Naxos 25th Anniversary. Great Russian Symphonies (10 CD box set FLAC)

Audio CD
Number of Discs: 10 CD box set
Format: FLAC (image+cue)
Label: Naxos
Size: 3.23 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

CD 01 Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 / Borodin: Symphony No. 2
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Symphony No 4 in F minor, Op 36
Alexander Porfir’yevich Borodin (1833-1887)
Symphony No 2 in B minor

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Adrian Leaper
Seattle Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Gerard Schwarz

01. I. Andante sostenuto – Moderato con anima
02. II. Andantino in modo di canzona
03. III. Scherzo: Pizzicato ostinato – Allegro
04. IV. Finale: Allegro con fuoco
05. I. Allegro
06. II. Scherzo: Prestissimo. Trio: Allegretto
07. III. Andante
08. IV. Finale: Allegro

CD 02 Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 / Romeo and Juliet
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Symphony No 5 in E minor, Op 64
Romeo And Juliet

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Adrian Leaper

01. I. Andante – Allegro con anima
02. II. Andante cantabile, con alcuna licenza
03. III. Valse: Allegro moderato
04. IV. Finale: Andante maestoso – Allegro vivo
05. Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture (3rd version, 1880)

CD 03 Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 / 1812 Overture
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Symphony No 6 in B minor, Op 74 ‘Pathétique’
1812 Overture

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Antoni Wit
Conductor Adrian Leaper

01. I. Adagio – Allegro non troppo
02. II. Allegro con grazia
03. III. Allegro molto vivace
04. IV. Finale: Adagio lamentoso
05. 1812 Overture, Op. 49

CD 04 Prokofiev: Symphony No.5 / Myaskovsky: Symphony No. 25
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony No 5 in B flat major, Op 100
Nikolay Yakovlevich Myaskovsky (1881-1950)
Symphony No 25 in D flat major, Op 69

Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Theodore Kuchar
Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Dmitry Yablonsky

01. I. Andante
02. II. Allegro marcato
03. III. Adagio
04. IV. Allegro giocoso
05. I. Allegro deciso
06. II. Molto sostenuto
07. III. Allegro appassionato

CD 05 Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 / Prokofiev: Symphony No.1
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Symphony No 5 in D minor, Op 47
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony No 1 in D major, Op 25, ‘Classical’

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Vasily Petrenko
Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Theodore Kuchar

01. I. Moderato
02. II. Allegretto
03. III. Largo
04. IV. Allegro non troppo
05. I. Allegro
06. II. Larghetto
07. III. Gavotte: Non troppo allegro
08. IV. Finale: Molto vivace

CD 06 Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Symphony No 7 in C Major, Op 60 ‘Leningrad’

Russian Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor Dmitry Yablonsky

01. I. Allegretto
02. II. Moderato (Poco allegretto)
03. III. Adagio
04. IV. Allegro non troppo

CD 07 Rimsky-Korsakov: Symphony No. 2 / Sheherazade
Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908)
Symphony No 2, Op 9 (Symphonic Suite), ‘Antar’
Sheherazade

St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Andre Anichanov
Maria Larionoff – violin
Seattle Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Gerard Schwarz

01. I. Largo – Allegro – Largo – Allegretto – Adagio – Allegretto – Largo
02. II. Allegro
03. III. Allegro risoluto
04. IV. Allegretto – Adagio
05. I. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship
06. II. The Kalender Prince
07. III. The Young Prince and the Young Princess
08. IV. Festival at Baghdad – The Sea

CD 08 Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2 / The Rock
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Symphony No 2 in E minor, Op 27
Fantaisie, Op 7 ‘The Rock’ (Utyos)

Ireland National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Alexander Anissimov

01. I. Largo: Allegro moderato
02. II. Allegro molto
03. III. Adagio
04. IV. Allegro vivace
05. Utyos (The Rock), Op. 7

CD 09 Scriabin: Symphony No.3 / Le Poème de Iextase
Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915)
Symphony No 3 in C Minor, Op 43 ‘Le Poème Divin’
La Poeme de l’extase (The Poem of Extasy), Op. 54, ‘Symphony No. 4’

Moscow Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Igor Golovschin
Dmitri Lokalenkov – trumpet
Moscow Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Igor Golovschin

01. I. Lento
02. II. Luttes (Struggles)
03. III. Voluptes (Delights)
04. IV. Jeu divin (Divine Play)
05. La Poeme de l’extase (The Poem of Extasy), Op. 54, “Symphony No. 4”

CD 10 Glazunov: Symphony No.6 / Kalinnikov: Symphony No.1
Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (1865-1936)
Symphony No 6 in C minor, Op 58
Vasily Sergeyevich Kalinnikov (1866-1901)
Symphony No 1 in G minor

Moscow Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Alexander Anissimov
Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Theodore Kuchar

01. I. Adagio – Allegro appassionato
02. II. Theme and Variations
03. III. Intermezzo: Allegretto
04. IV. Finale: Andante maestoso – Moderato maestoso – Scherzando – Allegro pesante – Allegro moderato
05. I. Allegro moderato
06. II. Andante commodamente
07. III. Scherzo: Allegro non troppo – moderato assai
08. IV. Finale: Allegro moderato

The word ‘symphony’ is used to describe an extended orchestral composition in Western classical music. By the eighteenth century the Italianate opera sinfonia—musical interludes between operas or concertos – had assumed the structure of three contrasting movements, and it is this form that is often considered as the direct forerunner of the orchestral symphony. With the rise of established professional orchestras, the symphony assumed a more prominent place in concert life between 1790 and 1820 until it eventually came to be regarded by many as the yardstick by which one would measure a composer’s achievement.
The symphony came late to Russia. The first attempts at a Russian Nationalist symphony were made in the late nineteenth-century by Balakirev and his acolytes, Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov as well as by Tchaikovsky, whose symphonies (despite his European leanings) have a distinctly Russian flavour. In their wake followed numerous composers, from Glazunov to Myaskovsky, similarly instilling their music with the melodies of their homeland. In the years that followed Russian politics had an unmistakable impact on the Russian symphonists, as Rachmaninov and Prokofiev (among others) went into exile whilst composers such as Shostakovich vented their political frustrations through the medium of music – his Leningrad Symphony being a prime example.

The Great Classics series from Naxos is the perfect introduction to myriad genres of classical music. Comprising both complete and compiled selections from the greatest works in the repertoire, the boxes are bursting with wonderful pieces of music, both recognizable and unfamiliar. The boxes take the listener on a thrilling tour of some of the worlds most dramatic musical media, encompassing music from six centuries and featuring sensational performers. All boxes come with a fascinating booklet with detailed information on the genre itself, chronological placement of each work, and a comprehensive study of the music. A fitting celebration of 25 years of superb music from Naxos, the worlds favourite classical label.