Latvian music

[Latvian]

Wolfgang Darzins
Piano Concerto #2

M. Zembergs, piano (?? hard to read)
Reins Latvian Academic Symphony Orchestra, conductor unknown

Not sure if this was from a broadcast or an old Melodiya Lp

Yes, the pianist is M. Zembergs and he is indeed Latvian (I don't remember his first name just now, but can look it up when I'm at home). The conductor on this performance is Imants Resnis. The performance is very much post-Melodiya LP era, probably from about 10 to 15 years ago.

Volfgangs Dārziņš fled Latvia in 1944 when the USSR occupied the Baltic states. He spent the last ten years or so of his life in Seattle, Washington, as a highly respected piano pedagogue. His music also became more experimental during this time, though he continued to produce lovely, idiomatic Latvian folk song settings as well, both for solo piano and solo voice and piano.

Volfgangs Dārziņš was one of a group of Latvian composers who fled the Soviet occupation in WWII and made their way abroad. Prominent musicians in independent Latvia between the two world wars, they were unable to reestablish themselves abroad with as much success -- Volfgangs Dārziņš, Bruno Skulte, Helmers Pavasars, and numerous others.

During the Soviet Latvian period, the music of these composers was forbidden to be performed or recorded. For many years, even the mention of their names could land one in deep trouble with the government in Soviet Latvia. They were completely "non-persons." Sometime I'll post some further anecdotes...

Re Sinaiski - wasn't his father a conductor who made Melodiya recordings also (and whose first initial also transliterates to "V." - making for some befuddlement... or am I thinking of another famous father and son Soviet/ex-Soviet conducting pair- no, not the Järvi family)

Eric, I believe you're thinking of the Jansons family -- father Arvīds, and son Mariss. The other Jansons (who is based in New York), Andrejs Jansons, is not related to them, at least not directly. Jansons is a fairly common name in Latvia.

Do you have also by any chance scans of the back covers of the LPs

I own copies of all the Ivanovs symphonic recordings issued by Melodiya. I can provide whatever detail you need.

[Latvian]

During the Soviet Latvian period, the music of these composers was forbidden to be performed or recorded. For many years, even the mention of their names could land one in deep trouble with the government in Soviet Latvia. They were completely "non-persons."

I should clarify... their music was forbidden in the Soviet Union, specifically Soviet Latvia. It was performed and recorded frequently abroad, though usually only within Latvian emigre circles. Most of it never made much of an impact outside the Latvian community.

[eschiss1]

And of course Talivaldis Kenins (1919 Liepaja - 2008 Toronto). I have some of his chamber music on CD and have heard part of one of his symphonies (also from a Canadian Centrediscs CD set.)

[Latvian]

And of course Talivaldis Kenins

How could I forget! He certainly made a strong impression outside the Latvian community, especially in Canada.

Another name I should mention in this regard is Jānis Kalniņš (1904-2000), son of composer Alfrēds Kalniņš. He also attained a substantial reputation in Canadian music, though not to the extent that Ķeniņš did, and more as a conductor and teacher rather than as a composer.

[Holger]

Hi Latvian,

what do you think about Longīns Apkalns? I know several of his works, among them two of his symphonies, but I have to admit that I am not convinced of them. What makes him interesting is that he wrote a book on Latvian music (in German) whose statements about composers like Jānis Ivanovs and Ādolfs Skulte are rather doubtful in my view (he speaks about their symphonic output in a rather derogatory way). On the other hand, he uses to emphasize the backwardness of Soviet Latvian composers in contrast to his own output - which is really astonishing because none of the pieces I know by him is about what I would call modern! It all seems rather strange in my view.

[Callipygian]

I checked Oleg's links to the Ivanovs symphonies. I traced Oleg's links to the following sources:

Symphony No. 1 "Poema-Sinfonia"
Latgalian Landscapes
Symphony No. 2

Campion Imants Resnis/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1980, 1982, 1981) CAMPION CAMEO 2008 (1997). Volume 1 in the Ivanovs series

Symphony № 3 (1938)
Cello concerto (1938—1945)
The Cloudy Mountain, Symphonic Poem.

Imants Resnis/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1982)
CAMPION CAMEO 2009 (1997) Volume 2 in the same series

Symphony № 4 / Rainbow

Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1986)
CAMPION CAMEO 2007 (1997) Vol. 3 in series

Symphony No.5
Symphony No.12

Dmitri Yablonsky/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra
MARCO POLO 8.223332 (1996)

Symphony No.6

UNCLEAR, might be USSR Radio Symphony Orchestra or Latvian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by either Leonids Vigners or Edgars Tons. All sources do agree on Melodiya 1965, maybe someone can help me out here? ;/

Symphony No.7

Leonids Vigners/Latvian Radio Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA D-3920-1 (LP) (1957)


Symphony № 8 B Minor (1956)

Probably wav from the next cd

Symphonies Nos. 8 & 20

Dmitri Yablonsky/Moscow Symphony Orchestra
NAXOS 8.555740 (2004)


