Moritz Moszkowski, once renowned for piano compositions such as "Serenata," "Guitarre," and "Valse Mignonne," as well as his Spanish Dances, has now been almost forgotten. His talent was evident early on, following his musical training in Dresden and later Berlin. Numerous concert tours led to a nervous disorder in the 1880s, which allowed him time to dedicate himself more fully to composing. Moszkowski eventually settled in Paris and became a sought-after teacher; his students included Josef Hofmann. After personal setbacks, he withdrew more and more from public life and died in 1925, largely unnoticed by the public.
Influenced by composers such as Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Schumann, Moszkowski achieved success primarily with his piano works, but also with some orchestral pieces. However, his Piano Concerto and two symphonies were never published and are considered lost. With works such as the Ballade in G minor for violin and orchestra and the Violin Concerto in C major, he demonstrated his versatile style. His music is characterized by melodic richness and colorful orchestration, offering the audience a diverse and engaging listening experience.
A generation after Moszkowski, Mieczysław Karłowicz was born in Wiszniewo. He grew up in a time of musical upheaval and initially studied in Warsaw, then in Berlin, where he favored the neo-Romantic style and consciously distanced himself from classical conservatism. His symphonies and symphonic poems from 1903 to 1909 are considered the high points of his oeuvre. Karłowicz died in a skiing accident in 1909.
Karłowicz's Violin Concerto in C major documents the development of his compositional skills and reveals his growing self-confidence. The influence of Tchaikovsky is clearly evident in the brilliant solo part. The concerto blends new traditions with Karlowicz's pronounced sensitivity to instrumental timbres. The second movement, "Romanza," is particularly captivating with its simple lyricism and tranquil passages, while the finale possesses a light and agile structure that demands a great deal from the soloist, both technically and musically.
The concerto blends new traditions with Karlowicz's keen sense of instrumental timbre.