Symphonyfor orchestra

After the Second World War, I could no longer continue composing twelve-tone works because the cultural policy of the time (communism) forbade it. So I returned to myself. In fact, I didn’t commit treason, because my works from the 1940s, the “Piano Concertino” and the “March Suite”, had been written in a more emotional, more lyrical manner. This is especially true of my Symphony.

It was the first time that I tackled this musical genre. In my Symphony, of neoclassical character but without any style constraints, I have put on an explosion of strong emotions.

At the Union of Musicians the new works were regularly discussed and my Symphony also came up for examination. With the exception of my friend the composer Lajos Vass, every one of the participants made such disheartening comments that I lost all enthusiasm. In my last movement in particular, I was criticized for not having found a sufficiently recognizable theme. Out of weariness, I abandoned it in a drawer.

The first movement (in memoriam 4. 4. 1945, the date of the Battle of Budapest) was published under the title “Symphonic Overture” (Szimfonikus nyitany). The second movement remained as it was under the name “Elegia” and I reworked the third movement which became my “Scherzo sinfonico”. This “unfinished” symphony was my only attempt in this genre. — Ferenc Farkas

Ferenc Farkas’ unique Symphony was performed in concert for the first time in its entirety in Budapest in 2021 and recorded on CD in 2025.