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Unsung Rachmaninovian Piano Concertos

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kyjo
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« on: October 04, 2012, 08:11:36 pm »

I know this is a thread (possibly still ongoing) at UC that I started, and I am not sure what has been posted on it since, but since it was such a hot topic at UC, I thought I'd bring it up here, with apologies to UC for somewhat "stealing" it for our use ;D! Rachmaninov being my favorite composer, I'd like to know of some PCs in his style (or close enough to it) that haven't been mentioned yet. One I have thought of is Kabalevsky's PC 1 in A minor-yes, there is some dissonance (very little) and Prokofievian traits, but overall the work exudes a romantic, Slavic spirit not far removed from Rach. It is also much more spacious and lyrical than his other PCs. Also, we shouldn't forget the massive (45 minutes) Piano Concerto in D-flat by Jerzy Gablenz, available here for download :).
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« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2012, 09:44:23 am »

. . . this is a thread (possibly still ongoing) at UC that I started . . .


=>CLICK<=


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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #2 on: October 05, 2012, 08:27:55 pm »

I suppose the obvious answer is Rachmaninov's friend and colleague Nikolai Medtner?

My favourite of the three piano concertos remains No 1


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kyjo
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« Reply #3 on: October 05, 2012, 08:38:25 pm »

Yes, Medtner's PCs are some of the finest examples of Rachmaninovian-style PCs. Just in case you're wondering why I didn't mention them (and others such as the Giannini PC, the Mathieu PC 4, and the four Bowen PCs) in my first post, it's because I am looking for more pieces in this style that have not been mentioned in the thread of the same title over at UC (the Medtner PCs were) :). I realize this might mean scraping the bottom of the barrel, as a whole heck of a lot of PCs in the Rach style were mentioned at the other forum! But don't worry, you can freely discuss any PCs in the general style of Rachmaninov here :).
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guest54
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« Reply #4 on: October 06, 2012, 02:02:37 am »

Oddly enough, although Vilarroig's concerto had a thread to itself at U.C., it was not mentioned in yours. And what an odd thing it altogether is! Its date is either 1990 or 2008 - I am not at present quite certain which - and its old-fashioned style is known as "neo-tonality." But in view of the tenuous connection of the parts and the flightiness of the harmonic "progressions" the mot juste in this case is really "pastiche."

Much information is provided at these two sites:

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_Vilarroig

   http://www.pvilar.com/index.html

but for some reason dates are scarce. I suspect his nine symphonies, too, will be redolent of Rachmanninoff's.

Since the work itself was not posted among the downloads at U.C. - only a link to a video - I have just now posted it in the downloads department here.

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kyjo
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« Reply #5 on: October 06, 2012, 02:24:29 am »

Thanks for the upload and the description of the Villaroig PC, Sydney :). There is also a commercial recording of it on the Verso label. I seem to recall that some (if not all) of his symphonies are (or were) available on mp3 downloads somewhere, but, sadly, only in computerized realizations that I would not be interested in hearing. I would definitely be interested in hearing normal performances of his symphonies, which are probably in a neo-romantic style as well :). Back on topic, has anyone heard Manolis Kalomiris' Symphonic Concerto for piano and orchestra (apparently quite a substantial piece)? It could possibly be Rachmaninovian!
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t-p
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« Reply #6 on: October 06, 2012, 09:59:48 am »

There were so many Rachmanesque  (mixed with Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky and national element) concertos in the old Soviet Union. There  were Romantic composers hiding there.  There was Khachaturian (Khachaturyan) of course. I don't  know if it was mentioned on the other thread:



I don't know if this will classify as a Rachmaninoff-influenced concerto?

Rachmaninoff was influenced to a small degree by Prokofiev and vice versa. Did anyone mention Vaughan-Williams piano concertos? There is Dohnanyi of course and who knows where his influences are coming from. I saw Paderewski while listening to Khachaturian.
 
It seems Dohnanyi had an influence from Rachmaninoff in his first concerto. What about Busoni? Did anyone mention Scriabin? He and Rachmaninoff were influenced by Chopin of course (and Liszt too). There are similarities between early Scriabin and Chopin and then Rachmaninoff. What about Khrennikov? I know he is not popular now, but if he wouldn't play his part someone else would. I am listening to his First concerto and trying to consider if his  music belong to this thread. It is dramatic and has many influences.

Chopin was influenced by John Field and Liszt liked Field. I learned a lot from recent COTW on Radio 3 (Field and Rachmaninoff) and I can hear some of it in Rachmaninoff (I can hear it in Scriabin now).

