Bartók -- Romanian Folk Dances, Sz. 56 for the Piano

SKU: AP.36-60710007

ISBN 9798888521687. UPC: 676737816278. English.

In the years preceding World War I, Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist Béla Bartók (1881-1945) took trips to the Transylvanian region to explore the musical traditions of the Romanian population. Following a two-year depression caused by the war, as well as some professional setbacks, he returned to composition. The Romanian Folk Dances, Sz. 56, emerged in 1915, bearing a strong influence from his experiences as an ethnomusicologist. They comprise 6 dances, all based on folk tunes that Bartók had recorded and transcribed. In 1917, he arranged a version for full orchestra. Hungarian violinist and composer Zoltán Székely (1903-2001) transcribed these six short movements for violin and piano in 1926, which are offered here in this reprint edition. Movements: 1. Joc cu bâta (Stick Dance), 2. Brâul (Sash Dance), 3. Topogó / Pê-loc (In One Spot), 4. Bucsumí tánc / Buciumeana (Dance from Bucsum), 5. Poarga româneasca (Romanian Polka), 6. Aprózó / Maruntel (Fast Dance).

These products are currently being prepared by a new publisher. While many items are ready and will ship on time, some others may see delays of several months.

SKU: KJ.WB543F

UPC: 084027053478.

Dwayne Milburn has expertly set Béla Bartókâ??s complete Romanian Folk Dances for the modern wind band. It features solos for piccolo, flute, soprano sax (alternate alto sax part provided), and trumpet, plenty of soli passages for various sections and rousing tutti climaxes. This suite is perfect for festival and concert performances.

SKU: BT.EMBZ60

English-German-Hungarian.

'Bartók wrote the first dance around the time of the Romanian movements of the 'Seven Sketches', after his first trip collecting Romanian folk music in July-August 1909. The second dance is the fruit of March the following year, and it was only after some time he decided they should be published as a pair. From the beginning, audiences were impressed by the first dance, in the composer's peculiar performance, with its initial drumming, and its driving rhythms. If less popular, compositionally the second dance is more original. He parades and varies his material in a chain form, and this too is reminiscent of the dances heard in the playing of Romanian Transylvanian villagemusicians, which in his scholarly work Bartók called 'motive dances.' (HCD 32525 Bartók New Series Vol. 25, László Somfai).