Symphonies 2, 3, 4, 5 - G.ustvolskaya (O.malov, D.liss - St.petersburg Soloists, Upo) [CD, Import]

Galina Ustvolskaya (Composer), Oleg Malov (Performer), Ural Philarmonic Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: CD, Import
• Label: Megadisc Classics
• ASIN: B000NCZ4LK
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #899,239 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Symphony No.2: True and Eternal Bliss Symphony No.3: Jesus Messiah, Save Us! Symphony No.4: Prayer Symphony No.5 Oleg Malov & The Ural Philarmonic Orchestra conducted by Dmitri Liss(1,2) Oleg Malov & The St.Petersburg Soloists (3,4)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Do not get this one, January 19, 2012

By 

Banjey (Moscow, Russia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Symphonies 2, 3, 4, 5 - G.ustvolskaya (O.malov, D.liss - St.petersburg Soloists, Upo) (Audio CD)

If you are interested in good performances of the 5 Symphonies approved by the composer here is the list:
Symphony No. 1 - Valery Gergiev and Yuri Simonov both performed it very well, but no official recording exists so far
Symphony No. 2 - Reinbert de Leeuw (DVD is hard to get, check YouTube)
Symphony No. 3 - Symphony Orchestra of the Bavarian Radio, Markus Stenz; Reader - Valeri Sherstianoi (Col Legno CD) - so-so, but the best so far
Symphony No. 4 - Barton Workshop (Etcetera CD) - so-so, but the best so far
Symphony No. 5 - London Musici, Mark Stephenson; Voice - Sergei Leiferkus (CD on RCA)

All the Ustvolskaya's recordings on Megadisc are not recommended at all.
I understand that they are perhaps the easiest to get, but it's better to make an effort and to acquire the better versions.
See ustvolskaya.org - 'performers' section for details.

5.0 out of 5 stars Niche music that I like very much, March 3, 2011

By 

SRS (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Symphonies 2, 3, 4, 5 - G.ustvolskaya (O.malov, D.liss - St.petersburg Soloists, Upo) (Audio CD)

This composer is not for most, but unlike a considerable amount of avant-garde classical, it is melodic and even lovely despite helping to earn the composer's "lady with a hammer" moniker.

I don't have other performances to compare this with, so it's possible more can be wrought from the compositions. However, I have listened to each of these quite a few times and am satisfied.

Although I am mainly a piano aficionado, I prefer the symphonies to the solo piano pieces, because the added textures and the ability to sustain notes adds depth to her aesthetic. Highlights here are the 3rd and 4th, particularly the 3rd.

For those unfamiliar with her work, it is very spare, and not only in terms of the number of performers/instruments used. It is also percussive and plaintive. It's as if the prayers of humanity are met, not with transcendental bliss, but with the crushing objectivity of the cosmos. Hope is not lost, but seems unlikely to yield anything. She seems to straddle faith and atheism, with faith clinging to feeble life -- perhaps as we are exceedingly feeble on a cosmic scale. In the 3rd, for instance, the mocking oboes and the bludgeoning timpani don't destroy the speaker, just weaken him/her. As I recall, it's the speaker who gets the last word.