Jacopo Taddei - Elegy - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Hidden behind the late 19th century's great symphonies, sumptuous ballets and concertos with moving climaxes is something much more thoughtful and contemplative. A delicate sonic world, where silence is as important as sound, marked by pianissimi and a veiled, almost restrained feeling of melancholy. This secret landscape comes courtesy of a few precious pieces for string orchestra by three Russian composers, all active at approximately the same time. Glazunov's vast oeuvre for orchestra demonstrates his extraordinary talent for orchestration. However, his pieces for smaller ensembles are just as noteworthy. These include the Theme and Variations in G Minor Op.97 for string orchestra, which evolved from a string quintet he wrote in 1895. The extremely simple theme in 3/4 has the feel of a solemn, ancient dance, simultaneously nostalgic and sombre. In another example of Glazunov's crystal-clear yet expressive writing, the string orchestra provides the backdrop and conversation partner for a solo instrument that was a rarity in concertos at the time the saxophone. Overall, despite the explosive counterpoint in the work's final movement, it is a dreamy composition, never overly dramatic, and subdued and melancholy in places almost elegiac, in other words. The elegy, with it's meditative tone, typically written to reflect sadness at a death, ill-fated love or similar, is not a genre one tends to associate with Tchaikovsky. However, the two elegies he composed for string orchestra - the Elegy in Memory of Ivan Vasil'evich Samarin and the third movement of the String Serenade in C major Op.48 - are highly refined works that reveal another side to the famous composer. In the same period that Tchaikovsky was writing his elegies, between 1880 and 1885, the composer and chemist Alexander Borodin was drafting his second Quartet, dedicated to his wife Ekaterina for their 20th a