Contrasts is a 1938 composition scored for clarinet–violin–piano trio by Béla Bartók (1881–1945). It is based on Hungarian and Romanian dance melodies and has three movements with a combined duration of 17–20 minutes. Bartók wrote the work in response to a letter from violinist Joseph Szigeti, although it was officially commissioned by clarinetist Benny Goodman. The three made the first recording of the piece in 1940, released on a Columbia Masterworks 78 rpm album.
The work is in three movements:
The movements contrast in tempo. The first movement contains a cadenza for clarinet and the last one for violin. The piece features examples of alternate or dual-thirds (C and C♯ in an A triad).
János Kárpáti has discussed the structural aspects of Contrasts in detail. Szigeti recalled that Bartók had told him that the start of Contrasts had partial inspiration from the "Blues" second movement of Maurice Ravel's Sonata for Violin and Piano. F. Bónis has further noted the parallel between a short passage in the same Ravel movement and a passage in the first movement of Contrasts.
The trio of the last movement features "Bulgarian Rhythm" and is similar in spirit to the Finale of the first Violin Sonata.
Instrumentation: Violin, clarinet and piano.
