Frescoes of Piero della Francesca, H.352
The Frescoes of Piero della Francesca (Les Fresques de Piero della Francesca), H. 352, is an orchestral work by Bohuslav Martinů.
It pays homage to the cycle of frescoes The History of the True Cross by Piero della Francesca, which Bohuslav Martinů had admired at Arezzo in 1954. He was inspired particularly by The Meeting of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba and by Constantine's Dream.
Martinů composed the work in Nice in 1955, and it was first performed in Salzburg by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Rafael Kubelik on 26 August 1956. The work is dedicated to Kubelik.
The work has three movements:
Movements
- Andante poco moderato
- Adagio
- Poco allegro
Recommended recordings
- Czech Philharmonic · Jiří Bělohlávek YouTubeSpotify (subscription)
- Berliner Philharmoniker · Rafael Kubelík YouTubeSpotify (subscription)