Scriabin: Preludes, Op. 74 (5)

Although he wrote four symphonies and a small number of other orchestral works, the vast majority of Alexander Scriabin's (1872-1915) output was written for solo piano, and it is this aspect of his work that is presented on the two CDs in this set.

One of his early influences was the music of Chopin: the Piano Concerto that he wrote when he was just 24 years old is a perfect illustration of this. The effect of Chopin can also be detected in the early Preludes that begin the first CD.

It was during a six-year stay in western Europe, beginning in 1903, that his compositional style developed and became more individual and harmonically adventurous. The music that Scriabin wrote during the final five years of his life was all written for the piano and reflects his mature style, making his music some of the most advanced of the time. It was whilst on a visit to London in 1914 that Scriabin suffered a wound to his upper lip which eventually led to the blood poisoning from which he died a year later.

Schimpf has been attracting a lot of attention thanks to an impressive series of important successes at competitions – 1st Prize in the German Music Competition (2008), 1st Prize at the International Beethoven Competition in Vienna (2009), and finally 1st Prize in 2011 at the International Piano Competition in Cleveland, USA.

This recording was conceived as a portrait of the artist through the mosaic of his works, proceeding in chronological order – from the age of innocence to the age of experience.

A winner of many awards, the Russian pianist Anna Alexeyev has performed around the world with some of the most prestigious orchestras. In 1995 she premiered Paul McCartney’s first solo piano piece entitled “A Leaf”, which was later released on CD. This new recording features a unique combination of the piano music of Alexander Scriabin and Nikolai Roslavets.

The pairing of these two composers may appear to be a novel idea, but it is long overdue and illustrates a connection between their compositions that has been overlooked. Scriabin and Roslavets were contemporaries, but their lives could not have been more different.

Scriabin was born into an aristocratic Moscow family, had access from a young age to the best formal music training available, and enjoyed recognition as a brilliant concert pianist and innovative composer during his lifetime. Roslavets came from a rural background outside of Russia proper, taught himself to play the violin and then obtained enough formal training to enter the Moscow Conservatory at the age of 21. Although as a composer he soon fell into political disfavour and his music was rarely performed during his lifetime, since the collapse of the Soviet Union his work has begun to gain recognition.

Anya Alexeyev studied at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory and at the Royal College of Music in London. Her UK concerto appearances include the BBC Philharmonic, RPO, Philharmonia, RSNO, CBSO, BSO ECO, LMP and BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

This is one of the first four new releases on the Canadian label Marquis since Proper Note took over its distribution this month.

“No doubt remained as soon as the piano began to reverberate: on the stage was a first class musician and a maestro.” SOVIETSKAIA KULTURA Moscow 1960

“For some years now Idil Biret has been a widely-respected figure for music-lovers, witness her exemplary interpretations of Scriabin, Bartók and Prokofiev. The masterly way in which she marshals her approach to, above all, works of our century has led to a stylistic unity of written score and interpretation which, far beyond the conventional adulation lavished on stars, has concentrated attention on Idil Biret as an artistic force of outstanding merit.” DIE WELT Germany 1979

“The campus of Muhlenberg College in Allentown, 50 miles north of Philadelphia, was where you needed to be on Sunday November 14, if you are a lover of transcendental piano-playing. Idil Biret, the great Turkish pianist, gave a recital devoted entirely to 20th Century works and demonstrated in this perhaps surprising context the true meaning of the word “virtuosity”: not flashy superficiality, but simply a technical command so complete that the performer can, as it were, take the solution of problems for granted and concentrate entirely on musical issues… If 20th-century music were always performed like this, it would surely not suffer from the hearer-unfriendly reputation that still too often bedevils it.” MUSICWEB USA 2004

Any Emil Gilels recital is an eagerly awaited event for collectors. His live recital of Back, Prokofiev, Scarlatti, Schumann and Tchaikovsky on BBC Legends (BBCL40152) has been a best-seller since its release in 1999.

Gilels first performed Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No.3, Op.10 as late as 1979 during a US tour which included the ‘Eroica Variations’, Op.35. Both were recorded in the studio but these live performances have a special atmosphere, Gilels having the uncanny ability to hold the audience’s attention throughout.

Gilels often mixed early and late Scriabin, ending with the Preludes, Op.74, the last work of Scriabin’s to be published in 1914. Gilels conveys the extraordinarily unsettling power these works can still have when played by a master.

Although he played three pieces by Ravel at this Cheltenham recital, the ‘Pavane pour une infante défunte’ had to be removed due to time constraints. All the French titles are played stunningly, ending as an encore with the delightful ‘Pastorelle’ by Poulenc.