George Enescu

George Enescu (1881-1955) was a gifted musician who was as proficient a composer and pianist as he was a great violinist. The stylistically varied nature of his compositions reflects his cosmopolitan life, spent primarily in Romania and France. His early music, including the popular Romanian Rhapsodies, use folk music, while his opera Oedipe features motivic development that stems from the influence of Austro-Germanic composers. Enescu's violin and cello sonatas and the string quartets combine elements of both, emphasizing the interplay of melodic lines, while his symphonies and piano music often have neo-classical and Impressionistic facets to them.