Olsztyn | With French Mastery

Two outstanding French soloists – clarinetist Michel Lethiec and flutist Patrick Gallois –  will perform on 28 February 2020 at 7:00 p.m. at the Warmian-Masurian Philharmonic, showoing how the wind instruments have been used in the last two centuries and how extremely different emotions they can convey.

Saverio Mercadante wrote all his flute concerts before he was twenty-two. The classical three-movement Concerto in E minor, Op. 57 requires virtuoso skills from the soloist. The flute part includes beautiful melodies as well as many ornaments, fast chromatic runs, octave jumps and arpeggios. The work is full of classic elegance and grace as well as the pastoral charm that is attributed to the sound of the flute.

One of the iconic works of the 20th century is George Gershwin's opera Porgy & Bess. The clarinet, with its sobbing, full of complaints and also witty tone, became one of the instruments characteristic of the era of traditional jazz, next to the saxophone and trumpet. It is the solo instrument in the opera suite arranged by the French composer Franck Villard.

Double Concerto for clarinet, flute and orchestra by Krzysztof Penderecki is the original arrangement of the Double Concerto for viola, violin and orchestra of 2012. The whole work is based on contrasting lyrical elements (which can be attributed to the flute) and ludic or even demonic elements (which bring connotations with the clarinet tone). The climax of the composition is the solemn Passacaglia.

More information at: https://filharmonia.olsztyn.pl/koncert/z-francuska-maestria/