The two song cycles on this album, Vingt poèmes de Jean Richepin, opus 44, and Six mélodies, opus 23, are dedicated to Countess Louise de Mercy-Argenteau, a Belgian patron of the arts.
Composer Biography
Cui, despite his non-Russian origins, became a member of 'The Five' (also known as the 'Mighty Handful'), a group of five composers who advocated for a distinct national Russian musical style.
Composer Biography
César Cui, a composer on this album, was born in Vilnius in 1835 to a French father and a Lithuanian mother, meaning he had no Russian heritage.
Composition History
The 20 mélodies sur des textes de Jean Richepin, opus 44, are based on poems by Jean Richepin, a French author whose work once earned him a month in prison for obscenity.
Composer Biography
Cui led a dual career as both a composer and a military engineer, also serving as a professor at the Academy and a music critic.
Historical Context
Countess Louise de Mercy-Argenteau actively promoted Russian music, especially that of César Cui and Borodine, in Belgium and France during the 1880s.
Composer Biography
Cui was the only Russian composer of his generation to witness the October Revolution, dying a few months later in 1918 at the age of 83, the same year as Debussy.
