Violin Concerto op. 39

Gál composed his Violin-Concerto in 1931/32 at the height of his career. In 1929, as an internationally recognised composer, he had been appointed Director of the Mainz Music College. The new concerto was immediately published and successfully premiered in Dresden in February 1933 by the violinist Georg Kulenkampff under Fritz Busch.

Hitler’s seizure of power, however, meant for Gál – as a “Non-Arian” – immediate dismissal from his post, followed by bans on employment, performance, and publication. Gál returned to his native Austria, but in 1938 again had to flee, this time to Britain, where he stayed for the rest of his life. Though he remained creatively active in the internationally changed post-war cultural climate, it is not until recently that he has been rediscovered and recognised as a composer.

The Concerto was performed again in 2005 for the first time since 1933; extremely successful CDs followed in 2010 and 2011.

The orchestral parts interact contrapuntally with one another and with the solo part. It is therefore all the more important for the soloist to become familiar with the orchestral part through this edition of the composer’s own piano reduction.