Krassimir Kyurkchiysky (1936 – 2011)                        Sonata

1. Andante – Allegro Moderato
2. Andante
3. Allegro Vivo

Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (1835 – 1921)               Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso

Mike Mower (b.1958)                                                          Mes-merengue

Our lunchtime concert at St Mary’s Church in the historic market town of Saffron is a mixture of the familiar and not so familiar.

The programme opens with a sonata in three movements by Krassimir Kyurkchiysky, a composer little known outside his native Bulgaria and even then, mainly known in his native country for his work as an innovative folksong arranger and for his association with the Philip Koutev National Folklore Ensemble. However, after graduating from the Bulgarian State Academy of Music in 1962, he continued his studies with Dmitri Shostakovich at the Moscow Conservatoire, and it is this influence which one hears very strongly in this sonata.

This is followed by the “Introduction and Rondo capriccioso”, Op. 28 composed in 1863 by the French composer Camille Saint-Saëns. Possibly best known now for his orchestral work, “Carnival of the Animals”, the “Introduction and Rondo capriccioso”,  for violin and orchestra, was extremely popular after its publication. Saint-Saëns composed it for his friend, the virtuoso violinist Pablo de Sarasate, who programmed it frequently in the years after its publication. In fact it was so popular that Claude Debussy and George Bizet made arrangements of it – the former for two pianos and the latter for violin and piano. It is this version which is now performed for violin and piano.

My association with British composer Mike Mower goes back to the 1990s when I first recorded several of his works for flute and piano. His “Sonata Latino”, commissioned by flautist Kirsten Spratt and myself, is considered a cornerstone of the modern flute repertoire. He is particularly known in the flute and jazz world as he founded and led “Itchy Fingers”, an internationally acclaimed saxophone quartet. As I’m a great fan of his music, imagine my delight when I discovered “Mes-Merengue” arranged for violin!

It was originally part of a suite of three pieces, commissioned by flautist James Galway and the Safri percussion duo from Denmark. Mike then re-arranged it for flute and later for violin. It is inspired by ‘Merengue’ music which originated in the Dominican Republic and is now popular throughout Latin America. The style of Merengue music is repetitive and mesmerising, hence the title, Mes-Merengue.