This disc is in RCD's
'Talents of Russia' series. The talent
celebrated is that of Vladimir Minin
whose name is given prominence on the
front cover. That prominence dwarfs
the font size accorded to Sviridov.
No matter; at least we get to hear Sviridov’s
choral music.
Sviridov was born in
the Kursk region close to the folk influences
of his home. He studied compostion with
Mikhail Yudin in Leningrad moving to
Shostakovich for both composition and
orchestration. He lived in Moscow from
1956. From an early age he set the Russian
greats, Lermontov, Pushkin, also Alexander
Blok (nuch favoured by Shaporin also)
and Avetik Isaakyan. In addition there
is a piano concerto (1936), a Symphony
for strings (1940) as well as the Kursk
Songs (1964),
As you may know from
the Relief recording of the Oratorio
Pathétique, Sviridov's writing
tends to the traditional - innovating
only at the periphery. The Pushkin settings
predominantly adopt intimate expression
rather than the reverberating clamour
of the Oratorio and lean on folk examples.
The choral works generally represent
the composer’s core interests: the voice
and Russian literature. Much of the
writing is unison with the joy coming
in the magnificence and leonine beauty
of tone, the control of dynamics and
the contours, usually velvety but always
instinct with the power of Russian language.
Sviridov mobilises all of these adding
distinctively elements that coast close
to Delius's 'Summer Nights on the
River', Vaughan Williams and distance
effects as in tr. 4 Echo. The
singing exults in tone. There are some
dissonances and wailing slides 'off
the note' in My sweetheart and
in Musk and Camphor. In my sweetheart
(tr. 2) L. Slepneva demonstrates
a lovely purity of voice suggestive
of the 1970s Sheila Armstrong. The pecking
magpie chatter of N. Gerasimova is virtuosic,
essentially cheerful yet nostalgic also.
It typifies such russian traditions
that Sviridov uses bell sounds in the
percussion array at Grecian Feast
and Musk and Camphor deploy.
The Yurlov Concerto
offers honeyed and rounded writing;
static, exulting in beauty of tone of
which the Moscow Chamber Choir have
deep reserves and basso profundo
depth. This can also be heard at
the end of the Choral at tr. 13. The
Poem of Confession (tr. 16) is
suggestive of remoteness. Depth of soundstage
is almost tactile - conveyed by the
'placement' of the female singers.
The Blok setting (17),
Ikon is again nectar thick and
smooth - quiet - with two treacly strong
male soloists S. Baikov and I. Selezneva
in the foreground and a growling deep
basso in the background as in the Rachmaninov
Vespers.
Sadly the words are
not printed and there is very little
detailed information about the works
in the insert booklet.
This music will appeal,
without a shadow of doubt, to anyone
who loves the Rachmaninov Vespers
or the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom;
works multiply recorded since the early
1990s but known hardly at all until
Sveshnikov's still revelatory Melodiya
version of the Vespers made in 1965.
Rob Barnett
This music will appeal without a shadow
of doubt to anyone who loves the Rachmaninov
Vespers ... do not delay.... see Full
Review
Moscow Chamber Choir/Vladimir Minin 
