Composer: Claude Achille Debussy, Alexander Grechaninov
Performer: Nicholas Walker, Elena Artamonova
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Toccata
Catalogue: TOCC0234
Release: 2014
Size: 248 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Grechaninov: Clarinet Sonata, Op. 161 (version for viola)
01. I. Allegro
02. II. Canzona: Andante
03. III. Finale: Vivace
Grechaninov: Clarinet Sonata, Op. 172 (arr. E. Artamonova for viola and piano)
04. I. Moderato
05. II. Theme: Andantino
06. Variation 1: Tempo I
07. Variation 2: Allegro
08. Variation 3: Andante
09. Variation 4: Molto vivace
10. Variation 5: Andante
11. Variation 6: Allegro grazioso
12. Coda: Largo – Vivace
Debussy: 2 Romances (arr. A. Gretchaninov for viola and piano)
13. No. 1. L’ame evaporee
14. Debussy: Beau soir (arr. A. Gretchaninov for viola and piano)
Grechaninov: Rannim utrom (Early Morning), Op. 126b (arr. S. Stegmuller for viola and piano)
15. No. 1. Morning Stroll: Moderato
16. No. 2. Homesickness: Andantino
17. No. 3. The Joker: Allegretto grazioso
18. No. 4. In the Twilight: Andante
19. No. 5. Little Horseman: Allegro
20. No. 6. On Winter’s Eve: Andante
21. No. 7. Burlesque: Moderato – Allegro non troppo
22. No. 8. In a Fortress: Moderato
23. No. 9. Thieves and Policeman: Sempre ben marcato
24. No. 10. Waltz: Moderato, molto grazioso
Grechaninov: V starinnom stile, “In modo antico”, Op. 81 (arr. E. Artamonova for viola and piano)
25. I. Prelude: Con liberta – Andante
26. II. Sarabande: Allegro moderato
27. III. Gavotte: Allegro, sempre marcato
28. IV. Aria: Lento, ma non troppo
29. V. Jig: Vivace
Alexander Grechaninov saw much change in the course of his long life (1864–1956), fleeing Revolutionary Russia into exile, first in Paris and then the United States.
A member of the second generation of nationalist composers – he was a student of Rimsky-Korsakov and Taneyev – he never abandoned an essentially Russian lyricism.
These attractive unknown viola works are as good as unknown: several are unpublished, and two of them are in Elena Artanomova’s own transcriptions for viola.
The CD is released to mark the 150th anniversary of Grechaninov’s birth this year. It is dedicated to the memory of Alexander Ivashkin (1948–2014), who supervised the research that made the recording possible.
The Artamonova-Walker Duo – Elena Artanomova, viola, and Nicholas Walker, piano – gave its first performance in April 2005 and since then has explored a fascinating, often undiscovered and diverse repertoire for viola and piano or harpsichord from Marais and Handel to Alexander Grechaninov and Alfred Schnittke. Their concert programmes, with special emphasis on the Russian heritage, have brought to light some little-known viola music by Anton Rubinstein, Sergei Vasilenko, Grigory Frid, Sulkhan Tsintsadze, Georg Kirkor and Sergei Slonimsky. Their CD of the first recording of complete viola works by Sergei Vasilenko on Toccata Classics, the fruit of Elena’s archival investigations, was released in 2011.