Boris Mykolayovych Lyatoshynsky: Romances for Low Voice and Piano
The Ukrainian composer Boris Lyatoshynsky (1895–1968) studied with Glière at the Kiev Conservatory, where he remained as a much-loved teacher for the rest of his life. Lyatoshynsky’s songs – a neglected part of his output – meld intense Scriabinesque expressionism with elements of Ukrainian folksong in a language that embraces both the lyrical and the dramatic. His setting of Shelley’s Ozymandias, with its warning of the impermanence of power, was a brave act in the Soviet Union of 1924.
Vassily Savenko, bass-baritone
Alexander Blok, piano
Listen To This Recording:
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Five Romances for bass and piano, Op. 5 (1922)
- No. 1 ‘После боя’ (‘After the Battle’)
- No. 2 ‘Смерть (На кладбище)’ (‘Death (At the Cemetery)’)
- No. 3 ‘Cтарая песня’ (‘An Old Song’)
- No. 4 ‘Похоронная Песнь’ (‘A Dirge’)
- No. 5 ‘Мне снилось’ (‘I had a dream’)
- From Four Romances to Verses by Shelley, Op. 14 (1924): No. 3 ‘Доброй ночи’ (‘Good Night’)
- Озимандия (Ozymandias), Op. 15 (1924)
- No. 1 ‘Проклятое место’ (‘Accursed Place’)
- No. 2 ‘Могила’ (‘The Tomb’)
- No. 3 ‘Зарыт на дальнем перектрëстке’ (‘At the Crossroads’)
- No. 1 ‘На холмах Грузии лежит ночная мгла’ (‘On the Hills of Georgia’)
- No. 2 ‘Три ключа’ (‘Three Springs’)
- No. 3 ‘Там на брегу’ (‘There on the Shore’)
- Солнце (The Sun) (1940)
- No. 1 ‘Твої очі, як те море’ (‘Your Eyes are like the Sea’)
- No. 1 ‘Твої очі, як те море’ (‘Your Eyes are like the Sea’)
- No. 4 ‘Чому не смієшся ніколи?’ (‘Why do you never laugh?’)
- No. 5 ‘Не минай з погордою’ (‘Do not pass by so proudly, my child’)
- From Two Romances to Verses by L. Pervomaysky, Op. 32 (1940): No. 2 ‘Все мені сниться’ (‘Recurring Dreams’)
- No. 1 ‘Послание в Сибирь’ (‘A Letter to Siberia’)
- No. 2 ‘Элегия’ (‘Elegy’)
- No. 1 ‘Зоря’ (‘The Star’)
- No. 2 ‘Найвище щастя’ (‘The Height of Happiness’)
Three Romances for low voice and piano, Op. 6 (1922)
From Four Romances to Verses by Pushkin, Op. 27 (1936)
From Five Romances to Verses by I. Franko, Op. 31 (1940)
Romances for bass and piano, Op. 57 (1951)
Two Romances, Op. 37 (1942)
Jackie Stanley :
Having found great pleasure in Ukrainian sacred and folk music for many years, I am delighted that this collection of Lyatoshynsky’s songs has been issued. They have a haunting, solemn quality that is sensitively interpreted by Vassily Savenko and Alexander Blok. Even without any knowledge of the language, the story telling is so strong that the sense of the poems’ meaning is easily understood. The nuanced, thoughtful settings induce reflection on longing, loss and death but there are thrilling moments when voice and piano soar, the reverie is broken and the darkness passes. Highly recommended.
MusicWeb International :
‘Savenko is a firm-toned bass with a sensitivity to word use and colour. […]
These songs should be performed; they rank alongside those of Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky.’
—Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International