<<  -- 5 --  Howard Smith    TRUMP CARD

In his book Székely and Bartók: The Story of a Friendship, Claude Kenneson explains; the composer and violinist had been giving concerts in Switzerland and Amsterdam and 'upon his return to Bloemendaal in late 1936 Székely busied himself with copying the manuscript of his String Quartet; a work which utilised many modern devices, notably complex polyrhythms in preparation for the competition.'

Other immediately successful compositions included a Solo Violin Sonata (1919) and the Székely Duo for Violin and Cello which he toured extensively with cellist Pal Hermann. During the ISCM Conference in Venice (1925) Székely premièred the Solo Sonata and received a standing ovation from an audience including Igor Stravinsky and Arnold Schoenberg. Today this remarkable work is available on CD with Leipzig violinist, Kolja Lessing (Capriccio 10 847, recorded 1997).

'It is a rare event for a living composer whose works were created before the mid-20th Century to enjoy a serious revival of interest in his music', writes Claude Kenneson. Yet this is the case with Zoltán Székely.

'It was if we had entered a time warp,' leader Helene Pohl says, 'embracing this work 62 years after its composition. Székely wrote it as the threat of war held Europe in its menacing grip, and the whole experience took us to that time and the work's conception.'

So now, all those NZSQ cards are on the table.