Scottish Fantasy in E‑Flat Major

Max Bruch had never actually visited Scotland when he wrote his Scottish Fantasy for violin and orchestra in 1879. But using an anthology of Scottish folk songs from a library, he fashioned a richly evocative 30-minute piece in four movements, full of atmosphere and local colour. The dark, brooding “Introduction” conjures the world of Walter Scott, whose novels were immensely popular in 19th-century Europe. In the “Adagio cantabile” section that follows, the violin sweetly intones the folk tune “Through the Wood, Laddie”. The “Scherzo” brings a bracing shift in tempo as the violin embraces the skirling dance beats of “The Dusty Miller”. The emotional heart of the Fantasy is in the “Andante sostenuto” movement, based on the beautiful Scottish air “I’m a-Doun for Lack o’ Johnnie”. The finale brings the work to a rousing conclusion, the solo violin working excited variations on the patriotic song “Scots Wha Hae”.