Artyomov – Star Wind and other works
Vyacheslav Artyomov is considered by many to be Russia’s greatest living composer. His music is deep, ultimately spiritual and brilliantly crafted, with influences from the Russian symphonic tradition colored by Mahler, Scriabin, Honegger and Messiaen to name a few – but melded into a unique voice.
The Divine Art Artyomov Retrospective (which to date has received wonderful reviews internationally) is a mix of new recordings and former Melodiya releases. This is the ninth instalment, which comprises six works for varying chamber ensembles, and while embodying the composer’s overall wide ranging compositional style, spirituality and mysticism, these pieces express this in a more intimate, lyrical style than his massive symphonic works. ‘Scenes’ was originally written as a ballet score for a film, but as the movie was banned by the Soviet authorities and never shown, the work now stands in its own right as a balletic suite.
Some of Russia’s finest soloists and chamber players contributed to this album:
Star Wind:
Mikhail Tsinman, violin; Alexander Rudin, cello; Konstantin Yefimov, flute; Andrei Kuznetsov, French horn; Anatoly Sheludiakov, piano;
Alexander Suvorov, glockenspiel; Murad Annamamedov, conductor
Variations: Nestling Antsali:
Alexander Korneyev, flute; Vyacheslav Artyomov, piano
Moonlight Dreams:
Nelly Lee, soprano; Alexander Golyshev, alto flute; Vladimir Tonkha, cello; Dmitri Alexeyev, piano
Romantic Capriccio:
Igor Makarov, French horn; Yuri Smirnov, piano;
Alikhanova String Quartet (Yevgenia Alikhanova & Valentina Alykova violins, Tatiana Kokhanovskaya, viola, Olga Agranovich, cello)
Mattinate:
Iana Besiadinskaya, soprano; Zarius Shikhmurzayeva, violin; Vladimir Pakulichev, flute; Nikolai Komolyatov, guitar
Scenes:
Mikhail Tsinman, violin; Igor Abramov, clarinet; Nikolai Gorbunov, bass; Anatoly Sheludiakov, piano; Valeriy Polivanov & Alexander Suvorov, percussion; Murad Annamamedov, conductor
Track Listing
-
Vyacheslav Artyomov (b.1940):
- Star Wind (14:26)
- Variations: Nestling Antsali 6:51)
- Moonlight Dreams - I. In Bamboo Solitude (4:21)
- Moonlight Dreams - II. Autumn Moon (3:37)
- Moonlight Dreams - III. Village at the River (4:18)
- Moonlight Dreams - IV. Quiet Peaceful Night Thoughts (5:33)
- Romantic Capriccio (7:12)
- Mattinate (Morning Songs) - I. (5:46)
- Mattinate (Morning Songs) - II. (9:42)
- Scenes (Grand Pas) - I. (2:11)
- Scenes (Grand Pas) - II. (4:19)
- Scenes (Grand Pas) - III-IV. (1:42)
- Scenes (Grand Pas) - V. (1:37)
- Scenes (Grand Pas) - VI-VII.(3:17)
Reviews
“[Artyomov] writes music that’s galactically huge, by which we mean it gives the impression of space and endless time; the music of the spheres. It’s imposing, but it’s not hard to listen to… enervating and uplifting,.. it also contains many moments of beauty.” (joint review with DDA 25164 and 25176)
” —Jeremy Condliffe
“Artyomov demands all your concentration. Tone clusters, star-lit meditations, religious ecstasy, jazz, and even silly humor all figure in his strange, powerful, and sometimes frustrating music. Like a planet’s unavoidable gravitation¬al pull, his compositions have often drawn us in.
” —Stephen Estep
“I was very taken with a disc of Artyomov I had for review last year so am glad to hear more of him. This disc is made of chamber works, all for unusual combinations. I found Star Wind beautiful and approachable. Scenes (Grand Pas) came as a complete surprise. The perky and witty music – not at all what I expect from him – is a jolly romp. I greatly enjoyed it.
” —Stephen Barber
“Deep, spiritual and brilliantly crafted music… six works for varying chamber ensembles, and while embodying the composer’s overall wide ranging compositional style, spirituality and mysticism, the music expresses this in a more intimate, lyrical style than his massive symphonic works.
” —John Pitt
“As I listened to the CD I was once again intrigued by the versatility of the Russian composer’s genre-defying music. As usual with anything divine art issues, Star Wind is nicely packaged and provided with Robert Matthew Walker’s excellent commentary. The engineering by various teams is uniformly good.
” —Rafael de Acha
