Nikolay Miaskovsky (1881-1950)

[vandermolen]

Drasko - that is a pity - I hope that you'll get another opportunity.

Sarge,

I just played the Liss again - my favourite at the moment - a deeply felt performance (and you get Symphony 10 thrown in). The Jurowski concert was recorded - it would be great if the LPO could issue it as they now have their own CD label.

I remember now that in the rehearsal, Jurowski told the choir that he wanted the men to sound like the wails of the damned in Hell, while the women were to sing their contribution in the style of a traditional Russian folk song.

Here is a useless review of the concert - just what I expected. The comments below, including a stroppy couple from me, might be of interest, especially for the speculation about the (fine) cellist walking off stage and not reappearing for an extended period in the Prokofiev work.


http://www.theartsdesk.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=1407:lpo/jurowski-music-review&Itemid=27

[Superhorn]

  Wow !  A conductor actually programmed a Myaskovsky symphony at a live concert !  Live performances of this composer's music are as scarce as hen's teeth!
(I do have a few hens with teeth,though).  Way to go Vladimir!  Give us more Myaskovsky,please! 

[vandermolen]

  Wow !  A conductor actually programmed a Myaskovsky symphony at a live concert !  Live performances of this composer's music are as scarce as hen's teeth!
(I do have a few hens with teeth,though).  Way to go Vladimir!  Give us more Myaskovsky,please!

Yes, it was fairly amazing to see this live - especially in London. I saw Symphony No 21 (semi-professional performance) in London a year or two back - also an excellent performance. Seeing Gliere's Third Symphony live a few years ago was also a wonderful and unexpected experience. It was the first performance of the full work in England since about 1913!

[lescamil]

This is surely to be interest of many people here. Here is the recent performance by Jurowski of the Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony, captured off the BBC Radio 3 website by yours truly. The full program of the concert and the commentaries by the host and Jurowski are included, and it makes for some very interesting listening for those interested in the history of the work. Enjoy!

-----------------------------

Presented by Ian Skelly

Conductor Vladimir Jurowski highlights a musical friendship between two Russian composers with very different personalities. Nikolai Myaskovsky began his music studies at the St Petersburg Conservatory at the mature age of 25, where he met the brash, 15 year old Prokofiev, and their friendship blossomed.

As Russia lurched into turbulence in the early 1900s, Myaskovsky had a ringside seat as a serving officer, trying to fulfill his duty as a military engineer followng in his father's footsteps, whilst also pursuing his passion for music. He witnessed first-hand the events which culminated in the First World War and the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. His Sixth symphony is influenced by these events, and it became a monumental choral symphony of heroism and revolution, including themes from French revolutionary songs and a Russian sacred text. But for all its large scale, it is also a deeply personal testament.

Prokofiev left Russia after the revolution but returned in the 1930s. His Sinfonia concertante for cello and orchestra, written near the end of his life, was prompted by Mstislav Rostropovich, whose playing had reawakened Prokofiev's interest in the cello, inspiring him to re-work an earlier concerto into this new piece.

Prokofiev: Sinfonia concertante
Myaskovsky: Symphony no.6

Danjulo Ishizaka (cello)
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Choir
conductor Vladimir Jurowski

Followed by performances by nominees for the 2010 Royal Philharmonic Society Awards, ahead of the awards ceremony which takes place on 11th May. Tonight features the nominees in the Chamber Music category - The Schubert Ensemble, the Takacs Quartet and the Wigmore Hall Haydn Bicentenary Season.

----------------------------------------

I apologize for the RapidShare link, but it was too big for Mediafire.

http://bit.ly/bojG7Q

[Sergeant Rock]

This is surely to be interest of many people here. Here is the recent performance by Jurowski of the Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony, captured off the BBC Radio 3 website by yours truly. The full program of the concert and the commentaries by the host and Jurowski are included, and it makes for some very interesting listening for those interested in the history of the work. Enjoy!

