wimpel69
11-28-2014, 01:41 PM
FLAC re-upped. See link below.
This is one of my 5 "desert island" choices ...
"In this 2004 recording, Alexander Lazarev and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra turn
in a performance of the Eleventh that surpasses the best contemporary recordings."
All Music
"A "demonstration disc" if ever there were one."
Classics Today (Disc of the Month)
Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No.11 ostensibly was written to commemorate the tragic events of
January 9, 1905, when several hundred of about 10,000 demonstrators at the Tsar's St. Petersburg winter
palace were killed on orders from government officials. The slaughter incited further demonstrations and
anti-Tsarist activities, culminating in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Shostakovich would later claim, in the
controversial Volkov book Testimony, that the symphony's inspiration was actually the Hungarian Revolution
of 1956. In any event, the symphony was subtitled "1905," not "1956," and most of its themes were derived
from Russian revolutionary songs. Its four movements, all with subtitles, are played without pause. The first
(Adagio) is subtitled "The Palace Square" and opens in a somber, dark mood built on several motifs, a
crucial one on drums representing the protesters forming at the palace. Themes from two rather mournful
revolutionary songs, Listen and The Prisoner, are then presented and later developed. The movement is
permeated by ominous thudding drums, eerie string writing, and a growing sense of unrest. The nearly
20-minute second movement (Allegro - Adagio) is subtitled "The Ninth of January" and depicts the bloody
events of that day. It is the most complex and dramatic panel, recalling motivic and thematic material
from the first movement and using themes from two songs in Shostakovich's 10 Poems for chorus
without orchestra -- "Comrades, the Bugles Are Sounding" and "Bare Your Heads" -- the latter
reappearing at climactic moments in the third and fourth movements. The most dramatic music in the
second movement comes with the fugato section, which builds to a brutal, percussive climax using a
variant of the demonstrators' motif to depict the slaughter. The eerie quiet from the symphony's
opening follows, leading into the Adagio third movement. Subtitled "In Memoriam," it is mournful,
using the melody from the popular song "You Fell As a Victim." Later, the theme from another song,
"Welcome, the Free Word of Liberty," is quoted, after which comes a powerful climax. The finale
(Allegro non troppo) is subtitled "The Tocsin" (alarm bell). In its feverish opening, it alludes to the
music in Shostakovich's Symphony No.10's second movement, which supposedly satirizes
Stalin (Volkov). Later, the melody from "Rage, You Tyrants" is used and the movement gradually
takes on a defiant, triumphal air, with a bell tolling its warning at the symphony's powerful close.
Music Composed by
Dmitri Shostakovich
Played by the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Conducted by
Alexander Lazarev
"Shostakovich's Symphony No. 11 means something entirely different to Russian audiences
than it does to Western audiences. For one thing, a Russian audience knows that the themes
of the Eleventh are actually themes from folk and protest songs and understands the
emotional resonance of those songs. For another thing, a Russian audience knows the
historical context of the songs and understands the historical meaning of that context. And,
finally, a Russian audience knows exactly how much sincerity and how much irony, how
much terror and how much triumph there is in Shostakovich's Eleventh, in other words, it
understands how to understand the work. Nevertheless, it is a measure of the immediacy
of Shostakovich's Eleventh that even a Western audience can be shaken by the work,
can be roused even to riot because of its overwhelming power.
In this 2004 recording, Alexander Lazarev and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra turn
in a performance of the Eleventh that surpasses the best contemporary recordings and
rivals the best of past performances. Lazarev is a conductor of steel harmonies, metal
rhythms, and expressive themes and his Eleventh is tragic, personal, and tangible. The
Scottish National responds to him with force, energy, and sensitivity and the result is a
performance that goes beyond resonance and context and achieves universality. Linn's
sound is very real, very near, and very loud."
All Music
"It's a curious coincidence that so-called "second tier" U.K. orchestras, which so often play
better than their London counterparts, have a lock on this particular symphony. For years my
reference recording has been the sensational Berglund/Bournemouth set on EMI, outstandingly
well recorded and originally coupled with an equally spectacular account of the Sixth Symphony.
