Myaskovsky - Reminiscence No. 3 "Largo con afflito"

"Largo con afflito" from the Reminiscences Op. 29 (1927)

For Reaper978

One of Russia's greatest symphonists, Nikolai Myaskovsky (1881-1950) was esteemed both in the pre-revolutionary and Soviet music worlds. Myaskovsky initially embraced the gloomy works of Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky as his ideal model. In the early 20th-century, however, he became a truly progressive composer and member of the Association of Contemporary Music. Through the 1920's he wrote modern and pessimistic works influenced by Scriabin, Prokofiev, and Feinberg. Like so many other initially modern composers, by the 1930's Myaskovsky was forced to relax his idiom in order to comply with Socialist Realism. Although he made the stylistic shift to simplicity and conservative tonality, Myaskovsky was still hounded by the officials who condemned the "formalism" and "decadence" of his early works. Despite the harrassment, Myaskovsky became one of Soviet-Russia's most respected teachers and a prolific composer. His major contributions include 27 symphonies, 13 string quartets, and 9 piano sonatas.

According to Murray McLachlan, "Though Myaskovsky wrote over a hundred character pieces, only a small percentage have become available in the West. However, from the information we have received it becomes apparent that there are three broad categories of miniatures for piano: educational pieces for children, folk-like elegies and experimental bagatelles. Myaskovsky classified and re-classified his piano pieces at various stages of his career and the resulting network of sets is complex. Myaskovsky was similar to Busoni in the sense that both composers viewed stylistic contrasts within cycles in a positive light... Reminiscence No. 3 may remind the listener of the Fourth Sonata (slow movement). Its desolate and searching nature reaches outward through angular intervals which leads toward a blazing, declamatory climax."

Category:

Music

Tags:

• scriabin
• prokofiev
• feinberg
• miaskovsky

[jacksongrant15]

phat piano beats yo!

[teacherschoice147]

interesting tune!!