Notes and Editorial Reviews
Mikhail Vysotsky came of humble parentage - a serf in Imperial
Russia. He rose to achieve manumission through his skill with
the Russian seven string guitar. In this he was executant, renowned
teacher and composer. He more than made his mark in the salons
of Moscow and added to his exotic allure through spending much
time, late into the night, with gypsy musicians whose ideas
and flavours passed through his music. They brought ‘dangerous’
colours and flavours to the aristocracy and the respectable
burgers of Moscow.
Read more
The idiom is part trembling balalaika territory - though the
instruments do not include balalaikas) but much more Donizetti
and Bellini. Sentimentality is not seen as a boundary - rather
as a virtue. The music recalls many bel canto florid
delights as well as Beethoven's romantic Scottish songs and
Neapolitan romances.
This medley is essentially a mix of instrumentals and songs.
It's well calculated from a genre that could pall if not sufficiently
varied. The disc is built around the resonant voice of Anne
Harley and the very forwardly plangent resinous sound of the
seven string Russian guitar. While the fiddle puts in appearances
it is the peppery tang of the guitar that predominates.
Rukin's Shall I come forth? is expertly put across by
Harley. Orekhov's The Gypsies were travelling is a sort
of cross between Django Reinhardt and Muscovite starry nights.
Zhuchkovsky's We Live in the Fields adds a classical
violin to the smiling mix with the instrumentalists injecting
zingaresco exclamations to the singing.
This disc opens a doorway into Moscow's 19th century
infatuation with all things gypsy: the open road, the sensuous,
the liberation from the quotidian, the camp fire, the dangerous
and the divine. The music enjoyed réclame in Imperial Russia's
great cities and on this sampling was populist, unsubtle and
full of Tzigane paprika - a slice of alluring exotica from a
bygone era. One can see how Liszt, Sarasate and Brahms were
attracted to this libertine flame. A Gypsy Moscow series of
this music would not be unexpected.
-- Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International Read less
Works on This Recording
1.
As Behind the Dear River, for guitar by Mikhail Timofeevich Vysot
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 2 Minutes 13 Secs.
2.
Shall I Come Forth to the River, folk song by Traditional
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 49 Secs.
3.
A Dove Flew to the Valley, for voice & piano by Daniil Nikitich Kashin
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 2 Minutes 45 Secs.
4.
You Maidens and Beauties, for voice & piano by Daniil Nikitich Kashin
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 1 Secs.
5.
The Gypsies Were Traveling, song by S. Orekhov
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 2 Minutes 32 Secs.
6.
We Live in the Fields, song by Timofey Zhuchkovsky
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 3 Secs.
7.
The Flowers Have Faded, for guitar by Mikhail Timofeevich Vysot
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 4 Minutes 57 Secs.
8.
The Red Sarafan, waltz arrangement for ensemble (after Vysotsky) by Oleg Timofeyev
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 2 Minutes 34 Secs.
9.
Variations for guitar on Alyabyev's song "The Nightingale" by Mikhail Timofeevich Vysot
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 2 Minutes 56 Secs.
10.
Krasnïy Sarafan (The Red Sarafan), for voice & piano by Alexander E. Varlamov
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Period: Romantic
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 15 Secs.
11.
The Nightingale by Alexander Alyabyev
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Period: Romantic
Written: Russia
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 4 Minutes 7 Secs.
12.
I Love the Pear from the Orchard, for guitar by Mikhail Timofeevich Vysot
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 3 Secs.
13.
Don't You Wake Her at Dawn, for voice & piano by Alexander E. Varlamov
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Period: Romantic
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 18 Secs.
14.
Barynya (The Landlady) by Traditional
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 3 Minutes 6 Secs.
15.
Remember, My Beloved, folk song by Traditional
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 4 Minutes 8 Secs.
16.
How Did I Upset You?, folk song setting for 2 guitars (after Semion Aksionov) by Oleg Timofeyev
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 4 Minutes 6 Secs.
17.
Gypsy Song ("Old husband, fearsome husband..."), for voice & piano by Alexey Nikolayevich Verst
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Period: Romantic
Written: 1827
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 1 Minutes 40 Secs.
18.
Oh, It Hurts / I Walked over the Flowers / Don't Walk by My Orchard, medley for ensemble by Oleg Timofeyev
Orchestra/Ensemble:
Talisman
Date of Recording: 03/27/2007
Length: 5 Minutes 53 Secs.
Sound Samples
Shall I Come Forth to the River
A Dove Flew to the Valley
You, Maidens and Beauties
The Gypsies were Traveling
The Red Sarafan (waltz arrangement)
Variations on Aliabiev's The Nightingale
Krasny sarafan (The Red Sarafan)
I Love the Pear from the Orchard
Oh, It Hurts - I Walked over the Flowers - Don't Walk by my Orchard
Customer Reviews
Be the first to review this title
Review This Title