Thanks! For those wanting to jump right into the Miaskovsky, the introduction starts at 45:30 with the music beginning at 45:57.

Sarge

[jowcol]

This is surely to be interest of many people here. Here is the recent performance by Jurowski of the Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony, captured off the BBC Radio 3 website by yours truly. The full program of the concert and the commentaries by the host and Jurowski are included, and it makes for some very interesting listening for those interested in the history of the work. Enjoy!

-

Wow!  Thanks VERY much!

[vandermolen]

This is surely to be interest of many people here. Here is the recent performance by Jurowski of the Myaskovsky Sixth Symphony, captured off the BBC Radio 3 website by yours truly. The full program of the concert and the commentaries by the host and Jurowski are included, and it makes for some very interesting listening for those interested in the history of the work. Enjoy!

-----------------------------

Presented by Ian Skelly

Conductor Vladimir Jurowski highlights a musical friendship between two Russian composers with very different personalities. Nikolai Myaskovsky began his music studies at the St Petersburg Conservatory at the mature age of 25, where he met the brash, 15 year old Prokofiev, and their friendship blossomed.

As Russia lurched into turbulence in the early 1900s, Myaskovsky had a ringside seat as a serving officer, trying to fulfill his duty as a military engineer followng in his father's footsteps, whilst also pursuing his passion for music. He witnessed first-hand the events which culminated in the First World War and the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. His Sixth symphony is influenced by these events, and it became a monumental choral symphony of heroism and revolution, including themes from French revolutionary songs and a Russian sacred text. But for all its large scale, it is also a deeply personal testament.

Prokofiev left Russia after the revolution but returned in the 1930s. His Sinfonia concertante for cello and orchestra, written near the end of his life, was prompted by Mstislav Rostropovich, whose playing had reawakened Prokofiev's interest in the cello, inspiring him to re-work an earlier concerto into this new piece.

Prokofiev: Sinfonia concertante
Myaskovsky: Symphony no.6

Danjulo Ishizaka (cello)
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Choir
conductor Vladimir Jurowski

Followed by performances by nominees for the 2010 Royal Philharmonic Society Awards, ahead of the awards ceremony which takes place on 11th May. Tonight features the nominees in the Chamber Music category - The Schubert Ensemble, the Takacs Quartet and the Wigmore Hall Haydn Bicentenary Season.

----------------------------------------

I apologize for the RapidShare link, but it was too big for Mediafire.

http://bit.ly/bojG7Q

Yes, thanks very much for this - good of you to provide the link.

[Martin Lind]

I skimmed a bit through this thread. I didn't want to read really everything. I possess some Miaskovski, first of all the Swetlanov box. But also some string quartets ( his last is great), violin concerto, Downes with the 5th and 9th symphonies.

But I must admit that my exploration of Miaskovskis symphonies at some time haltered. There are some who I like: His 3rd, 5th ( Downes is better than Swetlanov here ), 6th, 7th, 11th, 22nd, 25th, 27th. But often I was bored and so somehow I didn't manage to hear all of them. Now I try to understand better Bach's Well Tampered Klavier or listen to more Mozart for example which I don't know, classical music is a wide field and competition is hard.

Please tell me regarding the symphonies which I should maybe listen to more and which deserve more attention. I know that some of his symphonies disappointed me, for example the 4th or the 8th ( who has a good slow set still) and so on. I really was glad when I got the box and discovered some good works, for example his 7th, but then more and more I was bored or thought: Not bad, but there is better music.

Regards
Martin

[vandermolen]

I skimmed a bit through this thread. I didn't want to read really everything. I possess some Miaskovski, first of all the Swetlanov box. But also some string quartets ( his last is great), violin concerto, Downes with the 5th and 9th symphonies.

