"I love Russian music" thread

[Holger]

By the way, Svetlanov's (Soviet-time) recordings of Glazunov's symphonies and other orchestral works have only recently been reissued by Melodiya as part of a large anthology which presents Svetlanov conducting Russian and Soviet music:
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/aram-khachaturian-anthology-of-russian-and-soviet-symphoniy-music-vol-2/hnum/7619111
Of course, these are 55 discs costing €400 and therefore mostly for enthusiasts (in fact, I recently decided to buy a copy).

[Alan Howe]

Ridiculous price. Why can't they break the set down sensibly?

[adriano]

Who is going to buy this?? And this is a second volume already? Would never buy such an edition with many different composers... At the maximum I would choose a set concentrating on one composer only like the ones we talked about earlier (Glazunov). I also never buy "monument" sets honouring a single artist. In other words, the Russians now publish that Svetlanov legacy edition (is it really complete??) which Warner was unable to... Anyway, Svetlanov isn't as exciting as that to be in need everything he recorded.

[adriano]

Now to Svetlanov's second recording of Tchaikovsky's "Manfred" Symphony (Japan live recording, a separate Warner issue):
The work is played here in an unpardonable drastically cut version. In the 4th movement, for example, the postlude-like "redemption" episode with the organ is omitted completely. Earlier in the same movement there is an absurd cut of over 50 bars, whose translation now sounds awfully brutal.
To the dramatic ending chords of the first movement, Svetlanov adds a handful of extra - clumsy and silly syncopated - tamtam clashes. As far as I remember, this could be coming from a Golovanov version.
Not to speak about the fact that the recording has a continuous humming, sounding as if coming from an air conditioning device.
Does a masterwork like "Manfred" really need all this to become more interesting??
As far as the interpretation is concerned, the fourth movement of this live recording is quite thrilling, but the rest remains conventional and rather boring. There are so many reasons - in spite of an inferior sound quality - to prefer Svetlanov's earlier (1970) - and complete - recording, revealing an overall compact atmosphere...

[sdtom]

Sounds like my first GE stereo when I was 10 

[Alan Howe]

Huh? 

[sdtom]

the buzz

[Alan Howe]

...of excitement? Or a hum?

[adriano]

In my last posting I've corrected the word "hum" into "humming", in case this may cause some excitement :-)

[M. Yaskovsky]

I remember a concert I attended in Vienna. USSR Tchaikovsky SO under Vladimir Fedoseyev. The Manfred was  severely cut! The TCHAIKOVSKY SO!!!!!!! My goodness. Many in the public were very enthusiastic. I was angry. Do you have a recommendation for a true great Manfred recording Hadrianus?

[Alan Howe]

Jurowski?

[adriano]

There are several excellent Manfred Symphony interpretations, starting from (if I am not wrong) the first stereo version by Igor Markevitch (1965), followed by Maazel (1971) and Ahronovitch (1977), just to mention the 3 "separate CD issues", besides those already included in "complete Symphonies" boxes by Svetlanov (early version), Muti, Caetani, Pletnjev (both versions), Rostropovich, Jansons and Kitaenko - which all figure in my collection. They are all uncut versions. The exciting (mono) version by Toscanini is, unfurtunately, also cut.
Perhaps I am going to buy Vasily Petrenko's version on Naxos and the old Rozhdesvensky one (which Melodyia could have included in their (excellent) complete Tchaikowsky Symphonies box, but perhaps they didn't because he recorded it with another orchestra).
Maazel's is (if I am not wrong) the only version using a real deep, mysterious and bleak church bell in the 3rd movement, instead of the usual dull orchestral tubular bells.
Ahronovitch's version is one of the most "personal" ever, but still in the concept of the composer; I just adore it!
Ahronovich also managed to record (with Tomas Vasary) the best version of Rachmaninov's concertos, as far as the orchestral accompaniment is concerned. He and the pianist created a wonder!
Such a pity that Karajan and Bernstein never cared about the Manfred Symphony! They would have delivered exciting - and wonderfully played - interpretations of this very difficult work.
Before "cleaning up" my LP and, lately, my CD collection, I had a half a dozen more Manfreds...
I have studied this score thorougly many times. In my personal opinion, the Ahronovich, Maazel and Jurowski ones are the best. Caetani's is also excellent - he is Markevitch's son; he told me that his father's (and his own) tempi should be closest to those Tchaikovsky intended - as far as he could learn from people who worked with the composer.

I have the large score of Manfred from the first complete Tchaikovsky edition published by Muzgiz in 1949. I bought it in the 1970s, at a time it was already a rarity and was very proud to possess it. I even found a printing mistake (not figuring in their errata list) and dared to write to the publisher about it – and he even answered. I just find this, my first Russian incoming letter of 1972 is still in my archive... Of course, in the meantime, there are better editions of this work, as, for example, the Eulenburg. The new (in)complete NCE Tchaikovsky edition in 76 volumes is too expensive – and progressing too slowly (as, for example, the new Scriabin edition in 12 volumes, which I still hope tob e able to buy in complete during my life).

Did some of you realise that the second movement of this Symphony has his main "waterfall spray" theme all written down in a syncopated way? Untraiend ears do not hear this, but as a sensitive conductor one should emphasize this, and not just be vexed about it, making one have to concentrate a lot more as if it was written down in a non syncopated way...
Thanks for asking, this is one of my "desert island" music pieces :-)

[sdtom]

hum, but I was most excited about the equipment and the recording of Tchaikovsky 

[Christopher]

Thank you for this Hadrianus - Tchaikovsky is far and away my favourite of all composers, sung and unsung.  And yet the Manfred Symphony has always left me cold, if not asleep (so, unsung to me). It just has never done ANYTHING for me. Now, I will listen to it with new ears, and especially will hunt down the recordings you mention.

[Alan Howe]

It's one of the great unsung works by a sung composer.