Unquestionably one of the choral masterpieces of the 20th century, alfred schnittkes concerto for mixed chorus is an extended setting about 40 minutes duration of words from the book of lamentations by the armenian monk grigor narekatsi 9511003. One of the few orchestral works written after 1945 to enter the repertoire of ensembles worldwide, its uneasy fusion of old and new, high and low, and grave and comical captures what is most schnittkean about schnittke. Alfred schnittke biography 1934 alfred schnittke was born on 24th november in engels capital of the former wolgagerman republic, his father is a journalist and his mother a german teacher. Get youtube premium get youtube tv best of youtube music. Alfred schnittke was born in engels in the volgagerman republic of the russian sfsr. All three pieces have taken his name all over the world. The work received its premiere performance that same year on 21 march, with the leningrad chamber orchestra under eri klas.
He began his musical education in 1946 in vienna, where his father had been posted. Please write me a direct message if you have complains about this upload. Polystylistic features of schnittkes cello sonata 1978. Alfred schnittke fuga for solo violin by pelodelperro. Later came the hauntingly simple piano quintet 1976, and the comically sinister concerto grosso no. Listen to your favorite songs from schnittke, a piano concerto concerto for piano and string orchestra concerto for piano 4hands and chamber orchestra by ewa kupiec now. Jose maria florencio conductor adam kosmieja piano comadam. Written in 19845, it is scored for a very large choir and for this recording holst singers were augmented by large contingents of london. At the height of these opposing factions comes a meditative and almost surreal cadenza. Bbc symphony orchestra krystian zimmermann just for promotion. If alfred schnittke is a poster child of musical postmodernism, his concerto grosso no. Schnittke concerto for piano and strings 1979 youtube. Unquestionably one of the choral masterpieces of the 20th century, alfred schnittke s concerto for mixed chorus is an extended setting about 40 minutes duration of words from the book of lamentations by the armenian monk grigor narekatsi 9511003. Alfred schnittkes complete piano music offers a shortcut straight to the heart of the prolific soviet composer who died too young in 1998 aged 63.
Hamelin plays schnittke concerto for piano and strings. Although there are many published analyses of his choral music, symphonies, concerti and violin sonatas, there is no known published research for schnittkes first cello sonata. Alfred schnittke concerto grosso 2 for violin, cello and. Orchestra, piano, violin, harpsichord sheet music book by alfred schnittke 19341998. Schnittkes plan is to lead them to temporary reconciliation by the end of the 21minute singlemovement structure, thus exploiting the unusual nature of the medium. Alfred schnittke grew up in a culturally diverse environment influenced by many different composers and. His father was born in frankfurt and moved to the soviet union for work in 1927, and so it seems most of schnittkes family or background has german heritage. Schnittke, a piano concerto concerto for piano and string. Schnittke concerto, for viola and piano published by sikorski. Schnittke oleg kagan, natalia gutman, the ussr ministry of culture orchestra, conductor gennadi rozhdestvensky concerto grosso no. His first opera, life with an idiot, was premiered in amsterdam april 1992. Alfred schnittke the composers life and work universal.
Stream adfree with amazon music unlimited on mobile, desktop, and tablet. The pensive opening to the singlemovement concerto for piano and string orchestra is most welcome, emerging with commendable clarity and naturalness. Articles 10 events 3 interviews 2 links 1 obituaries 4 programme notes 4. Enno senft, alfred schnittke, christoph eschenbach, chamber. Oct 06, 20 alfred schnittkes piano quintet was completed in 1976. Piano quintet string trio stille musik by alfred schnittke. Polystylism in alfred schnittkes music has been considered by scholars as a central aspect of his music.
His heavyhanded playing went against the grain of this piece and he managed to make the orchestra and polyansky become a bad accompanist. Chandos records is one of the worlds premier classical music record companies, best known for its ground breaking search for neglected musical gems. But its only a temporary respite, the glowering bass and note clusters hinting at the more radical schnittke of the 1960s. Mar 01, 2014 alfred schnittke s complete piano music offers a shortcut straight to the heart of the prolific soviet composer who died too young in 1998 aged 63. Spotify heres a playlist with several different recordings of the work, with performers including. For hexameron alfred schnittkes ghostly concerto for piano and strings, performed by marcandre hamelin and the manitoba chamber. Witold lutoslawski piano concerto w score 1987 youtube. Suite da concerto dalle musiche per il film agony di elem klimov 19741981 rundfunksinfonieorchester berlin diretta da frank strobel i.
Cantus perpetuus for keyboard instrument and four percussionists. A guide to the music of alfred schnittke music the guardian. It is recommended for anyone wanting an introduction to this unique composer. Schnittke s three piano sonatas are well represented on disc, but simon smith s survey is a welcome addition. Schnittke s concerto for piano and strings journeys through the conflict within the inner soul. Personally, while i dont enjoy schnittkes or schoenbergs work all the time, a few of their pieces are excellent. Schnittke s plan is to lead them to temporary reconciliation by the end of the 21minute singlemovement structure, thus exploiting the unusual nature of the medium. Take a look at schnittke s piano quintet, which is heavy in emotions. It may not be pleasing but it remains a brilliant work of art.
Thus, in the first movement of the quintet, schnittke uses the combination of the two most common types of texture in music of the mid and late 20th century micropolyphony in the string parts and polyphony of layers between the piano and string parts. Concerto per pianoforte a quattro mani e orchestra da camera 1988 by thewelleszcompany. Irina schnittke, martha argerich, the petersen quartett, roland pontinen with the tale quartet, the lark quartet, boris berman with the vermeer quartet, the borodin quartet. This weeks featured piece is alfred schnittkes piano quintet, as nominated by ueaglesbecomevultures performances. The piano is prepared by inserted coins between the strings in its upper.
Pianist anna fedorova and the nordwestdeutsche philharmonie led by yves abel perform tchaikovskys piano concerto no. Shop and buy alfred schnittke concerto grosso sheet music. Canon in memoriam igor stravinsky for string quartet. The disparate elements that invade the work constantly move from the stabilizing elements of melodic passages to the destabilizing aggression of dissonance. It was in vienna, schnittke s biographer alexander ivashkin writes, where he fell in love with music which is part of life, part of history and culture, part of the past which is still alive. So if its not in the concerto grosso, perhaps schnittkes real voice is music like this, his concerto for mixed chorus, composed in the mid1980s, music that strips back any. It was written in 19761977 at the request of gidon kremer and tatiana grindenko who were also the violin soloists at its premiere on 21 march 1977 in leningrad together with yuri smirnov on keyboard instruments and the leningrad chamber orchestra under eri klas. Schnittkes piano writing is idiomatic and virtuosic, and much of the writing for the strings has a tonal character, making the concerto for piano and string orchestra one of schnittkes more accessible works. Schnittkes concerto for piano and strings journeys through the conflict within the inner soul. The concerto for piano four hands and chamber orchestra piano concerto no 3 was written in 1988, representing the late schnittke in declining health. Regrettably, most of the polystylism has elapsed into aleatory noise. This weeks featured piece is alfred schnittke s piano quintet, as nominated by ueaglesbecomevultures performances.
Schnittke, igor khudolei, russian state symphonic cappella, russian state symphony orchestra, valeri polyansky. Piano quintet, alfred schnittke articulate silences. Starting from the first concerto written while a student in 1957 and revised in 1966 to his last concerto written in 1984 schnittke s development is interesting to follow. Written between 1987 and 1992, the sonatas are terse and expressionistic, requiring immediacy, dexterity and a keen sense of musical drama. Coming one year after the death of fellow russian composer dmitri shostakovich, schnittkes work shares much in terms of atmosphere and compositional strategy with a number of the formers late works particularly the viola sonata and 15th string quartet, which impress as apparent meditations on the composers.
Schnittke s piano writing is idiomatic and virtuosic, and much of the writing for the strings has a tonal character, making the concerto for piano and string orchestra one of schnittke s more accessible works. Khudolei is an unimaginative pianist, did not even bother to follow schnittkes precise score. Chandos records is one of the worlds premier classical music record companies, best known for. Take a look at schnittkes piano quintet, which is heavy in emotions. Probably the most affecting work is the second sonata 1990, which follows the familiar pattern of the composers late work in featuring angular melodic lines that rise to a frenzied. Also, the first violin clearly conveys the introductory motive this can be. Whether the quality of the musical invention fills out the overall concept in an interesting way is a moot point. It was in vienna, schnittkes biographer alexander ivashkin writes, where he fell in love with music which is part of life, part of history and culture, part of the past which is still alive.
Save for the first sonata, already recorded by berman on another chandos release, this disc presents practically all schnittkes compositions for solo piano. In this well laid out album you get a distinct timeline of the development of alfred schnittke. Piano quintet 19721976 alfred harrievich schnittke 1934. Starting from the first concerto written while a student in 1957 and revised in 1966 to his last concerto written in 1984 schnittkes development is interesting to follow. Alfred schnittkes piano quintet was completed in 1976. Alfred schnittke concerto for piano and strings 1979. Anna kislitsyna piano maestro andreas delfs conductor temple university orchestra. Order from your preferred classical music cd store arkivmusic. Alfred garrievich schnittke was born on 24 november, 1934.
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