Postcard from Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg – or Petrograd or Leningrad – has been the cultural centre of Russia since the early 18th century, when it was founded by Tsar Peter the Great. The architecture of this "Venice of the North" embraces a distinctly European influence. Home to the Hermitage Museum and the Mariinsky Theatre, the city has attracted great writers, artists and composers.
Read more…- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•10. Zhavoronok (The Lark)
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Overture
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Act II • 8. Moi milenki druzhok (Prilepa, Milovzor)
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Act II • 10. Kto pylko i strastno lyubya! - Tsaritsa! Yega Velichestvo! (Chorus, Herman, Surin, Liza, Master of Ceremonies)
- Glinka•Ruslan and Lyudmila: Overture•Ruslan und Lyudmila: Overture
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•3. Bolero
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•4. Cavatina
- Strauss II (Jr.)•Abschied von St. Petersburg (Farewell to Saint Petersburg) op. 210•
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•5. Kolybel'naia pesnia (Cradle Song)
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•8. Barcarolle
- Verdi•La forza del destino: Sinfonia•Allegro – Allegro agitato e presto
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg•12. Proshchal'naia pesnia (Song of Farewell)
- Strauss II (Jr.)•St. Petersburg, Quadrille op. 255a•
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Act I • 7. Odnazhdy v Versalye (Count Tomsky)
- Minkus•La Bayadere•I. Moderato
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Act III • 4. Uzh polnoch blizitsya (Liza)
- Tchaikovsky•Pikovaia dama (The Queen of Spades) op. 68 TH 10•Act III • 5. Akh! istomilas ya gorem (Liza)
- Borodin•Knyaz' Igor' (Prince Igor)•Overture
- Shostakovich•Symphony No. 7 in C major op. 60 “Leningrad”•I. Allegretto
- Borodin•Dlja beregov otcizny dal'noj (For the Shores of Thy Far Native Land) (Orchestral version)•Dlja beregov otcizny dal'noj (For the Shores of Thy Far Native Land)
- Glazunov•Raymonda, Suite op. 57a•6. Valse fantastique
- Glazunov•Raymonda, Suite op. 57a•7. Grand Pas d'action. Grand Adagio
- Khachaturian•Spartacus (1968 Bolshoi version) (arr. for choir and orchestra)•Act III • III. Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia
- Shostakovich•Symphony No. 12 in D minor op. 112 “The Year 1917”•III. Aurora. Adagio (L'istesso tempo) - Allegro
- Shostakovich•Symphony No. 12 in D minor op. 112 “The Year 1917”•IV. The Dawn of Humanity. Allegro (L'istesso tempo) - Allegretto - Moderato
- Ustvolskaya•Concerto for Piano, Strings and Timpani (1946)•
- Stravinsky•Chant funèbre (Funeral Song) op. 5 (1908)•
- Monk•St. Petersburg Waltz (1994) (Version for Solo Piano)•
- Glinka•A Farewell to St. Petersburg: Zhavoronok (The Lark) (Arr. M. Balakirev for Piano)•Andante quasi recitativo
Catherine the Great fostered the arts in Saint Petersburg during the Russian Enlightenment. Composers such as Cimarosa and Raupach were commissioned to write operas for her court. Catherine herself even appears – in a mute role – in Act 2 of Tchaikovsky's opera 'The Queen of Spades'! Lisa, the opera's heroine, throws herself into the Neva. Mikhail Glinka, the grandfather of Russian music, lived in the city. His most famous opera, 'Ruslan and Lyudmila', was premiered in the city's Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre. His most famous songs were published in a collection entitled 'A Farewell to St Petersburg'.
This playlist celebrates some of the composers born in Saint Petersburg – Borodin, Glazunov, Stravinsky, Shostakovich and Ustvolskaya – but also features recordings conducted by Petersburgers, such as Evgeny Mravinsky, Mark Ermler and Vasily Petrenko, or played by the city's famed Mariinsky Orchestra. We hear operas and ballets premiered in the city, such as 'The Queen of Spades', 'Prince Igor', 'La Bayadère', 'The Sleeping Beauty' and 'Spartacus', along with the original – shorter – version of the overture to Verdi's 'La forza del destino', which received its first performance in 1862. The city itself featured large in the works of Dmitri Shostakovich, most famously in his “Leningrad” Symphony, depicting a city under crippling siege. His Eleventh ("The Year 1905") and Twelfth ("The Year 1917") Symphonies are almost film soundtracks to the city’s history and the Russian Revolution.
[Due to geo-blocking restrictions, some tracks might be unavailable in certain territories.]