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Martinů & Shostakovich: Cello Concertos

6/2/2017, 6 Tracks, 1:04:16

Featuring

  • Gilbert Varga
  • Christian Poltéra
  • Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
  • Dmitri Shostakovich
  • Bohuslav Martinů

Did you know?

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Recording & Production

This recording was made in February 2016 at the Jesus-Christus-Kirche in Berlin-Dahlem, Germany, using Neumann and Schoeps microphones.

Source: Booklet

Composition History

The second movement of Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 2 incorporates a street vendor's song, 'Come buy my bubliky', which Shostakovich had sung in a party game with Rostropovich.

Source: Booklet

Notable Performances

Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 2 premiered in Moscow on September 25, 1966, as part of a concert celebrating the composer's 60th birthday.

Source: Booklet

Compositional Technique

Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 2 features an austere orchestration, using only two horns for brass and favoring extreme woodwind registers, with extensive unpitched percussion.

Source: Booklet

Performer Biography

Christian Poltéra, the cellist on this recording, plays the famous 'Mara' cello, built in 1711 by Antonio Stradivari.

Source: Booklet

Album & Artwork

This album brings together two cello concertos that have been overshadowed by their respective earlier works, aiming to highlight their individual strengths.

Source: Booklet

Composer Biography

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-75) wrote both of his cello concertos for his friend, the renowned cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.

Source: Booklet

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