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Skalkottas

3K views 20 replies 10 participants last post by  Neo Romanza 
#1 ·
I couldn't find a thread dedicated to Nikos Skalkottas. Perhaps I just missed it but, if not, the situation needs to be rectified. A fine composer, a student of Schoenberg who fell out with his teacher for being ... er ... inventive with Schoenberg's ideas, and an unduly neglected master. I guess the composers of the middle of the 20th century who followed (broadly) Schoenberg's method got left behind while their teacher was himself very controversial with audiences. Consider the case of Humphrey Searle. This is all a great shame as some of the followers developed very distinctive voices and wrote music that is immensely rewarding. Skalkottas wrote some fine quartets, three excellent piano concertos and violin concerto and much more. I feel sure there are others on TC who know and enjoy his music.
 
#5 ·
You need to aim at a more major work. He wrote stuff that was more or less tonal and somewhat Greek. But he also wrote some interesting and attractive serial works and it is these that I enjoy and feel are worthwhile. You may still not like it but at least you'll be sampling the music he might be remembered for.
 
#6 ·
I couldn't find a thread dedicated to Nikos Skalkottas. Perhaps I just missed it but, if not, the situation needs to be rectified. A fine composer, a student of Schoenberg who fell out with his teacher for being ... er ... inventive with Schoenberg's ideas, and an unduly neglected master. I guess the composers of the middle of the 20th century who followed (broadly) Schoenberg's method got left behind while their teacher was himself very controversial with audiences. Consider the case of Humphrey Searle. This is all a great shame as some of the followers developed very distinctive voices and wrote music that is immensely rewarding. Skalkottas wrote some fine quartets, three excellent piano concertos and violin concerto and much more. I feel sure there are others on TC who know and enjoy his music.
I have every single work of him. The man is GREAT composer. (he and Kalomiris are the Locomotives of the Greek classical music) Thanks for the thread, my dearest!
 
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#7 ·
I gather the third and fourth string quartets are interesting - even Gramophone deigned to review them years ago, if memory serves.
 
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#10 ·
My suggestion for Skalokotas, Kalomiris & Varvoglis. Philips (Holland) N 00247 L

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(includes: Short Variations Of A Theme Of Southern Character With Characteristic Dissonances (signature work) & The Four Greek Dances For Violin And Piano (very nice work))
 
#12 · (Edited)
My latest Skalkottas acquisition is the Cello Works & Piano Trios on the BIS series. The Trio for Piano, Violin, and Cello (1936) is purely dodecaphonic. I like Skalkottas, because, in some way, he seems easier to listen to than Schoenberg. There is no literary or Viennese baggage; just 12-tone ideas. The performers do an excellent job here.

 
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#14 · (Edited)
My latest Skalkottas acquisition is the Cello Works & Piano Trios on the BIS series. The Trio for Piano, Violin, and Cello (1936) is purely dodecaphonic. I like Skalkottas, because, in some way, he seems easier to listen to than Schoenberg. There is no literary or Viennese baggage; just 12-tone ideas. The performers do an excellent job here.

In every case! Also, many of his works, which are based on the Greek traditional music, are VERY melodic and with tones of nostalgia and Greek sun. Nikos, in my consciousness, is a dancing violin, a singing baglamas, some times a light zeibekiko. An East/West Rondo with a lot of classical and modern music and a pinch of folklore.
 
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#15 ·
I have a huge stack of Skalkottas CDs (all BIS recordings). I really ought revisit his music. I recall being somewhat ambivalent about it, but I felt the same way about someone like Ernst Toch, too, until I let my guard down and just listened.
 
#18 · (Edited)
I wish I knew and could help you, but this seems like a good question for @Enthusiast. Perhaps he could help.

I will say, and this is just from my own memory, that Skalkottas' music didn't really excite me. I don't mind serial works, but there is serial music that doesn't do much for me, much like that of tonal music. I seem to recall even Skalkottas' tonal works didn't come off sounding too convincing to my ears. It's been a few years since I've tried his music again and perhaps it's time for another revisit, but, honestly, I've got so much other music that warrants my attention these days.
 
#21 · (Edited)
Okay, I've now started to break through Skalkottas' idiom or, at least, I feel I have a better understanding of it than before. A work that seriously blew me away was Mayday Spell. It sounds like this work is a hybrid of styles --- there's some brooding atonal music, some more tonally opulent music and then there is a Greek folk element. A unique synthesis if you will. Truly captivating to my ears. I also listened to his rather gnarly String Quartet No. 3, which was truly fascinating. These two works are all of what I've listened to so far and I'm rather encouraged to continue on. I own all of the BIS releases with the exception of one of the solo piano discs.

The works in question that I listened to came from these two recordings:

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Some further thoughts (and a bit off-topic):

I feel that it's important to continue to try to get the most out of our collections no matter what size they are. I would have never been encouraged to continue to try Skalkottas' music had I not had it in my collection. I bought most of them from the BIS online store many years ago because I was looking into students of Schoenberg and his name popped up and I listened to a few works online and, while I acknowledged it was good, I just wasn't sold, but I bought all of the discs anyway. If I was a music streamer, I probably wouldn't have given Skalkottas a listen at all, because I would be continuously overwhelmed by just how much is out there. I think this is one of benefits of having a physical collection of CDs. I don't have to worry about how much there is out there, I just have to focus on what I own.
 
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