Pastorale, song without words for violin & piano (transcribed with Samuel Dushkin)

• Date: 1933
• Composer: Igor Stravinsky
• Period: Modern (1910-1949)

Review

This work is derived from the Pastorale (1907) for voice and piano, one of Stravinsky's earliest works. In early 1931, the composer met violinist Samuel Dushkin, who aided him in the composition of his Violin Concerto in D, much in the manner Joachim did for Brahms. But Dushkin also collaborated with Stravinsky in other works, including the Suite Italienne, fashioned from Stravinsky's ballet Pulcinella.

The Pastorale is not a strict transcription: Stravinsky's vocal Pastorale lasts about four minutes, whereas this "lengthened" version for violin and piano is about two minutes longer. The music sounds quite at home on the violin, not least because the original work was a song without words. Prokofiev transcribed his Five Melodies for Voice and Piano, also a textless work, for violin and piano in similar fashion.

In this version the music is served well and its lengthening fully justified. The main theme is a lovely, flowing melody underpinned by a drone-like harmony in the piano's bass and a second theme on its upper register. No new thematic material is added in the violin/piano version. Stravinsky made a second transcription of the Pastorale at this time, also in an expanded form, scoring it for violin, oboe, cor anglais, clarinet, and bassoon. This version was based on the 1923 transcription the composer made of Pastorale for the same combination of instruments, but with no expansion of materials. Stravinsky and Dushkin premiered the work in about 1933. ~ Robert Cummings, Rovi

Albums with Complete Performances of the Work

Title	Date
Fiddle-De-Bop	1995
Igor Stravinsky Plays Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky: Duo Concertant; Suite Italienne; Divertimento; Pastorale; Ballad; Chanson Russe; Danse Russe	1999
Musique de XXe siècle russe
Pastorale: Romantic Pieces for Saxophone and Piano
Sibelius, Valen: Violin Concertos	2006
Stravinsky: Complete Music for Violin & Piano	2010
Stravinsky: Composer & Performer 1930-1950, Vol. 2	2003
Stravinsky: L'Oiseau de feu; Baiser de la fée	1989
Stravinsky: The Works for Piano & Violin	2011
The Spirit of Diaghilev, Cocteau and Stravinsky

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