But I must admit that my exploration of Miaskovskis symphonies at some time haltered. There are some who I like: His 3rd, 5th ( Downes is better than Swetlanov here ), 6th, 7th, 11th, 22nd, 25th, 27th. But often I was bored and so somehow I didn't manage to hear all of them. Now I try to understand better Bach's Well Tampered Klavier or listen to more Mozart for example which I don't know, classical music is a wide field and competition is hard.

Please tell me regarding the symphonies which I should maybe listen to more and which deserve more attention. I know that some of his symphonies disappointed me, for example the 4th or the 8th ( who has a good slow set still) and so on. I really was glad when I got the box and discovered some good works, for example his 7th, but then more and more I was bored or thought: Not bad, but there is better music.

Regards
Martin

Martin,

Symphony No 16 has perhaps my favourite Miaskovsky slow movement - it was to commemorate an air disaster (the crash of the giant plane 'Maxim Gorky') - so, I'd try No 16 and No 17, written during Stalin's Purges, is IMHO the most underrated of them all. Allegedly a piece of Socialist Realism, I think that there is much more to this work. The slow movement is beautiful and the end, to me at least, sounds oddly defiant. There are also echoes of Tchaikovsky and Lyadov. So, have a listen to symphonies 16 and 17 and also the lyrical Cello Sonata No 2 if you don't know it.

Hope you enjoy these.

Best wishes

Jeffrey

ps I don't know if you know the shorter works but the Lyric Concertino has a great slow movement, which belies the diminutive title. 'Silence' (Tone poem after Poe) is a darkly brooding early work, in the spirit of Rachmaninov's Isle of the Dead and Skryabin. It might appeal if, like me, you enjoy music suggestive of brooding despair and looming catastrophe. I think that they are all to be found in the Svetlanov box.

[Martin Lind]

Dear Jeffrey,

thank you very much for your recommendations and the descriptions of the works. I don't posses the cello sonata, but will listen to all other works. Maybe, when I have done this, we could talk on? By the way do you know the Downes in the 5th? I know him and was then disappointed by the Svetlanov. Downes plays the set quicker, bringing a pastoral, fluently lyrical, singing mood to the set, very enchanting, Swetlanov is slower, more meaningfull, missing completely these elements which I love in the Downes. But Downes is not better in the 9th. But I wouldn't like to miss the Downes because of the 5th.

Regards
Martin

[vandermolen]

Dear Jeffrey,

thank you very much for your recommendations and the descriptions of the works. I don't posses the cello sonata, but will listen to all other works. Maybe, when I have done this, we could talk on? By the way do you know the Downes in the 5th? I know him and was then disappointed by the Svetlanov. Downes plays the set quicker, bringing a pastoral, fluently lyrical, singing mood to the set, very enchanting, Swetlanov is slower, more meaningfull, missing completely these elements which I love in the Downes. But Downes is not better in the 9th. But I wouldn't like to miss the Downes because of the 5th.

Regards
Martin

Hi Martin,

Yes, of course I'd be delighted to carry on discussing Miaskovsky with you after you've heard the works (or before!). I have the Downes on Marco Polo but haven't listened to it for ages - so, I'll give it another listen to soon.  It is worth looking out for Cello Sonata No 2 - my favourite Miaskovsky chamber work - I think that there is a budget version.

Kind regards

Jeffrey

ps Here it is - ignore the incorrect Amazon pricing on Amazon UK - but you can pick it up there for under £5.00 if you like.

[False_Dmitry]

Here is a useless review of the concert - just what I expected. The comments below, including a stroppy couple from me, might be of interest, especially for the speculation about the (fine) cellist walking off stage and not reappearing for an extended period in the Prokofiev work.

Frankly David Nice is a talentless scribbler, and his opinions and assessments are worth 0.  He's sadly typical of that breed of never-made-it-as-a-performer, who failed to justify the hopes of his ambitious parents.  He uses his reviews as a channel to take-out his bitterness on the profession he didn't have the talent and application to enter. It's the reason that his reviews appear in an amateur blog, instead of a newspaper.

