Customer Reviews

Silvestrov: Bagatellen und Serenaden

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In his notes to the 2004 ECM release of Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov's REQUIEM FOR LASRISSA (dedicated to his wife, Larissa Bondarenko, who died in 1996), music critic Paul Griffiths makes a statement that cuts to the heart of Silvestrov's art : `Time in Valentin Silvestrov's music is a black lake. The water barely moves, the past refuses to slide away, and the slow, irregular stirrings of an oar remain in place.' This sense of `stopped time' pervades many of the composer's works - it seems to me a bit of an aural equivalent of what the great Russian film director Andrei Tarkovsky did in his cinematic masterpieces. Tarkovsky called it `sculpting in time'. In Silvestrov's music, time seems to stand still to the point of disorientation - some of his larger, longer works seem to give the impression of constantly `ending', only to continue. He calls his music `post-symphonic', and the titles of several of his works reflect this: `Postludium' and `Postlude' appear here and there. The listener is left with a sense of déjà vu - has this music been experienced before, perhaps in another lifetime? In one of his pieces from the mid-70s, `Kitsch music for piano', there's a movement entitled `A metaphor for Schubert and Chopin', leaving the listener with the impression that this music must have been written by a composer centuries ago - exactly the effect for which Silvestrov was reaching. I think perhaps it's not so much that Silvestrov is trying to `stop time' - it's more like he's setting the listener afloat in that `lake', where the present and the past touch and interact. Memory becomes as tangible as present existence - tenses merge and blur. Herbert Glossner, in the booklet accompanying the ECM release of Silvestrov's SYMPHONY NO. 6, appropriately quotes Marcel Proust (from REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST) : `And all at once the memory returned.' Memory, in the music of Valentin Silvestrov, is as much a physical dimension as space.

After the obvious starting point in the composer's mind, Silvestrov's compositions begin on the piano. Over the years, I have found that the brief tastes of the composer himself at the keyboard that have been offered on three releases - `Four songs after Osip Mandelstam', for baritone and piano, recorded in 1986 and released WITH SILENT SONGS by both Megadisc and ECM; `Unsnaya musika 1 & 2', included with the song cycle STUFEN, recorded in 1999 and released by Magadisc; and `Hymne 2001', which appears on LEGGIERO, PESANTE, recorded in 2001 and released by ECM - to be some of the most moving music I've ever heard. Thus it was with great anticipation that I awaited the release of BAGATELLEN UND SERENADEN, ECM's newest offering of his works - over half of the album features the composer at the piano, alone, performing some of his most intimate, moving works...many of which he says have never been written down on paper. According to the notes, the composer often works on compositions in this manner, holding snippets of melody in his mind for long periods of time before putting it in writing - thus the pieces are allowed to find their own voice naturally, over time. The sense of physically plucking memories out of time is therefore strengthened by the very process through which the pieces come into being. His music has been described as `a dialogue with silence' - each note, each phrase is given a life of its own and allowed to move and breathe naturally, without artifice. More than any composer I've ever heard, living or not, Silvestrov combines elements of the avant-garde (the school in which he matured) and the neo-romantic - he does it seamlessly and without pretension, holding the melody above all else, even in the most dense and dissonant passages of his larger works. The music has a living flow unlike that of any other composer.

I'm by no means a classical music scholar - and what I'm expressing here is intended to be more on an emotional response level than anything so exacting or analytical. Hearing these piano pieces directly from the hands of the composer is a very moving experience for me - it's extremely personal and conversational, as if he's speaking through the keyboard and my soul is responding.

The other half of this CD is comprised of works for chamber orchestra, two of which - `Der Bote' (1996) and `Zwei Dialog emit Nachwort' (2001-02) feature the wonderful playing of Alexei Lubimov, long a fine, sensitive interpreter of Silvestrov's keyboard compositions. The orchestra is the Münchener Kammerorchester, under the able direction of Christoph Poppen. These are pieces of aching beauty - but one shouldn't take that to indicate that they are `fluff' by any means. Silvestrov's works are always of strong substance and intellectual depth - every note does its part to complete the effect of the whole, and nothing is left to chance or done without consideration.

As one might expect, the production on this release is superb - ECM has long been known for the highest level of audio quality. In the case of the solo piano pieces presented here, they've outdone themselves. Rather than `placing' the listener in close proximity to the performer (some engineers seem to think the listener should practically be inside the piano). Sound engineer Stephan Schellmann and producer Manfred Eicher have achieved a sonic miracle - when I listen to this recording, it's as if I'm sitting about halfway back in the recording space. The element of memory and the feeling of experiencing this music over a `quiet distance', seemingly intangible and untouchable qualities, are brilliantly conveyed by the recording.

This disc presents some of the most important and moving work by a composer whom Arvo Pärt has called `one of the greatest composers of our time' - no small bit of praise. I can heartily recommend any the ECM releases that showcase his work - and especially Bagatellen und Serenade. As an introduction to an important composer, it's a great place to start exploring.

To listen to Valentin Silvestrov play his Bagatelles is an utterly spellbinding experience, made even more compelling by the soft and distant sound. According to the liner notes, Silvestrov sat down to play early in the morning without being scheduled to record, but producer Manfred Eicher had the mikes on--they had been set up to record Lubimov and the Munich Chamber Orchestra in one of the prices for piano and orchestra. The piano thus has a distant perspective, with the introspective nature of the music being magnified by the softness of the sound. The end result is moving and hypnotic--and incredibly beautiful. This CD would be worth the price were the Bagatelles the only music to be found thereon.

