Mussorgki: Pictures at an Exhibition, Night on Bald Mountain

Featuring

Igor Markevitch
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Modest Mussorgsky

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Composer Biography

Modest P. Mussorgsky wrote Pictures at an Exhibition in 1874, inspired by an exhibition commemorating his close friend, the painter and architect Viktor Hartmann, who died suddenly in 1873.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded in the Versöhnungskirche in Leipzig, a church built in 1932 in the style of New Objectivity, known for its clear and direct acoustics.

Interpretation

Igor Markevitch's interpretation of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition in Ravel's orchestration aims for a rough and angular sound, suggesting an imagined reorchestration by Mussorgsky himself.

Performer Biography

Igor Markevitch, the conductor on this album, was also a successful composer and university lecturer, and his pupils included Daniel Barenboim, Herbert Blomstedt, and Wolfgang Sawallisch.

Composition History

Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, a 'fantasy for orchestra', was written between 1860 and 1867 and was later revised and incorporated into his opera Sorochinskaya yarmarka.

Compositional Technique

The 'Promenade' interlude in Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition features an irregular metre, changing between 5/4 and 6/4 time, and undergoes modifications to suit each picture it connects.

Composition History

Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition was inspired by ten of Viktor Hartmann's artworks, which the composer transmuted into sound, melody, harmony, and rhythm.