This new recording, even more sonically stunning both in stereo and SACD multichannel formats,
might just be better still. Alexander Lazarev takes the opening movement at a much more
flowing tempo than we usually hear (about 15 minutes in all, and three minutes quicker than
Berglund), and since absolutely nothing noteworthy happens in it beyond the setting of mood,
this strikes me as an excellent idea. Here (and throughout), the playing of the Royal Scottish
National Orchestra brass section is beautifully contoured in quiet passages, only to become
crushingly powerful in the climaxes that pepper the violent second movement. Lazarev's
"massacre" section is one of the best (you know what I mean). The most controversial aspect
of this interpretation will be the elegiac third movement, which Lazarev conducts at almost
double the tempo of some other versions. It lasts a bit less than nine minutes, and it's
certainly not an adagio, but it sounds wonderful when treated this way. For once the principal
theme really sings (after all, it is a genuine revolutionary song), almost like one of
Tchaikovsky's soulful, Russian-style melodies, and with so much other slow music in both
the first and second movements Lazarev's decision makes excellent sense. He and his
Scottish players then tear into the finale with a vengeance, culminating in the most hair-
raising coda yet captured on disc, with crashing cymbals and tam-tam, clangorous bells,
and a floor-shaking bass drum. It will take your breath away. We can only hope that
Linn continues what promises to be a very exciting partnership with this excellent
orchestra. A "demonstration disc" if ever there were one. Buy it, and drive your
neighbors crazy."
Classics Today
Source: Linn Records CD, 2004 (my rip!)
Format: FLAC(RAR), DDD Stereo, Level: -5
File Size: 251 MB (incl. cover & booklet)
Download Link (re-up) - https://mega.nz/#!oz5GCaBb!_0dTYSHoJdMmh4B_CVqos0w3843m3Xbdl5_bRdJfda8
FLAC re-upped.
Please say thanks below to keep this thread alive.
This is one of my 5 "desert island" choices ...
"In this 2004 recording, Alexander Lazarev and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra turn
in a performance of the Eleventh that surpasses the best contemporary recordings."
All Music
"A "demonstration disc" if ever there were one."
Classics Today (Disc of the Month)
Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No.11 ostensibly was written to commemorate the tragic events of
January 9, 1905, when several hundred of about 10,000 demonstrators at the Tsar's St. Petersburg winter
palace were killed on orders from government officials. The slaughter incited further demonstrations and
anti-Tsarist activities, culminating in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Shostakovich would later claim, in the
controversial Volkov book Testimony, that the symphony's inspiration was actually the Hungarian Revolution
of 1956. In any event, the symphony was subtitled "1905," not "1956," and most of its themes were derived
from Russian revolutionary songs. Its four movements, all with subtitles, are played without pause. The first
(Adagio) is subtitled "The Palace Square" and opens in a somber, dark mood built on several motifs, a
crucial one on drums representing the protesters forming at the palace. Themes from two rather mournful
revolutionary songs, Listen and The Prisoner, are then presented and later developed. The movement is
permeated by ominous thudding drums, eerie string writing, and a growing sense of unrest. The nearly
20-minute second movement (Allegro - Adagio) is subtitled "The Ninth of January" and depicts the bloody
events of that day. It is the most complex and dramatic panel, recalling motivic and thematic material
from the first movement and using themes from two songs in Shostakovich's 10 Poems for chorus
without orchestra -- "Comrades, the Bugles Are Sounding" and "Bare Your Heads" -- the latter
reappearing at climactic moments in the third and fourth movements. The most dramatic music in the
second movement comes with the fugato section, which builds to a brutal, percussive climax using a
variant of the demonstrators' motif to depict the slaughter. The eerie quiet from the symphony's
opening follows, leading into the Adagio third movement. Subtitled "In Memoriam," it is mournful,
using the melody from the popular song "You Fell As a Victim." Later, the theme from another song,
"Welcome, the Free Word of Liberty," is quoted, after which comes a powerful climax. The finale
(Allegro non troppo) is subtitled "The Tocsin" (alarm bell). In its feverish opening, it alludes to the
music in Shostakovich's Symphony No.10's second movement, which supposedly satirizes
Stalin (Volkov). Later, the melody from "Rage, You Tyrants" is used and the movement gradually
takes on a defiant, triumphal air, with a bell tolling its warning at the symphony's powerful close.
