performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy Photo by Navi on Unsplash After the dark, almost narcotic air of the sixth sonata, we now have its brighter twin. That said, it’s still full of Scriabin’s characteristic mystery and programmatic-interpretive notes. There was a … Continue reading Scriabin Piano Sonata 7, op. 64
performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy Photo by Alexandr Rusnac on Unsplash I didn’t realize when I resurrected my writing over here and started making lists of things to write about that we were already past the halfway point in Scriabin’s sonatas, … Continue reading Scriabin Piano Sonata no. 6, op. 62
performed by the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia under Yevgeny Svetlanov Photo by Tsuyoshi Kozu on Unsplash I haven’t the faintest idea what possessed me years ago to: Perhaps if I (or you) went back and read the articles … Continue reading Myaskovsky Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 3
Cover photo by Philippe Bout on Unsplash I’ve been hard at work on music lectures lately, with only a couple of weeks until I present Beethoven’s magnificent ninth symphony to an audience who just a few years ago had only … Continue reading The Potential for Scholarship
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under Valery Gergiev Now we are rejoicing in our great victory, but each of us has wounds that cannot be healed. One has lost those … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 6 in E flat minor, op. 111
performed by the Taneyev Quartet (cover image by Frederic Koberl) Vadim Nikolayevich Salmanov was born on November 4, 1912 in Saint Petersburg. His musical education began with piano lessons from his father, and was preparing to enter the Leningrad Conservatory … Continue reading Vadim Salmanov: String Quartet no. 1
performed by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Mariss Jansons, or below by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Michal Dolnik) Thankfully, we have now arrived at uncontested, overwhelming greatness in Shostakovich’s symphonic output. Not … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 4 in Cm, op. 43
performed by the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra under Gennady Provatorov (cover image by Johannes Plenio) (this piece is featured on a list of pieces I heartily recommend to music directors for inclusion on their season programs. Check out the article … Continue reading Gavriil Popov: Symphony no. 1, op. 7
performed by the Stenhammar Quartet, or below by the Glazunov Quartet (cover image by Johannes Plenio) At the beginning one does not expect much from this piece completed under the tutelage of Nikolay Myaskovsky on November 20, 1928; a study piece and … Continue reading Dmitry Kabalevsky: String Quartet no. 1 in Am, op. 8
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Neeme Järvi, or below by the Orchestra of the USSR Ministry of Culture and the Russian State Academic Choir Cappella under Gennady Rozhdestvensky (cover image by Paul Morris) …whereas in October, the … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 3 in E flat, op. 20, ‘The First of May’
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under Valery Gergiev (cover image by Ian Baldwin) Next is the third symphonies of both composers, and again, Prokofiev comes out in a much better … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 3 in Cm, op. 44
performed by Chamber Music Northwest, or below by performers at the Cleveland Institute of Music (cover image by Joanna Kosinska) We’re going to see that Prokofiev’s self-plagiarism was relatively common, at least in this period, and considering he wrote such … Continue reading Prokofiev Quintet in Gm, op. 39
performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Neeme Järvi, or as below with the WDR Radio Chorus and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne under Rudolf Barshai (cover image by Taton Moïse) [O]ne is tempted simply to cut it off … Continue reading Shostakovich Symphony no. 2 in B, op. 14, ‘To October’
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Johannes Plenio) I have made the music so complex to such an extent that when I listen to … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 2 in Dm, op. 40
performed by the Goldner String Quartet, or below by the Alban Berg Quartet (cover image by David von Diemar) One of Stravinsky’s few efforts in the string quartet form, the Three Pieces dates from 1914, right after Petrushka and The Rite of Spring. … Continue reading Stravinsky: Three Pieces for String Quartet
performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Boulez (cover image by Patrick Hendry) Mark him well—he is a man on the eve of celebrity. Serge Diaghilev of Igor Stravinsky This piece may well be the most famous of Stravinsky’s, … Continue reading Stravinsky: The Firebird
performed by the Lucerne Festival Orchestra under Riccardo Chailly, or below with the Columbia Orchestra under the composer’s baton (cover image by Jingda Chen) And now for something completely different. It’s almost shocking to me, despite being the sole writer and … Continue reading Stravinsky: Feu d’artifice
performed by the Kronos Quartet, or below by the Quatuor Molinari The treatment of the instruments and the formal process aim for the impression of a quasi-improvisation in which the “uncertainty” is continually increasing. In the second movement it explodes … Continue reading Schnittke String Quartet no. 1
performed by Mark Lubotsky and the Malmö Symphony Orchestra under Eri Klas, available on Spotify (cover image by Bohdan Lesiv) I see a desperate striving to find myself in the work on this concerto. This quest was very rarely successful, … Continue reading Schnittke Violin Concerto no. 1
performed by the Cape Town Philharmonic under Owain Arwel Hughes, available on Spotify (cover image by Serge Kutuzov) Strong arguments exist both for and against publishing works that composers either themselves decided not to publish or later withdrew (or perhaps … Continue reading Schnittke Symphony no. 0
performed by Simon Smith (available on Spotify, but not YouTube) The music of Alfred Schnittke has always delivered on its promise of darkness, but one must occasionally remind oeself [sic] that man could be really funny sometimes; on his misshapen circle, … Continue reading Schnittke: 8 Pieces for piano