Friday, July 19, 2013

Montage # 114 – Russia / La Russie



As of August 16, 2013, this montage will no longer be available on Pod-O-Matic. It can be heard or downloaded from the Internet Archive at the following address / A compter du 16 août 2013, ce montage ne sera plus disponible en baladodiffusion Pod-O-Matic. Il peut être téléchargé ou entendu au site Internet Archive à l'adresse suivante:

https://archive.org/details/Pcast114



 
pcast114- Playlist

===================================================================== English Commentary – le commentaire français suit


The next stop in our bi-weekly musical passport series is Russia (or, maybe better said, Russia and the Republics of the former Soviet Union).

Our tour of Russia begins with the Caucasus Mountains, between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, which extends into the Former Soviet Republics of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov’s first of two suites of Caucasian Sketches (1894) consists of four "songs" or parts. The suite begins with a vibrant song, In a Mountain Pass, which is characterized by a steady ambitious beat suggesting the steep Caucasus Mountains and makes one feel like a bird flying over them. The second song, In a Village, has a steady beat and becomes more vibrant near the end. The title of a third, In a Mosque, reflects the abundance of mosques in the once Turkish Caucausus and Circassian regions such as Adygea in Russia, and one can here the Muezzin's call to prayer in the music. The most famous and admired portion is the final piece, Procession of the Sardar, a Persian title for a military commander, leader or dignitary. This last piece is often heard by itself, and is a favorite of "Pops" concerts.

Alexander Glazunov, as Ippolitov-Ivanov, was formed as a composer at the St-Petersburg conservatory by the likes of Rimsky-Korsakov, and is one of many fellow Russians who embraced the nationalist tendencies of his teacher. The Kremlin is a tone poem evoking the grandeur, pomp and circumstance surrounding those most recognizable of Russian symbols, the Kremlin and the cathedral of St. Basil. Consequently it is full of instantly familiar Russian themes and sonorities, echoing the nationalist fervor espoused by the Kuchka—the so-called 'Mighty Handful' of composers promoting a national identity in Russian music in the closing decades of the nineteenth century.

As I usually do in these posts, I try and mix music from local composers to the music of composers from elsewhere, and the pieces I chose from that lot are worth noting.

In addition to the lyrical Russian songs for cello and piano by France’s Edouard Lalo, another French composer from a very different era penned a piece that is indelibly linked to Russia, the Bolshevik revolution and the vast expanses of white snow: Maurice Jarre’s music from the David Lean film Doctor Zhivago.

Between 1871 and 1873, the English cornettist Jules Levy spent twenty months travelling the Russian empire, and was even a welcome guest at the Imperial court. It is during those travels that Levy composed his Grandt Russian Fantasia for cornet and piano, which Donald Hiunsberger adapted for wind band for his album Carnaval with trumpetist and cornettist of fortune, Wynton Marsalis.

To complete the podcast, Stravinsky's Scherzo a la Russe and a student work by Sergei Rachmaninov for piano four-hands, serving as a reminder that we will return to our summer series of Rachmaninov’s symphonies and concertos next week.


Я думаю, что вы будете любить эту музыку также



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Commentaire français


Le prochain arrêt dans notre série bi-hebdomadaire le passeport musical est la Russie, et les républiques qui étaient autrefois partie-prenante de l'Union Soviétique. 

Notre visite commence dans la région du Caucase  Le Caucase est une région d'Eurasie constituée de montagnes qui s'allongent sur 1 200 km, allant du détroit de Kertch (mer Noire) à la péninsule d'Apchéron (mer Caspienne). Le Caucase est partagé entre le Caucase du Sud (aussi appelé Transcaucasie) englobant les anciennes républiques Soviétiques de Géorgie, Arménie, Azerbaïdjan et la région de Kars (Turquie), et le Caucase du Nord (appelé Ciscaucasie) situé en Russie (incluant les républiques de Karatchaïévo-Tcherkessie, de Kabardino-Balkarie, d'Ossétie du Nord, d'Ingouchie, de Tchétchénie et du Daguestan).

Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov composera deux suites d'esquisses Caucasiennes, la première (l'op. 10) étant sans doute la plus jouée. Cette suite inclut le fameux cortège du Sardar, une marche entraînante souvent hjouée lors de concerts en plein air.

Alexander Glazounov, comme Ippolitov-Ivanov, fut formé au conservatoire de Saint Pétersbourg,m sous l'égide de Rimski-Korsakov. Glazounbov adoptera les tendances nationalistes de Rimski et du reste de la Kuchka, le groupe de cinq compositeurs Russes basés dans cette ville qui allient musique et nationalisme. Le Kremlin est un poème symphonique qui évoque la grandeur et la cérémonie qui entoure le fameux palais impérial Russe.

Comme toujours, je vous propose des musiques inspirées du pays visité. Danbs ce cas-ci, les Chants Russes d'Edouard Lalo, la chanson de Lara extrate de la musique du film Docteur Zhivago et du cornettiste Anglais Jules Levy, une réminescence de voyage en Russie impériale, sa Grande Fantasia Russe.


Pour compléter le montage, des musiques de Stravinski et Rachmaninov.

Bonne écoute!


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