It all prompts the question - which is somewhat off-topic - where are the perceptive and able critics now?  Only Michael Church has any credibility.  Christiansen's pompous ultra-conservative views can't be backed-up with any acuity of observation or objective comment - I think he writes his crits off the Press Releases?   Simon Heffer is a pretentious vacuous popinjay - a rank amateur who shouldn't be allowed to review concerts at all, and is only there to gladhand it with his bow-tied chums.

[vandermolen]

Frankly David Nice is a talentless scribbler, and his opinions and assessments are worth 0.  He's sadly typical of that breed of never-made-it-as-a-performer, who failed to justify the hopes of his ambitious parents.  He uses his reviews as a channel to take-out his bitterness on the profession he didn't have the talent and application to enter. It's the reason that his reviews appear in an amateur blog, instead of a newspaper.

It all prompts the question - which is somewhat off-topic - where are the perceptive and able critics now?  Only Michael Church has any credibility.  Christiansen's pompous ultra-conservative views can't be backed-up with any acuity of observation or objective comment - I think he writes his crits off the Press Releases?   Simon Heffer is a pretentious vacuous popinjay - a rank amateur who shouldn't be allowed to review concerts at all, and is only there to gladhand it with his bow-tied chums.

Really enjoyed this post! certainly Simon Heffer's biography of Vaughan Williams was a big disappointment - it was just the re-hashed views of other, better-informed, writers and had absolutely nothing new to say about VW whatsoever.

[Martin Lind]

I enjoyed the posting of False Dimitri too. But back to Miaskovski. I have some other recordings too not mentioned yet. For example Verbitzky in the 3rd, haven't heard the Svetlanov yet and I like that alot. Or the Naxos recordings of 24th and 25th. Swetlanov is much better, more energetic and more subtle at the same time. For example this special effect, that the violins start a tone very quiet, I don't know weather this performing technic has a name, which I also know from the 22nd symphony with Svetlanov.  I also possess the 6th with Järvi.

I also praised the Downes in especially the 1st set of the 5th, as - when I started to explore the Swetlanov set, I did this really on my knees, thinking Swetlanov could only be the best. Swetlanov is a great conductor, has all credentials to perform this repertoire and his is the only complete set of symphonies.

The 5th has changed this attitude where I find the Downes better. The Swetlanov is certainly very good but maybe we will have other performances in the future who will be even more revealing. Maybe the Svetlanov set will once acquire a status like the Jochum in Bruckner or the first Bernstein in Mahler: A towering classic but flawed or at least questionable.

This is always the problem with composers rarely performed and recorded. OT For example I don't like the Schwarz in Hansons symphonies, but they were praised, but would they have been praised if there would be more competition? This is of course a situation to be wished: That conductors really compete to perform Miaskovski.

Regards
Martin

[vandermolen]

I enjoyed the posting of False Dimitri too. But back to Miaskovski. I have some other recordings too not mentioned yet. For example Verbitzky in the 3rd, haven't heard the Svetlanov yet and I like that alot. Or the Naxos recordings of 24th and 25th. Swetlanov is much better, more energetic and more subtle at the same time. For example this special effect, that the violins start a tone very quiet, I don't know weather this performing technic has a name, which I also know from the 22nd symphony with Svetlanov.  I also possess the 6th with Järvi.

I also praised the Downes in especially the 1st set of the 5th, as - when I started to explore the Swetlanov set, I did this really on my knees, thinking Swetlanov could only be the best. Swetlanov is a great conductor, has all credentials to perform this repertoire and his is the only complete set of symphonies.

The 5th has changed this attitude where I find the Downes better. The Swetlanov is certainly very good but maybe we will have other performances in the future who will be even more revealing. Maybe the Svetlanov set will once acquire a status like the Jochum in Bruckner or the first Bernstein in Mahler: A towering classic but flawed or at least questionable.

