Alexander Konstantinovich GLAZUNOV (1865-1936)

Piano Concerto No.1, Op.92 Piano Concerto No.2, Op.100 Variations on a Russian Theme Nikolay Vasilyevich Artsybushev (1853-1937): Variation I Jázeps Vítols (1863-1948): Variation II Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov (1855-1914): Variation III Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908): Variation IV Nikolay Alexandrovich Sokolov (1859-1922): Variation V Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (1865-1936): Variation VI

Oxana Yablonskaya piano
Moscow Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Dmitry Yablonsky

NAXOS 8.553928
[69:01] budget-price

by Benjamin Chee

I once had the pleasure, ten years ago, of watching Oxana Yablonskaya play Prokofiev's pungent Fifth Concerto with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, in one of the more unforgettable concerts in many years of concertgoing. It was a memorable concert in more ways than one, not the least of which (as a student then) I was following the music with a score in a study of Russian music, as well as her four barnstorming encores, one of them a sonata in B flat by Domenico Scarlatti that had sparks flying from the keyboard.

It is therefore no small degree of pleasure to see her name again on this recording, comprising both of Glazunov's piano concertos with a short curtain-raiser written, as it were, by a committee of Russian masters. The composite Variations on a Russian Theme was written by six friends of the conductor Nikolay Galkin as a celebration gift, the theme being selected by Rimsky-Korsakov's youngest daughter Nadezha from Balakirev's collection of traditional folk-songs.

Despite the piecemeal idiom of the composition, it surprisingly holds up well as a whole. There is an abundance of lurid orchestration and lush harmonies in the best Russian style, that runs like a loom throughout the tapestry of the work. Individually, each section contains its share of delightful reworked melodies that would be perfect for a round or two of "Name That Tune" on a radio game-show.

The Moskovite orchestra has the full measure of the work under Dmitry Yablonsky. (As the name suggests, he also happens to be the son of Yablonskaya.) Some of the solo passages - the horn in the opening of the second variation, for example - perhaps lacks the sheen we might expect from an orchestra of this stature, but the ensemble work is as crisp as crackers.

Lyadov's dancing woodwind figures in the third variation are straight out of a ballet and is a perfect foil for the grandstanding brasses of Rimsky-Korsakov that follow. Glazunov's own Elgar-like processional is bombastically over-the-top, to bring the collection to a rambunctous conclusion. This is an intelligent choice of a quintessentially Russian hors d'ouerve for the album.

Outside the influence of this peers, Glazunov (right) did eschew their modernism and clung very strongly to the late school of the Romantics. Listening to his First Piano Concerto, there is definitely more than a hint of Chopin, Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky in his musical invention. Like Ravel, who wrote his piano concertos only after a lifetime of orchestral compositions, Glazunov's two piano concertos were started after he had finished his eight symphonies (and rather superstitiously, abandoned the ninth).

The concerto comes in two movements, with the first following the classical model of statement-development-recapitulation. Yablonskaya immediately asserts her authority on the work with a quicksilver liquidity of scales and roulades in the solo piano's entry. The orchestra accompanies unabashedly as the rich music unfolds - to be fair, Glazunov has a tendency to carry things a bit too far, which perhaps explains why he has not achieved the popularity of his compatriots.

On paper, the second movement is similar to another concertante masterpiece - Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme for the cello - in that it, too, is a series of variations entwined into a single movement. In terms of musical inventiveness, there really is no competition between the two, even if Glazunov definitely has some good ideas. There is also, at times, an excess of heavy weather in his orchestration, and it is to Yablonskaya and the orchestra's credit that they manage to carry the hyperbole of the music.

The Second Piano Concerto is also played through as a single movement, much dominated by the opening theme. While it is a unified work, there are various sections within the work that flow and ebb: a lyrical development of the theme, a slower Romantic section, a truimphant conclusion. The material is dominated by the erstwhile Yablonskaya, with impressive passages of virtuosity and lyricism.

From another perspective, this album is probably not as much as a showcase of Glazunov's music as a platform for Oxana Yablonskaya, along with the Moscow Symphony under Dmitri Yablonsky. Yablonskaya is a pianist par excellence, with impeccable refinement and musicianship. The orchestra, while warm and impressive, still lacks that last bit of élan to rate it as first-class - but perhaps this is already impressive from an orchestra which (despite the name) was founded only in 1989. The recording is full and of the usual modern high standard.

You can buy or order this CD in Singapore from HMV, Sing Discs, Tower Records and other good CD stores.

Benjamin Chee has an eidetic memory, which probably isn't a bad thing when it comes to listening to music. [No, I don't know what the word means too. - Ed.]

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