Stravinsky Peyko Kikta

Harp in Chamber Ensembles of Russian Composers STRAVINSKY PEYKO KIKTA Ekaterina Kudryavtseva, soprano Ivan Tikhonov, clarinet Alena Baramidze, flute Boris Lifanovsky, cello Dmitri Borodaev, guitar Maria Fedorova, harp THE MOSCOW CONSERVATORY COLLECTION Alena Baramidze / Алёна Барамидзе Dmitri Borodaev / Дмитрий Бородаев Ekaterina Kudryavtseva / Екатерина Кудрявцева 2 SMCCD 0255 DDD/STEREO TT: 57:46 IGOR STRAVINSKY (1882 – 1971) Four Russian folk songs for soprano, flute, guitar and harp (1954) 1 1. The Drake ............................................1.36 2 2. A Russian Spiritual. .2.10 3 3. Geese and Swans ......................................0.34 4 4. Tilimbom. .1.25 NIKOLAY PEYKO (1916 – 1995) 5 The Legend for clarinet and harp (1977) .........................8.44 VALERI KIKTA (b. 1941) Antic Visions, suite for clarinet and harp (1977) 6 1. The Goddess of Tragedy .................................3.38 7 2. The Shepherd with a Lamb ...............................2.45 8 3. Antinous (as Dionysus). The Death of Antinous in the Waves of the Nile ................5.20 9 4. The Goddess of Air and Gentle Breeze ......................4.22 10 Sonata for cello and harp (2001) ..............................27.06 Ekaterina Kudryavtseva, soprano Alena Baramidze, flute Dmitri Borodaev, guitar Ivan Tikhonov, clarinet Boris Lifanovsky, cello Maria Fedorova, harp Recorded at the Grand Hall of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, 2019 – 2020 Sound recording, mastering and editing: Ruslana Oreshnikova Engineer: Anton Bushinsky. Design: Alexey Gnisyuk Executive producer: Eugene Platonov © & ℗ 2020 The Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory All rights reserved. 3 for an uncommon instrumental lineup Igor comprising the flute, the guitar, and the harp. The choice of instruments is a Stravinsky bit strange indeed. One of the reasons (1882–1971) for it lies in the second number. There is a version that the dulcimer could be used for the traditional performance of folk spiritual songs. This is what the Four Russian folk songs for sopra- composer tried to reproduce in his in- no, flute, guitar and harp: The Drake, strumentation, combining timbres of the A Russian Spiritual, Geese and harp and the guitar. Swans, Tilimbom Revisiting the Russian themes in the In the season of 1953/1954, Igor Stra- early 1950s may look unusual from the vinsky revised some of his early works. point of view of the composer’s stylistic The composer creates a new cycle of evolution. However, this was dictated by songs by combining separate numbers personal circumstances. The composer from two works for voice and piano wrote: “I was pained to be away from my written in the 1910s: two numbers from homeland in those times, and only read- Three Tales for Children (1915-1917) ing Russian folk poetry I plunged myself and two from Four Russian Songs into comforted me and brought me joy” (1918-1919). (Stravinsky, I.F. Chronicle of My Life. M.: The new cycle fully retains the so- Kompozitor Publishers, 2005). prano part. On the basis of the piano part, Stravinsky creates a transcription The Legend for clarinet and harp Nikolai Peyko is one of the prominent Nikolai representatives of the Moscow compos- Peyko ing school and outstanding followers of Nikolai Myaskovsky. Piously following (1916–1995) the fundamental traditions of his teach- er, Peyko made a huge contribution to 4 the development of Russian symphonic I composed The Legend for clarinet and music of the 20th century with his elev- harp. The piece doesn’t seem to have en symphonies, four ballets, and two taken root. The harp part has got no operas. At the same time, the master’s rinsing remplissage thing to it, and harp legacy also comprises chamber compo- music rarely does without it today. For sitions. However, the harp was given a me, the harp is a kind of orchestra, a very insignificant place among them. space where there’s no place for cos- Peyko turned to this instrument only metic procedures. However, Saradzhe- twice, and both occasions were caused va and Mozgovenko played this piece by harpists. So, in 1969, Ariadna Tugai splendidly, frequently and with great initiated the birth of the Concert Etude enthusiasm [...].” (Abdokov, Y.B. “Niko- for solo harp. Years later, clarinetist lai Peyko. Learning Your Secret...” Mos- Nikolai Mozgovenko and harpist Kira cow: Publishing House of the Moscow Saradzheva, who were the composer’s Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox colleagues from the Gnessins State Mu- Church: Chapel “Russian Conservato- seum of Fine Arts, asked him to write a ry,” 2020. p. 379). special piece for their duet. That is how This is exactly what happened. The The Legend (1977) for clarinet and harp Legend did not gain much popularity arrived. among harpists, but today, years later, it This is what the composer said begins its new path in the concert halls about his work: “[…] at