Kalinnikov 1 & Glazunov 5 from Exton/Octavia

[sdtom]

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

[eschiss1]

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...

[eschiss1]

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.

[petershott@btinternet.com]

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.

[mbhaub]

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.

[Alan Howe]

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.

[FBerwald]

For all my love of Järvi I'm not so crazy about his Kalinnikov. The Naxos version, here, is spot on!

[sdtom]

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

[TerraEpon]

Well, they released the same recording coupled with #2 as well. And The Sea was put onto a disc with other Glazunov, I believe.

[sdtom]

http://www.chandos.net/searchresults.asp?zoom_query=kalinnikov+2&x=-632&y=-5

Your memory was quite good.
Tom

[Dave]

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.

[Mark Thomas]

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 - and I do urge you to at least listen to audio excerpts to get an inkling of how good these performances are.

[Alan Howe]

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

[hyperdanny]

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

[M. Yaskovsky]

Well, a 2014 musicweb international is not that positive......  http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2014/Jun14/Kalinnikov_sy1_OVCL004872.htm