This album features the first recording of Juozas Gruodis's Variations in B major, composed in 1920.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Juozas Gruodis, a second-generation composer in the national paradigm, aimed to establish a distinctive Lithuanian national style by radically incorporating folklore's unique and archaic aspects.
Cultural Impact
Juozas Gruodis fulfilled a role in Lithuania similar to that of Grieg in Norway, writing many of the first examples of various genres in Lithuanian music, such as the ballet Jūratė and Kastytis.
Composer Biography
Juozas Gruodis, a pioneering figure in interwar Lithuanian music, was born in a tiny village and his father was a craftsman who made musical instruments.
Composer Biography
Juozas Gruodis, despite being awarded 'merited artist' by the Soviet regime in 1944, was condemned as a 'formalist' in 1947 and forced to write an article of 'repentance' before his death in 1948.
Composition History
Gruodis's Piano Sonata No. 1 in C sharp minor, subtitled 'Patetico', was written during his independent studies in Yalta and became a seminal piece in the Lithuanian piano repertoire.
Performer Biography
Daumantas Kirilauskas, the pianist on this album, is a Professor at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and was awarded a 'Golden Disc' by the Lithuanian Musicians Union in 2021 for artistic excellence.
