Lithuanian music

[semloh]

I like the music of Ciurlionis, including his piano music mentioned earlier. Although I haven't found the latter especially memorable, it's mostly gentle, melodious and contemplative - which suits me fine much of the time!

In respect of orchestral music, we mustn't forget Naujalis of course - composer of the Lithuanian national anthem. I am not familiar with any of his other compositions, except two rather enjoyable pieces - Autumn and Daydream - that appeared on an old Melodiya LP.

[Christopher]

My teacher at school said Lithuanian names looked like infections - Tonsillytis, Laryngytis....!  With no offence to Lithuanians - I am looking forward enormously to visiting!!

[SadRobotSings]

I had a little thread over here going a while back. Laurischkus is a bit of an oddity, I haven't found too much information on him, and little of his work is recorded. I do have a record transfer of his woodwind quintet, based on Lithuanian themes, let me know if you want to take a listen!

http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,4719.msg50584.html#msg50584

[Christopher]

Yes please!! 

[Delicious Manager]

Somewhat off topic, but apparently, Lithuanian is one of the most archaic languages spoken today and the closest living language to the old Proto-Indo-European, from which most European and some Asian languages evolved. To hear a Lithuanian peasant speaking is as close as we can get to hearing this ancient mother tongue.

[Alan Howe]

Interesting...

[Christopher]

I made a similar observation about the Lithuanian language - http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,1528.15.html back in February 2012 and immediately got a very curt sarcastic putdown to stay on-topic.  I guess some people will never be in the in-crowd....

[Christopher]

I have put in the downloads section a recording of Mikalojus Čiurlionis's Kęstutis symphonic overture. Čiurlionis, I understand, wrote his as a symphonic overture, but never got around to orchestating it, leaving it only in piano form. in 1995, the Lithuanian musicologist Jurgis Juozapaitis http://www.mic.lt/en/classical/persons/info/juozapaitisjurgis restored and orchestrated it.  I understand this was recorded privately for Lithuanian radio, though it was never actually broadcast (yet).

Kęstutis (1297-1382) was a medieval monarch (grand-duke) of Lithuania.

[Alan Howe]

and immediately got a very curt sarcastic putdown to stay on-topic.  I guess some people will never be in the in-crowd....

There's no in-crowd here. But I'm glad you returned to the topic - thank you. And apologies for any inconsistency of reaction to digressions - it's a hard thing to judge.

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks very much indeed for Kęstutis, Christopher.

[semloh]

Yes, thank you Christopher. We are most fortunate to have access to this. It's a passionate and most enjoyable piece, and to my ears expertly played, but is it complete? It does seem to tail off quite unexpectedly! 

[jerfilm]

I second or third or whatever the others.   Thanks for the treat, Christopher

Here's a funny thing, tho, Alan or Mark - and maybe no one else experiences this.  I always have UC come up with the unread topics showing.  And once again it showed all of the new topics except the new download.   And that's happened to me numerous times.  No big deal, of course, but I do have to check the download section for new things from time to time.

Jerry

[Mark Thomas]

Jerry, I'll investigate this to see if other users of the software on which UC is based have experienced a similar problem. Can't say that I have, though.

[Christopher]

I'm glad you enjoyed!  I think it's a nice enough piece too.  I am trying to find if it has been recorded in its piano version to compare and see if it does indeed tail off......

[Christopher]

I know yesterday's thread on Karnavicius's opera "Radvila"  http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,6907.0.html was locked almost straightaway, but.... Can I draw attention to an aria from another of his operas, Grazina, which is available on youtube (see above).  It is full-blown late-romantic and very very beautiful.  His overture Ulalume (after Edgar Alan Poe) is similarly a true late-Romantic and very beautiful piece (and available to download on AMF).  To me this bodes well for the likelihood that Radvila would be in the style that this Forum would appreciate (I have some excerpts on LP recorded by the Chicago-Lithuanian Opera Company* and so I can actually confirm this, though I can't post them up here due to house rules - they are also on AMF).

Incidentally, for those interested in history, "Radvila" is the Lithuanian variant of the name "Radziwiłł" - this opera is about Perkūnas Radziwiłł (1547–1603), one of the leaders of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and an important prince of the Holy Roman Empire.

(*Chicago and Illinois are home to a large Lithuanian emigre population)