Classical Music

Classical Music

Tchaikovsky’s final three symphonies form an emotional roller-coaster ride with the most desperate lows (the first movement of the Fourth) and hectic highs (the Finale of the Fifth) before arriving at the resigned lament that is the closing Adagio of the Sixth. As the composer himself readily admitted, he had little interest in writing ‘abstract’ music – to his colleague and friend Taneyev he wrote: ‘I should not wish symphonic works to flow from my pen that express nothing, and which consist of empty playing with chords, rhythms and modulations.’ This has given rise to numerous speculations and attempts to interpret Tchaikovsky’s works, and especially these symphonies, in terms of events in his personal life. While the fruitfulness of such an approach is debatable, it is certain that the immediate appeal of the music itself has caused these symphonies to become favorites with musicians and listeners alike. On the present release, it is Christian Lindberg and his Arctic Philharmonic, based in the far north of Norway, that perform the symphonies. While the recordings of the Fourth and Sixth appear for the first time on disc, that of Symphony No. 5 has been previously released (on BIS-2018) on a release that earned international praise: ‘a superb performance’ was the verdict of the critic in International Record Review, while the French magazine Diapason accorded it top marks.

Neeme Järvi is one of the most recorded conductors of our time - but this is the first time he records the Tchaikovsky symphonies! He does so with "his" orchestra of 22 years standing, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra: a combination whose many recordings on BIS has made huge audiences very happy indeed! That Tchaikovsky and Järvi really is a 'dream team' concert audiences all over the world have been able to hear for themselves over the years. A student of the legendary Yevgeni Mravinsky - whose Tchaikovsky interpretations are still considered among the greatest - Järvi here gives us a vibrant Pathétique of unusual clarity, firmly rooted in the great Russian tradition, followed up by a Francesca da Rimini of great passion and fire. We are of course extremely proud to be able to offer this unique opportunity to fans of Tchaikovsky, Järvi, the GSO - and to all other music lovers. That the recording is also one of the first multi-channel, surround sound releases of these much-loved works surely adds to the attraction! As will be the coming instalments in the Järvi-GSO Tchaikovsky cycle, this disc is a Hybrid Super Audio CD, meaning that it is playable on all CD and SACD players with an option of stereo or surround sound when played back on SACD equipment. Packed in an elegant slipcase, this is a release which certainly should make a difference to anyone's CD collection!

In his work "The Seasons Op.37a", which is one of Tchaikovsky’s most popular compositions, he evokes the eternal cycle of growth and decay, a remembrance of the musical world of Robert Schumann and serves as a musical reminder of a bygone bourgeois era. Elena Margulina accompanies the cycle with the original version of the Sonata Op. 37. Pianist Elena Margulina enjoyed a highly distinguished musical education, graduating with a piano concert diploma from the St. Petersburg State Conservatory and, summa cum laude, from the University of Music in Detmold in 1996. She has won prizes at renowned piano and chamber music competitions, including First Prize at the Fifth International Schubert Piano Competition in Dortmund in 1995. She has taught at the University of Music, Media and Drama in Hanover and at the State University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart and offers master classes worldwide, including in Germany, Italy, South Korea, Canada, China, Albania, Russia, the Ukraine, Israel, and the United Kingdom. In 2014 Elena Margolina joined the faculty of the University of Music in Detmold as professor of piano.

This recording is based on the concert Boris Bloch gave on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the death of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky on 6th November 2018 in the New Hall of the Folkwang University of Arts. On the 100th anniversary of Tchaikovsky's death on November 6th, 1993, he conducted his great opera "The Maid of Orleans" in the Odessa Opera House which was one of the first opera houses in the world to stage Tchaikovsky's greatest opera, "Queen of Spades", in January 1893. Tchaikovsky himself was in the audience. The programme is complemented by various works that Bloch has met in his life.

Classical Music

News of the death of Nikolai Rubinstein came as a great blow for Tchaikovsky. Tchaikovsky decided to dedicate a piece of music to his late friend - not a classical work for choir or orchestra but one for piano trio. The memory of Rubinstein evidently enraptured him to the extent that he burst all dimensions with his his monumental Trio Op. 50, which encompasses all range of emotion and presents a musical and technical challenge to any piano trio. The Swiss Piano Trio, founded in 1998 with Martin Lucas Staub (piano), Angela Golubeva (violin) and Sebastien Singer (cello) has won numerous prizes at international competitions, including the International Chamber Music Competition Caltanissetta in Italy and the Johannes Brahms Competition in Austria.

Tchaikovsky completed his last set of piano pieces about six months before his death. Each bears a dedication to a friend or colleague including distinguished musicians such as Paul Pabst, Vasily Sapelnikov and Vasily Safonov.

TCHAIKOVSKY / BALAKIREV / GLAZUNOV: Arrangements for 2 Piano

The second of Tchaikovsky's three full length ballets, the Sleeping Beauty was initially given a lukewarm reception by the Tsar. Today it is regarded as the greatest achievement of Russian ballet music in the 19th century. Based on the Perrault fairy-tale La belle au bois dormant and choreographed by the legendary Petipa, this work overflows with radiant and joyous inventiveness. These highlights are taken from the complete recording on Naxos 8.550490-92, given * recommended status by the Penguin Guide which praises Andrew Mogrelia's conducting for it's 'warmth, grace and vitality'. Andrew Mogrelia has had a varied career of concerts, recording and work with major dance companies. He has worked with the English National, Dutch National, Finnish National, Norwegian National ballets, Netherlands Dance Theatre, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Australian Ballet, West Australian Ballet and American Ballet Theater.

Boris Tchaikovsky is revered in Russian musical circles as one of the most original and innovative composers of the post-Shostakovich generation. A work of great depth and beauty, the Piano Quintet is considered his finest chamber work and a stylistic milestone which would influence aspects of the later Piano Concerto (8.557727). Based on a the score for the 1964 film While the Front is in Defence, The War Suite is an evocative portrayal of the horrors of battle, but also of heroism, friendship and lost love, at the Volkhov Front, south east of Leningrad, during the winter of 1942.

Tchaikovsky wrote music for the piano throughout his life. The flamboyant and witty Scherzo a la russe is dedicated to the virtuoso pianist Nikolay Rubinstein, but more often his piano pieces evoke a sense of nostalgia and longing, with even the dances of the Trois morceaux rich in minor key sensitivities. The remarkably varied and resourceful Six Pieces Op. 2 were dedicated to his former teacher Anton Rubinstein. Laureate of numerous awards, Andrey Yaroshinsky was also 1st prize winner at the 2011 Gabala International Competition.

Brass instruments are a vital part of the festive fabric of Christmas, and Tchaikovsky’s iconic ballet The Nutcracker is made even more joyful with the brassy brilliance of Septura. Narrated by preeminent actor Derek Jacobi, The Nutcracker is set on Christmas Eve, with music both rapturous and fantastical. It tells the story of how young Clara’s favorite present, a nutcracker shaped like a little man, turns into a handsome prince at midnight. Septura has been acclaimed by Brass Band World for its ‘stylistic perfection’ and ‘beautifully portrayed artistry.’

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.