Wigmore Soloists review — rustic rollicking with The Soldier's Tale
It's 1918 and things aren't looking good for Stravinsky. He's holed up in Switzerland, having fled revolutionary Russia. His wife is sick, war is raging, work is scarce. He has to face that perennial (and increasingly pressing) question: what to do in turbulent times with limited resources. His answer was The Soldier's Tale, a work 'to be read, played and danced' about a soldier who gets tricked by the devil into swapping his violin — a symbol for the good, simple life — for the promise of 'untold riches'.
Like the soldier (and Stravinsky at the time), the work is of modest means. Small musical ideas, small movements, small ensemble — a chamber septet. The idea was that this troupe could tour Europe easily
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