IDAGIO | Shostakovich: Concerto No. 2 in G Major for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 126 - Britten: Third Suite for Cello Solo, Op. 87 723385253082

Featuring

Jurjen Hempel
Pieter Wispelwey
Sinfonietta Cracovia
Dmitri Shostakovich
Benjamin Britten

Did you know?

1/7

Composer Biography

Benjamin Britten and Dmitri Shostakovich, two significant figures in 20th-century music, maintained an intimate friendship.

Composition History

A significant portion of Benjamin Britten's instrumental music was inspired by his friendship with cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, for whom he composed several works, including the three Cello Suites.

Composition History

Dmitri Shostakovich's Second Cello Concerto, Op. 126, was dedicated to Mstislav Rostropovich, who premiered it on Shostakovich's 60th birthday.

Compositional Technique

In his Third Suite for unaccompanied cello, Benjamin Britten included Shostakovich's musical motto DSCH, which represents Shostakovich's initials and a frequently occurring motive in his music.

Performer Biography

Pieter Wispelwey, the cellist on this recording, was the first cellist to receive the Netherlands Music Prize in 1992, an award for the most promising young musician in the Netherlands.

Instruments

Pieter Wispelwey performs on a 1760 cello made by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini, a renowned Italian luthier.

Compositional Technique

The central movement of Shostakovich's Second Cello Concerto features a rhythmic theme based on an Odessa folk song, 'Bubliki, kupitye, bubliki' ('Doughnuts for sale, doughnuts!').