Rachmaninov: Aleko

Sergey Rachmaninov/ Rachmaninoff (Composer), Constantine Orbelian (Conductor), Moscow Chamber Orchestra (Orchestra), Vassily Gerello (Performer), Mikhail Kit (Performer), Elena Manikhina (Performer), Olga Guryakova (Performer), Vsevolod Grivnov (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Vassily Gerello, Mikhail Kit, Elena Manikhina, Olga Guryakova, Vsevolod Grivnov
• Orchestra: Moscow Chamber Orchestra
• Conductor: Constantine Orbelian
• Composer: Sergey Rachmaninov/ Rachmaninoff
• Audio CD (August 29, 2000)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Delos Records
• ASIN: B00004XSQG
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #525,911 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Aleko was Sergei Rachmaninov’s first opera, and his earliest success. He composed the one-act melodrama in 1892 at the age of 19 in less than three weeks, and was awarded the Moscow Conservatory’s Gold Prize. Even more importantly, perhaps, the vocal score was published and a first performance arranged at Moscow’s prestigious Bolshoi Theater, where it shared a double bill with Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta at the elder composer’s insistence. In 1897, Aleko was premiered in St Petersburg, the title role being taken by the famous bass Feodor Chaliapin. Chaliapin would go on to record the cavatina, endearing it to generations of record collectors. Russian bass Evgeni Nesterenko joined the roster of Moscow’s famed Bolshoi Opera in 1971. He has taken on all of the major Russian bass roles and has recorded widely. In 1976, Dmitri Kitaenko was named chief conductor of the Moscow Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, a position he held until 1990, when he left Russia for the West. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars WARNING: THE POSTED REVIEWS ARE FOR ANOTHER RECORDING, November 7, 2009

By 

L. Lubin (NY, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rachmaninov: Aleko (Opera In 1 Act) (MP3 Download)

Both of the reviews here are posted also for the Orbelian recording. This MP3 Download is for a completely different, older Bolshoi recording with an entirely different cast.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars New to Russian opera? Start here!, March 18, 2009

By 

Jeffrey Harris "Jeff" (Texas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rachmaninov: Aleko (Audio CD)

I've never really gotten into Russian opera. Is it the language? The musical style? I don't know...but this is wonderful. It's short and it's tuneful. This is early Rachmaninoff and it is very Romantic...similar to the Second Piano Concerto, although the tunes aren't as good. Maybe it would be more accurate to say it's similar to a tone poem like "The Rock" or "Prince Rostislav". If you know those pieces and like them, I think you will like this. The big climaxes are very exciting and the orchestral music in the opera is quite beautiful.

This is very inexpensive on amazon, the singers are great (not shrill like Russian singers sometimes are)...why not give it a try?!

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK, but..........., May 26, 2004

By 

S Duncan "sfedlandd" (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rachmaninov: Aleko (Audio CD)

There is a "but" unfortunately. Without too much ado, this is a brilliant piece of work. The music is beautiful (tuneful, melodic etc.) and the conducting is excellent. Orbelian really does a great job (the love duet, for example, magically evokes a warm starry night). It is the characters who make one hesitate...let me quickly say that they are not that bad. It's just that this opera had such potential. It's not too demanding and so we should expect to have legendary recordings of this so-called "Russian Cavalleria Rusticana". The DG recording with Jaarvi would have been ideal (Nicolai Ghiaurov in the title role is, for me, definitive) but I cannot abide the unsteady Guleghina.

In summary, Mikhail Kit as the Old Gypsy is excellent. His rich, dark bass is both morose and authoritative. Vassilly Gerello, as Zemfira's illicit paramour, is simply brilliant. His voice is young, fresh and a soaring beauty to behold. On the down side, however, Vsevolod Grivnov, while not giving a bad performance, is not as deep and sonorous as you would probably like. He can't hold a candle to Ghiaurov. Still, I emphasise, it's not a bad performance. In fact, he does convey his emotions quite well. My other quibble is with Olga Guryakova's wobbly Zemfira. She doesn't sound too old for the role...simply unsteady. This was most frustrating given my hopes after beholding her ravishing photo on the cover. I expected a little more fire and viscera. Instead, I was once more confronted with what (for me) is the plague of Russian opera...the so-called "Slavonic wobble". If you accept this as idiomatic then go right ahead. Even so, this isn't so bad a Zemfira as to cast aside the concept of trying this recording. Perhaps the trade-off sets the Jaarvi recording in better standing. Meanwhile, I'll wait until Marina Shaguch or Galina Gorchakova records Zemfira.