Onyx: Tchaikovsky - Symphonies Nos. 3, 4 & 6 "Pathétique" / Petrenko, RLPO (2-CD)

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Product Details:

• UPC: 0880040416227
• Catalog Number: ONYX 4162
• Product Type: 2-CD Set
• Label: Onyx Classics
• Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
• Conductor: Vasily Petrenko
• Orchestra: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
• Release Year: 2017
• Genre: Classical / Symphonic
• Condition: Brand New / Factory Sealed

Product Features

• Format: 2 Audio CDs in jewel case
• CD 1 Total Time: 59:55
• CD 2 Total Time: 58:09
• Manufactured: EU
• © 2017 PM Classics Ltd.

Overview

Three Tchaikovsky symphonies across two discs — and not the obvious three. Pairing the Fourth and the Sixth with the rarely recorded Third is a deliberate programming choice, and it pays off. The "Polish" Symphony (No. 3 in D major, Op. 29) is the odd one out in the Tchaikovsky canon: five movements, a dance finale, none of the brooding fatalism that defines the later works. Hearing it alongside No. 4 and the "Pathétique" reframes all three.

Vasily Petrenko recorded this with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic during his tenure there, a partnership that produced some of the most consistently praised Tchaikovsky on disc in the past two decades. His approach is direct — clean tempos, well-controlled dynamics, no interpretive self-indulgence. The RLPO plays with genuine commitment, and the Onyx engineering gives the orchestra a natural, full-bodied sound.

The Sixth Symphony closes the set. The "Pathétique" needs no introduction, but this account earns its place in the crowded field. The final Adagio lamentoso is given its full weight without being stretched into something mournful for its own sake.

Interesting Facts

• Vasily Petrenko was Principal Conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra from 2006 to 2021 — one of the longest and most decorated tenures in the orchestra's history.
• Symphony No. 3, the "Polish," is Tchaikovsky's only symphony in a major key and his only five-movement symphony; it is rarely programmed in concert halls despite its considerable invention.
• Symphony No. 6, "Pathétique," was premiered by Tchaikovsky himself in St. Petersburg on October 28, 1893 — just nine days before his death. It is widely considered his farewell statement.
• The RLPO is one of the oldest professional symphony orchestras in the UK, founded in 1840 — the same year Tchaikovsky was born.
• Onyx Classics was founded in 2004 and has built a catalogue focused on major international soloists and conductors, with a reputation for clean, unfussy recording quality.
• Petrenko and the RLPO's complete Tchaikovsky symphony cycle for Onyx received widespread critical acclaim, including multiple Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine recommendations.

Track Listing

CD 1 - 59:55

Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36:

1. Andante sostenuto - 17:25
2. Andantino in modo di canzona - 9:09
3. Scherzo: Pizzicato ostinato. Allegro - 5:18
4. Finale. Allegro con fuoco - 7:50

Symphony No. 3 in D major "Polish", Op. 29:

1. I Moderato assai (Tempo di marcia funebre) - 13:57
2. II Alla Tedesca (Allegro moderato e semplice) - 6:11

CD 2 - 58:09

Symphony No. 3 (continued):

1. III Andante elegiaco - 10:00
2. IV Allegro vivo - 6:01
3. V Finale: Allegro con fuoco (Tempo di Polacca) - 7:54

Symphony No. 6 in B minor "Pathétique", Op. 74:

1. Adagio - 18:44
2. Allegro con grazia - 6:47
3. Allegro molto vivace - 8:41
4. Finale. Adagio lamentoso - 11:38

Publishers

Onyx Classics / PM Classics Ltd. © 2017. Made in the EU. Full artist biographies at onxyclassics.com.

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