But wait--there's much, much more! Beautiful music for strings and beautiful music for piano and chamber orchestra. Silvestrov, who will turn 72 in September 2009, is one of the most compelling composers of the present day. This recording is an ideal place to start if you have not heard his music before; if you have heard his music before, you will no doubt want to add Bagatellen und Serenaden to your Silvestrov collection. What a wonderful, marvelous, heavenly scented recording!

Having in my collection seven CDs by Valentin Silvestrov I was eager to get this one as well.It hasn't proved to be wrong.You can't go wrong with Silvestrov because the man creates some of the most beautiful pieces in modern classical music.It is all about Beauty Lost,with only silent remote whispers to remind us of its once existence and then falling into silence.
About 35 minutes of the disc is solo piano pieces performed by the composer himself.Another half is quiet chamber music dedicated to Arvo Part,Manfred Eicher and composer's wife L.Bondarenko. Essential!

Valentin Silvestrov could be called a contemporary Romantic: his music is challenging, advanced in exploration of the manipulation of harmonies and sound, and yet it is always beautiful. This recording is very well considered. It opens with Silvestrov himself at the piano playing the 8 Bagatelles and they are each moments of distilled beauty - simple, meandering, and in keeping with the definition of a bagatelle, they are slight 'trifles', only exceptionally beautiful ones.

The 'Elegie' 'Stille Musik', and 'Abscheidsserenade' are works composed for chamber orchestra. Once again, in keeping with the moniker the composer places on these works, the works are breathtakingly beautiful - well orchestrated and perfomed with aching sonority by the Münchener Kammerorchester conducted by Christoph Poppen. These are followed by the still grogeous 'Der Bote' ('The messenger') and the 'Zwei Dialoge mit Nachwort' ('Two Dialogues with afterword') for piano and orchestra with the piano part this time performed by Alexei Lubimov.

Valentin Silvestrov is a perfect starting point for people who want a taste of what is being composed right now. He is immensely accessible and his melodic gifts are plentiful. This is another very fine recording to add to the library of music lovers. Grady Harp, September 10

This music is unlike any I've ever heard before. It emerges out of a misty silence, softly, delicately and reverberates in the memory for a long time. Filigree wisps of themes float into the air-- the silences between the notes is almost as expressive as the themes themselves. This is ghostly music, as substantial as clouds.
The piano bagatelles which begin the CD, played by the composer, began life as improvisations and they have that immediacy -- as if his fingers are searching for a path on the keyboard. He plays the most intense pianissimo I've ever heard. The music seems simple, stripped down to its essential elements, yet, as the liner notes correctly say, each of these music trifles take on "sublime insignificance."
I often listen to these pieces in bed before switching out the light. They are calming, but not quite peaceful. They draw the curtain on one day and strengthen me for the next.

Valentin Silvestrov has been championed by the ECM label, and for the most part it's easy to see why. From the mid-1970s the Ukrainian composer has developed a very individual style of "postludes" on the Romantic era. The music is lush, but directionless, made impure by tritones or leaps of a seventh, and there's a sense of mourning over the West's loss of a single common musical language. While I've never been completely won over by this style, I still think that works like the Symphony No. 5 and "Postludium" are important contributions to the music of our time and very much worth trying out.

But on this ECM release, Silvestrov doesn't show us that epic and angsty side, but rather work after work of mindless prettiness. The 13 Bagatelles for Piano (2005), which Silvestrov performs himself, range from innocent little musings to nauseating Michael Nyman-like heart-on-sleeve moments. The remaining works feature the Munchener Kammerorchester conducted by Christoph Poppen, with Alexei Lubimov on piano solo. "Two Dialogues with Postscript" (2001/02) and "The Messenger" (1996) are for piano and strings, while "Stille Musik" (2002), "Elegie" (2000-02) and "Farewell Serenade" (2003) are for strings. These are closer to Silvestrov's orchestral masterworks, but it does feel like he's phoning the music in. The exception is "Elegie", which is considerably more violent and dramatic, looking back to Silvestrov's days as a high modernist, but at only five minutes it doesn't make up for the rest of the material.

Unusually for ECM, the liner notes feature an ample commentary on the works, written by Tatjana Frumkis. Insightful and informative remarks on music that's not very worthwhile.

As I said, I think that Silvestrov is a composer modern-classical fans should experience, but I can't recommend this disc at all except to completists.

Once you discovered Silvestrov, you'll become a follower. Great piano, a bit classic... It's kind of a new Balakirev. You'll love this for sure!

Martin

I bought this CD mostly on the basis of the rave reviews at Amazon. I can't say that I share the overwhelming enthusiasm of other listeners. Silvestrov clearly comes from the same cool, Eastern European neo-tonalism of composers like Arvo Pärt. I found the 13 Bagatelles for piano here underwhelming. Oh, they're pretty enough, and gorgeously recorded in the rich acoustic of a Bavarian church, but they seem a bit shy on real content. The works for strings here are a bit more persuasive, and a bit edgier. The most interesting works here seem to be responding to tonal music from the past as if from a great distance. And admittedly, the world is drastically different today than it was for Franz Schubert, and it seems like contemporary music needs to acknowledge that psychological distance. So I'm afraid this CD doesn't make me want to rush out and acquire every work I can by Silvestrov, though I know some filmmakers who might want to use some of the string pieces as background music.