Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition

Featuring

Lutz Köhler
Lucerne Festival Orchestra
Modest Mussorgsky

Did you know?

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Cultural Impact

The musical portraits in Pictures at an Exhibition are the only remaining 'record' of several of Viktor Hartmann's creations, as many of his original artworks are lost.

Composition History

Modest Mussorgsky, the composer, delighted in completing his tone poem A Night on Bald Mountain on Midsummer's Eve, June 23, 1867, as the piece is set on that very night.

Composition History

Mussorgsky wrote Pictures at an Exhibition as a musical memorial for his close friend, artist Viktor Hartmann, who died prematurely in 1873.

Compositional Technique

Mussorgsky's original 1867 tone poem A Night on Bald Mountain ends with a savage orgy, but he later added a peaceful resolution with church bells and serene harmonies when recycling it for an opera.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded at Festhalle Herxheim on May 3rd and 4th, 2013.

Performer Biography

The Brass Ensemble of the LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA was founded in 2003 by Claudio Abbado and Michael Haefliger.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Mussorgsky's realism extends to the psychological realism of his Songs and Dances of Death, where Death offers seductive answers to grim situations common in his lifetime.