‘Vont-tér’ for Violin and Orchestra

Program notes

About the Work

‘Vont-tér’ for violin and orchestra is a recent concerto-like work by the Hungarian composer Márton Illés, completed in 2019 and premiered by tonight’s soloist, Patricia Kopatchinskaja (the LSO notes that she gave the first performance with the WDR Symphony Orchestra in 2020). It features here as part of an LSO ‘Artist Portrait’ series spotlighting Kopatchinskaja, a violinist famed for her fearless advocacy of new music, and an ideal champion for a work of this kind.

Illés is a composer of intricate, imaginative sound-worlds, and the LSO describes Vont-tér as ‘an ethereal, playful work of kaleidoscopic sounds and effects.’ Contemporary violin writing of this sort tends to explore the full expressive and technical range of the instrument, with a whole palette of colours, textures and extended techniques alongside conventional melody, set against an orchestra used for atmosphere and shimmering detail rather than traditional accompaniment. As a relatively new piece it comes without the familiarity of the repertoire staples around it; it rewards open, curious listening.

What to Listen For

Approach this one with fresh ears. Rather than waiting for hummable themes, listen for colour, texture and gesture: the ‘kaleidoscopic sounds and effects’ the LSO promises. Listen to the extraordinary range of sounds Kopatchinskaja draws from the violin (she is celebrated for exactly this kind of fearless, exploratory playing), and to how those sounds are mirrored, answered and coloured by the orchestra.

Listen, too, for the ‘ethereal, playful’ character: moments of delicacy and wit, shimmering textures, sudden contrasts. This is music about the interplay of the solo voice and the larger ensemble, about the discovery of new sonorities, and about atmosphere. Let it draw you into its strange and vivid world: a chance to hear a living composer’s music brought to life by the violinist who has made it her own.