This is a superlative new 2-CD set of Kalinnikov 1 and Glazunov 5 (coupled with the Suite from Khachaturian's Masquerade). It's relatively expensive, unfortunately - and short measure - but the experience of hearing these works played by a great orchestra and an up-and-coming young conductor recorded in spectacular sound has been for me an overwhelming experience:
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=292587&name_role1=3&bcorder=3&name_id=61898&name_role=4 (http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=292587&name_role1=3&bcorder=3&name_id=61898&name_role=4)
Here's some info about Kazuki Yamada, the conductor:
http://www.productions-sarfati.com/en/231/kazuki-yamada (http://www.productions-sarfati.com/en/231/kazuki-yamada)
Kalinnikov's First and Glazunov's Fifth - now that's a coupling made in heaven. Still, it's quite an investment for music which I already have duplicated several time's over....
I agree with Mark on this one. While I only have one Kalinnikov recording (Naxos 8.553417) I have three recordings of Glazunov's 5th symphony so it would be hard for me to justify getting another CD. Alan will have to keep us posted on how good this new release is.
Tom
Too bad they didn't release the disks separately - I'd spring for another Kalinnikov, but have quite a few Glazunovs already. I don't know how much people in other parts of the world pay for Exton recordings, but they're really expensive here if you buy from Tower Japan. I'll wait until this shows up on Ebay!
Many congratulations, Alan, on passing the 5,000 mark accompanied by an "overwhelming experience". And our thanks for 5,000 barks, bites, cries, bits of advice, thumbs up, shouts, sighs, exclamations, admonitions, kindly advice, and the occasional castigation. We appreciate it all.
Very kind.
This set was a bit of an indulgence on my part, I must admit. What persuaded me to be it were:
1. Yamada as a new young conductor to watch.
2. The reputation of the label as a producer of fine-sounding recordings.
3. Most of all: to hear the great Czech Philharmonic in this repertoire. Not to be missed.
Congratulations Alan. BTW dont forget to add the point that Both the Symphonies are probably works that show the respective composers in the best light. Glazunov No. 5 has had many outings but unfortunately only Neeme Järvi [Superlative!] & Vassily Sinaisky do justice to this monumental piece. The much hyped cycle by José Serebrier was a let down for me, especially the 5th. True, he is more flexible in tempo and the rubato approach to the opening of the symphony was very dramatic but as soon as the symphony actually starts he seems to be at a loss what to do with it. All in all it gave the effect of a very attractive gift wrapped box which had a very inferior gift inside! [Sorry if I offended anyone :-\ .... its just a personal opinion! :D]
You're convincing but not enough to get me to spring.
Tom
Quote from: FBerwald on Monday 30 September 2013, 19:09
Congratulations Alan. BTW dont forget to add the point that Both the Symphonies are probably works that show the respective composers in the best light. Glazunov No. 5 has had many outings but unfortunately only the Neeme Järvi [Superlative!] & Vassily Sinaisky do justice to this monumental piece. The much hyped cycle by José Serebrier was a let down for me, especially the 5th. True, he is more flexible in tempo and the rubato approach to the opening of the symphony was very dramatic but as soon as the symphony actually starts he seems to be at a loss what to do with it. All in all it gave the effect of a very attractive gift wrapped box which had a very inferior gift inside! [Sorry if I offended anyone :-\ .... its just a personal opinion! :D]
What is your opinion of the Naxos and Svetlanov recordings.
Tom
Naxos is a snoozfest! Unfortunately I haven't heard the Svetlanov but he rarely disappoints.
Svetlanov is superlative in the Kalinnikov. It's a very great recording - such strength of purpose really elevates the music to another level. Unmissable.
Forget the Naxos Glazunov 5. Nothing like good enough. Serebrier or Yamada are wonderful by contrast.
Again I didn't make myself clear. The Svetlanov recordings I was talking about were the Glazunov symphonies. How do these compare with the others.
As far as Kalinnikov is concerned I have the Naxos (1 and 2) and the Chandos ( 1 only coupled with Glazunov tone poems). I also have the Marco Polo Tsar Boris and tone poems.
As far as Glazunov is concerned beside the Svetlanov I have some Vox/Turnabout LP's (which I have transferred to CD), the Serebrier set, and the Naxos CD's. I have too much duplication and need to weed some of them out. What would you keep?
