Kastalsky: Memory Eternal / Fox, The Clarion Choir
Naxos

Kastalsky: Memory Eternal / Fox, The Clarion Choir

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Details

Composer
KASTALSKY, ALEXANDER DMITRIYEV
Artist
Fox
Format
CD
Discs
1
Label
Naxos
Released
Aug 10, 2018
Catalog #
8573889
UPC
747313388974

About



In the face of the devastation wrought by the First World War, Alexander Kastalsky conceived a musical service of remembrance for the fallen. A pivotal figure in Russian musical life- he was a student of Tchaikovsky and acclaimed as the founder of a new, national church music- Kastalsky composed a choral-orchestral Requiem, for the concert stage. Simultaneously, he worked on the a cappella version heard on this recording to be sung in Russian Orthodox churches. Following the basic structure of the Orthodox Panihida, or memorial service, Memory Eternal, and the short sacred pieces that end the programme, reveal Kastalsky’s masterful use of choral sonority and color, his weaving of complex polyphonic textures, and his graceful use of ancient chant melodies.

"...The Clarion Choir, under the sure direction of Steven Fox, turn in a thrilling performance, recorded with clarity and not too much resonance in St. Jean Baptiste Church in New York. This recording (together with its publication from Musica Russica) represents the rehabilitation of a major work, which nobody interested in Russian music of the 20th century should miss."
--Ivan Moody, GRAMOPHONE

Tracklist 14 tracks

  1. 1 I. Velikaya yektenia (Great Litany) 08:19
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Velikaya yektenia (Great Litany)
    Duration
    08:19
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Performer
    Marc Andrew Day, Protodeacon Leonid Roschko
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  2. 2 II. Alliluiya i Glubinoyu mudrosti (Alleluia and with profound wisdom) 02:42
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Alliluiya i Glubinoyu mudrosti (Alleluia and with profound wisdom)
    Duration
    02:42
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Performer
    Scott Dispensa
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  3. 3 III. Pokoy, Spase (Give rest, O our Saviour) 03:29
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. Pokoy, Spase (Give rest, O our Saviour)
    Duration
    03:29
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  4. 4 IV. Pokoy, Ghospodi, dushï usopshïh rab Tvoih (Give rest, O Lord, to the souls of Thy servants, who have fallen asleep) 01:07
    Track
    4
    Title
    IV. Pokoy, Ghospodi, dushï usopshïh rab Tvoih (Give rest, O Lord, to the souls of Thy servants, who have fallen asleep)
    Duration
    01:07
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  5. 5 V. Molitvu proliyu (I will pour out my prayer) 01:44
    Track
    5
    Title
    V. Molitvu proliyu (I will pour out my prayer)
    Duration
    01:44
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  6. 6 VI. So sviatïmi upokoy (With the saints give rest) 02:03
    Track
    6
    Title
    VI. So sviatïmi upokoy (With the saints give rest)
    Duration
    02:03
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  7. 7 VII. Sam yedin yesi Bezsmertnïy (Thou alone art immortal) 04:03
    Track
    7
    Title
    VII. Sam yedin yesi Bezsmertnïy (Thou alone art immortal)
    Duration
    04:03
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  8. 8 VIII. Tï yesi Bog, soshedïy vo ad (Thou art God, who descended into Hades) 02:11
    Track
    8
    Title
    VIII. Tï yesi Bog, soshedïy vo ad (Thou art God, who descended into Hades)
    Duration
    02:11
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  9. 9 IX. Upokoy, Bozhe (Give rest, O Lord) 02:44
    Track
    9
    Title
    IX. Upokoy, Bozhe (Give rest, O Lord)
    Duration
    02:44
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  10. 10 X. Troynaya yekteniya (Triple Litany) 07:36
    Track
    10
    Title
    X. Troynaya yekteniya (Triple Litany)
    Duration
    07:36
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Performer
    Protodeacon Leonid Roschko
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  11. 11 XI. Vechnaya pamiat (Memory Eternal) 02:13
    Track
    11
    Title
    XI. Vechnaya pamiat (Memory Eternal)
    Duration
    02:13
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  12. 12 Miloserdiya dveri (Doors of Thy Mercy) 04:38
    Track
    12
    Title
    Miloserdiya dveri (Doors of Thy Mercy)
    Duration
    04:38
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  13. 13 Ot yunosti moyeya (From My Youth) 04:48
    Track
    13
    Title
    Ot yunosti moyeya (From My Youth)
    Duration
    04:48
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
  14. 14 Blazheni, yazhe izbral (Blessed Are They) 05:48
    Track
    14
    Title
    Blazheni, yazhe izbral (Blessed Are They)
    Duration
    05:48
    Composer
    Alexander Kastalsky
    Ensemble
    The Clarion Choir
    Conductor
    Steven Fox
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K
Keith Wilcox

Kastalsky's choral music has been a favorite of mine since I began working on my doctoral dissertation on Russian Orthodox Choral music. The composer is recognized as a leading figure in the Moscow Synodal School revival of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Russian Revolution of 1917 marked the end of the composition of sacred music in that country, and Kastalsky had to focus on music based on folk music instead. For decades, his sacred compositions were basically unknown to Western audiences. It was only after the change of the government in the 1990's that there was a resurgence in the recordings of his and others who wrote for the Russian Orthodox church. Memory Eternal was conceived as an ecomunical piece to honor the dead who had fought in WWI. Different versions of this piece exist, and the one in this recording is for acapella choir. Even though the piece was to honor the dead of various religious backgrounds, this work is composed in Russian/Church Slavonic and is patterned after the Russian form of the Requiem. For those who are familiar with Rachmaninov's All Night Service/Vespers, this piece is composed in a similar style and is considered by many to be a great successor to that piece. The musical texture is lush and combines chant melodic influences with the harmonic compositional style of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. For those who may be interested, the vocal score was unavailable for decades, and it has only been printed by Mussica Russica in the last few years. The recording is done very well and is the only one available at this time. We should be thankful to all who were responsible for making this recording and its distribution.