Grazyna Bacewicz for Strings

Grazyna Bacewicz: Music for String Orchestra

Grazyna Bacewicz wrote wonderful music for string orchestra, and it has shown up, in various combinations, in quite a few CDs in the past ten years. Here's a new disc from Poland with a full program of some of the Polish composer's best music.

Stefan Kisielewski called the Concerto for String Orchestra, from 1948,  "a modern Brandenburg Concerto" - it really is a masterpiece of the neoclassical idiom. The conductor Lukasz Blaszczyk and the Primuz Chamber Orchestra bring a lighter touch to this work than either of the other performances I know, discs from Naxos and Hyperion.  This brings with it a certain loss of majesty; overall this is an accomplished if slightly superficial interpretation. 

I prefer this performance of the Symphony for String Orchestra from 1946; Kisielewski hasn't smoothed out any of Bacewicz's rough edges here. There is plenty of rough energy in the opening movement, and the pathos of the second movement Adagio is quite moving. The passacaglia-like third movement Allegretto is one of Bacewicz's most impressive inspirations, flirting with positive feelings, veering into sorrow and despair, and ending with quiet resignation. The Theme and Variations finale starts slow, quiet and gloomy, then slowly builds to more energetic and dramatic passages. I like how Kisielewski has structured this entire Symphony; it has a satisfying arc here.

The rest of the disc is filled with an early work, the Sinfonietta from 1935, and a late one, the Divertimento from 1965 (Bacewicz died in 1969). These two pieces demonstrate her evolution from a relatively uncomplicated neoclassicism to a much more advanced and difficult approach to composition. I love the Divertimento, but I'm afraid this version is outclassed by another recent recording, from the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra of Polish Radio under Agnieszka Duczmal.

A mixed bag, then; an outstanding Symphony, with perfectly serviceable but not top class Concerto, Sinfonietta and Divertimento. How gratifying that the Grazyna Bacewicz discography is getting large enough that we can begin to make these distinctions, rather than just be happy to have one or two recordings!

I happened to finish this review on Grazyna Bacewicz's birthday; she was born on February 5, 1909. I love this portrait by Irena Jarosińska, from 1968, the year before the composer died.

This album was released on February 3, 2023.