Stravinsky: The Soldier's Tale (English version), Élégie. Duo concertant

Featuring

Isabelle Faust
Alexander Melnikov
Dominique Horwitz
Wies de Boevé
Reinhold Friedrich
Jörgen van Rijen

Lorenzo Coppola
Javier Zafra
Raymond Curfs
Igor Stravinsky

Did you know?

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Composition History

Igor Stravinsky and Charles Ferdinand Ramuz were inspired to write The Soldier's Tale by an Afanasyev folk tale about a deserter and the Devil, a Faustian theme.

Instruments

Isabelle Faust, the violinist on this recording, plays a "Sleeping Beauty" violin by Antonio Stradivari from 1704, strung with gut strings.

Recording & Production

The recording of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale used instruments dating from the period when the work was written to achieve a more abrasive sound.

Instruments

The clarinets used by Lorenzo Coppola for this recording are Buffet instruments from Paris, dating from 1918 (B-flat) and 1906 (A), which produce a smaller, clearer, more singing sound than modern clarinets.

Historical Context

Stravinsky, deprived of resources after the October 1917 Russian Revolution, conceived The Soldier's Tale as a 'theatre of poverty' with a small traveling ensemble.

Compositional Technique

The instrumental forces for The Soldier's Tale are highly unusual, featuring violin, double bass, clarinet, bassoon, cornet, trombone, and an extensive percussion section.

Compositional Technique

Stravinsky's use of instruments in The Soldier's Tale, particularly the violin, may have been influenced by klezmer bands and Hungarian musicians he heard in Russia and Geneva.