Sergei Taneyev - Piano Quintet; Piano Trio (Mikhail Pletnev; etc.)

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Composer: Sergei Taneyev

1. Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 30: 1. Introduzione. Adagio mesto
2. Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 30: 2. Scherzo. Presto - Moderato teneramente - Tempo I
3. Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 30: 3. Largo
4. Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 30: 4. Finale. Allegro vivace - Moderato maestoso
5. Piano Trio in D major, Op. 22: 1. Allegro
6. Piano Trio in D major, Op. 22: 2. Allegro molto - Tema con variazioni
7. Piano Trio in D major, Op. 22: 3. Andante espressivo - attacca:
8. Piano Trio in D major, Op. 22: 4. Finale. Allegro con brio

Vadim Repin, violin
Ilya Gringolts, violin (1-4)
Nobuko Imai, viola (1-4)
Lynn Harrell, cello
Mikhail Pletnev, piano

Date: 2005
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
http://deutschegrammophon.com/en/cat/4775419

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10

Apparently a staple in Russia, the music of Taneyev exists on the fringes of the repertoire in the West, something that should be rectified--and will be if this superb CD made by a starry cast of performers gets the attention it deserves. He's a Romantic composer, but hardly of the heart-on-sleeve variety, since he was a master of counterpoint and firmly encased his Romantic impulses in a well-fitted classical jacket. Sometimes he makes you think of a more modern, pungent Brahms with a Russian accent.

The Piano Quintet, dating from 1911, is a huge chamber work, 44 minutes long in this performance; its 19-minute first movement is longer than many other complete works. After a mournful opening, it builds in drama and intensity, broken by sections that can seem jocular. These players bring it off splendidly. My only nit-pick would be a touch of heaviness in the second-movement Scherzo; I could imagine it done with a lighter touch. But the Largo movement is gorgeous, its stately tread and spare beauty casting a hypnotic spell. The full-bodied, ardent Finale builds to an extended coda in which Taneyev pulls out all the stops. The violins pushed to their outer limits and the slashing fortissimos are of the sort that can bring an audience to its feet cheering.

The Trio dates from 1908 and again is a large-scaled chamber work--38 minutes in this well-nigh ideal performance. Gorgeous melodies abound, and the expressive center of the piece is its relatively brief third-movement Andante, whose dueting strings touch the heart. The Finale is another of those muscular, rhythmic movements that create excitement, but with a fascinating unexpected interruption in the form of a tranquil passage and piano cadenza before resuming the dash to the finish line. Mikhail Pletnev is magnificent in both works, with pianism that's lucid and expressive. He knows when to take a back seat to his string players and when to step into the spotlight. Vadim Repin and Lynn Harrell join him in the Trio.

All-star lineups don't always pan out--the 2005 Yankees didn't make it to the World Series, but Pletnev & Co. certainly have won a championship with this disc. Here's hoping DG will have them explore more of Taneyev's rich chamber music lode. [1/23/2006]

-- Dan Davis, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
http://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/taneyev-chamber-works
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/jul/29/classicalmusicandopera.shopping3
http://www.amazon.com/Chamber-Music-Sergey-Taneyev/dp/B0009AM5GS

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Sergei Taneyev (November 25 [O.S. November 13] 1856 – June 19 [O.S. June 6] 1915) was a Russian composer, pianist, teacher of composition, music theorist and author. Among his teachers at the Moscow Conservatory are Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (composition) and Nikolai Rubinstein (piano). Taneyev's specialized field of study was counterpoint, and he was considered one of the greatest of contrapuntalists. Taneyev's compositions, including nine complete string quartets and four symphonies, reveal his mastery of classical composition technique, but many of them were considered "dry and laboured in character".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Taneyev

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Mikhail Pletnev (born 14 April 1957) is a Russian concert pianist, conductor, and composer. In 1974, he entered the Moscow Conservatory, studying under Yakov Flier and Lev Vlassenko. At age 21, he won the Gold Medal at the VI International Tchaikovsky Competition in 1978. His piano repertoire is extensive and includes The Seasons, many Scarlatti sonatas, Pictures at an Exhibition, etc. He found Russian National Orchestra in 1990, the first non-government-supported orchestra in Russia since 1917. Pletnev has made a number of recordings with Deutsche Grammophon, Pentatone and Melodiya.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_Pletnev

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