Tom
Can't help in any detail, I'm afraid. I'd probably keep the lot - I rarely chuck anything out, except the odd real dud.
Tom, do not worry too much about 'which is the best?'. Fortunately musical works are not like wives - you can have more than one. And be glad of duplications - unless you happen to live in a tent.
More seriously, if you enjoy Glazunov have you tried the string quartets? Immensely rewarding - and close to his own heart.
I've only heard some of Glazunov's string quartets myself, unfortunately, a gap I keep meaning to rectify. The 4th looks like one of those "4th quartets in A minor" that I either know I enjoy very (very) much or think I will -- once I hear it (well, there's at least two others- Stenhammar, S. Taneiev...) (the Taneiev and Glazunov, at least, look like they may share some other similarities too, at least from the scores, if I remember...)
Quote from: petershott@btinternet.com on Monday 30 September 2013, 23:36
Tom, do not worry too much about 'which is the best?'. Fortunately musical works are not like wives - you can have more than one. And be glad of duplications - unless you happen to live in a tent.
More seriously, if you enjoy Glazunov have you tried the string quartets? Immensely rewarding - and close to his own heart.
Peter I do have the Delos (DE3262) recording of the 5 novelettes coupled with the 5th string quartet. I also have the string quintet but that is the extent of the chamber works I have of Glazunov. I'll need to look into them further.
Tom :)
His quartets 6 and 7 Opp.106 and 107 ("Hommage au passé) were available on Olympia once-a-time (not sure if it was a new issue or a Melodiya reissue though I suspect the latter- ah, Worldcat confirms the latter; 1992 CD reissue of 2 separate 1982 LPs by the Kvartet imeni Shostakovicha. Used to hear them on the radio back in college. It seems they recorded the other quartets on LP back in 1982 but I don't think those have been reissued on CD- actually, yes, yes they (mostly?) have; quartets 2 and 4 on a Melodiya CD, 1988; quartets 3 and 5 on Olympia in 1992; etc. As to which Glazunov quartets are currently available on CD, I'm not sure...
Oh hold on, Worldcat reminds me that MDG has released at least 5 CDs of Glazunov's quartets played by the Utrecht String Quartet, as recently as 2012. That may answer the question.
Worldcat (surprise, surprise) has got it right.
The MDG discs are:
Vol. 1 St Qt No. 3 in G minor, Op. 26 + St Qt No. 5 in D minor, Op. 90
Vol. 2 St Qt No. 2 in F major, Op. 10 + St Qt No. 4 in A minor, Op. 64
Vol. 3 Elegy for St Qt + String Quintet Op 39
Vol. 4 Novelettes Op. 15 + St Qt No. 6 in B flat major, Op. 106
Vol. 5 St Qt No. 1 in D major, Op. 1 + St Qt No. 7 in C major, Op. 107
All played by the Utrecht Quartet - and a very satisfying series it is. Sssshhh, don't tell anyone but I'd prefer to stock up my desert island with the Glazunov string quartets rather than the symphonies. But just a personal preference, and I'm not going in for silly games about whether the symphonies are 'better' or 'less good' than the quartets.
I've never heard the older recordings on Olympia or Melodiya, but for me these Utrecht performances on MDG are tip top recordings.
As Tom mentions, various works can be found in other places. For example there is a relatively recent Naxos recording of the String Quintet by the Fine Arts Quartet & Nathaniel Rosen [vc] - and a very fine disc it is.
If I had to thin the herd and keep only one each of the Kalinnikov and the Glazunov, in both cases I'd keep Neeme Jarvi: the former on EMI, the latter on Orfeo. Svetlanov is great in both, too. Keep both.
In addition to the Glazunov string quartets, don't ignore the ballets, especially The Seasons (de Waart on Telarc). And if you're into this sort of thing, The King of the Jews (Rozsdestvensky on Chandos) is well worth your time.
If you want to hear something really bizarre, locate Herman Scherchen's recording of the Kalinnikov - you won't believe how he stretches it out of shape.
Quote from: mbhaub on Tuesday 01 October 2013, 20:07
If I had to thin the herd and keep only one each of the Kalinnikov and the Glazunov, in both cases I'd keep Neeme Jarvi: the former on EMI, the latter on Orfeo.
