The two Glazunov Sonatas on this album have exactly opposite tonal bases: B flat minor and E minor, keys that could not be further apart.
Composition History
Glazunov's two mature piano sonatas, Op. 74 and Op. 75, were written consecutively in 1900-01, by which time he was a professor at the St Petersburg Conservatoire.
Composition History
Glazunov's First Symphony premiered when he was just 16 years old, conducted by Mily Balakirev, astounding the audience when he appeared in school uniform.
Composer Biography
Glazunov's Second Sonata is dedicated to Narcisse Jelenkowski, his first piano teacher and first teacher of music theory, whom he began studying with at age nine.
Composer Biography
At 18, Glazunov was introduced to Liszt in Weimar, who praised the young man's compositions and general musicianship without reservation.
Composer Biography
Alexander Glazunov, considered the most gifted Russian composer of his generation, began his musical studies privately with Rimsky-Korsakov rather than attending a conservatoire.
Composition History
Glazunov's First Sonata is dedicated to Nadezha, the wife of his private teacher Rimsky-Korsakov, but was premiered by Alexander Siloti, a pupil of Liszt.
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