This 1949 composition was written just after the notorious Lagow Conference on musical modernism. (This was Poland's adoption of the same rules proclaimed for Soviet composers under Stalin in 1948). It was premiered in Czechoslovakia by the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra. Despite Communist Party strictures, this composition shows Lutoslawski continuing to advance his early style towards modernism. The fact that in some aspects it follows the example of Béla Bartók, whose music tended to be approved because it was folk-based, no doubt helped Lutoslawski gain acceptance for this piece.

The Overture is rather abstract and perhaps too deeply caught up in its techniques. For one thing, is uses a synthetic mode of two four-note patterns, each separated by separated by two whole steps and a half step. So far this is like description of a major scale, which is a pair of such patterns separated by another whole step. However, here the patterns are separated by a half step. In the key of C, it is as if, halfway through, the scale suddenly drops into the key of F sharp. In addition, the piece is almost obsessively built around a four-note motive, B-A#-G#-A, which is repeated 132 times in 5 minutes.



© All Music Guide