Järvi's Kalinnikov is on Chandos.
For all my love of Järvi I'm not so crazy about his Kalinnikov. The Naxos version, here, is spot on!
Quote from: Alan Howe on Tuesday 01 October 2013, 21:08
Quote from: mbhaub on Tuesday 01 October 2013, 20:07
If I had to thin the herd and keep only one each of the Kalinnikov and the Glazunov, in both cases I'd keep Neeme Jarvi: the former on EMI, the latter on Orfeo.
Järvi's Kalinnikov is on Chandos.
Correct Alan. It is coupled with the Sea by Glazunov, a recording I have in my collection. As far as I know there are no other Chandos recordings.
Tom
Well, they released the same recording coupled with #2 as well. And The Sea was put onto a disc with other Glazunov, I believe.
http://www.chandos.net/searchresults.asp?zoom_query=kalinnikov+2&x=-632&y=-5 (http://www.chandos.net/searchresults.asp?zoom_query=kalinnikov+2&x=-632&y=-5)
Your memory was quite good.
Tom
It's nice to read how good this album is. But with me having a number of Kalinnikov's First (Jarvi, Svetlanov, Kuchar, Kondrashin) and Glazunov's Fifth (Svetlanov, Fedoseyev, Serebrier, Jarvi, Golovanov, Sinaisky), I hold off for now. Besides these recordings (esp. Svetlanov, Jarvi, Fedoseyev) are still great.
The Czech Philharmonic in a Glazunov symphony (let alone Kalinnikov's)? I never would have thought, but it's encouraging all the same. Is the Vienna Philharmonic next?
I noticed some mentioning of his string quartets, which I agree that they're very well written. But I would recommend his piano works (Theme et Variations, Sonatas I & II, Nocturne, Preludes and Fugues). A heck of a talent this composer possessed.
Returning very late indeed to this party, I know, but I simply have to record how utterly bowled over I am over by Yamada's interpretations, the Czech Philharmonic's performances and the sound quality of this release. I have several recordings of both symphonies and my previous preference for each was Järvi, on Orfeo for the Glazunov and Chandos for the Kalinnikov. They're fine performances, but Yamada quite eclipses them to my ears with interpretations which are by turns excitingly vigorous and full of intense lyricism. His pacing and tempi are unerringly spot-on, as is his handling of dynamics, and in both cases I was returned to the visceral excitement I felt on first hearing these favourite works, many years ago now. Yamada is impeccably served by the Czech Philharmonic in both virtuosity and sonority and the engineering is terrific, bringing out details I've never heard before despite the deep sound field, and never congested in those blazing brass-filled climaxes (the finale of the Glazunov is a marvel). I have no comparison to make for Khatchaturian's Masquerade Suite, but it is certainly a most enjoyable, highly-coloured romp even if it's musically on a lower level than the two symphonies. The 2 CD set is expensive (Amazon UK: £35!), but the download (including lossless variants) is readily available - the cheapest I could find at £11.99 is from Qobuz (https://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/kalinnikov-symphony-no-1-glazunov-symphony-no-5-khachaturian-masquerade-suite-kazuki-yamada-czech-philharmonic-orchestra/0190374280884) - and I do urge you to at least listen to audio excerpts to get an inkling of how good these performances are.
Mark is right. If this release were on a mainstream label (whatever that means these days) and conducted by an established name it'd be winning awards.
By the way, it's well worth exploring Exton's catalogue
I posted this on the other 3d...maybe it's more useful here
for who wants to take the plunge, I actually found "the" cd (only one!) on amazon uk
beware: it does not come cheap..
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kalinnikov-Symphony-Glazunoz-Khachaturian-Masquerade/dp/B00APLO2AI/ref=sr_1_41?crid=1FS37MJ2FBLBC&keywords=exton+cd&qid=1553761132&s=gateway&sprefix=exton%2Caps%2C158&sr=8-41
Well, a 2014 musicweb international is not that positive...... :-\ http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2014/Jun14/Kalinnikov_sy1_OVCL004872.htm
No, it isn't, but then I don't recognise the performances of the symphonies from the reviewer's characterisation of them, or his comparisons with Järvi and others. That's fine, though, it would be a boring world where we all agreed.
