Search - Maykapar, Zhuravliova :: Origins of Russian Piano Music 1 / Early 19th Cent

Russian Harpsichord

09/05/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This cd presents works by Russian composers of the 18th century. This in itself is reason enough to listen to this music, as compilations of secular Russian music of the time are very rare. Most of the pieces are for solo harpsichord, played on that instrument by the famous Russian harpsichordist Alexander Mayakapar. The works generally fall into the classical style, therefore they resemble European music of the time. Bortniansky, best known for his Church vocal music, also studied in Italy, composed various instrumental and solo harpsichord works as well as some operas for Italian and Russian theaters. However, there are certain Russian elements, as in the folksong themes to sets of variations by Karaulov. The songs presented here, as well as the minuet, polonaise, contredanse and other dance movements are not at all by Bortniansky but are anonymous pieces from music albums owned by Ekaterina Sinyavina, of a noble family. These pieces were used for domestic music making, composed by amateur musicians, and therefore are of great socio-historical as well as musical interest. The songs are well-sung by soprano Zhuravliova accompanied by Maykapar on the harpsichord. None of the pieces on this cd are played on the piano, although the following two discs in this series are on the piano. If you enjoyed this disc, two discs of Bortniansky's chamber music are available, as well as more early Russian keyboard music played by Alexei Lubimov."