Symphony № 9 (1960)

Edgars Tons/Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra
MELODIYA D 7881-2 (LP) (1961)


Symphony № 10 (1963)
Piano concerto (1959)
Andante (1961)

Edgars Tons/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1963)
CAMPION CAMEO 2013 (1998)

Symphony № 11 (1965)

Edgars Tons/Latvian Radio Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1961)
(MELODIYA 33S-01407-8 (LP) (1967)

Symphony № 13 "Symphonia Humana" (1969)

Radio recording of the Latvian Symphony Orechstra with Vilumanis as conductor, date and place unknown

Symphony № 15 "Sinfonia Ipsa" (1972)
Symphony № 16 (1974)
Symphony № 18 (1977)

3 separate sources:
S15: Eri Klas/Latvian Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA 33SM-04223-4 (LP) (1974)
S16: Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian TV and Radio Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA 33 S10-05961-2 (LP) (1975)
S18: Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian SSR State Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA S10-16527-8 (LP) (1982)

Symphony № 17 (1976)
Symphony № 19 (1979)
Symphony № 20 "Novella Brevis" (1981)
Symphony № 21 (1983)

again from different sources:
S17: Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian TV and Radio Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA S10-13263-4 (LP) (1980)
S19: Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian SSR State Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA S10-18421-2 (LP) (1983)
S20: Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian SSR State Symphony Orchestra
MELODIYA S10-20451 000 (LP) (1984)
S21:Vassily Sinaisky/Latvian SSR State Symphony Orchestra (rec. 1982)
   MELODIYA S10 25349 003- 51 008 (2 LPs) (1987)


Symphony No. 8
Symphonic Poem "Lacplesis"

Music from the Film: "The Late Frost in Spring"

This is the Campion vol. 6 Edgars Tons/Latvian National Symphony Orchestra CAMPION CAMEO 2012 (1998)

Since most of the Campion cd's can still quite easily be obtained and the same goes for Marco Polo, I suggest I post only the links to upload the Melodiya releases (minus the ones sicmu already kindly shared with us) and the radio recording of the 13th (the source of which remains vague, so any confirmation that it is indeed Ivanovs'  13th and any additional information on the recording would be very welcome).

[eschiss1]

Re Ivanovs symphony 19 - Dschfan is right- according to http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2002/Apr02/Ivanovs7.htm the Sinaisky recording of symphony 19 is 38'27", so the third movement, lasting 12 minutes just about exactly, is missing.

[Greg K]

Does anyone know if Ivanovs' Symphony No.14 is available anywhere?  That one seems to be missing from both CD and the Melodiya uploads.

[eschiss1]

It was planned for volume 9 of the Campion series - as a reissue of LPs I am guessing  - but not released.  Anyhow, its full title is
Simfonii︠a︡ No. 14 : kamernai︠a︡ : dli︠a︡ strunnogo orkestra
published 1974.
However: a reissue of the 1972 LP recording of the Sinfonia da camera symphony no.14 was released on a CD set in 2009 (2002 performance, I think)  ("Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music") ( Latvian Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra ; Tofijs Lifšics, conductor. So I suspect that it may not be possible , in my opinion fwiw, to upload here the one recording I know of , anyway?, of the 14th symphony...

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks for your diligence, Callipygian. Please do post the non-CD Ivanov recordings again.

[Latvian]

I can supply an upload of the 14th Symphony from a live broadcast performance, when time permits. Let's see what other gaps we have after the dust settles, and I may be able to supply live versions of some others as well.

[Mykulh]

A further recording of Ivanovs' 14th Symphony has been available from the Latvian Music Information Centre. It's listing is as follows:

Symphony No. 14 in D minor for String Orchestra "Sinfonia da Camera" (1971)

Andris Vecumnieks/Orchestra Sinfonia Concertante
( + Grinups: Symphony No. 9, Kalsons: Chamber Symphony No. 1, Jurjans: Latvian Dance, Janis Medinš: The Blue Mountain, Zarinš: Concerto Grosso, Plakidis: Concerto for Orchestra and Piano, Vasks: Musica Appassionata and Ešenvalds: The Frontiers of Time)
LATVIAN MUSIC INFORMATION CENTRE LMIC (2 CDs) (2005)

I am not certain of its current availability status so check the following site: Muzika Latvija http://www.lmic.lv/core.php?pageId=722&&l=G

Good luck,

Michael

[eschiss1]

Sicmu - Whatever happened - sorry, sounding like a skipping CD here - to the 3rd movement of symphony 19? Apparently from what I gather about 12 minutes of music... (still, there is the alternate link from mail... ru in Callipygian's post- don't know if Callipygian left or if he's one of The 25... , with the whole symphony as a rar file. Hopefully the missing 12-minute 3rd movement is there instead )

[black]

Atsushi,
The link to the uploaded symphonies 4 & 5 by Adolfs Skulte works, but once downdloaded the .rar file refuses to be openend.

[lechner1110]

  Hi Black,
 
  I reuploaded zip file now.
  Maybe you can download it


  Atsushi