Maybe I've been seduced by the superlative sound and playing, but I still find that these performances pack an enormous emotional punch.
Absolutely.
I had read that review too (after buying the cd) and I too could not reconcile the tone of the review with the actual performances.
Yes, maybe the gorgeousness of the orchestral playing plays a role (I don't think that these symphonies have ever been performed like this, at least on recordings) but this would not be to maintain appeal enough over repeated listenings.
In Yamada's intepretation not only there's nothing wrong, they're better than most.
The Kalinnikov symphonies are some of my very favorite music, and I own several recordings (and have given away some duds, too). I'm still waiting for a recording that checks all the boxes. These are the ones I've kept and what I see as their shortcomings:
Jarvi 1& 2 (Chandos) great performance, but way too much reverb
Kuchar 1 & 2 (Naxos) gets the phrasing right, but some pretty scruffy playing in places
Bakels 1 & 2 (Bis) the phrasing is not right, but very good playing & sound
Ashkenazy 1 & 2 (Exton) The Iceland SO have a very dark sound here that doesn't really fit the music very well. (Totally bizarre cover photo; looks like a Martian landscape.)
Yamada 1 (Exton) Better played than the Bakels, better sound than all the others, but still not quite up to Jarvi's tempos and phrasing.
Oh well, I guess it is like with Raff's 5th. Somebody's bound to get it spot on eventually.
QuoteThe Iceland SO have a very dark sound
I hadn't really noticed this, but I think it may partly a question of recording balance, with the strings set too far back. On the other hand it may simply be that the ISO doesn't have a particularly strong string section. Certainly one can hear the difference straight away when listening to Yamada. The ISO are a good band, but the CPO are a great one...
Once again, this shows what a great orchestra can do for less familiar repertoire.
...and I'd add that Järvi is very good, but that one simply can't hear a lot of what's meant to be going on - a lot is lost in the reverb.
I'd certainly put Yamada top on this evidence. And I've not yet listened back to Svetlanov...
Now Svetlanov's a real powerhouse of a performance given by a great Russian orchestra, the USSRSO. But, of course, the recording is now 44 years old and is pretty fierce at times, but I guess one gets used to it. I'm inclined to say that Svetlanov really knows how the music goes, but Yamada's different way with the music seems to me equally valid - and oh, that orchestra and recording, they're so seductive...
jarvi's shares the burden with so many Chandos releases of older vintage: pleasantly warm sound, that's so muddy and reverberant that many details are lost.
Among the worst offenders I know: pretty much all the Bryden Thomson releases (discarded all) and a Schmidt 2 (again Jarvi) that's so smudged it's almost unintelligible, really a deadly sin with music that's already luxuriant to begin with. I kept this only because jarvi's direction and the Chicago Symphony are pretty peerless, but it drives me crazy.
I could never understand how Chandos could get away with the slogan they boasted in their early days, it was even printed on the discs: "worlds ahead for clarity".. ehm..
Much of the time I rather like Chandos' reverberant sound quality; it was only in the context of the Kalinnikov 1 comparisons that the downside became obvious - and distracting.
There is also a very good performance of Kalinnikov Symphony #1 with Kirill Kondrashin on Melodiya
KALINNIKOV - Symphony No. 1 / BALAKIREV – Symphony No. 1 – Moscow Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra – Kirill Kondrashin (Melodiya)
Far from ideal sound, though.
I still like the Dudarova coupling. May not be perfect, but the spirit she brings is wonderful. While Gergiev was with the LSO I kept hoping that he would give us the Kalinnikov symphonies (and a Gliere 3rd) but it never happened. There's always hoping that Jurowski and the LPO will rise to the occasion. That Manfred from several years ago was a real winner. It would be nice, just once, to hear what a great orchestra and great conductor could do for (or to!) Kalinnikov's reputation.
Just noting a rare sighting of a Glazunov symphony 5 performance on January 25-26 2025 by the Gurzenich Orchestra/ Koelner Philharmonie Bischofsgartenstraße 1, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, 50667, Germany. Lorenzo Viotti is the conductor.
https://bachtrack.com/concert-event/forward-gurzenich-orchestra-kolner-philharmonie-25-january-2025/409902