I think most Spanish and Latin composers were influenced by Rachmaninoff to a certain degree.
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« Reply #7 on: October 06, 2012, 12:19:08 pm »

I have a special affection for the Khachaturian PC :))  I first heard it when I was still in my teens - I had gone to a lecture about something else at the RCM, but the lecturer was ill. Instead Felix Aprahamian gave a presentation about Khachaturian - a composer about whom I knew 0 at the time ;)  The next day I went off in search of a recording of the Piano Concerto :)

I wish Khachaturian was more greatly appreciated - in Russia he's mainly considered an Armenian composer, but in Armenia they dismiss him as a 'soviet' composer :(
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kyjo
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« Reply #8 on: October 06, 2012, 02:56:38 pm »

Another Spanish PC in the Rachmaninovian style is Manuel Blancafort's "Concerto Iberic" for piano and orchestra, available on a Columna Musica CD. It beautifully combines Slavic romanticism and Latin color. I gather Blancafort also wrote a few symphonies as well, which I'd really to hear :). I'm big fan of the Khachaturian PC as well, though I don't care much for the flexatone in the second movement!
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #9 on: October 06, 2012, 03:23:43 pm »

though I don't care much for the flexatone in the second movement!

It's a saw point with me too ;)
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #10 on: October 06, 2012, 08:12:37 pm »

I suppose one unspoken question on this topic is whether we are looking for works like Rachmaninov PC No 1...

... or works like No 2 instead?   ;D

To the extent that No 2 really gets going once the unison strings come in, you could say that Finnissy PC No 2 is in the same tradition  :))

I hear something of the tradition of the 'big soviet piano-concerto' in the work of my friend and collaborator* Irina Belova. The page where you can hear her 'Yenisei Rhapsody' for piano & string orch (a kind of concertino piece*) is entirely in Russian, but you can see where the 'go' button is to play the file :)  I don't think you can download the file to listen offline, however.  I am pretty sure this is the recording with Ksenia Ovodova as soloist, and Vladislav Bulakhov conducting the Vremena Goda orchestra.

She has a fully-fledged Piano Concerto called 'Checkmate', but I believe she's withdrawn it pending a re-orchestration for larger forces? In its chamber version it won the President's Prize in Russia 6-7 years ago.

* I mention this by way of 'full disclosure', rather than name-dropping :)
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« Reply #11 on: October 06, 2012, 08:56:26 pm »

There's also the Golubev PC - presented here in a performance by the charming Viktor Bunin, who is still going strong and teaching in his 80s, while not looking a day over 55 :)

=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scYqyGtV83s
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kyjo
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« Reply #12 on: October 06, 2012, 10:10:45 pm »

Thanks for your recommendations, Neil :). To answer your query, I am looking for works in the general style of Rachmaninov, not in any specific style of one of his works. Where have you heard Finnissy's PC 2? I thought Finnissy was a rather avant-garde composer, as far away from Rachmaninov as you could get, but maybe I'm wrong...
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Neil McGowan
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« Reply #13 on: October 06, 2012, 10:53:40 pm »

Thanks for your recommendations, Neil :). To answer your query, I am looking for works in the general style of Rachmaninov, not in any specific style of one of his works. Where have you heard Finnissy's PC 2? I thought Finnissy was a rather avant-garde composer, as far away from Rachmaninov as you could get, but maybe I'm wrong...

I, err, programmed it in a music festival I work with :) It was performed - somewhat at his own prompting, I might add - by British pianist Jonathan Powell, with the Vremena Goda Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Vladislav Bulakhov (Russian premiere), at the Moscow Conservatoire in November last year (2011).  (The link in the creative process here is Viktor Bunin - who was not only the soloist in the Golubev all those years ago, but was sitting last November in the front row for his protege Powell's performance of the Finnissy. Belova, too, was in the audience).

Finnissy is certainly an unabashedly modern composer, yet he has an abiding love and respect for music of other eras, which often provides the 'launch pad' for his own work. For example - as a rather formidable pianist himself - he's written many 'piano variations' in the great C19th tradition of such works - such as Liszt's many examples of 'concert paraphrases' of opera works. Finnissy's sets include two different sets of concert paraphrases of George Gershwin songs (which are more-or-less recognisable as Gershwin), a set of paraphases of Verdi Opera numbers (which are clearly inspired by the operas, but perhaps not immediately recognisable in their new and rather extreme paraphrases), and some more based on Rossini.  There are also some based on William Billings, but I've never heard or seen them.

Very worthwhile music indeed, although not intended to be 'easy'. I was very pleased that we got such strong support from the Conservatoire for the programme, and we received a lot of warm comments after the performance - from an audience who don't hear modern British music from one year to the next (unless, ehem, we've programmed it).  The orchestra has a strong commitment to 'doing new stuff', and actively commissions new work - in fact Belova's 'Checkmate' was another piece first performed by our orchestra, while on tour in St Petersburg a few years ago.

By way of balance, I ought to mention that the rest of the 'English' program we did included some arias by Mozart's billiards-partner Stephen Storace (which I edited for the occasion), and Elgar's 'Sospiri', and some C17th incidental music by William Brade - a Brit who worked almost exclusively in Germany. Quite a mixed bag, overall :)
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kyjo
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« Reply #14 on: October 06, 2012, 11:23:22 pm »

Interesting! Thanks, Neil :)!
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