This is always the problem with composers rarely performed and recorded. OT For example I don't like the Schwarz in Hansons symphonies, but they were praised, but would they have been praised if there would be more competition? This is of course a situation to be wished: That conductors really compete to perform Miaskovski.

Regards
Martin

I have a fine old-series Olympia CD of Symphony No 5 conducted by Konstantin Ivanov with the USSR SO, coupled with Symphony 11, Moscow RSO cond. Veronika Dudarova. The other symphony I should have mentioned is No 24, one of the most deeply felt I think.  Tend to agree about the Hanson Schwarz set. Koussevitsky's No 3 is in a class of its own and this is perhaps my favourite Hanson symphony.

Regards

Jeffrey

[jowcol]

The other symphony I should have mentioned is No 24, one of the most deeply felt I think.

Regards

Jeffrey

I should echo this.  It was the 24th that first really drew me to Miaskovsky-- yet another really powerful and moving slow movement.

[vandermolen]

I should echo this.  It was the 24th that first really drew me to Miaskovsky-- yet another really powerful and moving slow movement.

Yes - it sounds a movingly valedictory note too 

[Mirror Image]

I own the Svetlanov symphony cycle that reissued on Warner Classics. This set is incredibly good. Miaskovsky is so underrated. I think his Symphonies Nos. 20-27 are some of the finest Russian symphonies ever written.

Anyone else here own the Svetlanov set? I have been looking at getting other recordings, but have been really digging through this box set for the past year and half.

It is encouraging to see that he has been at least acknowledged by members of this forum. That, in itself, is a major feat.

By the way Vandermolen, excellent picture of Braga Santos. He's an outstanding composer.

[vandermolen]

I own the Svetlanov symphony cycle that reissued on Warner Classics. This set is incredibly good. Miaskovsky is so underrated. I think his Symphonies Nos. 20-27 are some of the finest Russian symphonies ever written.

Anyone else here own the Svetlanov set? I have been looking at getting other recordings, but have been really digging through this box set for the past year and half.

It is encouraging to see that he has been at least acknowledged by members of this forum. That, in itself, is a major feat.

By the way Vandermolen, excellent picture of Braga Santos. He's an outstanding composer.

Thank you (re Braga Santos pic). Actually it appears to be the ONLY photo of Braga Santos that I can find on the Internet!

I have the Svetlanov Miaskovsky box - it is a great way to inexpensively discover the symphonies and other orchestral works. My favourite symphonies are 3,6,17,21,24 and 27. However, I am biased in favour of the Olympia/Alto releases as I contributed to the notes for a few of the Alto releases and felt sorry for them when the whole project was torpedoed by the Warner release. Apparently the redoubtable Mrs Svetlanov acted in a rather underhand way by agreeing to the Warner release whilst allegedy supporting the Alto project.

[Mirror Image]

Thank you (re Braga Santos pic). Actually it appears to be the ONLY photo of Braga Santos that I can find on the Internet!

I have the Svetlanov Miaskovsky box - it is a great way to inexpensively discover the symphonies and other orchestral works. My favourite symphonies are 3,6,17,21,24 and 27. However, I am biased in favour of the Olympia/Alto releases as I contributed to the notes for a few of the Alto releases and felt sorry for them when the whole project was torpedoed by the Warner release. Apparently the redoubtable Mrs Svetlanov acted in a rather underhand way by agreeing to the Warner release whilst allegedy supporting the Alto project.

I'm not surprised that your avatar is the only picture of Braga Santos on the Web. It seems like outside of Portugal he's not well known and that's a real shame. I still return to his "Symphony No. 4" from time to time. This symphony and probably his 3rd are my favorites. In later years, he got very harsh and dissonant.

The Svetlanov set is a great way to hear all the Mysaskovsky symphonies and there were many obstacles in the way to get that box set released I'm sure, but I'm very grateful for Svetlanov.