Balakirev Archive
BALAKIREV: Symphony No. 1 & No. 2 – Phil. Orch. of London/ Herbert von Karajan/ Moscow Radio Symph./ Gennady Rozhdestevensky – Praga Digitals
The two Balakirev symphonies receive intensely colorful treatment in classic readings remastered to good effect. BALAKIREV: Symphony No. 1 in C Major; Symphony No. 2 in d minor – Philharmonia Orchestra of London/ Herbert von Karajan (C Major)/ Moscow Radio Symph./ Gennady Rozhdestevensky (d minor) – Praga Digitals PRD 250 363, 77:59 (5/12/17) [Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: My own initiation into the charms of the Balakirev Symphony No. 1 in C (1864; 1897) came by way of the classic 1956 EMI recording by Sir Thomas Beecham and the Royal Philharmonic on the Angel label (35399). The energy and natural sympathy of that reading set a definite standard for me in terms of musicality and elan of ensemble. While under the “tutelage” of Walter Legge at EMI, Herbert von Karajan (1908-1989) leads the Philharmonia Orchestra from Kingsway Hall in November 1949. It would be fascinating to know how and why Karajan approached the work which in his Berlin Philharmonic recording career he did not reconsider. Given the musicians working in the EMI circle, Issay Dobrowen might have been a more logical candidate. In the digitally restored sound, the opening Largo enjoys breadth and resonance, especially in the esteemed winds – the oboe […]
“Dance Macabre” = Works of ST.-SEANS, DUKAS, DVORAK, MUSSORSKY, BALAKIREV & IVES – Montreal Sym./Kent Nagano – Decca
A bit late for the holiday, this cross-section of Halloween symphonic poems features an excellent ensemble from Montreal. SAINT-SAENS: Danse Macabre, Op. 40; DUKAS: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice; DVORAK: The Noonday Witch, Op. 108; MUSSORGSKY: A Night on the Bare Mountain; BALAKIREV: Tamara; IVES: Hallowe’en – Montreal Symphony Orchestra/ Kent Nagano – Decca 483 0396, 69:26 910/16/16 [Distr. by Universal] ***: Ordinarily, I would ascribe a popular, “Halloween” program (rec. 29-30 October 2015) like the one here on Decca to Charles Dutoit, given the usually excellent standard of musical execution. And while the performances of the natural spectaculars – the Dukas and the Saint-Saens – do exhibit the Montreal Symphony’s capacity for grand color, the Kent Nagano (b. 1951) renditions remain relatively prosaic and undistinguished. I still revel in the Mitropoulos version of Danse Macabre and the Stokowski reading of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. Besides the Dvorak opus – first made visceral to me by Vaclav Talich – the work that beckons us, Balakirev’s 1882 Tamara, does achieve some of the dramatic compulsion we recall from Sir Thomas Beecham’s riveting account. Based on a ballad by Lermontov, the symphonic poem bears much in common with Liszt’s formula for musical progression, with rippling-water […]
Fabiren Sevitzky & the Indianapolis Sym. Vol. I – Pristine Audio
Mark Obert-Thorn restores the World Premiere recording of Tchaikovsky’s Manfred Symphony. Fabien Sevitzky – Indianapolis Symphony Vol. 1 = TCHAIKOVSKY: Manfred Sym. in b minor, Op. 58; Waltz from Eugene Onegin, Op. 24; GLINKA: Russlan and Ludmilla Ov.; RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Dubinushka, Op. 62; LIADOV: Baba Yaga, Op. 56 – Indianapolis Sym. Orch./ Fabien Sevitzky – Pristine Audio PASC 479, 79:00 [www.pristineclassical.com] ****: The restoration of the Fabien Sevitzky (nee Koussevitzky) reading of the Tchaikovsky Manfred Symphony (27-28 January 1942) at the Mural Theatre, Indianapolis by audio engineer and annotator Mark Obert-Thorn is not the first CD incarnation of this performance: it had been issued on the Historic-Recordings.co.uk label in 2009 (HRCD 00017) in a transfer by Damien Rogan. Under that aegis, the gloomy, dramatic symphony inspired by Lord Byron’s 1816 epic poem stands alone; here, Obert-Thorn adds – in the first two selections from 1941 – the earliest of the conductor’s sessions at RCA Victor. Sevitzky (1891-1967) – nephew of his more illustrious uncle Serge Koussevitzky – had studied both with Liadov and Rimsky-Korsakov in St. Petersburg, so he had imbibed the Russian style naturally. An avid collector of neckwear, Sevitzky claimed to possess the second largest assortment of neckties, […]
“Dumka” = Piano pieces by DVORAK, SUK, LISZT, BALAKIREV, TCHAIKOVSKY, LYSENKO & MARTINU – Avie
Pianist Lada Valesova finds a musical thread in the form of the dumka that connects the souls of Slavic composers.
Idil Biret (piano) Archive Edition 11 – plays works of SAYGUN, FRANCAIX, ALKAN & BALAKIREV – IBA
Turkish virtuoso Idel Biret performs a world premier from her countryman Adman Saygun as well as a premier from Frenchman Jean Francaix.
Eugene Goossens: London Recordings Vol. 1 = BALAKIREV; TCHAIKOVSKY; RIMSKY-KORSAKOV; BORODIN – New Symphony Orch. (Balakirev)/ London Philharmonic/Goossens – Historical-Recordings
Virtually peerless interpretations of Russian music by the Eugene Goossens who at this period, 1930-1938, still enjoyed an unsullied distinction for orchestral flair.
Golovanov Vol. 3 = Works of BALAKIREV; MUSSORGSY; GLINKA; GLAZUNOV; TCHAIKOVSKY – Moscow Radio Sym. Orch./Nicolai Golovanov – Historic-Recordings
I must assume Neal Kurz to be the source for these fine transfers of inscriptions, 1944-1952, from the Soviet conductor Nicolai Golovanov (1891-1953).
BALAKIREV: Piano Sonata in B-flat Major & other works – Danny Driver, piano – Hyperion
The master musician of The Mighty Five receives virtuosic and intelligent attention from a young advocate of Balakirev’s piano music.
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
