News
Karłowicz on the Top
2003-01-15
The CD record with works written by Mieczysław Karłowicz turned up on the high 7. position among the bestsellers in 2002 released by Chandos.
The CD contains 3 famous symphonic poems, including: Eternal Songs Op. 10, Lithuanian Rapsody Op. 11 and Stanislaw and Anna OświecimOp. 12. All the works were written by Mieczysław Karłowicz (1876-1909) who was the first Polish composer who forged progressive models of expression which could bear comparison with those employed by the leading representatives of the contemporary European mainstream.
Compositions have recorded by BBC Philharmonic conducted by Yan Pascal Tortelier. The musicians have used scores published by PWM Edition. It is worth mentioning that all the commentaries in the booklet were written by Alistair Wightman, the British musicologist who was the author of Karłowicz's biography published both in Polish and English.
BBC Philharmonic belongs to the most famous orchestras in Great Britain. The Orchestra's policy of introducing new and adventurous repertoire to its programmes has meant that a large number of composers have also worked with the Orchestra as conductors, among them Berio, Copland, Penderecki, Tippett and Walton.
In 1991 Sir Peter Maxwell Davies became the BBC Philharmonic's first ever Composer/Conductor and in this position wrote works for the Orchestra culminating with the Symphony No.7, premiered at the 2000 Orkney Festival. James MacMillan was appointed as his successor in 2000.
The BBC Philharmonic's Education and Community Department takes its work all over the country and has initiated projects in numerous academic and community settings, the Cheltenham and Chester Festivals, the Proms and international work in Oman, Prague and Bahrain. Thousands of people of all ages have attended the BBC Philharmonic's rehearsals in Studio 7 Manchester, whilst its Professional Access Scheme enables instrumentalists from the RNCM to gain valuable training and performing experience with the Orchestra. Over the last few years the Orchestra has built a special relationship with the Blue Peter children's television programme including the annual Blue Peter Prom.
Yan Pascal Tortelier has been Principal Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic since July 1992. Born into an intensely musical family, son of the late Paul Tortelier, he studied piano and violin from the age of four and at fourteen won first prize for violin at the Paris Conservatoire. Following general musical studies with Nadia Boulanger, Tortelier studied conducting with Franco Ferrara in Siena.
Yan Pascal Tortelier's career includes engagements with leading orchestras throughout Europe, the US, Japan and Australia, and in Britain he has worked with all the major orchestras. For several years he was Associate Conductor of the Orchestre du Capitole in Toulouse, and from 1989-92 he was Principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the Ulster Orchestra. As Principal Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic, Yan Pascal Tortelier appears regularly throughout the UK with appearances at the BBC Proms and at leading festivals both in the UK and abroad. In 1995 he conducted the Orchestra on a highly successful USA tour celebrating the BBC Philharmonic's 60th anniversary season. The 2001/2002 Season was Yan Pascal's last as Principal - he will take up the position of Conductor Laureate from September 2002.
Yan Pascal Tortelier has an exclusive contract with Chandos Records and has made many highly praised recordings with the BBC Philharmonic. Their recordings of the Symphony in C by Dukas and Dutilleux Tout un Monde Lointain were awarded the prestigious Diapason d'Or and their most recent recordings of works by Lutoslawski, Faure, and Roussel have all received the highest critical acclaim. Following his recording of Debussy and Ravel's complete orchestral works with the Ulster Orchestra, Yan Pascal Tortelier is currently recording the complete cycle of orchestral works of Dutilleux and Roussel, in addition to a series devoted to the works of Hindemith with the BBC Philharmonic.
During recent seasons Yan Pascal Tortelier has worked with such orchestras as the Philharmonia, London Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, the Sydney and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras. In America he will also be conducting the San Francisco Symphony, Boston, Atlanta, Detroit and Houston Symphony Orchestras.
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