Karlowicz: Serenade for Strings; violin concerto Naxos 8.572274 * * *

Polish composer Mieczyslaw Karlowicz died tragically young, in an avalanche, at the age of 32, in 1909. The earlier of the two works recorded here, the Serenade for strings, was premiered 12 years earlier, and it's crafted in a style of sweet- toothed chromaticism that exerts a lot of charm in Antoni Wit's sensitive performance. The six symphonic poems that he was to complete are regarded as Karlowicz's major legacy. The Violin Concerto pre-dates them, and is an accomplished piece – the composer had studied the violin, and wrote it for his teacher, Stanislaw Bacewicz. It's rather more ambitious than the Serenade, and, although it's had some distinguished advocates over the years (including Nigel Kennedy), it doesn't quite have the character of that more youthful piece. See url.ie/57c6 MICHAEL DERVAN