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New Volume of the Complete Edition: The Frescoes and The Parables
The new volume of the Complete Edition of Bohuslav Martinů's works is being released by Bärenreiter publishers. This is the eleventh volume in the series, prepared by the Bohuslav Martinů Institute based on the commission of the Bohuslav Martinů Foundation, this time in collaboration with editors Janina Müller and Arne Stollberg. This volume includes two outstanding works from the late neo-impressionistic orchestral compositions by the composer - The Frescoes of Piero della Francesca, H 352, and The Parables, H 367.
The Frescoes, created in the spring of 1955, draw inspiration from the cycle of Renaissance frescoes by Piero della Francesca in the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi in Arezzo, Italy. The premiere took place on August 26, 1956, at the Salzburg Festival, performed by the Vienna Philharmonic under the baton of Rafael Kubelík.
The Parables were composed gradually. The first two movements were completed in July 1957, while Martinů returned to them in early 1958 to finish the final third movement, completed on February 8. The premiere of The Parables occurred on February 13, 1959, in Boston, performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Charles Munch. The texts of the first two movements of The Parables reference the philosophical essay "Citadelle" by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, while the third movement contains excerpts from the play "The Voyage of Theseus" by Georges Neveux, which later became the basis for Martinů's opera "Ariadna." These texts are an integral part of The Parables, offering metaphorical reflections on the "truth" of human existence.
The eleventh volume of the Complete Edition of Bohuslav Martinů's works is the result of meticulous examination of the composer's manuscripts, copies, and extensive correspondence. This work has yielded new insights into the genesis of both compositions and contributed to their comprehensive evaluation.