Chief Conductor Research Articles

ДИАЛОГ КАК НАУЧНАЯ ИДЕЯ: БЕСЕДЫ Д. С. ДМИТРИЕНКО С М. И. ИМХАНИЦКИМ

Dialogues as a form of communication are no less in demand today. To a certain extent, they replenish the knowledge that was previously discovered through epistolary and diary entries. We can talk about “hidden” dialogue, “internal” dialogue, and, of course, dialogue as a form of answering questions during an interview, a conversation with a famous person. Dialogues are attributes of modern knowledge about writers, artists, performing musicians, and conductors. The range of published dialogue books is vast, and their fund continues to be actively replenished. There are various approaches to this format of books: conversations, implied dialogues, interviews. The focus of dialogues on art is clear: to hear the voice of an artist, a writer, a musician answering questions about the creative process, specific works, and life path. At the same time, it is not so common to find books of conversations with scientists, since their works speak for themselves. The more interesting is the recently published book by Imkhanitsky M. I. Dialogues with D. S. Dmitrienko [2015]. Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Art Criticism, Professor, M. I. Imkhanitsky, whose works have long become scientific classics on a wide range of topics “folk musical instruments”, answers the questions of the famous musician, Honoured Artist of the Russian Federation, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the State Russian Folk Ensemble Russia named after L. G. Zykina, D. S. Dmitrienko.

Kusinerna Wilhelm och Elsa Stenhammars betydelse för bildandet av Göteborgs orkesterskola och Göteborgs orkesterförenings skola för körsång

When the Gothenburg Orchestra School and the Gothenburg Orchestra Association’s school for choir singing were formed at the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra during the 1916/17 season, Wilhelm Stenhammar had been the orchestra’s chief conductor for nine years. Despite his great importance for the orchestra, there is nothing to show that the formation of the two new schools was on his initiative. Regarding the orchestra school, there were several factors that contributed to its formation, among them the obligation to fulfil the conditions of a will that had been crucial to the creation of the orchestra, and also the need to ensure the recruitment of musicians to the orchestra and to counteract the preponderance of foreign musicians. In the first years of its existence, the symphony orchestra cooperated with some high bourgeoisie choirs dating back to the 19th century, despite their mediocre artistic quality. When the last of these choirs was discontinued in 1916, Elsa Stenhammar, a cousin of Wilhelm’s who had formed a number of high-quality choirs with members from the middle and working classes, offered to transfer her choirs to the orchestra’s organization, which could then start a choir school and, only a year later, its own choir, the Concert Hall Choir. Keywords: Wilhelm Stenhammar, Elsa Stenhammar, Gothenburg, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Gothenburg Orchestra Association, orchestra school, choir school, concert hall choir, musicology, music history.

Interview With British Conductor Paul Mann

"British conductor Paul Mann is a regular guest with many major orchestras throughout Europe, the US, Australia, and the Far East. Orchestras with which he has worked include the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, St Petersburg Philharmonic, RAI Torino, Orchestra dell’Arena di Verona; the BBC Orchestras, City of Birmingham Symphony, Hallé, among many others. Mr Mann has guest-conducted extcollaborations with USA and is a regular guest with the New York City Ballet. Projects with the LSO included collaborations the legendary rock group Deep Purple in two widely acclaimed performances of Jon Lord’s Concerto for Group and Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, the live DVD and CD which remain international bestsellers. Paul Mann was chief conductor of the Odense Symphony Orchestra in Denmark until 2008 and has made numerous critically acclaimed recordings for labels such as Bridge, Warner Classics, Da Capo, EMI, and Toccata Classics. Keywords: musical education, interpretation, conducting, tempo"

TEODOR CURRENTZIS IN PERM CULTURAL LIFE IN 2011-2022

Teodor Currentzis is a Russian conductor of Greek origin. He was born on February 24, 1972 in Athens in a musical family. In 1994 he moved to Russia, St. Petersburg, to study conducting at the St. Petersburg Conservatory with conductor Ilya Musin. In 2004-2010 he was chief conductor of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre, where he founded the MusicAeterna orchestra and choir. In 2011-2019, he was the artistic director of the Diaghilev Festival and the Opera and Ballet Theatre in Perm. According to critic Dmitry Renansky, thanks to the work of Currentzis during the years of the “Permian Cultural Revolution”, Perm was given the status of the third musical capital of Russia. The article examines the image of Teodor Currentzis in the Permian public, his role in the cultural life of the regional center. Focused interviews of viewers in Perm are used as a source. The article puts forward two hypotheses. Firstly, the trickster toolkit used by Teodor Currentzis in the process of self-design and self-presentation is read by the audience in a number of aspects. Secondly, the trickster in this mythological construction is in synthesis with another archetypal image that smooths out its most dangerous properties and which needs to be clarified during the interview. As a result of the field research, it was found that the archetype of the trickster here is indeed supplemented by another image that neutralizes the negative features of the first one, and the established cultural image forms, respectively, two strategies of spectator perception.

Czech-German Collaborations at the Metropolitan Opera in the Early Twentieth Century

Abstract In the early twentieth century, New York’s Metropolitan Opera produced four works by Czech composers: Bedřich Smetana’s The Bartered Bride in 1909, Karel Weis’s The Polish Jew in 1921, Leoš Janáček’s Jenůfa in 1924, and Jaromír Weinberger’s Schwanda the Bagpiper in 1931. American critics associated these productions with exoticized notions of Czech culture and Czech nationalism. Yet, as this article shows, the four American productions also illuminate the multiethnic and multicultural environment of the Czech lands in the late Habsburg and early Czechoslovak eras. The 1909 Bartered Bride featured the famous Czech soprano Ema Destinnová and was choreographed by Czech dancer Otakar Bartík, but it was also prepared by Gustav Mahler, who presented himself as a Bohemian national in connection with the production. Weis’s The Polish Jew held an ambiguous status as a national work in Prague because it was written to a German libretto and first performed at Prague’s German Theater. The Bartered Bride, Jenůfa, and Schwanda the Bagpiper, moreover, were performed in German translations. And both The Polish Jew and Jenůfa were directed by Artur Bodanzky, the chief conductor of German repertoire at the Met, whose career started at Prague’s German Theater. Thus in New York, Czech repertoire benefitted from personalities associated with German-Bohemian circles, whereas in early twentieth-century Prague, Czech and German-Bohemian collaborations were considered taboo.

Pozůstalost Františka Škroupa (1801–1862) v Národním muzeu v Praze (Ke 160. výročí úmrtí)

The Czech composer and conductor František Škroup was one of the most important musicians active in Bohemia in the second quarter of the 19th century. For 30 years from 1827, he was a conductor at the Estates Theatre in Prague, the leading operatic stage in Bohemia (and from 1837 to 1858 the chief conductor), and he conducted the most important Prague concerts. He spent the last two years of his life in Rotterdam, where he took part in the inception of the newly established German opera. He had a major influence over the public’s developing musical tastes at the time, but now Škroup has unjustly become a nearly forgotten figure. He is remembered by the Czech public mostly as the composer of the song “Kde domov můj?” (Where My Home Is) from the farce Fidlovačka. Already in the 19th century, it spontaneously became the unofficial hymn of the Czech nation, and after the dissolution of the Habsburg monarchy and the founding of Czechoslovakia as an independent state in 1918, it became the official national anthem. After Škroup’s death in 1862, the intention of his widow Karolina had been to donate his estate to the National Museum, but in 1863 she only sent the museum the autograph scores of two of Škroup’s key works: the singspiel Dráteník and the farce Fidlovačka. The National Museum obtained the estate in 1921 as an inheritance from Božena Škroupová (1847–1928), who bequeathed its contents to the museum under the condition that she would use some items until her death, whereafter they would be handed over to the National Museum, which she made her sole heir. This very extensive collection is of quite extraordinary cultural value: it contains tangible artefacts (furniture), a wealth of iconographical material, the personal documents of several members of the family of František Škroup – Karolina Škroupová, and their daughters Karolina and Božena, family correspondence. Škroup’s compositions including autograph scores, handwritten copies, and printed editions, plenty of printed material mostly from the period after Škroup’s death, and books. The artefacts and iconographical material were kept at the Department of Historical Archaeology, books and printed or manuscript writings were kept at the literary archive of the National Museum, and music was kept in the music collection that was formerly part of the National Museum Library. When the National Museum’s literature archives were transferred to the Literary Archive of the Museum of Czech Literature, this collection was retained at the National Museum and was registered among the collections at the Music Department in 1954. It is certain that sheet music was turned over to the museum in 1921 and furniture at the beginning of 1929; most of the books had been turned over already in 1921. In most cases it is not possible to determine reliably when written materials were handed over. Inventory numbers or shelf marks have been found for most of the items from the will, and the library still needs to be identified. So far, the writings in the estate are still entered in the systematic records under acquisition number 4/54. The discovery of the will is very beneficial for the further processing of the estate because we are now aware of internal connections and are able to organise the material well.The National Museum has definitely fulfilled the stipulation in Božena Škroupová’s will “that the objects be preserved reverently for future generations” – the objects are properly stored, processed, available to scholarly researchers, and on display in exhibits; most of the furniture is on display in an exhibit at the History Museum in Vrchotovy Janovice.

Злочини російських окупантів проти культурної спадщини Маріуполя

The article outlines the crimes of the Russian occupiers against the cultural heritage of Mariupol. The norms of international humanitarian law, which protect cultural values during military operations, are analyzed. The autor explains that the parties to the conflict are obliged to respect and protect them, prohibit, warn and stop any acts of theft, robbery or misappropriation of cultural values in any form, as well as any acts of vandalism. The characteristics of the most damaged or completely destroyed architectural monuments of Mariupol are given. The paper emphasizes that the only cultural institution preserved in the city is the famous Mariupol Chamber Philharmonic, which has become a refuge for Mariupol residents thanks to the dedication and daily work of its director, Honored Artist of Ukraine, chief conductor of the Mariupol Municipal Chamber Orchestra «RENASSIN» Vasyl Kryachko. The autor indicates that restitution is the main means of compensation for damage caused to cultural heritage and cultural values as a result of violation of international norms during the armed conflict. The task of restitution is not just to return individual cultural values and compensate for the damage, but also restore the cultural objects as an integral cultural heritage of the nation and the state. The second form of restitution is related to the replacement of cultural values with similar objects lost as a result of hostilities. Thus, on March 21, 2022, the building of the Arkhip Kuindzhi Art Museum in Mariupol was destroyed by a direct hit from an air bomb of the Russian occupiers. The aggressor state is responsible for this. That is why the Russian Federation should hand over masterpieces similar to the lost ones from its collections to Ukraine and reimburse the cost of the destroyed museum premises or build a new one. The study makes it possible to conclude that restoration of cultural heritage and return of cultural values will become an important task of the state and society after the victory of Ukraine. Ukrainian cultural heritage is part of the world cultural heritage, therefore, all the states of the world have an obligation to preserve and return it. The facts and patterns revealed as a result of the research can become the basis for further study of the war crimes of the Russian army against the cultural heritage of Ukraine.

CONTINUITY OF MUSICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL TRADITIONS: K. S. SARAJEV - Y. H. DAVTYAN

The article draws parallels between the activities of K. Sarajev, a teacher, and Y. Davtyan, a student, demonstrating the connection between times and traditions. A brief overview of Konstantin Solomon Sarajev's work, as well as some aspects of his pedagogical activity, is provided. Sarajev has an extensive repertoire and has conducted numerous symphony concerts. Konstantin Solomon's conducting activities were based on the artistic principles and technical methods of his teacher, Arthur Nikish, as well as his own conducting and teaching methods. Along with conducting, he began teaching at the Moscow Conservatory, and then at the Yerevan Conservatory. B. Khaykin, M. Paverman, L. Ginzburg, S. Sakharov, A. Katanyan, G. Budaghyan, H. Voskanyan, Y. Davtyan and many others studied in Sarajev's class. Citing the work of the People's Artist of Armenia, conductor, Professor Yuri Davtyan, the author demonstrates the continuity of music and teaching traditions, that have survived to the present day. Yuri Davtyan led the most reputable orchestras of the Soviet Union: the orchestras of the Bolshoi and Mariinsky Theaters, the orchestra of the Saratov Opera and Ballet Theater. He was the chief conductor of the A. Spendiaryan National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre from 1953 to 2000, as well as the conductor of the Symphonic Orchestra of State Television and Radio of Armenia (1966-1994) and the orchestra of the Hakob Paronyan State Theatre of Musical Comedy (2007-2020). Yuri Davtyan has performed in Romania, Hungary, France, the United States, and Spain. The concert programs and repertoire of musical performances conducted by the musician are extensive. Davtyan is the bearer of the musical and teaching traditions of the Sarajev school. As a teacher, Yuri Hayk Yuri Davtyan developed his own performing principles and teaching methods, teaching the art of conducting, instilling culture and skills in his students of the XX and XXI centuries, students of the Technological Era, and a different approach to the classical phenomena of life in the broadest sense.

A MASK IN THE PRODUCTION OF S. PROKOFIEV’S OPERA “THE LOVE FOR THREE ORANGES” AT CXID-OPERA IN 2019

Statement of the problem. In the practice of modern theatre, particularly in the performances that have long-lasting history of production, any component of director’s vision might be conceptualized, regardless of how important it might be seen traditionally. Thus, it becomes even more important to highlight main principles of such conception, to prove its rationality on the basis of both scholars’ works and real-life performance tradition. In the production of S. Prokofiev’s opera “The Love for Three Oranges” at CXID-OPERA (Kharkiv, 2019; chief conductor – D. Morozov, stage director – A. Kaloyan, artistic director – A. Baitenova, chief choirmaster – O. Chernikin), an extremely important role belongs to masks which are used by actors of all levels, from the protagonist to the characters who are on stage for no more than a minute. Analysis of recent researches demonstrates that S. Prokofiev’s “The Love for Three Oranges” has been studied thoroughly both in the composer’s homeland and abroad, especially given it was premiered in the USA. Scholars’ attention has also been brought to V. Meyerhold’s interpretation of C. Gozzi’s fairy-tales, including his director’s version of “The Love for Three Oranges”. The multiple relationship between S. Prokofiev’s opera and la commedia dell’arte as well as the very phenomena of Italian theatre have been examined. However, there is no research on how the use or refusal to use masks might influence a production and how it helps to establish a hierarchical relation between the characters. The purpose of the article is to identify the meaning and function of the use of masks in the genre-plot system of S. Prokofiev’s opera “The Love for Three Oranges” in CXID-OPERA’s production based on its visual imagery analysis. Results and conclusions. It is found out that the director’s use of the mask in creating the stage image of most of the characters allows him to further emphasize the genetic relation of the opera to la commedia dell’arte. Only a few characters appear on stage with an open face – Ten “Ridicules” (Cranks), Magician Tchelio, Fata Morgana and La Cuisinière (Cooky) – namely, those whose presence is not provided by the genre canons of la commedia dell’arte, those who do not “bow” to the plot-line but who are in control of it so or otherwise. The costumes of these characters differ from the outfit of the rest; in each case this contrast is conditioned by the character’s status and its role in the plot (for instance, Les Ridicules are the only ones wearing modern-day suits with bowties which allow to comprehend them as a mirroring of the spectators who watch the opera at a given moment). Thus, the use of a mask has a dual function: to demonstrate the genre genesis of the plot and to illustrate the hierarchy of the opera characters.

Kostiantyn Simeonov and Lev Venediktov: Conductor’s and Choirmaster’s Co-creation in Musical Art in the Second Half of the 20th century

The article analyzes the life and creative paths of K. Simeonov and L. Venedyktov against the background of musical art in the second half of the twentieth century. Three interconnected aspects of the identity of the life-creating ways of the mentioned artists are singled out and substantiated – the personal-biographical aspect, the aspect of creative self-realization and the artistic-pedagogical aspect. It is emphasized that the reason for highlighting the personal-biographical aspect was the high degree of correlation between the content-formative components of artists' biographies: their upbringing in a spiritual musical atmosphere, the presence of the first higher education as choirmasters and so on. It is noted that the maximum expression of the aspect of creative selfrealization of K. Simeonov and L. Venedyktov falls on the periods of their joint work in the Kyiv Opera in 1961–1966 and 1973–1976 as chief conductor and chief choirmaster of the theater. This aspect is based on the harmonious combination of artists' professional requirements for the artistic team with respect for each musician through the formation of a unique creative and synergistic atmosphere during rehearsals. The author of the article found that common in the creative approaches of K. Simeonov and L. Venedyktov was a cautious attitude to the singing voice, which was expressed in the recognition of the individuality of each singer as opposed to the idea of dissolving the singer's personality in the choir, and as a result in a careful selection of parts for each singer. The author proved the importance of involving by K. Simeonov and L. Venedyktov of creative communication with choir of different styles in music narrative with various features: authoritarian, democratic and liberal. They became the basis for the formation of Tymoshenko's newest pedagogical school for the professional training of specialists in choral art. The grounds for distinguishing the artistic and pedagogical aspect of the identity of life paths of K. Simeonov and L. Venedyktov were found by the author in recognizing the priority of the orienting function of the teacher, when the prerequisite for successful professional self-realization of students in the future is their perception of the mentor as a role model, enhanced by a high level of cognitive activity for independent solution of creative tasks.

The father of uzbek music

This article highlights the life of TukhtasinJalilov and his achievements, pieces of music composed by him which are in Golden Fund and his outstanding career in the field of music. In 1919 Andijan theatre was founded and one of its founders was TukhtasinJalilov. He spent the greatest moments of his life (15 years) in this theatre as the artistic director and the chief conductor. More than 200 beautiful songs that he created are still eagerly-listened. They are giving a new life to our traditional songs and music by preserving their peculiarity, naturalness, being rich in different methods. It is said that after EtiborJalilova (1924–1983) died her husband did not get married until his death. TukhtasinJalilov's third son Salokhiddin Tukhtasinov was a skilled musician and composer. I met him several times through my teacher GulomjonKhojikulov. He would control and conduct his musical team and play gijjak. Thus, we, the apprentices, never give up trying to encourage the young to learn this great teacher's masterpieces and not forget him. Like many of the most outstanding artists including AbbosBakirov, AsadIsmatov, SoibKhojaev, KhadichaAminova and LutfikhonimSarimsakova, TukhtasinJalilov also did not graduate from any artistic Universities. With the help of innate abilities and talents given by Allah, he became a great artist and composer.

«Forgotten name... Yakov A. Rosenstein»

«Forgotten name... Yakov A. Rosenstein»

КОМПОЗИТОРСЬКА ТВОРЧІСТЬ НАРОДНОГО АРТИСТА УКРАЇНИ МИКОЛИ БАЛЕМИ

The genre-style priorities of vocal and instrumental creativity of the famous Ukrainian composer, long-time artistic director and chief conductor of the Khmelnytskiy Academic ensemble of song and dance “Cossacks of Podillya” Mykola Balema are elucidated. Attention is drawn to his numerous national-patriotic, spiritual-liturgical, folkloristic, lyrical-customs artifacts, operas “Eternal Stage” (Karmalyuk) and “Prophet” (T. Shevchenko), etc. The composer’s music is characterized by a wide range of musical creativity due to the appeal to almost all musical forms: opera, symphony, cantata, ode, liturgy, suite, ballad, sonatas, romances, musicals, pop songs (folk, rock, jazz, pop), music for the theater, adaptation of Ukrainian folk songs. In total, the composer created more 700 musical works of different genres: 11 vocal and choreographic compositions, suite, 13 vocal and symphonic compositions, 200 adaptations of historical, Cossack, family-related, holiday-calendar folk songs of Podillya and Ukraine, 26 works for the academic choir on poems of Ukrainian poets and 31 children’s songs. On the basis of his own vocal-choral music, the composer created a number of various theatrical concert programs for choir, orchestra and ballet of the ensemble “Cossacks of Podillya”. He wrote the series “Marches of Ukrainian Victory” for military brass bands. In his musical language, modern musical instruments with a national tradition, historical and cultural origins are organically combined with a projection of the aesthetics of Ukrainian national-cultural revival.

The activities of the Chinese orchestras of the traditional instruments of the new type in the 1960s - 1970s

The activities of the Chinese orchestras of the traditional instruments of the new type in the 1960s - 1970s

The activities of the Chinese orchestras of the traditional instruments of the new type in the 1960s - 1970s

The activities of the Chinese orchestras of the traditional instruments of the new type in the 1960s - 1970s

МИСТЕЦЬКА ТА ПЕДАГОГІЧНА ДІЯЛЬНІСТЬ С. ПАВЛЮЧЕНКА

Мета роботи. Дослідження присвячено висвітленню творчої та педагогічної роботи С. Павлюченка на посаді завідувача кафедри народнопісенного виконавства, художнього керівника і головного диригента Українського народного хору КНУКіМ. Методи дослідження ґрунтується на застосуванні універсальних наукових методів, зокрема: історичного, хронологічного, методу структурного та компаративного аналізу, систематизації, узагальнення та методу інтерв’ювання. Застосування перерахованих методів дало можливість побудувати дослідження в хронологічному порядку, аналізуючи творчий шлях митця в період роботи в КНУКіМ. Наукова новизна. У роботі розглядається творча й педагогічна складові мистецької постаті С. Павлюченка в період з 1984–2010 рр. Дослідивши творчий доробок митця, науковці та дослідники його творчості на прикладі Українського народного хору КНУКіМ матимуть змогу більш чітко зрозуміти побудову алгоритму розвитку в площині розбудови національної школи народнохорового виконавства та її безпосереднього впливу на становлення національно свідомого, патріотичного суспільства. Висновки. Всебічний аналіз мистецької та педагогічної діяльності С. Павлюченка дозволяє значно розширити уявлення про творчість митця і водночас усвідомити його значення для українського музичного мистецтва. Митець залишив великі набутки в історії національної народнохорової школи, посприявши процесу її становлення та розвитку.

Musiktheater in Raum und Zeit: Beiträge zur Geschichte der Theaterpraxis in Mitteleuropa im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert.

Most of the essays in this collection go back to a symposium held in Bratislava in 2009 on central European music theatre in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. For ‘central Europe’ think ‘Habsburg’ and although the end dates of some of the essays go beyond the 1918 collapse of the Habsburg Empire, there is evidence (for instance in Pieter M. Judson’s The Habsburg Empire: A New History (Cambridge, Mass., 2016)) that much of the organizational apparatus and attitudes established during the empire lingered on in the successor states. Most of the eleven chapters in the collection favour Transleithania, i.e. the territory controlled after the 1867 Ausgleich by the Hungarians, rather than Austrian Cisleithania, with particular emphasis—five out of the eleven—on what is now the Slovak capital, Bratislava. The Bratislava coverage is headed by a detailed historical account by Jana Laslavíková (‘Das Städtische Theatre in Pressburg 1886–1920’) with sections devoted to pre-1884, the building of the Stadtheater in 1886, repertory and direction 1886–1920, and important visiting artists. There are further articles on women’s roles in the same period by Jana Lengová, and on the beginnings and many paradoxes of the Slovak National Theatre by Ladislav Lajcha, the editor of an important collection of documents pertaining to the theatre’s history until 1945. Nad’a Földváriová contributes a detailed account of one of the theatre’s main luminaries, Oskar Nedbal, well known before 1918 as a conductor, as the violist in the Bohemian Quartet, and as the composer of several successful Viennese operettas and ballets. Here, however, the focus is on Nedbal’s dramaturgy as chief conductor of the Slovak National Theatre (1923–30) and on finding reflections in it of the repertory choices of earlier Czech operatic conductors such as Karel Kovařovic in Prague (1900–20) and, rather more surprisingly, with those in the small theatre in Olomouc, which seemed to have served as trial station for Bratislava (p. 181).

BBC Proms 2016: Julian Anderson and Thomas Larcher

Julian Anderson has been interestingly public about the genesis of his new orchestral piece Incantesimi, co-commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society, Berliner Philharmoniker Foundation and Boston Symphony Orchestra, writing about its genesis in The Guardian as a trailer to its UK Proms premiere. Premiered by the Berlin Philharmonic under Simon Rattle in June 2016, Incantesimi toured to Rotterdam and Lucerne before opening that orchestra's Prom (Rattle's last as their chief conductor) in September. Wanting not to write a ‘showpiece’ but instead ‘something slow and quiet’, Anderson described Incantesimi as a ‘nocturne’ which takes its musical inspiration from Mozart's Jupiter Symphony, in that five themes are deployed ‘in perpetual orbit’. He also spoke of his focus on the Berlin Philharmonic's beauty of sound as a prompt to write something that would unfold slowly.

RECORDINGS IN REVIEW

1 9 2 Y R E C O R D I N G S I N R E V I E W J A Y N O R D L I N G E R At any moment, there is a crop of young pianists, eager to show what they have. And as we get older, I think, our concept of ‘‘young’’ slides upward. Yuja Wang was born in 1987 and is therefore still in the under-thirty category. She has recorded the Ravel piano concertos with the Tonhalle Orchestra of Zurich, led by its chief conductor, Lionel Bringuier (Deutsche Grammophon B0023931-02). Bringuier is a touch older than Wang, born in 1986. I first reviewed him in 2007, when he was twenty. I wrote, ‘‘It’s always risky to say that someone, in any field, is can’t-miss, but it’s not so risky in this case.’’ It was not. The two Ravel piano concertos are the one in G major, for your standard two hands, and the one in D major, for the left hand alone. They are obviously a familiar pairing. But on LPs and CDs, they have often needed a filler, usually an additional French piece. When Alicia de Larrocha recorded the concertos in the mid-1970s, she added Fauré’s Fantasy in G for piano and orchestra. Wang, too, adds Fauré, but not the Fantasy and not a piano and orchestra piece at all: she plays the Ballade in F-sharp major. It so happens that Fauré made a piano and orchestra version of this piece, but Wang elects to go solo. 1 9 3 R Leaving Fauré aside for a moment, Wang is virtually made for Ravel. Among her qualities are nimbleness, clarity, agility, and color. Much of what she plays sounds like Ravel, or Debussy, even when it shouldn’t: the Liszt Sonata, for example. She seldom makes a fat, lush sound, going deep into the keys. But that is seldom called for in Ravel or Debussy. On her new CD, she begins with the G-major concerto, to which she imparts a nice sense of jazz. This reminds me that she is quite good in the big Gershwin pieces: Rhapsody in Blue and the Concerto in F. In Ravel’s middle movement, she is wisely matter-of-fact, or straightforward. And from both her and the orchestra, the music builds beautifully and excitingly. This movement ends with a famous long trill. I like it slower and sultrier than Wang plays it, but she is entitled to her choice. And the last movement, a kind of toccata, Wang hammers elegantly, just as Ravel wants. Again, she is virtually made for this music. She next turns to the Fauré Ballade, which she plays competently , needless to say. But one can imagine more seamlessness or fluidity in it. At the same time, the piece expresses its uncomplicated charm. Wang ends her CD with the left-hand concerto, in which she is superb. Bringuier and the Tonhalle Orchestra do their part, too. The concerto has what it needs, including beauty, bite, sensuality, glitter, blues, a sense of architecture – and, from the soloist, staggering virtuosity. By the way, I had a thought when I was a kid: Do pianists cheat when they record the left-hand concerto in a studio? That is, do they bring the right hand in, when two hands would be an advantage? Who would know? The conductor , orchestra, and engineers would, so I imagine the pianist’s pride and vanity would prevent cheating. In any field, there are people who are special targets of envy and resentment. Yuja Wang is one such target, and we might guess at the reasons: she is young and indecently talented; she enjoys tremendous PR and fame; and on the stage she tends to dress as skimpily as possible. Her latest CD cover is comparatively tame, but it does allow for bare arms and midri√. Lang Lang is a target of envy and resentment too. This pianist, like Yuja Wang, was born in China, though five years earlier: in 1982. He too is young, indecently talented, and famous, and though he does not dress provocatively, he has...

LIFE AND CREATIVE PRINCIPLES OF ARIY MOISEYEVICH PAZOVSKY

The article is devoted to the biography and musical career of Ariy Pazovsky, the famous Russian opera conductor of the first half of the XX century, the chief conductor of the Kiev, Mariinsky and Bolshoi Theatres, and to the analysis of formation and evolution of his basic creative and performing principles. The article highlights the main periods of the creative biography of the master, their impact on creation of the harmonious system of Pazovsky's views on opera performing practices. The article also highlights the main ideas formulated by the master at the end of his life as a heritage for the future generations of conductors and singers who chose the path of opera career.