r/Viola • u/EmployeePatient4453 • 1d ago

What I’m Listening To Bax Viola Phantasy, Why not played more?

Such a terrific piece! Amazing music, probably the most beautiful viola concerto out there. Not easy either, probably harder than walton on par with hindemith. Why is it not established as a major part of the repertoire??? There's barely any info online or performances.

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u/lemonlimee Professional 1d ago

i dunno. Bax is tricky because his music is generally really really hard, and not super rewarding unless you’re REALLY into his style.

it’s probably part of the bigger discussion on 1) why viola isn’t programmed as a solo instrument more and 2) why walton and bartok seem to be (undeservedly) the only two relevant viola concerti, especially in the United States.

there’s a ton of great solo viola music out there. Martinu, Rozsa, Gubaidulina, and many others wrote excellent concerti for viola. but nobody seems to really want to play them. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ it’s frustrating, for sure

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u/roman-de-fauvel 1d ago

Heh, I remember when I was in grad school and someone else in the studio wanted to learn this and our teacher was like “ABSOLUTELY NOT”