Boris Tchaikovsky: Song-Cycles and Chamber Music
Boris Tchaikovsky (1925-96) – no relation to his better-known namesake – was one of the leading Russian composers of the twentieth century. A student of Shebalin, Shostakovich and Myaskovsky at the Moscow Conservatory, Tchaikovsky soon evolved an individual style that steered clear of ideology and fashion. Paradoxically, the apparent simplification of his musical language and growing refinement of its gestures sharpened its emotional impact. Tchaikovsky’s music has recently been attracting attention in the West; this CD closes some of the gapes in his growing discography.
Olga Filonova, soprano
Svetlana Nikolaeva, mezzo soprano
Olga Solovieva, piano
Kirill Ershov, Balalaika
Alexey Khutoriansky, violin
Lev Serov, viola
Marina Archakova, cello
Listen To This Recording:
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Four Poems of Josef Brodsky, for soprano and piano (1965)
- 1. ‘Dialogue’
- 2. ‘Lyrics’
- 3. ‘Farewell and Forget’
- 4. ‘Stanzas’
- 1. ‘Far-Off Amazon’
- 2. ‘Homer’
- I. Allegro marcato
- II. Andante
- III. Allegretto
- 1. ‘Autumn’
- 2. ‘Pine Tree’
- I. Joke
- II. Landscape
- 1. ‘Echo’
- 2. ‘A Gift Unneeded’
- 3. ‘Talisman’
- 4. ‘To the Poet’
- 5. ‘Your Image’
- 6. ‘If you were deceived by life’
- 7. ‘Work’
- 8. ‘I don’t value highly’
From Kipling, for mezzo soprano and viola (1994)
Trio for violin, viola and cello (1955)
Two Poems by Mikhail Lermontov, for soprano and piano (1940)
Two Pieces for Balalaika and Piano (1991)
Lyrics of Pushkin, for soprano and piano (1972)
robert reilly :
Toccata Classics immediately reinforces my impression of Tchaikovsky as first rate with a new CD containing Song-Cycles and Chamber Music (TOCC 0046). The songs, based upon poems by Josef Brodsky, Mikhail Lermontov, Pushkin, and Kipling are full of character, highly expressive and attractively melodic. The Trio for violin, viola and cello shows that Tchaikovsky wrote on as high a level for chamber groups as he did for symphony orchestra. The Two Pieces for Balalaika and Piano, written in 1991, are a sheer delight. This is the kind of discovery that sends me on a crusade. I am embarking on an effort to find as much of this man’s music as I can.
MusicWeb International :
‘The quality of the music and the very fine performances make this well-filled release a must for all admirers. Boris Tchaikovsky’s music definitely deserves to be much better known. It is encouraging, too, to see brand new recordings such as these filling the gaps. More please.’
—Hubert Culot, MusicWeb International