Sketched between 1925 and 1949, Enescu's Caprice roumain pour violon et orchestre will, ultimately, be left unfinished. Almost half a century later, part of the sketches for the unfinished work were found among the composer's manuscripts at the George Enescu Museum in Bucharest. At the insistance of violinist Sherban Lupu, an enthusiast interpreter of Enescu's music, the composer Cornel Ţăranu took up the challenge to complete and orchestrate the work. After years of piecing together the available material originating from different sources (including the George Enescu Museum, the National Library of Romania and the Library of the Romanian Academy) Cornel Ţăranu was able to complete the work, and the Caprice Roumain was given its premiere as a four-movement extended composition for violin and orchestra in 1997, with Sherban Lupu as soloist.
Similar in manner with Enescu's third violin sonata (dans le caractère populaire roumain), the Caprice Roumain pays homage to the romanian folk fiddler (lăutar), presenting (in the writing for the violin part) all the lăutar's characteristic wealth of tonal effects. The work also evokes, with a certain feeling of nostalgia, the moldavian lands of the composer's childhood, lands which, after his exile following the ascent of the communist party in Romania, he was never to see again.
Enescu-Ţăranu - Caprice Roumain for Violin and Orchestra
[1] Ben moderato
[2] Tempo di hora 11:26
[3] Lento 15:14
[4] Allegro molto 21:28
Sherban Lupu (violin)
'George Enescu' Philharmonic Orchestra
Cristian Mandeal (conductor)