Endless

When we think of great composers – Beethoven and Mendelssohn – we often imagine them as mature, seasoned figures, fully developed in their artistry. However, many masterpieces that we now consider mature music were created when their authors were younger than most of the audience members in our concert hall. This evening, we will hear three such works, written by young people who were already highly educated and fully aware of their artistic paths.

Felix Mendelssohn was only 20 years old when, while traveling in Scotland, he visited Fingal’s Cave on the island of Staffa. The theme for The Hebrides Overture came from that visit, which he jotted down on a postcard to his sister. He continued to work on the piece for two more years, with a passion far beyond what is typically invested in occasional miniatures. Though inspired by the landscape, the overture is not a musical picture – it is pure musical form, breathing with the movement of the waves and light.

The Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 is a mature work, but one that Mendelssohn, then in his early thirties, refined with extraordinary persistence. In this concerto, the composer breaks many of the conventions of his time: the soloist enters without an orchestral introduction, the movements are connected, and the cadenza is embedded within the central section. Nevertheless, the piece does not feel like an experiment – instead, it sounds like a thoughtful, elegant, and sincere work. It is one of the most frequently performed violin concertos. However, it is rarely heard as the voice of a young man with nothing left to prove, because he already knows exactly what he is doing.

Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, performed by Augustin Hadelich (violin) and the hr-Sinfonieorchester, conducted by Sebastian Weigle:

Čiurlionis was an exceptional man: a composer, a painter, a visionary. In Miške, there are no melodies that one can easily hum. Instead, there are layers of sound, textures, and space. Čiurlionis's forest isn't a setting-it's a state of mind. Some compare this symphonic poem to Debussy, others see it as a precursor to ambient music. Or perhaps it's simply Lithuanian nature filtered through the deeply symbolic gaze of an artist who didn't separate art from nature.

Karłowicz-a lover of mountains, solitary wanderings, and Schopenhauer's philosophy- in Lithuanian Rhapsodyreturns to the landscape of his native Kresy. This is earth music: with low registers, a songlike narrative, moments of contemplation, and flashes of euphoria. The work was composed in 1906, when Karłowicz had tired of symphonic pathos and was seeking more personal, less obvious forms.

The evening's soloist will be Jarosław Nadrzycki – an internationally renowned violinist, winner of the Khachaturian (Yerevan), Enescu (Bucharest), Heifetz (Vilnius), Rostal (Berlin), Valsesia Musica (Italy), and many other competitions.

Miške by Čiurlionis performed by Schweizer Jugend-Sinfonie-Orchester SJSO under the baton of Modestas Pitrėnas: