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Chant du menestrel

Ars Produktion

Available as CD

$18.99

Oct 17, 2025

For this album, Narek Hakhnazaryan has selected works that showcase the characteristics of cello playing: it's tonal warmth, emotional depth and versatility. The interplay of original works and arrangements has resulted in a program that sees the cello as a unifying voice - inspired by the figure of the medieval minstrel in Glasunov's Chant du menestrel Op.71.

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Chant du menestrel

$18.99
CD

Ars Produktion

Oct 17, 2025

ARS38683

Great Russian Symphonies

Naxos

Available as CD

~~$74.99~~ $52.99

Apr 24, 2012

GREAT RUSSIAN SYMPHONIES (10-CD Box Set)

The word ‘symphony’ is used to describe an extended orchestral composition in Western classical music. By the eighteenth century the Italianate opera sinfonia—musical interludes between operas or concertos—had assumed the structure of three contrasting movements, and it is this form that is often considered as the direct forerunner of the orchestral symphony. With the rise of established professional orchestras, the symphony assumed a more prominent place in concert life between 1790 and 1820 until it eventually came to be regarded by many as the yardstick by which one would measure a composer’s achievement.

The symphony came late to Russia. The first attempts at a Russian Nationalist symphony were made in the late nineteenth-century by Balakirev and his acolytes, Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov as well as by Tchaikovsky, whose symphonies (despite his European leanings) have a distinctly Russian flavour. In their wake followed numerous composers, from Glazunov to Myaskovsky, similarly instilling their music with the melodies of their homeland. In the years that followed Russian politics had an unmistakable impact on the Russian symphonists, as Rachmaninov and Prokofiev (among others) went into exile whilst composers such as Shostakovich vented their political frustrations through the medium of music—his Leningrad Symphony being a prime example.

R E V I E W:

The most important works here also tend to get the best performances. So let’s proceed in order of overall quality. Best are Shostakovich’s Fifth with Petrenko, Borodin’s Second and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade with Schwarz, Kuchar’s Prokofiev First and Fifth, and Kalinnikov’s First, and Antoni Wit in Tchaikovsky’s Fifth and Sixth. All the rest are fair to good. These include Glazunov’s Sixth and Rachmaninov’s Second (and The Rock) with Anissimov, Shostakovich’s Seventh and Miaskovsky’s 25th (Yablonsky), Tchaikovsky’s Fourth and assorted short works (1812 Overture, Romeo and Juliet) with Adrian Leaper, and Scriabin’s Poem of Ecstasy and Third Symphony with Golovschin. Topping it all off is a pretty respectable Antar Symphony conducted by André Anichanov. Yes, you can do better in most of this music, but this 10-disc set is well-chosen and an easy way to get a big pile of popular and unfairly neglected Russian symphonies, so who’s complaining?

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

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Great Russian Symphonies

~~$74.99~~ $52.99
CD

Naxos

Apr 24, 2012

8501059

Gliere: Symphony No. 3 "Ilya Murometz" / Feltz, Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra

Dreyer Gaido

Available as CD

$20.99

Jan 18, 2019

The premiere of the monumental Third Symphony Op.42 Ilya Murometz on 23rd March 1912 was a huge cultural and political event in Russia. A program symphony, the music depicts the life of Kievan Rus’ folk hero Ilya Muromets. The piece was dedicated to Alexander Glazunov, and won Reinhold Gliere his third Glinka Award. The work lasts between 70 and 80 minutes, and is divided into four sections, each of which depicts an episode from the epic. Gliere wrote a narrative in both Russian and French to accompany the score. On this recording Gabriel Feltz presents the remarkable work together with the orchestra Beogradska filharmonija and makes it clear that we should keep a closer eye on the works of this extremely interesting Russian late romantic.

Gliere: Symphony No. 3 "Ilya Murometz" / Feltz, Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra

$20.99
CD

Dreyer Gaido

Jan 18, 2019

DGCD21112

Bridge: Orchestral Works - The Collector's Edition

Chandos

Available as CD

~~$40.99~~ $30.99

Jul 31, 2012

If, like me, you’re a little selective concerning which music by Bridge you really like, you couldn’t find a better advocate than Richard Hickox on this 6-CD set.

– Editor, MusicWeb International

This splendidly conceived, presented and executed Chandos series treats Bridge with authoritative style and sensitive musicianship. In this it matches Chandos banner series for Grainger, Schmidt, Enescu, Glazunov, Bax and Harty. Bridge’s music is getting to the stage where it will no longer need special pleading. The series appeared in an unhurried way – no gabble, no exploitative rush. Nothing wrong with that if the results are as good as this. Taking time can produce a better effect even if the loyal enthusiasts were chafing for each new release.

- Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International

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Bridge: Orchestral Works - The Collector's Edition

~~$40.99~~ $30.99
CD

Chandos

Jul 31, 2012

CHAN 10729(6) X

Myaskovsky: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 13

Naxos

Available as CD

~~$19.99~~ $13.99

Jul 12, 2019

With 27 symphonies to his name, Nikolay Myaskovsky is known as the 'father of the Soviet symphony,' his legacy placing him in the same line as other great Russian symphonists such as Prokofiev and Shostakovich. Myaskovsky's richly Romantic Symphony No. 1 won him the Glazunov scholarship, and as a graduation work reveals the influence of Tchaikovsky and Scriabin in it's expressive, dramatic impact. The more experimental but also deeply inward-looking and disconsolate Symphony No. 13 is regarded as one of Myaskovsky's most individual statements.

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Myaskovsky: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 13

~~$19.99~~ $13.99
CD

Naxos

Jul 12, 2019

8573988

Chameleon - Chamber Music from Bloch to Rock / Signum Saxophone Quartet

Berlin Classics

Available as CD

$21.99

Apr 12, 2024

• SIGNUM saxophone quartet will release their first album on Berlin Classics
• Feat. Alexej Gerassimez (Percussion) and Eckart Runge (Cello)
• The quartet has made a name for themselves in various exciting projects (e.g. working with Alexej Gerassimez for his solo album on Berlin Classics)
• With Chameleon they show how colorful the sound of the saxophone is with a diverse selection of music from classical (Glazunov, Bloch, Haydn, and more) as well as pop and rock

Chameleon - Chamber Music from Bloch to Rock / Signum Saxophone Quartet

$21.99
CD

Berlin Classics

Apr 12, 2024

0303297BC

Zayt Gezunterheyt -Folk Soul of the Eastern Clarinet / Roeland Hendrikx Ensemble

Antarctica

Available as CD

~~$16.99~~ $12.99

Mar 01, 2024

If Eastern art music has a folk heart, its arteries are Roma and Klezmer sounds. From the orientalist imagination of Glazunov, the Jewish adoption of Prokofiev, the Uzbek inspiration of Khachaturian, to the Romani-Hungarian roots of Kokai and the Balkanism of Jan van der Roost: all composers on this disc build on the same toolbox of themes and techniques, and they all rely on the clarinet as the ultimate interpreter of this lore. Acknowledged and exquisitely performed by the Roeland Hendrikx Ensemble.

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Zayt Gezunterheyt -Folk Soul of the Eastern Clarinet / Roeland Hendrikx Ensemble

~~$16.99~~ $12.99
CD

Antarctica

Mar 01, 2024

AR 054

A Musical Journey - Bavaria and Switzerland

Naxos AudioVisual

Available as DVD

$13.99

Nov 17, 2009

The musical tour starts in the Bernese Alps, which offer some of the finest scenery in Switzerland, with glaciers and snow-covered expanses, waterfalls, mountain lakes, and the towering Matterhorn. The Nymphenburg Palace and Park, in Munich, present a contrast, in their baroque elegance. The tour ends with glimpses of the Chiemsee, the largest of the Bavarian lakes, with it's three wooded islands, on one of which Wagner's patron, King Ludwig II, built his folly, the Schloss Herrenchiemsee. Music for the tour is taken from Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, one of the best known of all romantic concertos. This is followed by his 'Souvenir d'un lieu Cher,' three pieces originally for violin and piano, but here orchestrated by the composer Glazunov.

A Musical Journey - Bavaria and Switzerland

$13.99
DVD

Naxos AudioVisual

Nov 17, 2009

2110246

Esquisses

Ars Produktion

Available as CD

$19.99

Apr 17, 2026

Esquisses opens up a fascinating soundscape for horn and piano, in which rare musical miniatures engage in a new dialogue alongside familiar masterpieces. The selection brings together finely drawn sketches from late Romanticism, modernism, and contemporary music-including forgotten gems from the Russian-Ukrainian repertoire, early works by great teachers such as Glazunov and Tcherepnin, as well as pieces written especially for the performers by Swiss composers such as Daniel Schnyder and Thüring Bräm. This recording shows how rich, colorful, and virtuosic the literature for horn and piano can be-beyond the beaten track.

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Esquisses

$19.99
CD

Ars Produktion

Apr 17, 2026

ARS38694

The Complete 78-RPM & Selected Saga LP Recordings / Pouishnoff

APR

Available as CD

~~$21.99~~ $16.99

Aug 04, 2017

Russian born Leff Pouishnoff (1891– 1959) studied piano in St Petersburg with Annette Essipov but settled in the UK after the revolution where he became particularly renowned as a Chopin player. His earlier Columbia recordings reveal a brilliant technique and a penchant for fast tempi, but perhaps most interesting is his premiere recording of Schubert’s G major sonata. The set includes several of the pianist’s own compositions and closes with his late recording of the variations by his composition teacher Glazunov. This is the first time his complete 78rpm recordings have been reissued and is the only currently available recording of his work. The set is completed with a representative sample from the single LP and EP he made for Saga shortly before his death. Research into these Saga recordings for this project uncovered a mysterious case of fraud which cannot yet be fully explained. All the details are revealed in the booklet.

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The Complete 78-RPM & Selected Saga LP Recordings / Pouishnoff

~~$21.99~~ $16.99
CD

APR

Aug 04, 2017

APR6022

Stravinsky: Ballets Russes

HARMONIA MUNDI

Available as CD

$21.99

Jul 16, 2021

In the space of three ballets, a previously unknown Russian composer revolutionized the music of his time. With The Firebird and Petrushka, respectively fairytale and folktale, and of course The Rite of Spring, a telluric invocation with it's insanely innovative harmonies and rhythms, Stravinsky dynamized the Late Romantic orchestra, taking it to literally unheard-of places. Among the very first musicians to perform these works on the instruments that witnessed their birth, François-Xavier Roth and Les Siècles inaugurated a far-reaching rediscovery of these seminal pieces, giving today's listeners an opportunity to appreciate to the full their audacity and their harsh, savage power.

REVIEW:

This is a labour of love for conductor François-Xavier Roth. His research into the famous Ballet Russes shows that not only was that organisation they involved intimitely with Stravinsky's three famous ballets recorded here (Le sacre du printemps, Petrushka and L'oiseau de feu), but the Ballets Russes also enjoyed a wide repertoire. To hear some of that repertoire here - in the form of Les Orientales, which contains music by Glazunov, Christian Sinding, Anton Arensky and Grieg - and all performed with a period authenticity (for Stravinsky!) is nothing short of revelatory. Roth conducts his group Les Siècles with gusto but also with the skill of a master restorer - the thickest textures in Le sacre and Petrushka become crystal clear; his rhythms are lighter than many listeners will be used to, taking us back to the dance while adding an extra layer of buoyancy to the performances.

– Classical Music Explorer (Colin Clarke)

Stravinsky: Ballets Russes

$21.99
CD

HARMONIA MUNDI

Jul 16, 2021

HMF2905342.2

Spendiarov: Complete Piano Works and Chamber Works with Pian

Grand Piano

Available as CD

~~$29.99~~ $14.99

Jan 15, 2021

ALEXANDER AFANASYEVICH SPENDIAROV (SPENDIARIAN) was a student of Rimsky-Korsakov and a close friend of Glazunov who wrote that he was a 'musician with an impeccable, widely versatile technique'. Spendiarov's music combines Russian and Armenian elements and is saturated in folkloric influence - and he vitally enriched the expressive range of Armenian music as a composer, pedagogue and champion of his contemporaries. His piano works, both for solo instrument and for chamber forces, show the range of his gifts, not least his romances and lullabies, and range across his entire compositional life. Spendiarov's songs, heard here in piano transcriptions by Villy Sargsyan, perfectly preserve the unique timbres and textures of these works. MIKAEL AYRAPETYAN is a pianist, composer and producer. He is also the founder and artistic director of the music project Secrets of Armenia, which aims to increase international awareness of Armenian classical music, and actively organizes concerts featuring Armenian music in venues around the world, for which he is producer, artistic director and pianist. Born in 1984 in Yerevan, Armenia, he studied at the Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory, and continues to uphold the performing traditions of the Russian piano school, of which Konstantin Igumnov, Samuel Feinberg and Lev Oborin are luminaries. His repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the contemporary and includes rarely performed works by Armenian composers. His recording of Eduard Bagdasarian's piano and violin music [GP664] earned a five-star rating from International Piano, and his album of Haro Stepanian's 24 Preludes [GP760] was praised as a "discovery" by both Classica and Piano News.

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Spendiarov: Complete Piano Works and Chamber Works with Pian

~~$29.99~~ $14.99
CD

Grand Piano

Jan 15, 2021

GP852-53

Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 1; Symphonic Dances

Chandos

Available as SACD

~~$21.99~~ $16.99

May 16, 2025

John Wilson and Sinfoina of London complete their set of Rachmaninoff symphonies with this recording of the First Symphony and the Symphonic Dances. Rachmaninoff hoped that the First Symphony, composed in 1895, would build on the reputation of his graduation opera Aleko, which had proved a great success. The premiere, in St Petersburg in March 1897, was, however, a disaster. Rumour had it that the conductor, Alexander Glazunov, was drunk: true or false, it seems clear that he had little interest in the piece, leading to a raft of scathing reviews. This setback hit Rachmaninoff very deeply, and is considered by many to be the reason for the following three-year creative block only lifted by a course of hypnotherapy. Rachmaninoff left the score in Russia when he fled the revolution in 1917, and it was subsequently lost. Two years after his death it was reconstructed from a set of orchestral parts in the Leningrad Conservatory, and given it's second performance, in Moscow, in October 1945, since when it has gained it's place as standard orchestral repertoire around the world. The Symphonic Dances were written towards the very end of the composer's life, and started out in a version for two pianos, which Rachmaninoff performed with Vladimir Horowitz. He then set about orchestrating the work, which was first performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra and Eugene Ormandy in January 1941. Set in three movements, the Symphonic Dances reference the theme from the final movement of the First Symphony. In this recording, Sinfonia of London plays from John Wilson's own performing edition of the work.

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Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 1; Symphonic Dances

~~$21.99~~ $16.99
SACD

Chandos

May 16, 2025

CHSA 5351

Prokofiev: Summer Night Suite - Scythian Suite - Khachaturian: Masquerade Suite - Spartacus Suite

Oehms Classics

Available as CD

$31.99

Aug 21, 2020

This recording brings together unique orchestral suites by the Soviet composer Sergei Prokofiev and the Soviet-Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian. Summer Night Suite is based on the music from Prokofiev’s opera Betrothal in a Monastery and Scythian Suite was derived from his ballet Ala and Lolly. Aram Khachaturian wrote his Masquerade Suite in 1941 to accompany Mikhail Lermontov’s play of the same name. His ballet Spartacus (1954) portrays the defeat the Romans by the hero Spartacus who leads an uprising of slaves. The suites present a range of moods and variety of melodic invention that are completely engaging. This is the Zagreb Philharmonic’s third recording for the OehmsClassics label. Their recording of Glazunov’s The Seasons, also under the direction of Dmitrij Kitajenko, received an ICMA nomination.

Prokofiev: Summer Night Suite - Scythian Suite - Khachaturian: Masquerade Suite - Spartacus Suite

$31.99
CD

Oehms Classics

Aug 21, 2020

OC471

Barkhudarian: 4 Oriental Dances, 12 Armenian Dances & Piano

Grand Piano

Available as CD

$19.99

May 11, 2018

The Armenian and Georgian composer Sarkis Vasil'evich Barkhudarian is famed for his piano miniatures. Some are among the first piano works to use Armenian folk themes as the basis for a series of original compositions. His colorful and unusual harmonies, created by the sinuous, interweaving modes of Armenian music, are immediately attractive and his miniatures, whether full of grace or pungent dance rhythms, bear out Glazunov's admiration of his 'sincerity, elegance and harmony of form.' Mikael Ayrapetyan was born in 1984 in Yerevan, Armenia, where he had his early schooling. His repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the contemporary and includes rarely performed works of Armenian composers. He is actively engaged in the popularization of Armenian classical music, organizing concerts in the major concert halls of the world, and acting as producer, artistic director and pianist for these performances.

Barkhudarian: 4 Oriental Dances, 12 Armenian Dances & Piano

$19.99
CD

Grand Piano

May 11, 2018

GP775

Rimsky-Korsakov: Antar, Scheherazade / Bakels, Malaysian Philharmonic

BIS

Available as CD

~~$21.99~~ $15.99

Aug 01, 2003

Having recently recorded the symphonies of both Glazunov and Rachmaninov, we continue our Russian theme with the first of a series of recordings of Rimsky-Korskov's symphonies. These are performed by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Kees Bakels. The present disc couples one of Rimsky-Korsakov's most popular pieces with a symphony that deserves a much wider audience. Both works swhow their author's fertile, often fantastical imagination as welll as the mastery of orchestration for which he is renowned. While Scheherazade is in every orchestra's repertoire and most music lovers' collections, Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonies inexplicably remain under-recorded and appear infrequently on the concert platform. Both works exemplify the Romantic notion of programme music (where extra-musical references are explicitly related to what we hear). Rimsky-Korsakov had a vivid sense of colour that brings his programmes to life and which make his works highly appealing. The disc once again illustrates just how good the Malyasian Philharmonic Orchestra is under its founding conductor Kees Bakels.

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Rimsky-Korsakov: Antar, Scheherazade / Bakels, Malaysian Philharmonic

~~$21.99~~ $15.99
CD

BIS

Aug 01, 2003

BIS-CD-1377

Bravo! Encores For Violin - Kreisler, Etc / Nikolaj Znaider

Sony Masterworks

Available as CD

~~$11.98~~ $8.99

Feb 04, 2003

Nikolaj Znaider's star shines brightly in the constellation of up-and-coming violinists of the next generation. Since winning the Queen Elizabeth Competition 1997, Znaider's career has steadily mounted with international performances and critically-acclaimed recordings of violin concertos of Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Glazunov and others. His new release on RCA, entitled Bravo!, sets a smaller stage with a collection of showpieces for solo violin, accompanied on most tracks by Israeli pianist Daniel Gortler.

Znaider's playing throughout is limber and precise, his immaculate technique inherited from Juilliard violin maven Dorothy De Lay, the teacher of Itzakh Perlman and Cho-Liang Ling, among others. Znaider fairly burns through the imposing demands of Eugène Ysaÿe's "Ballade" Sonata, but it's the refreshing lyrical parsimony in the slow stuff that demands notice. The two transcriptions of Chopin Nocturnes echo the kind of dry romanticism of the earliest violinists of the recorded era. In the famous Rachmaninoff Vocalise the effect of that reserve is magical; Znaider spins an endless thread of emotive melody that refuses to wear its heart on its sleeve. As with any good encore, you're grateful for the bonbon but left wanting another. What a boon to be able to simply repeat the track; an action we found ourselves repeating again and again with Znaider's Bravo!.

David Simmons, WQXR

On Sale

Bravo! Encores For Violin - Kreisler, Etc / Nikolaj Znaider

~~$11.98~~ $8.99
CD

Sony Masterworks

Feb 04, 2003

09026639602

Legendary Treasures - Michael Rabin Collection Vol 3 - Violin Concertos

Doremi

Available as CD

$20.99

Mar 09, 2010

Creston:
Violin Concerto No. 2, Op. 78
(World Premiere) November 17, 1960
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Georg Solti
Engel, Carl:
Sea-Shell
arr. Zimbalist. Australian tour, Sydney Town Hall. July 1952
Glazunov:
Violin Concerto in A minor, Op. 82
March 3, 1968
Radio-Orchester Beromester, Zurich, Erich Schmid
Godowsky:
Triakontameron No. 11 'Alt Wien'
arr. Heifetz
Kreisler:
Tambourin Chinois, Op. 3
Mendelssohn:
Song without Words, Op. 19b No. 1 in E major 'Sweet Remembrance'
arr. Heifetz. Australian tour, Sydney Town Hall. July 1952
Mozart:
Violin Concerto No. 4 in D major, K218
February 9, 1960
The Denver Symphony Orchestra, Saul Caston
Paganini:
Caprice for solo violin, Op. 1 No. 9 in E major 'The Hunt'
January 20, 1970, New York WQXR Radio (The listening room)
The Bell Telephone Hour Orchestra, Donald Voorhees
Caprice for solo violin, Op. 1 No. 21 in A major
Caprice for solo violin, Op. 1 No. 11 in C major
Caprice for solo violin, Op. 1 No. 16 in G minor
Prokofiev:
The Love for Three Oranges: March
arr. Heifetz. Australian tour, Sydney Town Hall. July 1952
Ravel:
Tzigane
Saint-Saëns:
Etude en forme de valse Op. 52 No. 6

Legendary Treasures - Michael Rabin Collection Vol 3 - Violin Concertos

$20.99
CD

Doremi

Mar 09, 2010

DHR-7970-1

Salut D'amour - R. Strauss: Violin Sonata, Etc / Chuanyun Li

Haenssler Classic

Available as CD

~~$5.99~~ $4.99

Feb 12, 2007

SALUT D’AMOUR • Chuanyun Li (vn); Robert Koenig (pn) • HÄNSSLER 98.278 (67:08)

DVO?ÁK Slavonic Dance, op. 72/2. KROLL Banjo and Fiddle. ELGAR Salut d’amour. BAZZINI La ronde des lutins. GLAZUNOV Raymonda: Intermezzo. SARASATE Zapateado. GLUCK Orfeo ed Euridice: Melody. PAGANINI Introduction and Variations on “Nel cor più non mi sento.” GERSHWIN (arr. Heifetz) It Ain’t Necessarily So. R. STRAUSS Violin Sonata

In how many programs does the obligatory sonata follow the encores (the jewel box lists the sonata first)? Chuanyun Li mixes simple and expressive numbers like Elgar’s Salut d’amour with virtuoso showstoppers like Paganini’s Variations on “Nel cor più non mi sento,” Bazzini’s Dance of the Goblins , and Sarasate’s Zapateado as an appetizer for the main course, Strauss’s concerto-like Violin Sonata. Those not familiar with Li from his playing on the soundtrack for the Chinese-produced movie, Together (and his appearance in the movie as a student emerging into the professional world playing Vieuxtemps’s Fifth Concerto), or from his video recordings produced by Bein and Fushi (both in a Ruggiero Ricci lesson and as a participant in a festival of Chinese violin music), should be struck in Hänssler’s issue of a 1999 recording he made at the Cincinnati Conservatory, by his soaring tone, his brilliant technical command, and his grasp of the many styles he’s assembled in his program. Idiomatic Elgar rubs shoulders with Slavonic Dvo?ák, darkly glowing Glazunov, and steamy Gershwin. Bazzini’s Ronde des lutins might as well have been retired for decades after Heifetz’s first recording of it in 1917; later recordings may have included all the notes but not the sizzle. Some, even as recent as Gil Shaham’s (24:3), seemed almost somber in comparison to the young Heifetz’s. Those who might not have heard that earlier recording might come to the end of Li’s with a very similar impression of overwhelming virtuosity coupled with heroic dash and élan. For example, at the section of notes repeated on each of four strings, some violinists simply struggle to play solidly, while Li manages to add tangy nuances. Glazunov’s Intermezzo offers many opportunities for portamentos, and violinists of earlier generations would have taken them with relish. So does Li, but never to the detriment of the music’s lyrical flow, which he builds in waves to a powerful climax. When the music settles to its quiet conclusion, he draws a pure tone from both strings in the final double-stops, a feat perhaps as difficult as the left-hand pizzicato in Bazzini’s Ronde . Li introduces stronger accents than Sarasate did into the Zapateado , and he adds some twangy timbral graces of his own. His performance goes beyond the heavier Russian style that became common in readings of the mercurial Sarasate; but, taken on its own terms, it’s a heady sprint to the finish. Heifetz and Milstein both played Gluck’s Melody, which Fritz Kreisler had arranged for violin and piano. Li’s performance matches theirs in elegance and warmth, and his special personal touches make it his own rather than a copy of theirs. Paganini’s Variations fare well in Li’s reading, sweetly lyrical in the manner of Rossini as devilish in the style of Locatelli. His gift for sumptuous melody alternates in this violinist’s compendium with his knack for brash pyrotechnics (which he fires off with surprising sweetness), and those mount to the conclusion in an unstoppable juggernaut.

Strauss’s early Sonata has been taken almost as a Concerto for Violin and Piano, and Heifetz (who reputedly tried to commission such a Concerto from Prokofiev) seemed always on the lookout for pieces he could play that way, like this one, Saint-Saëns’s First Sonata in D Minor, and Respighi’s. Memory of Heifetz remains strong, but Li manages to create his own forceful identity from the bold first movement. Arguably the slow movement of the Sonata makes a more glowing musical statement than does the slow movement of the (also youthful) Violin Concerto, and Li warms not only to its initial sentiment but also to its more agitated central section. He also seems comfortably at home in the finale’s broad rhetoric.

Here’s an old-fashioned violin recital with a Sonata thrown in to please everyone (the reverse of the usual procedure), and only those with almost unreasonably strong preferences should complain. It’s individual, brilliant, and musically both protean and probing—a substantial accomplishment for anyone, and certainly so for a 19-year-old. As Mischa Elman supposedly remarked to his accompanist, Joseph Seiger, when he heard Michael Rabin’s recording of Wieniawski’s First Concerto, that’s the way the violin should be played. Robert Koenig remains an insightful supporter through the many changes in style, and the lifelike recorded sound makes both players almost bodily present. Strongly recommended.

FANFARE: Robert Maxham

On Sale

Salut D'amour - R. Strauss: Violin Sonata, Etc / Chuanyun Li

~~$5.99~~ $4.99
CD

Haenssler Classic

Feb 12, 2007

98278

Lourié: Chamber & Instrumental Music, Vol. 1 - Works with Wind Instruments

Toccata

Available as CD

~~$20.99~~ $15.99

Jan 06, 2023

The turbulent life of Arthur Lourié (1891–1966) – student of Glazunov, friend of Blok, lover of Akhmatova, commissar of the Soviet regime, exile in Germany, France and the USA, ghost-writer for Koussevitzky – is reflected in the wide range of references in his music, from echoes of the ceremonies of ancient Greece to Neo-Baroque and Neo-Classical procedures perhaps inspired by his collaboration with Stravinsky in Paris. Some of the works in this first of two albums surveying his chamber and instrumental music have an almost ritual formality; in others a mischievous grin is not far from the surface.

REVIEWS:

The personnel is spearheaded by flautist Birgit Ramsl and they all play with commendable accomplishment and verve that serve Lourié well. There are also four premiere recordings. However you sum him up, stylistically, his remains a cultured, cultivated and agreeably cosmopolitan voice, drawing on Russian and French traditions to irradiate the ritual formality of his music.

-- MusicWeb International

On Sale

Lourié: Chamber & Instrumental Music, Vol. 1 - Works with Wind Instruments

~~$20.99~~ $15.99
CD

Toccata

Jan 06, 2023

TOCC0652

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