Music Review - Romanian Folk Dances, VI. Fast Dance
So, a classical song. I'm a massive fan of both classical and electronic, so expect some more of these!!!
The Romanian Folk Dances are six short songs written by Hungarian contemporary classical (bit ahead of his time, in a way) composer Béla Bartók released in 1915. They were originally written for solo piano, but were later arranged for string ensemble. The performance I really like is by Swedish clarinetist Martin Fröst. It doesn't stay too true to the original, and it's a lot more virtuosic, but somehow unbelievably catchy (and fast!). The final piece, fast dance, is so energetic, as if the whole of the last pieces culminate to it. It is played straight on from the last movement, and they're pretty much the same song, with a different theme in both, though. The song is very short, just about fifty seconds long (don't be fooled by the Spotify version, it is NOT 57 seconds long; the extra seven second silence makes it very annoying to listen to on loop).
Béla Bartók has been one of my favourite composers for a long time now, ever since I played one of his simpler solo piano pieces for my AMEB Grade 1 or 2 exam. All of the other movements of the Romanian Folk Dances are good, but the last one really stuck out to me. I think it gets better as it goes on.
Dissection
The piece - at least from my efforts in transcribing it - beings at around a tempo of 150 bpm, fast already, but nothing compared to the later part of the piece. There's a pizzicato broken chord in the lower section of the string ensemble which is then followed by an arco chord, and this repeats, complimenting the clarinet which revolves around every beat, making it seem a bit faster than it actually is. The melody is pretty simple, although just slightly modified from the original arrangement.
The piece gets right into the main theme, which I respect, even if without the context of the previous Romanian Polka it seems a bit abrupt. At around fourteen seconds in, it really speeds up, and reaches the insane tempo of around 170 bpm. The first chord of this section is so beautiful, and the ensemble here is so dense it would sound like a fully fleshed out piece without the solo clarinetist. The clarinet sounds very traditionally folk-dance-esque with the quick grace notes and turn-like things.
As a clarinetist, I feel bad about the section at 0:20; that tonguing sounds painful. Is that a piano I hear in there? It really compliments the atmosphere, with the marcato chord shining through the rest of the ensemble and almost overpowering the clarinet. I really like the change of pace with the violins taking over the melody while Martin Fröst plays exceptional tongued runs. A little note I want to mention here is the descending pizzicato melody towards 30 seconds in, I find it a beautiful little detail. The staggered chord at around 0:31 is also very nice, and feels familiar yet unfamiliar at the same time. The runs in the clarinet only a few seconds later feel a tad out of place, though it's lucky they aren't tongued, or they really wouldn't fit in.
I love how after the clarinet plays the first run a little later the ensemble then repeats it despite the clarinet playing a different tune. It's also a good segue into the ensemble taking over the melody towards 0:41 while the clarinet plays arpeggios above. It sounds a lot more impressive than it actually is, seeing as the whole thing is slurred, but it's virtuosic nevertheless. I'm all for the transition to minor around here.
The end is extremely impressive, not only compositionally but as played by the clarinetist. If my transcription skills didn't fail me, it's not in a very pleasant key for the clarinet to play, and it's also exceptionally fast and TONGUED. I honestly can't believe it, and I love the offbeat chords in the ensemble leading to the end. The crescendo leads up to a final tutti note that I feel doesn't last as long as it should, but I understand why Martin Fröst chose to articulate it that way. The only downside of this song is how different it is to the original arrangement, though I have to say I like this version much more. After I first heard it on the radio a month ago it was almost all I could listen to.
Summary
My favourite Béla Bartók by far, and this arrangement is superb. Martin Fröst is an exceptionally skilled clarinetist and I aspire to have as much skill as him one day. I've loved this song since the first time I've heard it, so it only makes sense for me to give it a: