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Leó Weiner’s influence as a teacher in Budapest was exceptional—his pupils were some of the greatest musicians of the 20th century. But it’s only in recent years that his compositions, with their synthesis of German Romantic and Hungarian elements, have been brought to wider appreciation. Weiner’s great symphonic poem Toldi (Naxos 8.573847) was considered by the composer to be one of his most significant compositions, and was inspired by a masterpiece of Hungarian literature. Weiner liked to revise or rearrange his works either of his own accord, or as requested by performers and pupils. The ten-movement suite, Op. 43a was written for Fritz Reiner, a former pupil of Weiner who was conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the time, though it appears to have been unperformed. |
