Contrasts

As the Nazi specter loomed larger every day and Europe moved closer to war, Hungarian Béla Bartók contemplated leaving his homeland for the relative safety of the New World. Arriving in the U.S. in October 1940, Bartók and his wife established an active performing career and received help from other famous musicians. Among these was Benny Goodman, the acclaimed clarinetist and bandleader. Fresh from his landmark 1938 Carnegie Hall concert, Goodman reached out to Bartók through Hungarian violinist Joseph Szigeti requesting a modest sized trio for clarinet, violin, and piano. Bartók happily obliged, but his own vision for the work—eventually called Contrasts—swelled well beyond the requested six to seven minutes of music. And despite the presence of solo cadenzas in both outer movements, the work is also less of a concert piece (apparently what both Goodman and Szigeti had in mind) and more a highly involved, rigorously developed chamber work.
The first movement draws inspiration from a Hungarian dance called Verbunkos, a spirited type of military recruiting song. The first theme is jaunty and rich with folk flare, with strummed violin chords. When the violin takes over the melody, the clarinet ad libs a roaming accompaniment. Later material, while going off in quite different directions, retains the dotted rhythm of the main theme. The second movement is labeled Pihenö or Relaxation. It opens with more restraint, though the chromaticism between clarinet and violin, coupled with ominous low tremolos in the piano, do not easily create a sense of relaxation. This is more introspective than Verbunkos. But the music’s searching feel propels everything forward despite the slow tempo. For the finale, Bartók returns to the general mood of Verbunkos. In Sebes the violin is tuned scordatura, which lends a more edgy, unrefined sound to the opening tritone intervals. The entire movement maintains a breathless pace. One might call to mind the wicked scherzos of Shostakovich that share this vibe of controlled frenzy permeated by brief lyrical interruptions.

(c) Jason Stell