Ukrainian composers have gradually been achieving wider
international recognition through several notable recordings in recent years, several on the Naxos label.
Two composers who have fared particularly well in this regard are Boris Mikolayovich
Lyatoshynsky and Valentin Silvestrov.
Boris Lyatoshynsky (1895–1968) is often considered the
father of Ukrainian music. That said, he often found influences in western
composers and forms that were brought to bear on his writing. The Ukrainian Quintet, dating from 1942, is
certainly expansive at over forty minutes’ duration, but it is also an
extrovert and emotional one. There is a sombre intensity to the first movement
that is realised through an uncompromising approach in the instrumentalists’
playing. Sensitivity is not the primary quality here, but it is more evident in
the second movement. Forming the heart of the piece, the writing affords each
of the musicians to shine individually. The violins of Bogdana Pivnenko and Taras
Yaropud are bright and incisive, Kateryna Suprun’s viola provides warmth in the
mid-range, whilst Yurii Pogoretskyi’s cello grounds the strings and provides
much character. Iryna Starodub’s pianism is superbly musical and partners the
strings with unassuming confidence. Much of the last two movements consist of
writing that has a direct, even confrontational character. The third movement
scurries along in trenchantly hushed tones before turning more towards
dance-like forms. The various instrumental dialogues that make up the final
movement are uncompromising scored, yet they are realised with a sense of
atmosphere from the players that leaves one in no doubt that this is music of
deep personal meaning which has been lived with for many years.
Valentin Silvestrov (born 1937) dedicated his Piano Quintet, written in 1961, to Boris Lyatoshynsky. Written at a time when Silvestrov was starting to pursue a modernist path in reaction to the Socialist realism imposed upon Ukrainian composition in the period of Stalinist occupation, it is a work that is at once powerful yet restrained. The opening movement, Prelude, is sombre and if not a little ironic in outlook. The second movement Fugue is an impetuous allegro that is initially carried along by the piano whilst the strings weave lines of contrast around and alongside it. The finale has a somewhat elusive character, with its music pared back to the extreme: solo violin and cello parts dominate, albeit in their restraint, alongside the brooding piano.
Victoria Poleva (born 1962) has written in a style called ‘sacred minimalism’ since the late 1990s. Her Simurgh-quintet, written in 2000 and revised in 2020, has a three movements-in-one structure. Her piano quintet provides a significant contrast to much of the music in the other two works on this recording. Of its compact form of 17’45”, the first 12’55” is a mysterious sequence of string textures played at a mezzo-piano or piano dynamic marking laid over minimal chords and repeated notes on the piano. The effect is somewhat meditative with its sense of calm introspection. The middle section coalesces around a growing sense of dynamic intensity that builds inexorably towards an emotional climax, after which the dynamic recedes into a manner that echoes the quintet’s opening. There are qualities in the execution of this recording that make this an immediately impressive listening experience. Listen to the precision with which the sonorities are unobtrusively blended between the individual string parts and in combination with the piano. Or the delight with which tonalities shift and merge with the glissandi, which are playfully realised.
The recording quality of this Naxos release is excellent, faithful and atmospheric. Richard Whitehouse’s introductory liner notes are up to his customary high standard. If you are looking for some interesting chamber repertoire off the beaten track in superbly played performances at a great price, then look no further.
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