Hungarian Rhapsodies virtuoso pianist as well as a composer). Liszt incorporated many themes he had heard in his native western Hungary and which he believed to be folk music, though many were in fact tunes written by members of the Hungarian upper middle class, or by composers such as József Kossovits, often played by Roma (Gypsy) bands. The large scale structure of each was influenced by the verbunkos, a Hungarian dance in several parts, each with a different tempo. Within this structure, Liszt preserved the two main structural elements of typical Gypsy improvisation—the "lassan" ("slow") and the "friska" ("fast"). At the same
Romanian Rhapsodies (Enescu) reputation as a composer". He himself recorded each of the rhapsodies three times, but he viewed requests for yet more recordings as "un grosse affaire commerciale". Both rhapsodies have received dozens of recordings by other conductors and orchestras. Romanian Rhapsodies (Enescu) The two Romanian Rhapsodies, Op. 11, for orchestra, are George Enescu's best-known compositions. They were written in 1901, and first performed together in 1903. The two rhapsodies, and particularly the first, have long held a permanent place in the repertory of every major orchestra. They employ elements of lăutărească music, vivid Romanian rhythms, and an air of spontaneity. They