Music Composed by
Dmitri Shostakovich
Played by the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Conducted by
Alexander Lazarev
"Shostakovich's Symphony No. 11 means something entirely different to Russian audiences
than it does to Western audiences. For one thing, a Russian audience knows that the themes
of the Eleventh are actually themes from folk and protest songs and understands the
emotional resonance of those songs. For another thing, a Russian audience knows the
historical context of the songs and understands the historical meaning of that context. And,
finally, a Russian audience knows exactly how much sincerity and how much irony, how
much terror and how much triumph there is in Shostakovich's Eleventh, in other words, it
understands how to understand the work. Nevertheless, it is a measure of the immediacy
of Shostakovich's Eleventh that even a Western audience can be shaken by the work,
can be roused even to riot because of its overwhelming power.
In this 2004 recording, Alexander Lazarev and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra turn
in a performance of the Eleventh that surpasses the best contemporary recordings and
rivals the best of past performances. Lazarev is a conductor of steel harmonies, metal
rhythms, and expressive themes and his Eleventh is tragic, personal, and tangible. The
Scottish National responds to him with force, energy, and sensitivity and the result is a
performance that goes beyond resonance and context and achieves universality. Linn's
sound is very real, very near, and very loud."
All Music
"It's a curious coincidence that so-called "second tier" U.K. orchestras, which so often play
better than their London counterparts, have a lock on this particular symphony. For years my
reference recording has been the sensational Berglund/Bournemouth set on EMI, outstandingly
well recorded and originally coupled with an equally spectacular account of the Sixth Symphony.
This new recording, even more sonically stunning both in stereo and SACD multichannel formats,
might just be better still. Alexander Lazarev takes the opening movement at a much more
flowing tempo than we usually hear (about 15 minutes in all, and three minutes quicker than
Berglund), and since absolutely nothing noteworthy happens in it beyond the setting of mood,
this strikes me as an excellent idea. Here (and throughout), the playing of the Royal Scottish
National Orchestra brass section is beautifully contoured in quiet passages, only to become
crushingly powerful in the climaxes that pepper the violent second movement. Lazarev's
"massacre" section is one of the best (you know what I mean). The most controversial aspect
of this interpretation will be the elegiac third movement, which Lazarev conducts at almost
double the tempo of some other versions. It lasts a bit less than nine minutes, and it's
certainly not an adagio, but it sounds wonderful when treated this way. For once the principal
theme really sings (after all, it is a genuine revolutionary song), almost like one of
Tchaikovsky's soulful, Russian-style melodies, and with so much other slow music in both
the first and second movements Lazarev's decision makes excellent sense. He and his
Scottish players then tear into the finale with a vengeance, culminating in the most hair-
raising coda yet captured on disc, with crashing cymbals and tam-tam, clangorous bells,
and a floor-shaking bass drum. It will take your breath away. We can only hope that
Linn continues what promises to be a very exciting partnership with this excellent
orchestra. A "demonstration disc" if ever there were one. Buy it, and drive your
neighbors crazy."
Classics Today
Source: Linn Records CD, 2004 (my rip!)
Format: FLAC(RAR), DDD Stereo, Level: -5
File Size: 251 MB (incl. cover & booklet)
Download Link (re-up) - https://mega.nz/#!oz5GCaBb!_0dTYSHoJdMmh4B_CVqos0w3843m3Xbdl5_bRdJfda8
FLAC re-upped.
Please say thanks below to keep this thread alive.