Ippolitov-Ivanov: Symphony no. 1 in E minor

[scarpia]

I ordered the Marco Polo recording from the record store (this was before Amazon existed) when I read about it in Fanfare back when it came out. It's a cool piece, but the orchestra sounded pretty scrawny. If I ever see that Conifer recording I will snap it up. I have the other MP Ippolitov-Ivanov CDs too. I would love to have recordings of the rest of his output. I see that another recording of Mtzyri on the ASV label.

[LateRomantic75]

Yes, the Conifer performance of the symphony is superior in every regard to the Marco Polo one. Mtzyri, the main coupling on the Conifer disc, is pure exotic escapism.

[britishcomposer]

After listening to the MP recording for years I thought I should try out the Conifer. Sorry, I cannot agree: yes, the orchestra is better and the recorded sound, too, but the conducting I find uninspired and inflexible. Has anyone of you listened to the Dudarova recording and can recommend it?
UK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ippolitov-Ivanov-Symphony-No-1/dp/B007Q57R1M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376071655&sr=8-1&keywords=ippolitov+dudarova
US
http://www.amazon.com/Ippolitov-Ivanov-Symphony-No-1/dp/B007Q5EAHG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376071709&sr=8-1&keywords=ippolitov+dudarova

[pianobaba]

I will have to look for this Conifer recording, I have not heard this symphony, but I do have the Naxos disc of orchestral works with the 2 Caucasian Sketches and Turkish Fragments, I love them, I love the orientalism of many of these Russian composers (Balakirev's Tamara is a favourite).

[Tom Deneckere]

There is also the Veronika Dudarova recording (found it on Spotify). I find it richer in sound than the Bamberg recording.
But I didn't know the symphony at all, so thank for bringing it up!

[pianobaba]

I've been looking online, it seems like the Conifer recording is no longer available?  That's a shame, maybe I will have some luck in the used-cd bins.

[LateRomantic75]

I've been looking online, it seems like the Conifer recording is no longer available?  That's a shame, maybe I will have some luck in the used-cd bins.

Did you check ArkivMusic? I haven't found it anywhere else.

[Alan Howe]

Here's the link:
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=5768&name_role1=1&comp_id=5645&bcorder=15&name_id=58528&name_role=3

[pianobaba]

Here's the link:
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=5768&name_role1=1&comp_id=5645&bcorder=15&name_id=58528&name_role=3

Interesting, I notice that it says "This CD is reissued by ArkivMusic" (I also looked up another out-of-print album, Beethoven's VC with Gidon Kremer and the Schnittke cadenza, same thing). Has anyone gotten these reissued discs from ArkivMusic before? Is the production quality good? i.e. Not a flimsy CDR which wont play or will skip terribly on many cd players?

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Not too sure how they do it - I believe Archiv obtains permission from the original manufacturer to copy the item.

I've had quite a number of what for me have been immensely valuable discs. To both the ear and the eye (i.e. the booklet) they appear qualitatively indistinguishable from the original.

If you want the disc I'd say 'Go for it'. An Archiv copy is often a better purchase than a second-hand disc from some unknown dealer - I've had a few cases where I've bought a S/H CD from a dealer on a day out in the big city, and you get home and discover some fault. In which case you're stuck with the thing. Never with an Archiv copy - they are certainly not shoddy 'bootleg' things of inferior quality. Hope that helps reassure you.

[pianobaba]

Well you are bad people 
I've ordered the Ippolitov-Ivanov with the Bamberg SO reissue by Arkivmusic, and since I was there, I went ahead and ordered the Beethoven VC with the Schnittke cadenza reissue, the 3rd volume of Ernst Levy on Marston Classics (very belated for me to do it, I think he is possibly the greatest pianist ever recorded, this just from vol. 1 I bought when I first heard about him over a decade ago, I've tried to get vol. 2 but it is out of print and I am not alone in my estimation of this pianist, seeing as it's become a collector's item, someone is trying to sell one on Amazon for over $400, and I did fail at an ebay auction once with the price going over $100, I pulled out at about 75  ). And lastly, a new release with a pianist Nicolas Horvath with a recital given to transcriptions of 8 movements from Liszt's magnificent Christus. 5 of them are Liszt's transcriptions, recorded by Leslie Howard of course, and they are exquisite, so I am interested in the other 3 and hearing a 2nd pianist perform this extremely rare Liszt for a change. 

An odd tangent, I was just browsing the Bamberg SO website today daydreaming about concerts in Germany, they have one program I'd like to see in March 2014, Strauss's Metamorphosen, Liszt's Totentanz, Bruckner's 7th. I've never heard the Bamberg SO before (I'll see once I get the disc), and they're not necessarily the Vienna or Berliner, but I imagine professional regional German orchestras are still better than my local fare.

[TerraEpon]

Every 'review' of Arkiv CDRs have said they are good quality. I have a different story -- I accidentally got one once, before they signed deals with major labels and were pretty much only using it for Vox and Marco Polo discs, and though the quality itself was good...it was burned with the whole "2 second silence" things, which given this was a ballet with a lot of attaca tracks (Victoria and Marie England by Sullivan....I think) made it impossible to listen to. Thankfully I got a refund and tracked down a 'real' copy...

[sdtom]

I did a little investigating and found the Conifer at a decent price on amazon so I decided to order it. It was lost in the mail so I've not been able to compare.
Tom

[pianobaba]

I received the Conifer recording from Arkiv and I've listened to it twice. I enjoyed the symphony, particularly the opening adagio and the 3rd movement Elegy. I also really enjoyed the other pieces on the album, Mtzyri and Armenian Rhapsody.

[sdtom]

To all who might be interested Naxos has re-released the 1st symphony of Ippolitov-Ivanov which also includes the Turkish March and Turkish Fragments. The new Naxos # is 8.573508. In my opinion the symphony is crying for a larger orchestra for those parts where it is louder. I would also say that if you're a listener of Russian/Slavic recordings you would find it pleasant enough.