Russian Music

Mieczyslav Weinberg was in fact born and raised in Poland, but the vast majority of his compositional career was in the Soviet Union and he remained there for the rest of his life, in Minsk (now the capital of independent Belarus). He therefore comes well within the definition of 'Russian' for the purpose of this series and was certainly treated as such by the authorities. This and the succeeding album (dda25107) which includes the remaining three sonatas, were originally released on the now defunct Olympia label but had a relativley short life and restricted distribution, and …………..

Mieczyslav Weinberg was in fact born and raised in Poland, but the vast majority of his compositional career was in the Soviet Union and he remained there for the rest of his life, in Minsk (now the capital of independent Belarus). He therefore comes well within the definition of 'Russian' for the purpose of this series and was certainly treated as such by the authorities. This and the preceding album (dda25105) which includes the ……..

Seiji Ozawa has been music director of the Vienna State Opera since the 2002-03 season and is an annual and favored guest of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Prior to his Vienna State Opera appointment he served as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra for twenty-nine seasons (1973-2002)—the longest-serving music director in the orchestra’s history…

This album of Arensky's shorter piano works was previously issued in 2001, on Olympia 692. It's varied in inspiration: The 12 Etudes of 1905 frequently pay tribute to France—No. 1 in C Major seems especially beholden to Fauré—yet No. 7 in E ? -Major displays the same interest in Wagner as the introduction to the slow movement from Arensky's Symphony No. 2. If the 12 Preludes, Trois Morceaux , and Arabesques owe a great deal to Chopin and Schumann, the six Essais sur des rythmes oubliés display the composer's fascination with metrical and rhythmic experiments…..

Barry Brenesal @ Fanfare

Our acclaimed series continues with one of the acknowledged masters of Romantic music, Sergei Rachmaninov. This album is taken from live performances in England between 1999 and 2005 by Russian pianist Sergei Dukachev and includes some favourite Preludes and Etudes, the Second Sonata and the relatively rarely-heard Variations. Dukachev is gaining an enthusiastic following in the UK as well as in his native Russia, and the brilliance of these concert performances demonstrates why.

Various Composers - The Powers Of Heaven: Orthodox Music of the 17th & 18th Centuries
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir - Paul Hillier
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 277 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Harmonia Mundi USA # HMU 807218 | Country/Year: US 2003
Genre: Classical, Folk | Style: Sacred

…Summary: This is a sensitive, edifying, and at times compelling performance of music from a religious tradition in which unaccompanied choral singing has an absolute and exclusive importance. The recording is clear, smooth, and balanced, and presents some truly exceptional deep bass singing. SA-CD.net

Anatoly Grindenko is one of the most important musicians working in the field of early Russian chant. With the male-voice Moscow Patriarchal Choir (amongst other groups) he has over the last few years brought new standards to the interpretation of the important but largely unfamiliar sixteenth- and seventeenth-century repertoire. This anthology is made up of chants from the Vigil Service (that is, Vespers and Matins) and a shorter selection from the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom.