To paraphrase The Gramophone, Semyon Bychkov “had big competition in the Shostakovich stakes” during the composer’s centenary year, but “he smashes past them brilliantly” (Editor’s Choice, Symphony No. 11, AV 2062). Further superlatives have poured forth for Bychkov’s ongoing Shostakovich series, and sales have followed. Nearly two decades into his Music Directorship of the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, Semyon Bychkov has enjoyed an enormously fruitful relationship with the celebrated ensemble, including eight critically acclaimed and award-winning recordings for Avie.
Janurary 2008
“Shostakovich played straight and a set of dark, but rather entertaining, dances… What these composers share is a fondness for big-scale gestures combined with inscrutable satirical intent.”
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