Dobrzynski: Monbar Overture; Piano Concerto; Symphony No 2

Ignacy Feliks Dobrzynski (1807-67) was a contemporary of Chopin who spent his life in Poland, where he struggled with the limitations of musical life in Warsaw. His style is less adventurous than Chopin's, the influence of John Field looming large in the teenage Piano Concerto, and fierier elements from Weber in the overture to his opera Monbar. His Second Symphony, written in 1834 and revised in 1862, has each of its four movements connected to a Polish dance, and this recording includes an extra in the form of slow movement that was rejected for the final version. The music may not all be first-rate, but the performances are, capturing both the passion and charm of this little-known composer.
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