Rimsky Korsakov: Russian Easter Festival Overture, Op. 36

Two of the greatest orchestral showpieces in the repertoire – Rimsky’s superbly scored and dramatic orchestral suite based on stories from The Arabian Nights, and his colourful depiction of the Russian Orthodox Easter festival, combining both traditional tunes with liturgical chant.

Charles Dutoit is one of the greatest exponents of this repertoire, and together with his new orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic, delivers performances of great passion and exhilaration.

The first of a series of recordings from Dutoit and the RPO to be released by ONYX.

Fantasy and folklore are the subject of this 2CD collection of orchestral pieces by Rimsky-Korsakov recorded between 1953 and 1963 by the Suisse Romande Orchestra and Ernest Ansermet. We encounter Antar, disillusioned son of a slave who rises to become a Bedouin chief and dies in the arms of a fairy queen. We meet a Tsarina consigned to sea in a barrel with her son who transforms himself into a bumblebee; a witch who steals the moon; and a maiden who is immune from the power of the sun, thanks to her father, Winter, who is enemy of the sun! Antar represents Decca's first stereo recording and the booklet note includes an account of the making of this seminal document. The thrilling sound in many of the recordings is complemented by conducting of swiftness and astuteness, and above all, plenty of colour.

Rimsky-Korsakov’s colourful Capriccio espagnol reflects a Russian fascination with distant lands, evoking sunny climes and exotic dancing in one of the composer’s most popular and uplifting scores. Steeped in the cultural nationalism of the ‘Mighty Handful’, the Overtures are linked to deeply Russian themes and tales, portraying dramatic life amongst the Tsars with brilliant orchestration and inspired use of folk or liturgical melodies. This release follows the multi-GRAMMY®-nominated and Emmy Award-winning Seattle Symphony ‘spectacular’ (MusicWeb International) recording of Scheherazade (8572693).

Booklet: German, English, French

Single release of the 60th anniversary-box.

Kyrill Kondrashin and the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks: what had been planned as a happy relationship between the significant representative of the Russian conducting school and the first class Munich ensemble ended tragically with the sudden death of the conductor before he could assume the position of Chief Conductor of the orchestra. All the more significant is thus this sound document. The live recording made at concerts in Munich’s Herkulessaal comprises an exciting program that juxtaposes two late romantic works from different symphonic cultures: Rimsky Korsakov’s “Russian Easter” Overture and César Franck’s only symphony, in D minor.

One of the few testimonies to the collaboration between Kyrill Kondrashin and the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks.

An appealing juxtaposition of a Russian and a French work.

Pierre Monteux (1875-1964) was one of the greatest French conductors of the twentieth-century, his career extending to almost 70 years, a fine musicians admired throughout Europe and the United States. He first came to international pre-eminence when he conducted – as music director of Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes – the world premiere of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring in Paris in May 1913. Within a few years, he was conducting regularly in the United States and, after the end of World War I, in Europe as well. In the USA, he was music director of the Boston Symphony and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras from 1919-24 and 1936-52 respectively, and in this unique collection of finely-restored broadcast performances of Russian music under his direction we can experience again the magic and virtuosity which the universally-loved maestro invariably brought to his performances. A fabulous record.