Love is all around

Dvořák’s Cello Concerto is the inspiration behind a new piece in the genre

HOLO VICTORY: The musicians of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande appear in the first ever holographic symphony concert on 25 January. The movements of the 73 musicians were recorded using motion capture software during a performance of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. The screening took place as part of the twelfth edition of artgenève, the art fair held annually in Geneva, Switzerland. In the planned next stage of the project, viewers will be able to interact with and wander through the orchestra via a virtual reality headset. Avideo of the making of the concert can be viewed at bit.ly/3IcmA3V.

Photo: Magali Dougados

COMPOSER Daniel Perttu

WORK The Guises of Love for cello and orchestra

ARTISTS Mark Kosower (vc) Grand Junction

Symphony Orchestra/Charles Latshaw

DATE 6 April 2024

PLACE Avalon Theatre, Grand Junction, CO, US bitly.ws/3dCBs

Daniel Perttu

Mark Kosower

PERTTU PHOTO DEREK BUCK. KOSOWER PHOTO LIM JONG JIN

‘When I met with Mark Kosower to discuss the concerto, we ended up talking about how much we both loved the Dvořák Cello Concerto,’ says American composer Daniel Perttu. ‘So I ended up deciding to write a concerto that followed the Romantic spirit of Dvořák’s work, but with a 21st-century perspective.’ The subject matter of Perttu’s new cello concerto was also influenced by Dvořák’s piece. ‘His concerto was in part inspired by an unrequited love. I wanted to use the theme of love but put my own spin on it.’ The concerto’s name, The Guises of Love, refers to Perttu’s aim to show the different facets of love. ‘It’s not just about infatuation, but also the darker sides of love such as unrequited love, or grief and loss.’

Instead of quoting directly from Dvořák’s piece, Perttu’s work takes the character and spirit from the concerto as an influence. ‘The first movement is dark and brooding like the Dvořák,’ he says. ‘It starts with low strings and a bassoon solo. But unlike Dvořák’s, mine turns more heroic.’ The second movement is ‘an outpouring of grief. It’s melodically driven and uses stark contrasts between dark, minor harmonies, followed immediately by related major melodies. The harmonies really pull but don’t break the tonal system.’ Perttu also utilises the pentatonic scale, often used by Dvořák, in this movement. As a release from the intense second movement, the third ‘cleanses the palate’, he says. ‘It has a lot of rhythmic intensity, semiquaver energy and syncopation. It is redemptive while also having darker shades.

‘When I listen to the Dvořák, I’m in another place completely,’ says Perttu. ‘And so, with this piece, I wanted to write something that helps people to escape to a world beyond the ordinary.’