Search - Anatoly Grindenko, The Russian Patriarchate Choir :: Orthodox Vespers

Another revelatory disc from Anatoly Grindenko

Sator | Sydney, Australia | 06/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Paul Hillier (one of the leading choral directors in the world today), said in an interview with Goldberg early music magazine in which he listed his 10 desert island CDs:



"I buy every recording that Anatoly Grindenko and his Russian male choir make. For this list I choose Russian Medieval Chant-the Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom (Opus 111). (Their CD of 19th-century sacred music is also delicious.)"



Just as Paul Hillier says, this recording recording really does reward collecting it with all the others in the series of recordings Grindenko made for Opus 111. In fact, absolutely everything that Grindenko - a viola da gambist by training - touches turns to gold. In this release he worked closely with the musicologist Maria Bogomolova who transcribed the ancient notation system that the original works survive in. She also contributes excellent liner notes to the CD providing detailled background to the history to the St Joseph of Volokolamsk and the music.



This recording presents a liturgical reconstruction of the Vigil for the Feast of St Joseph, the monastery founder. The music on this disc consists of 17th century chant originating from a collection of manuscripts originating from the library of the Volokolamsk Monastery, with other early manuscripts from between 1540 to 1560 and one from around 1670 being used to aid with the reconstruction. The Volokolamsk monastery library originally contained a collection of 48 chant manuscripts which provide crucial documentation of Russian chant from between the 15th to 17th centuries.



Most of the music here is monophonic but the notes describe some of the music as being polyphonic. Even compared to the early Western polyphony of the likes of Perotin, the divergence between the parts is so minimal in fact the term 'heterophony' of the sort found in Middle and Far Eastern music better describes it, with the tension between the two slightly diverging lines serving to sustain interest.



The Moscow Patriarchate Choir have this music genuinely in their blood for they often perform their liturgical reconstructions in liturgical context for years before they record them, even though the Russian chant that has survived in current liturgical practice differs marked from the musicological riches unearthed and reconstructed here.



As you can expect from this choir they are technically remarkable, although the real miracle of these works is the sheer hypnotic power of their goose-bump raising performances of this music. This is yet another revelatory, awe-inspiring recording by these extraordinary pioneers in the Russian early music scene. The depth of this ancient Russian music seems to know no bounds and this disc is strongly recommended to anyone who has any interest at all in early music. This is definitely one of Grindenko's best CDs - don't miss it!"