Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra

Boris Papandopulo (1906 – 1991) is one of the most distinctive Croatian musicians of the 20th century. Papandopulo also worked as music writer, journalist, reviewer, pianist and piano accompanist; however, he achieved the peaks of his career in music as a composer. His composing oeuvre is imposing – Papandopulo composed almost 500 opuses: with great success he created instrumental (orchestral, concertante, chamber and solo), vocal and instrumental (for solo voice and choir), music-stage and film music. In all these kinds and genres he left a string of anthology-piece compositions of great artistic value. Papandopulo composed the Concerto for saxophone in 1987, dedicating it to the saxophonist Dragan Sremac. It is framed in the typically Papandopulo disposition of movements, in which the first is dramatic, the second expressive and meditative, with reflections of traditional music, and the third rapid, of a terpsichorean character, packed full of energy and virtuosity. Although Papandopulo wrote this concerto in his eightieth year, it sounds amazingly fresh in its wealth of ideas and youthful in the power of its expression and in the overall élan of its musical substance. A very important role is taken by a whole spectrum of percussion instruments that impart impulsiveness and energy to the composition and also enrich the lushness of the orchestral palette. This effective, artistically valuable and attractive composition is already a part of the repertoire of many saxophonists worldwide, and it was one of the peaks of the grand concert for the opening of the 18th World Saxophone Congress in 2018.