the request of and evokes a lively response from its Kira Saradzheva and Ivan Mozgovenko performers and listeners. The young composer was drawn into the fabulous and mysterious world of Valery the harp by three beautiful graces – three outstanding harpists of the 20th Kikta century: Odarka Voshchak, Vera Dulo- (born 1941) va, and Olga Erdeli. Strongly impressed by their playing in the 1960s, Valery Kik- ta found himself an eternal prisoner of the harp and a devoted friend of all 5 these harpists. The composer consis- However, it so happened that they were tently develops the harp repertoire re- not destined to perform this music, and plenishing it not only in terms of quanti- the premiere took place only twenty-five ty, but also in terms of quality. Kikta’s years later featuring Alexander Filatov legacy now includes compositions of (clarinet) and Alla Korolyova (harp). various forms and genres, from small The suite consists of four move- individual pieces to large sonata cycles. ments, each having its own program The harp receives a universal read- name. Two framing pieces paint portraits ing in the composer’s works. Being a of two ancient goddesses, as if embody- sensitive and subtle artist, Kikta man- ing two sides to human life: a spiritual aged to carefully examine all the ex- one (The Goddess of Tragedy) and an pressive qualities of the instrument and earthly one (The Goddess of Air and skillfully expose them in the works for Gentle Breeze). Despite the polar fig- solo harp and with orchestra, and also in urative spheres, the music of these two the chamber ensembles with the harp. movements is united by similar princi- Perhaps the last of these three forms is ples of form-making and metro-rhythmic the most complicated and, in addition organization – both movements have no to a good knowledge of the instrument, measure. Here, the composer applies requires an excellent sense of style extended performing techniques in both and delicate taste from composers. the clarinet part (overblowing, frulato, vi- The chamber ensemble represents the brato) and the harp one (pedal glissan- equality of all instruments, where each do). Both instruments are engaged in a is endowed with an independent artistic very active dialogue responding to each meaning. Valery Kikta’s harp chamber other with similar motif intonations or ensembles are a true instrumental union merging in the unity of sound vibrations. full of poetic sound. The texture of the second movement, The Shepherd with a Lamb, Antique Visions for clarinet and harp is entirely homophonic with a leading in four movements voice and an accompanying one. The The suite was written in 1977 and turned music is a genre sketch of idyllic rural out to be Kikta’s first chamber ensemble landscapes where a young shepherd with the harp. Initially, the suite was writ- plays his reed pipe to the accompani- ten for clarinetist Vasily Zhelvakov and ment of the beats of the tom-tom (in the harpist Lyudmila Snegiryova (Muster). harp part). 6 The third movement, Antinous (as expression – from the first moments of Dionysus). The Death of Antinous in awareness of the misfortune to a des- the Waves of the Nile, is a lyrical cul- perate cry. mination of the cycle. This piece depicts the love story of the Roman emperor Sonata for cello and harp Hadrian and the beautiful youth An- At the first international harp compe- tinous, namely, the scene of the myste- tition in Moscow in 1997, Valery Kikta rious death of Antinous in Egypt, which met Victor Salvi (1920–2015), an Amer- caused inconsolable bitterness in the ican-born harpist and harp maker of emperor. After the death of his beloved, an Italian descent. The harpist was so Hadrian deified him and founded a cult captivated by the music of the Russian devoted to his worship. Hadrian also composer that he proposed to create a founded a new city, and temples, stat- number of chamber ensembles with the ues, and busts were erected throughout harp. The composer received complete the territory of Ancient Rome in honor of freedom and was obliged to meet just the young deity. one condition – each work must contain The music of this movement is a theme of a Russian song or romance. based on an ostinata harmonic figu- This commission resulted in three in- ration in the harp part endowed with a strumental sonatas dedicated to Salvi: special expressive power. At the same the first one for violin and harp (1998) time, it symbolizes the frozen swaying with the theme of Alexander Varlamov’s of the waves of the eternal Nile at the romance The Red Sarafan; the third one moment of the protagonist’s death and for viola and harp (2002) with the theme depicts Hadrian’s psychologically col- of the folk song Steppe All Around. The ored stupor on the banks of the river. second piece of the trilogy is the sonata Gradually, the composer brightens up for cello and harp (2001).

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