Customer Reviews

Russian Fireworks

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have long been looking for such a collection, put together in
an attractive form. Mussorgsky's Gopak and Persian Dance I haven't heard in years and could'n find any recordings of them.
The Liadov Russian folksongs I haven't heard before and they are
charming and lovingly played. The well known three symphonic poems also by Liadov are very well performed under Steven Gutzen-
hauser,these are up to any international standard. The Procession
.. by Ippolitov Ivanov is a knock-out, a great way to start the record. Similarly the Entrance of the Boyars by Halvordsen,though
he is not Russian is a great way to end the collection. Throughout the digital sound is first class. This is a three star Penguin Guide recording. I recommend this very enjoyable CD
to all music lovers.

if you like exciting and exotic music give this collection a chanc

RUSSIAN FIREWORKS
Mikhail Mikhailovitch Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859 - 1935): Procession of the Sardar from Caucasian Sketches, Suite No. 1 (Op. 10 No. 4)
Anatol Konstantinovitch Liadov (1855 - 1914): 8 chants populairs russes, Op. 58.
Dmitry Borisovich Kabalevsky (1904 - 1987): Komedianti Op. 26 II: Galop: Presto
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (1839 - 1881): Gopak from Act I of "Sorochintsy Fair": Dance of the Persian Slaves from Act IV of "Khovantschina"
Liadov (see above): Baba Yaga Op. 56; The Enchanted Lake, Op. 62; Kikimora, Op. 63
Anton Rubinstein (1829 - 1894): Dance of the Bayaderes No. 2 and Bridal Procession from "Feramors"; Caucasian Dance from Act 1 of "The Demon".
Johan Halvorsen (1864 - 1935): Bojarenes Indtogsmarsj (Entry March of the Boyars)
All items performed by the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra; conducted by Richard Hayman (Ippolitow-Ivanov); Kenneth Jean (Liadow, Chants populairs; Mussorgsky; Halvorsen); Stephen Gunzenhauser (Liadow, tone poems); Michael Halasz (Rubinstein).
Recorded at various dates in the late 1980s and released in 1990 as Naxos 8.550328. Total playing time: approx. 65 minutes.

This CD appears to be a compilation, with four conductors contributing, and some of the material, at least, going back to early Marco Polo recordings. Naxos has since released other CDs with complete versions of some of the works gathered here (see, for example: Ippolitov-Ivanov: Caucasian Sketches; Turkish March and Fragments; Kabalevsky: Colas Breugnon; The Comedians; Romeo and Juliet; Liadov: Orchestral Works; Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition). However, this "Russian Fireworks" collection is a useful introduction to the work of some of the less-known Russian composers, containing as it does some lovely music as well as some energetic pieces with cymbals, xylophone and other percussion. The opening and closing numbers (by Ippolitov-Ivanov and the Norwegian composer Johan Halvorsen) belong to those exciting pieces that you find yourself humming or whistling after listening a few times (well, that's what happened to me anyway). The Liadov music is, on the whole, much more serene, although his reworking of popular Russian songs has some lively melodies, and "Kikimora" builds up to no uncertain climax. His "Enchanted Lake" is very much mood music, tone painting; and his "Baba Yaga" is not as hair-raising as the "Hut on Fowl's Legs" version by Mussorgsky. The two Mussorgsky opera extracts are old favourites, and the versions here are good, but not spectacular. The Rubinstein extracts from "Feramors" and "The Demon" are, as far as I could ascertain, not available elsewhere, at least not on Naxos or Marco Polo. All three Rubinstein pieces belong to the more energetic section of the disc, although they are not without what the Germans would call "Zwischentöne" - accents of a more serious vein.

I have immensely enjoyed listening to this collection, but I do feel that Naxos's recorded sound, though excellent, was not quite up to the five-star standard of some of the major recording companies. However, I must admit to having downloaded this and converted the files to Wave format before listening. I found the best sound was achieved by using the lesser of two upsampling functions on the new generation of CD players.