Album

Some people will be drawn to this 2005 Chandos release for the premiere recording of Rachmaninov's Six Choruses for women's voices and piano, Op. 15, composed for the Maryinsky Ladies School in 1895, yet suppressed by Soviet authorities for its religious subjects until 1973, and seldom performed even after that late date. Slight in melodic content and harmonically chaste, this choral set seems more like indifferent filler than an important discovery, and listeners may be disappointed. The disc's most compelling and satisfying offering is Scriabin's Symphony No. 1 in E major, Op. 26—at four times the length of Rachmaninov's choruses, and overflowing with passions in its expansive six movements, it is by far the most impressive work. Most of this symphony's magic lies in its seductively rich orchestration and lush harmonies, which are of greater interest than the themes or developmental procedures; yet compared to his later symphonic experiments, Scriabin's Symphony No. 1 is clearly structured along conventional lines and is no more extreme than, say, a Mahler symphony of the same vintage. Valery Polyansky leads the Russian State Symphonic Capella and Orchestra in this luxuriant reading and contralto Larisa Kostyuk and tenor Oleg Dolgov sing with control and clarity in the ecstatic finale. The sound quality is fine, but more enjoyable on headphones.

© Blair Sanderson, All Music Guide

CD 1
Alexander Scriabin Composer Symphony No.1 in E (with chorus in finale), Op.26 Work 48:36 Russian State Symphonic Capella Chorus/Choir, Larisa Kostyuk Contralto, Oleg Dolgov Tenor, Russian State Symphony Orchestra Orchestra, Valery Polyansky Conductor
1	1.Lento	6:40			$0.99
2	2.Allegro dramatico	9:24			$1.49
3	3.Lento	9:35			$1.49
4	4.Vivace	3:15			$0.99
5	5.Allegro	7:59			$1.49
6	6.Andante	11:43			$1.99
Sergey Vasilyevich Rachmaninov Composer 6 Choruses for Female or Children's Chorus and Piano, Op.15 Work 14:09 Russian State Symphonic Capella Chorus/Choir, Tigran Alikhanov Piano, Valery Polyansky Conductor
7	1.Be Glorious!	1:56			$0.99
8	2.Night	3:12			$0.99
9	3.The Pine	2:30			$0.99
10	4.The Waves Began to Slumber	2:06			$0.99
11	5.Captivity	1:56			$0.99
12	6.The Angel	2:29			$0.99