Program
Anatoly Korolev
“Reading” for flute, two quintons and double bass (2004)
Alexander Radvilovich
“L’éclat des ténèbres” (The Radiance of Darkness), chamber cantata for mezzo-soprano and ensemble based on poems by Tristan Tzara (2013)
Vyacheslav Kruglik
“Songs of the Sister” on the words of ancient Egyptian poets translated by Anna Akhmatova and Vera Potapova for soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano (2022). WORLD PREMIERE
Natalia Volkova
“Aquarius. The Flow of Stars” for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano. Dedicated to Tatiana Khainovskaya (2018)
Evgeny Popov
Intermezzo from the opera “The Last Night of the War” for string quintet, percussion and piano (2016)
Alexey Krasheninnikov
“Nosata” for child’s violin and prepared piano (2021)
Performers – soloists of the musicAeterna orchestra and choir:
Alfia Khamidullina, Elene Gvritishvili – soprano
Marianna Murzina, Ignat Khlobystin – flute
Sergey Eletskiy, Georgy Mansurov – clarinet
Mikhail Andrushchenko, Dmitry Borodin, Alexander Kotelnikov, Vladislav Pesin, Maria Stratonovich, Anastasia Strelnikova – violins
Andrey Serdyukovsky – viola
Maxim Akchurin, Rabbani Aldangor, Alexander Prozorov – cello
Margarita Rybkina – double bass
Grigory Osipov – drums
Alexandra Listova, Nikolai Mazhara – piano
Conductor: Fedor Lednev
Details
The second concert in the cycle of chamber concerts “Saint Petersburg Union of Composers at Dom Radio” presents compositions by six authors who belong to several generations and work in different styles.
Anatoly Korolev’s “Reading” is an instrumental piece, the lightness and clarity of which is deceptive, and the difficult language is subtle and suggestive. The piece is written for an ensemble with the participation of two quintons: these instruments of the violin family have five strings each and cover the ranges of viola and violin. The chamber cantata “L’éclat des ténèbres” (The Radiance of Darkness) by Alexander Radvilovich, on the contrary, develops the traditions of the European post-war, so-called Second avant-garde with its uncompromising demands on both listeners and performers.
Vyacheslav Kruglik, Natalia Volkova and Evgeny Popov compose in line with the “new tonal music”. Vyacheslav Kruglik presents the world premiere of the vocal cycle about love, passion and devotion “Songs of the Sister” based on the verses of ancient Egyptian poets. Natalia Volkova wrote a post-impressionistic play “Aquarius. The Flow of Stars” for the project “Zodiac Signs” of the St. Petersburg House of Composers. In the intermezzo from Evgeny Popov’s opera “The Last Night of the War” about two lovers who met on the last night before the morning of victory, the pop language of the musical and the polyphony of the Shostakovich school are intertwined.
Finally, in the ironic opus “Nosata”, Alexey Krasheninnikov laughs at the ideals of violin mastery and his own attempt to turn to the classical genre of the sonata, and as a result creates a touching fantasy on the topic of apprenticeship, addressed to everyone who studied at a music school as a child, and sends stylistic greetings to Stravinsky and Bartók.
The cycle of chamber concerts “Saint Petersburg Union of Composers at Dom Radio” was created on the initiative of Teodor Currentzis who joined the Union of Composers at the end of 2021. Each concert features works by six composers of different generations. The authors themselves select compositions to be performed at Dom Radio. The curators of the cycle, the soloists of the musicAeterna orchestra Vladislav Pesin and Nikolai Mazhara arrange the programmes in such a way so as to present the diverse palette of Saint Petersburg academic music life with utmost impact.