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Product Description
BBC Music Magazine
Shchedrin first came to fame (or notoriety) with his Carmen ballet of 1967, an arrangement for strings and percussion of excerpts from Bizet's opera. Though the two works on this CD are more conventionally scored, there's still an easy mastery of musical forces, but what there doesn't seem to be is any recognisably individual musical personality in the realms of melody and harmony. The sustained theme that the soloist plays at the beginning of the work returns at the end, supposedly as a final resolution, but it simply isn't memorable enough to have stuck firmly in the ear through the intervening 35 minutes. And the whole thing is coloured in what you might call 'post-tonal grey' - Shchedrin has abandoned traditional harmonic progression, which is fine, but hasn't found anything to put in its place to give a sense of direction. Yl?nen, who is completely inside the solo part, can't overcome this problem, and neither can Mustonen, in his recording debut as a conductor. He has a better chance in the Chekhov-based ballet suite, where he gets really incisive playing in a sequence of short movements, each establishing and holding a mood, which suits Shchedrin's essentially theatrical talents much better.
Performance *****
Sound *****
© BBC Music Magazine 2001
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shchedrin - Cello Concerto,
By Mr. A. R. Boyes "Alan Boyes" (Newcastle, England) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Shchedrin: Cello Concerto & Seagull Suite (Audio CD)
What would any living composer give to have their work recorded by Ondine? Rodion Shchedrin must have been overjoyed with this recording. The music of both the Seagull Suite and the Cello Concerto are pretty dark pieces but they benefit from the most wonderfully warm, clear and rounded recorded sound with world class playing from Marko Ilonen, Orchestra and conductor.
What of the works themselves? The Cello Concerto is a powerful work borne out of seeing the home village of his grandfather raised to dust and replaced by concrete blocks and a chemical factory - all in the name of Soviet progress. It is one of a series of works that look back either with pain and regret or nostalgia. His Violin Concerto and his 4th and 5th Concertos For Orchestra are other examples. It's true that Shchedrin doesn't have the most distinctive musical voice- you heremuch of Shostakovich's violin concerto no 1 opening movement with a hint of Schnittke thrown in. Add to that some Russian folk like material. If there is a criticism to be made it is that there is insufficient contrast up to the finale. Nonetheless the concerto is very effective with the recorder part, introduced near the end, achingly nostalgic for the erased past. In four movements. the work is mostly slow and soulful in a very russian kind of way. the finale adds some conflict before the nostalgic and peaceful conclusion. After such an intense piece you might expect a ballet suite to provide relief but the Seagull suite is very weighty- almost symphonic in construction a repeated small scherzo sections appearing after the introductory music and before the finale. This gives a Bartok like structure to the whole. Again this sounds like Schnittke - and grim Schnittke at that but it is resourcefully and colourfully scored, never letting the mind wander from start to finish. Shchedrin doesn't get heard so much in the west but he is an extremely able composer and deserves better. His voice isn't as distinct as either Shostakovich or Schnittke but it's music not to be dismissed lightly. This isn't easy listening but it should be pretty rewarding to most listeners. Ondine's record for producing outstanding discs is such though that they could probably make a rendition of the Blankety Blank theme sound like a timeless classic. This is, however, genuinely a fabulous recording and I can recommend it to anyone.
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