INTERMEZZO & HORNPIPE from "MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING”
This work was originally commissioned for a production by the Vienna Burgtheater in 1918 and premiered two years later. From this incidental score, guitarist Gregg Nestor extrapolated two contrasting works for cello and guitar duo – a lush and moving Intermezzo (Gartenscene) and lively Hornpipe (Mummenschanz). Korngold's remarkable skill for creating vivid orchestration with lush and sweeping motifs is demonstrated in this original setting that is at once sharp, youthful, and exuberant; a perfect match for Shakespeare's modern "battle of the sexes."
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
One of Vienna's most celebrated composers in the early 20th century, Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957) was considered a serious rival to his contemporary Richard Strauss; he composed many of his operas and concert works while in his teens and twenties and was celebrated as a true wunderkind. Korngold first came to America in 1934 to adapt Mendelssohn's music for Max Reinhardt's film of Midsummer Night's Dream. The Nazis' invasion of his homeland a few years later convinced him to stay in Los Angeles, where he wrote romantic, highly influential scores for Warner Brothers films. He received Academy Awards for Anthony Adverse (1936) and The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938); his other films include Captain Blood (1935), The Sea Hawk (1940) and Kings Row (1942). His magnificent violin concerto, based on thematic motifs from his classic film scores, was commissioned, premiered and recorded by Jascha Heifetz.
