On 10 February 2021, the Finnish premiere of Éric Tanguy's Concerto N° 2 for violin and orchestra by Jyväskylä Sinfonia and Julia Pusker on violin under the direction of Ville Matvejeff will be broadcast live on the orchestra's YouTube channel.

A few words from the composer about the work: 

A long time ago, my friend Philippe Aïche, great violonist and concertmaster at the Orchestre de Paris, asked me to write a violin concerto for him. After he showed one of my symphonic scores to Maestro Semyon Bychkov (musical director of the orchestra at the time), I received the official commission of this piece. The work was completed in 1996 and premiered in Paris in February 1997. Even if the concert was a public success, I afterwards had the feeling that I could propose a different version for a smaller orchestra, with a lighter orchestration. Thus, I decided to revise it
in 2003. The process regarded only the orchestral texture, as the form of the piece and the violin part have not been modified.
The new version - performed ever since - received it’s premiere in 2004 with Jean-Marc Phillpps-Varjabedian (member of the Wanderer Trio) as the soloist.
The Concerto is built on a very classical form, in three movements. Throughout, I respond with my own harmonic language (in the field of consonance and modality, but not tonality) to the archetypes of the concerto: dialogue or opposition of the soloist with the orchestra, the presence of a big cadenza in the last movement, as well as the fast - slow - fast construction. My first purpose was to question myself on the wish to finding a good balance between my inner lyricism and «modern times». The three movements are separate and express, each, a very specific character of their own:

- 1: Intense et très Lyrique (with a contrasted lyrical and dramatic color)
- 2: Dolce (with a very mysterious and suspended atmosphere)
- 3: Vif (a very vituosic movement, challenging both for the orchestra and the soloist)

Another significant fact for me to mention is that I have studied the violin for many years and have performed myself. Meaning that, in music, the violin is a kind of «mother tongue» to me as I have loved to explore all the repertoire, from Vivaldi and Bach to Romantic, Modern and Contemporary composers, before dedicating myself, in my twenties, to composition. In a way, all my music for violin is a tribute to this formidable instrument.

Éric Tanguy

Éric Tanguy - Concerto n° 2
for and violin & orchestra
World premiere: 17 February 1997
Salle Pleyel - Paris
Orchestre de Paris
Philippe Aïche, violin
Semyon Byschkov, conductor
 

Éric Tanguy - Concerto n° 2
for and violin & orchestra
Finnish premiere: 10 February 2021
Mikkeli Concert Hall -  Mikael
Jyväskylä Sinfonia
Julia Pusker, violin
Ville Matvejeff, conductor

Watch the national premiere on the orchestra's channel...

Consult the score: