Svetlanov

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887—1959), a Brazilian composer, was the first South American composer who has become world-famous. He was also a pianist and a teacher. He left prolific output, including 6 operas, 5 ballets, 12 symphonies, an Operetta, 17 string quartets, a lot of chamber music for various instruments, songs etc., written in varied styles but frequently with pronounced ‘national' flavour. He composed 14 works called "Choros" for various combinations (some including Brazilian native instruments), explaining the title as synthesizing different modalities of Brazilian, South American Indian and popular music, and having for principal elements rhythm and any typical melody of popular character'. His 'Bachianas Brasileiras' are supposed evocations of Bach in a Brazilian spirit.

Shchedrin's early music is tonal, colourfully orchestrated and often includes snatches of folk music, while some later pieces use aleatoric and serial techniques. In the west the music of Shchedrin has won popularity mainly through the work of Mstislav Rostropovich who has made several successful recordings. Among his works are the ballets The Little Hump-backed Horse (1955), Carmen Suite (1967), an arrangement by Tony Vernon, Anna Karenina (1971, on the novel by Leo Tolstoy), and Lady with a Lapdog (1985); the operas Not Only Love (1961), and Dead Souls (1976, after Nikolai Gogol's novel); piano concertos, symphonies, chamber and piano music and other works. He composed 24 Preludes and Fugues after he heard those of Shostakovich.

6CD set of complete Glazunov Symphonies, and six other orchestral works.

Firma Melodiya presents an album of Maurice Ravel’s symphonic works dedicated to the great French composer’s 135th birthday. “Music, I insist, must in spite of everything be beautiful,” as Ravel declared his artistic credo. When the composer lived, his works were frequently a subject of relentless criticism. He was accused of imitating his contemporaries, compliance with outdated standards and banality. However, Ravel’s music has been loved by millions of listeners for more than half a century now, which lets him take a deserved place in the pantheon of the world’s classical music. Devoting attention to all genres and forms, Ravel had a special predilection to orchestra. Being one of the most important figures of musical impressionism, he was a great master of the instrumental palette. Not he was a stranger to romantically passionate impulses.

Hugo Emil Alfvén (1 May 1872 – 8 May 1960) was a Swedish composer, conductor, violinist, and painter. Alfvén was born in Stockholm, Sweden, and studied at the Royal College of Music (Kungliga Musikhögskolan) from 1887 to 1891 with the violin as his main instrument while receiving lessons from Lars Zetterquist. He also took private composition lessons from Johan Lindegren, a leading counterpoint expert. He earned a living by playing the violin at the Royal Opera in Stockholm. He also played the violin in the Royal Swedish Orchestra.

Mars was depicted as ‘headstrong and at times too forceful’; Venus emphasising the ‘affectional and emotional side of her subjects, giving them a keen appreciation of art and beauty’; Mercury with the ‘ability to use the mind in various ways’; Jupiter’s ‘abundance of life and vitality…noble and generous spirit’; Saturn’s ‘slow and steady progress through life; Uranus’ inclination towards the ‘metaphysical and occult…producing eccentric, strange and erratic reactions’; and Neptune being psychically sensitive and attuned to other-worldly experiences.

After the tremendous success of Swan Lake, Vladimir Jurowski and the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia “Evgeny Svetlanov” continue their Tchaikovksy ballet series on PENTATONE with this recording of The Nutcracker. Tchaikovsky’s enchanting masterpiece is an absolute audience favourite, thanks to hits such as the Waltz of the Flowers, Trepak and Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, but also due to the composer’s ability to evoke a sense of wonder in listeners both young and old. Vladimir Jurowski and his players tell this story about the power of fantasy with unprecedented zeal, demonstrating the symphonic refinement and orchestral brilliance of Tchaikovsky’s score.

The acclaimed Russian-born maestro Vladimir Jurowski kicks off his new cycle of the complete symphonies of Prokofiev for PENTATONE with a searing account of the challenging and uncompromising second and third symphonies.Forged out of iron and steel, the rarely-performed Symphony No.2 uses strident fanfares, martial rhythms and clashing dissonances to create great walls of sound to represent the inexorable march of the machine age.