- Written in 1916, Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 1 was inspired by a poem by Tadeusz Miciński (1873–1918), a fellow member of the Young Poland movement:
- All the birds pay tribute to me
for today I wed a goddess.
And now we stand by the lake in crimson blossom
in flowing tears of joy, with rapture and fear,
burning in amorous conflagration.1
- All the birds pay tribute to me
- The concerto was written for and dedicated to friend and violinist Paul Kochanski.
- Due to WWI and the Bolshevik Revolution, Violin Concerto No. 1 didn’t receive a premiere until 1922. The concerto quickly gained popularity and helped raise Szymanowski’s name on the international stage.
- Violin Concerto No. 1 defies the traditional three-movement structure of a concerto and instead uses one continuous movement divided into five sections:
- Vivace assai
- Tempo comodo. Andantino
- Vivace scherzando
- Tempo comodo. Allegretto
- Cadenza. Vivace – Allegro moderato
- Written during Szymanowski’s second period (see composer bio page), Violin Concerto No. 1 shows the influence of French Impressionism/ Debussy. It is considered to be one of the first “modern” violin concertos.2
Sources
- Susan Key, “Concerto No. 1 for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 35,” L. A. Phil, accessed September 28, 2026, https://www.laphil.com/works/concerto-no-1-for-violin-and-orchestra-op-35.
- Jim Samson, “Szymanowski, Karol,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed September 28, 2026, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000027328.
Cut IDs
25220