Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin & Concerto for Orchestra

Béla Bartók's Miraculous Mandarin was premiered 100 years ago, on 27 November 1926. The evening ended in chaos and is regarded as one of the most high-profile theatre scandals, certainly the biggest since the premiere of Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring in Paris a few years earlier. Causing shock among the public - perhaps because there is nothing miraculous in the fairy-tale sense - the work is in Bartók's own words 'hellish … with instruments clanging, clattering and blaring'. Today, its realism, rhythmic melody and harmony still inspire awe. Released to coincide with the centenary of its premiere, this second album in Cristian Măcelaru and WDR Sinfonieorchester's Bartók series pairs the Mandarin with the composer's other major work for orchestra, the Concerto for Orchestra. Unlike the former, the reception was a triumph.