Garofalo: Violin Concerto & Romantic Symphony

Born in the same decade as his more famous contemporaries, Malipiero, Casella and Pizzetti, Carlo Giorgio Garofalo composed a considerable body of sacred and secular music. Until its 1994 Moscow revival conducted by Joel Spiegelman, Garofalo’s Romantic Symphony, admired by Toscanini and Nikisch, had been performed in full score only once. It is a dramatically gripping and uplifting work of unabashed Romanticism. Garofalo’s gift for sweeping melodies and well-rounded musical form is also evident in his Violin Concerto whose solo part gives ample opportunity for rapturously virtuosic display and poignant lyricism. “Garofalo has a melodic gift and with a bit more experience might have given Respighi a run for his money.” American Record Guide