Pedro Amaral and the Concerto Budapest

AMARAL: Scherzo (world premiere)
PÉTER EÖTVÖS: Focus (Hungarian premiere)
LUTOSŁAWSKI: Concerto

Erzsébet Seleljo saxophon
Concerto Budapest

Conductor: Pedro Amaral

The focus of the concert is Focus itself, that is, the Hungarian premiere of Péter Eötvös’s concerto for Saxophone, which he completed in 2021. The title refers to film-making: the “sound camera” changes focus between the soloist in close-ups and the orchestra in the background like the camera does in films.

The focus of the concert is Focus itself, that is, the Hungarian premiere of Péter Eötvös’s concerto for Saxophone, which he completed in 2021. The title refers to film-making: the “sound camera” changes focus between the soloist in close-ups and the orchestra in the background like the camera does in films. The piece will be conducted by the 80-year-old composer himself, who admits that the saxophone first attracted him in his childhood, because it reminded him of his own singing voice. The soloist will be the virtuoso of the orchestra, Erzsébet Seleljo. There will be another significant Concerto on the programme: that composed by the Polish Witold Lutosławski from 1950 to 1954. It is a three-movement experimental orchestral concerto abundant with folkloristic elements. Before all these pieces, a Scherzo by Pedro Amaral will be performed: the name of the Portuguese conductor, composer and musicologist might ring a bell for those interested in contemporary music: he created an outstanding volume of interviews with his own master, Péter Eötvös.