Tavener: Akhmatova Requiem & 6 Russian Folk Songs (Live)
11/4/2014, 24 Tracks, 1:09:02
Featuring
Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Phyllis Bryn-Julson
John Shirley-Quirk
Elise Ross
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Nash Ensemble
John Tavener
Did you know?
1/7
Composer Biography
John Tavener, the composer, converted to Orthodox Christianity in 1977, which heavily influenced many of his subsequent works, including the Akhmatova Requiem.
Compositional Technique
The Akhmatova Requiem uses a stark scoring of soprano and bass soloists, brass, strings, and percussion, with a severe and formal structure, to convey the grim cold of the poetry.
Recording & Production
Both works on this album were recorded live as part of the BBC Proms: the Akhmatova Requiem in 1981 and the Six Russian Folk Songs in 1979.
Instruments
The instrumentation for the Six Russian Folk Songs includes a domra, an ancient Russian instrument related to the balalaika.
Notable Performances
The Six Russian Folk Songs were premiered by The Nash Ensemble with soprano Elise Ross, conducted by John Tavener himself, on January 15, 1979, at the Wigmore Hall, London.
Composition History
John Tavener's Akhmatova Requiem is a complete setting of Anna Akhmatova's original Russian text, with added prayers from the Russian Orthodox funeral service.
Composition History
John Tavener's Six Russian Folk Songs were written in 1978 as a 'musical sigh of relief' after an intensive period of writing, including his opera Therese and monodrama The Immurement of Antigone.
