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Musical Opinion

As the author, over 20 years ago now, of the first book ever to be published on the music of Vyacheslav Artyomov (born 1940), it has been a singular pleasure for me to have witnessed his slow but growing acceptance by many to become Russia’s greatest living composer. As Divine Art has rightly claimed, ‘after the fall of the Soviet regime his music has travelled the world to great acclaim. It is deep, ultimately spiritual and brilliantly crafted, with influences from the Russian symphonic tradition coloured by Mahler, Scriabin, Honegger and Messiaen to name a few — but melded into a unique voice!

It is within this Russian tradition — in serious danger of dying out after 1990 —that one feels Artyomov so naturally expresses himself in language towards which neither Tchaikovsky, nor — I suggest — Stravinsky, would have immediately warmed, but which speaks directly to the attentive listener today in a manner quite unique in the teeming world of modern music.

The tradition Artyomov follows on much of the CD here is that of Russian ballet, and this new release contains two further suites drawn from his ballet ‘Sola Fide’ (‘Only by Faith’), based on Tolstoi’s novel The Road to Calvary, and therefore naturally sharing the ethos and music of Artyomov’s Requiem — the first Requiem (1985-8) to be written by a Russian, let alone a Soviet, composer (Kabalevsky’s ‘War Requiem’ of 1963 does not count in this instance).

The disc also includes Artyomov’s Concerto for Chamber Orchestra ‘Tempo Costante’, a brilliantly impressive work which, like the performances of the ballet suites, is played with notable commitment and technical aplomb. It is good news that Divine Art intend to release a further six CDs of Artyomov’s music. I, for one, will be eagerly awaiting them.
[awarded five stars]