Odradek Records: Rachmaninoff - Bells / Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini - Latvian National Symphony Orchestra - Audio CD

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Product Details:

• Product Type: Audio CD (Digipak)
• Label: Odradek Records
• Catalog Number: ODRCD345
• Composer: Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
• Pianist: Vestard Shimkus (Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini)
• Soprano: Irina Krikunova (The Bells)
• Tenor: Yevgeny Akimov (The Bells)
• Bass-Baritone: Egils Siliņš (The Bells)
• Chorus: State Choir Latvija
• Conductor: Andris Poga
• Orchestra: Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO)
• Genre: Classical / Orchestral / Choral Symphony
• Release: 2016
• Publisher: Odradek Records LLC, Lawrence (KS), USA
• Barcode (UPC): 855317003455
• Condition: Factory Sealed

Product Features

• Format: Single CD (square digipak)
• Total Playing Time: 63:46
• Audio: DDD
• Booklet: English / German / French
• Made in Czech Republic

Overview

Two of Rachmaninoff's most beloved and personal works on a single disc, performed by some of the finest Latvian musicians of their generation.

The Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43 opens the programme. Pianist Vestard Shimkus plays all 26 variations with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra under Andris Poga. The Rhapsody is technically one of the most demanding concerto-like works for piano and orchestra in the repertoire - and musically one of the most satisfying, combining Rachmaninoff's trademark lyrical intensity with genuine wit and structural ingenuity. The famous 18th Variation - an inversion of Paganini's theme that becomes one of the most recognized melodies in all of classical music - arrives here with exactly the right combination of warmth and restraint.

The Bells, Op. 35 occupies the second half of the disc. This choral symphony for soprano, tenor, bass-baritone, chorus, and orchestra sets texts by Edgar Allan Poe (in a Russian translation by Konstantin Balmont) across four movements, each devoted to a different kind of bell - silver sleigh bells, wedding bells, alarm bells, and iron funeral bells. It is one of Rachmaninoff's own favourite works and one of the most emotionally complete things he ever wrote. The State Choir Latvija brings considerable weight and precision to the choral writing, and the three soloists - Krikunova, Akimov, and Siliņš - handle their respective movements with authority.

The 2016 Odradek recording, made in the Czech Republic, is clean and spacious - well-suited to music that requires both orchestral detail and choral mass.

Interesting Facts

• Rachmaninoff composed The Bells in 1913, describing it as his favourite among his own works; he conducted its American premiere in Philadelphia in 1929, sixteen years after its completion.
• The text of The Bells comes from Edgar Allan Poe's 1849 poem of the same name, translated into Russian by symbolist poet Konstantin Balmont; Rachmaninoff was reportedly sent an anonymous letter suggesting the poem as a subject for a choral symphony.
• The Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (1934) was composed at Villa Senar, Rachmaninoff's Swiss home on Lake Lucerne; the entire work was written in just five weeks.
• Variation 18 of the Rhapsody - the slow, sweeping inversion of Paganini's theme - was not in Rachmaninoff's original sketches; he added it late in the compositional process after experimenting with the melodic inversion technique.
• Vestard Shimkus (born Riga, 1986) is one of Latvia's most internationally active pianists, known for his wide repertoire spanning Bach to contemporary music; he studied at the Juilliard School in New York.
• Andris Poga (born 1980) became Chief Conductor of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra in 2014; he has also served as assistant conductor at the Metropolitan Opera and worked closely with orchestras across Europe and the United States.
• Egils Siliņš is one of the most distinguished bass-baritones to emerge from the Baltic states, performing regularly at the Vienna State Opera, Bayreuth, and the Metropolitan Opera.

Track Listing

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43 — Vestard Shimkus, piano

1. Introduction: Allegro vivace 0'08 / 02. Variation I (Precedente) 0'21 / 03. Tema: L'istesso tempo 0'22 / 04. Variation 2: L'istesso tempo 0'21 / 05. Variation 3: L'istesso tempo 0'29 / 06. Variation 4: Più vivo 0'30 / 07. Variation 5: Tempo precedente 0'29 / 08. Variation 6: L'istesso tempo 1'26 / 09. Variation 7: Meno mosso, a tempo moderato 1'19 / 10. Variation 8: Tempo I 0'38 / 11. Variation 9: L'istesso tempo 0'36 / 12. Variation 10: L'istesso tempo 1'00 / 13. Variation 11: Moderato 1'38 / 14. Variation 12: Tempo di minuetto (D minor) 1'42 / 15. Variation 13: Allegro (D minor) 0'34 / 16. Variation 14: L'istesso tempo (F major) 0'48 / 17. Variation 15: Più vivo scherzando (F major) 1'19 / 18. Variation 16: Allegretto (B flat minor) 1'35 / 19. Variation 17: (Allegretto) (B flat minor) 1'46 / 20. Variation 18: Andante cantabile (D flat major) 3'30 / 21. Variation 19: A tempo vivace 0'35 / 22. Variation 20: Un poco più vivo 0'41 / 23. Variation 21: Un poco più vivo 0'26 / 24. Variation 22: Marziale. Un poco più vivo (Alla breve) 1'49 / 25. Variation 23: L'istesso tempo 0'58 / 26. Variation 24: A tempo un poco meno mosso 1'27

The Bells, Op. 35 — choral symphony for soprano, tenor, baritone, chorus & orchestra

1. Allegro, ma non tanto (The Silver Sleigh Bells) - Yevgeny Akimov, tenor 6'27 / 28. Lento - Adagio (The Mellow Wedding Bells) - Irina Krikunova, soprano 10'32 / 29. Presto (The Loud Alarum Bells) - State Choir Latvija 9'02 / 30. Lento lugubre - Allegro - Andante (The Mournful Iron Bells) - Egils Siliņš, bass-baritone 11'03

Total playing time: 63:46

Label & Publisher

Odradek Records LLC, Lawrence (KS), USA. © & ℗ 2016 Odradek Records LLC. www.odradek-records.com

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