Presents
Charles de Kontski
Fantaisie Concertante on themes from Bellini's Opera La Sonnambula
For Piano Trio
Kontski's Fantaisie Concertante dates from 1862 and is based on themes from Bellini's La Sonnambula, one of the most famous of all Italian operas, known for its wonderful singing melodies. It was dedicated to one C.L. Kinmanson. Just why this was, we cannot be sure. As far as we know, Carl Leonard Kinmanson, a wealthy Swedish art collector and philanthropist of the arts was neither a violinist, cellist or a pianist. What we do know is that Kinmanson created a fund in his name which awarded stipendiums to artists and musicians allowing them to study and visit Paris. In 1859, Kontski had dedicated a piano trio to the King of Sweden Charles XV with hopes of receiving some sort of remuneration. Perhaps Kontski had learned about Kinmanson and his fund and dedicated the work to him again with the hope of receiving some monitary award. But this is all surmise. What we do know is that Kontski's Fantaisie Concertante is a tour de force for each of the instruments and a showcase for virtuoso players. It is in several sections of varying tempi and moods and effectively makes use of the better known melodies from the opera.
Information about the Polish composer Charles de Kontski (born Karol Katski) is relatively scarce and much of the information which exists is often contradictory. He was born into a musical family in the Polish city of Krakow probably in 1815 although some sources say 1813. His father Grzegorz was a then prominent composer and pianist. Of his four sons, only two, Antoine (Antoni) a virtuoso pianist and Apolonaire (Apolonairy) a violinist whom Paganini considered to be of the first oreder, achieved a measure of international fame during their lifetimes. Something that Charles (Karol) and his brother Stanislaw did not. After the unsuccessful Polish uprising of 1831, all four brothers emigrated to Paris and took the surname de Kontski as their professional name. Although some sources list Karol as a virtuoso pianist, this was possibly because they confused him with his brother Antoni. He was, in fact like his brothers, sent to the General Music School in Warsaw. There he studied studied violin with Jozef Bielawski, concertmaster of the Warsaw National Performing Orchestra. Subsequent to his studies, he and his brother Antoni toured together giving violin and piano concerts in Lublin, Lvov, Vilnius, Moscow and St Petersburg where the Tsar, upon hearing them play, awarded them generous stipendiums. After emigrating to Paris, Karol earned his living by composing and teaching. Eventually, his works came to the attention not only of French audiences but also of the leading musicians in Paris. Kontski's violin playing was of a very high standard, which allowed him to obtain a position the most prestigious orchestra in Paris, the Opera Comique. He died in Paris in 1867 at the age of 52
Parts: $19.95
