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Medtner in England / Lomeiko, Karpeyev, Platt
SOMM Recordings

Medtner in England / Lomeiko, Karpeyev, Platt

$20.99

Details

Composer
Nikolai Medtner
Artist
Alexander Karpeyev, Theodore Platt, Natalia Lomeiko
Format
CD
Label
SOMM Recordings
Released
Sep 01, 2023
Catalog #
SOMMCD 0674
UPC
748871067424

About

SOMM Recordings announces Medtner in England, a revelatory new recording exploring the musical life of Nikolai Medtner, featuring violinist Natalia Lomeiko, pianist Alexander Karpeyev and baritone Theodore Platt. Born in Moscow, Medtner was to adopt England as his home, dying in London, aged 70, in 1951. The English capital seemed to provide him with a liberating creative space as the three featured works here eloquently suggest.

Simultaneously composed between 1935 and 1938 were the two-movement Op.56 Sonata-Idylle in G major – which moves from its ‘Pastorale’ opening to, as composer and pianist Francis Pott comments in his authoritative booklet notes, “a valedictory late-summer haze” – and its immediate successor, the four-part, symphony-sized Epica Violin Sonata No.3, “an act of remembrance” for Medtner’s brother, Emil. Both works are the product of a period in which Medtner was attempting to “pare down the virtuosity of his piano writing”. And both, in their intricate design and execution, illustrate his productive struggle with the ambition.

From his more than 100 songs, the posthumously assembled miscellany of the Op.61 Eight Songs span the near quarter-century from 1927 to the year of Medtner’s death. Employing poems by Pushkin, Lermontov, Eichendorff and Fyodor Tyutchev, they are variegated exercises in temperament and mood that look back towards Schubert and forwards to Medtner’s own distinctive way in setting words and conveying emotions.

Natalia Lomeiko and Theodore Platt are making their debuts on SOMM Recordings, Alexander Karpeyev’s previous SOMM release, Composers at the Savile Club (SOMMCD 0601), was “a recital eminently worth investigating” said BBC Music Magazine in its five-star review, while MusicWeb International declared it “will be greatly enjoyed”. SOMM’s previous Medtner release, three Piano Sonatas performed by Alessandro Taverna (SOMMCD 0142), received a four-star review from The Guardian, with Gramophone insisting “Make no mistake... this first-class recording... is well worth hearing”.

Tracklist 14 tracks

  1. 1 I. Introduzione: Andante meditamente - Allegro 15:46
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Introduzione: Andante meditamente - Allegro
    Duration
    15:46
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Natalia Lomeiko, Alexander Karpeyev
  2. 2 II. Scherzo: Allegro molto vivace e leggiero 06:57
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Scherzo: Allegro molto vivace e leggiero
    Duration
    06:57
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Natalia Lomeiko, Alexander Karpeyev
  3. 3 III. Andante con moto 08:53
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Andante con moto
    Duration
    08:53
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Natalia Lomeiko, Alexander Karpeyev
  4. 4 IV. Finale: Allegro molto 12:19
    Track
    4
    Title
    IV. Finale: Allegro molto
    Duration
    12:19
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Natalia Lomeiko, Alexander Karpeyev
  5. 5 I. Pastorale: Allegretto cantabile 03:38
    Track
    5
    Title
    I. Pastorale: Allegretto cantabile
    Duration
    03:38
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Alexander Karpeyev
  6. 6 II. Allegro moderato e cantabile (sempre al rigore di tempo) 07:23
    Track
    6
    Title
    II. Allegro moderato e cantabile (sempre al rigore di tempo)
    Duration
    07:23
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Alexander Karpeyev
  7. 7 No. 1. Reiselied 02:41
    Track
    7
    Title
    No. 1. Reiselied
    Duration
    02:41
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  8. 8 No. 2. Nachtgruß 02:46
    Track
    8
    Title
    No. 2. Nachtgruß
    Duration
    02:46
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  9. 9 No. 3. Chto v imeni tebe moyom? (What means to thee my humble name?) 02:56
    Track
    9
    Title
    No. 3. Chto v imeni tebe moyom? (What means to thee my humble name?)
    Duration
    02:56
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  10. 10 No. 4. Yesli zhizn' tebya obmanet (If one day you’re disillusioned) 01:51
    Track
    10
    Title
    No. 4. Yesli zhizn' tebya obmanet (If one day you’re disillusioned)
    Duration
    01:51
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  11. 11 No. 5. Molitva (Prayer) 01:55
    Track
    11
    Title
    No. 5. Molitva (Prayer)
    Duration
    01:55
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  12. 12 No. 6. Polden' (Midday) 02:15
    Track
    12
    Title
    No. 6. Polden' (Midday)
    Duration
    02:15
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  13. 13 No. 7. O, veshchaya dusha moya (Behold my visionary soul) 01:56
    Track
    13
    Title
    No. 7. O, veshchaya dusha moya (Behold my visionary soul)
    Duration
    01:56
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev
  14. 14 No. 8. Kogda, chto zvali mi svoim (We lost all that was once our own) 02:53
    Track
    14
    Title
    No. 8. Kogda, chto zvali mi svoim (We lost all that was once our own)
    Duration
    02:53
    Composer
    Nikolai Medtner
    Performer
    Theodore Platt, Alexander Karpeyev