This is a rarely encountered Bartók work, having originally been planned to serve as the second movement in the composer's 1916 Suite, for piano, Sz. 62. Being a discarded effort, this piece has suffered neglect in the misbegotten view it is somehow an inferior creation. Bartók simply did not consider it appropriate for the Suite, a mostly light work, with a dark finale (Sostenuto), similar in character to this Andante.

The Andante is a gloomy, mesmerizing piece: its writing conveys a sense of flotation throughout in gentle descending chords. Toward the middle of the piece tension develops, but produces no climactic release, the mood quickly returning to its subdued and ethereal manner. Yet, there always seems an element of unease in the music, an ominous feeling that the flotation or sense of wandering is hallucinatory or happening in some netherworld. Lasting about two and a half minutes, this work must be viewed as at least a minor success in its deftly imagined atmosphere and colorful sense of mystery.

© Robert Cummings, Rovi