Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, Op.50 (1980)
Written by: Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (1916-1983)
Performed by: Mark Kosower (Cello) and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra (directed by Lothar Zagrosek)
I. Metamorfosi di un tema - [0:00]
II. Scherzo sfuggevole - [12:56]
III. Nottilucente - [17:29]
IV. Cadenza e finale rustico - [26:36]

[Below are the poems and commentaries by the composer inscribed upon each movement:
I. Metamorfosi di un tema: "Dawn, I come to you with this song born of the mist" - Auguste Martin
Four transformations of a theme, like the four cardinal points at the hour of dawn, metamorphoses of colors from shadows to light.

II. Scherzo sfuggevole: "This new breeze slender in space!" - Luis Cernuda
Polychromatic canvas of tones and timbres, a musical kaleidoscope formed by an introduction and a concertante structure that works in retrograde.

III. Nottilucente: "The night shines with stars and straw turns to gold.
He dreams of her whom he adores." - Apollinaire
Through the night of luminous moons and iridescent clouds, an impassioned five-part dialogue emerges, songs veiled in the whispers of the distant jungle.

IV. Cadenza e Finale rustico: "The festival shimmers and explodes" - Pablo Neruda
Rhythms of the Karnavalito, festive songs, colors of fire in dances invoked from the depths of Andean times.]

I am saddened to say that I only discovered this masterwork recently. It isn't ideal for one to throw around the terms "masterwork" and "monster" without some sort of sagacious pondering, but Ginastera continues to astound me.

The Second Cello Concerto, Op.50 was written by Ginastera dedicated to his wife ("my dear Aurora") and was premiered by her on July 6, 1981. The architectural processes utilized to build the monstrous Second Piano Concerto seemed an unsurpassable standard of composition, but Ginastera proves with this Cello Concerto (along with other works) that he is capable passing that standard. In this piece, Ginastera reaches a new pinnacle of his technique in orchestration by taking his distinctly rich textures and adding even more to it. In this case, he adds a piano to the orchestral forces and utilizes aleatoric technique more than before. This orchestration coupled with convincing concertante writing and the incorporation of prominent ideas from his first stylistic period of "Objective Nationalism" brings me to the belief that Ginastera achieved one of the most satisfactory and awe-inducing evolutions as a composer.

The first movement "Metamorfosi di un tema" is four large metamorphoses on a theme from the Second Piano Concerto in B-flat. The first metamorphosis is marked "Sognando" and it opens with the harp, clarinet, celesta, and horn conversing slowly and tenderly over the drone of a string bass. The solo cello then enters, taking over as the harbinger of melodic material. As the cello sings in an almost rapsodic manner, Ginastera weaves delicate textures throughout the orchestra creating a magical and perfect sognando atmosphere. This then transitions to the intense second metamorphosis marked "Allegro". Ginastera employs much thicker textures here with the orchestra, but the cello's voice of running sixteenth notes is consistently distinct and punctures through. After a decay of intensity, the cello begins a Recitativo which transitions into the lamenting third metamorphosis marked "Adagio". The cello starts with the opening theme, and then continues to develop it throughout the metamorphosis supported by the orchestral texture which grows until the end. The final metamorphosis marked "Luminoso" features the cello playing arpeggiated quadruple stops from a piano dynamic building up all the way to the coda's fortissimo dynamic

The second movement "Scherzo sfuggevole" (Elusive scherzo) is aptly titled. The defining characteristics of the orchestral exposition are the playful but mysterious winds and Ginastera's brilliant use of percussion. The cello then enters and banters with the orchestra, punctuated by many arpeggios and glissandos. A climax is reached involving a thick texture with winds flying about in aleatory.

The third movement "Nottilucente" paints an incredible and precise picture of bioluminescence in the habitat of the Puerto Rican coqui. The opening sets the scene of a dark forest inhabited by coqui which are represented by the glissandos of the first violins. The cello plays a singing melody throughout, taking the audience on a journey while the orchestra slowly shifts in the background.

The fourth movement "Cadenza e Finale rustico" starts with a long cadenza which opens in a fashion reminiscent of the "Nottilucente". Through virtuosic twists and turns, the cadenza grows in intensity until it climaxes at the entrance of the orchestra in the "Finale rustico". The "Finale rustico" is an exciting, loud, joyful, and nostalgic callback to Ginastera's early influences of traditional Latin American music.

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