outburst leads us to an unexpected pizzicato coda.

The third movement is rather free in form. It opens with an arid and dark opening from string basses, followed by a more lyrical response from upper strings, specially as the clarinet enters. The soloist enters with a meditative and rippling theme presented through a solo, which flourishes in a virtuosic treatment. The virtuosic writing for piano even extends to a quiet accompanying figure whilst the clarinets indulge in a molto cantabile passage. This accompanying figure takes on the character of a moto perpetuo. After an expressive climax on strings, the piano performs a cadenza. Sonorous broken chords on the piano, increasingly intense and insistent lead us to the finale.

The fourth movement is very free in form as well. It begins with a bright and lively main theme introduced by strings, on which the piano elaborates soon after. A heavily contrapuntal passage is followed by a more reflective and melodic one. After much virtuosic piano writing, a final brilliant arpeggiated flourish and a lengthy forte bass drum roll signals the entry of the male voice chorus speaking. The chorus then joins in singing the words and at the line "you have heard the piano vaunting its brilliance", the piano soloist obligingly enters with a legato triplet ostinato over which the chorus continues. The baritone soloist alternates with the chorus, sharing the text which warns listeners of the dangers of society and how to overcome them, including a damning indictment of the leaders of Capitalism and Imperialism along the way. The music grows impassioned, mirroring the text in fire and passion, culminating in a triumphal orchestral coda.

[Activate the subtitles to read the lyrics]

Picture: "Going to Work" (1970) by the Albanian painter Zef Shoshi.

Musical analysis written by myself. Sources: https://rb.gy/inss9 and https://rb.gy/s4c52

To check the score: https://rb.gy/wiola