Gloriae Dei Cantores first recording in Super Audio CD featuring the North American recorded premiere of Georgy Sviridov's Ineffable Mystery, a gorgeous sacred choral suite. In his memory, the choir sang this set of pieces in Moscow and the Golden Ring on their third tour of Russia in 1998. Georgy Sviridov,who was one of Shostakovich's favorite students, wrote the music for Moscow's leading television news program and became one of the leading composers during the Soviet regime. His vocal music has been championed by Dmitri Hvorostovsky, the great Russian baritone. Gloriae Dei Cantores, having already recorded "the best anthology of Russian music" (American Record Guide for Sacred Songs of Russia), now adds this rich collection of Russian sacred music to their discography. Also included are excerpts from the Tchaikovsky's Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom and the Rachmaninoff All-Night Vigil. These three composers and their works form a CD not to be missed by choral and Russian music fans.
Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Op. 41
Peter Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) |
| 1 |
Posle Pervovo antifona
(From the First Antiphon) |
|
2:59 |
| 2 |
Heruvimskaya pesn
(The Cherubic Hymn) |
|
6:21 |
| 3 |
Molitva Ghospodnia
(The Lord's Prayer) |
|
4:04 |
| 4 |
Prichastniy stih
(The Communion Hymn) |
|
2:37 |
All-Night Vigil, Op. 37
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) |
| 5 |
Priidite, poklonimsia
(Come Let Us Worship) |
|
2:24 |
| 6 |
Blagoslovi, dushe moya, Ghospoda
(Bless the Lord, O My Soul) |
|
4:38 |
| 7 |
Nine otpushchayeshi
(Lord, Now Lettest Thou) |
|
4:22 |
| 8 |
Blagosloven yesi
(Blessed Art Thou) |
|
5:49 |
| 9 |
Slava v vishnih Bogu, i na zemli mir
(Glory to God in the Highest) |
|
6:51 |
Ineffable Mystery (Neizrechennoe Chudo)
Georgy Sviridov (1915-1998) |
| 10 |
Ghospodi spasi blagochestiviye
(Lord, Save the God-Fearing) |
|
2:01 |
| 11 |
Svyati Bozhe
(Holy God) |
|
3:54 |
| 12 |
Dostoyno yest
(It Is Truly Fitting)  |
|
1:57 |
| 13 |
Rozdestvenskaya pesn
(Nativity Hymn) |
|
1:22 |
| 14 |
Slava i Alliluya
(Glory and Alleluia) |
|
4:05 |
| 15 |
Neizrechennoe Chudo
(Ineffable Mystery) |
|
2:36 |
|
Here's the latest in the parade of mostly excellent releases (47 so far) from the esteemed Cape Cod ensemble, Gloriae Dei Cantores. I've singled out this marvelous, sacred-only group time and again as perhaps America's finest amateur choir. And this richly sonorous collection of Russian Orthodox sacred music gives me no reason to change my mind.
First we hear some of the juciest musical "cherries" from two great benchmarks of the genre: Tchaikovsky's Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom and Rachmaninoff's All-Night Vigil(Vespers).
But we do get one complete work: Ineffable Mystery, a suite of highly appealing and intense sacred hymns and prayers by Georgy Sviridov (1915-1998). The favorite student of Shostakovich, Sviridov was mostly obliged to toe the communist party line in his compositions - yet his fascination with Russian sacred choral traditions and sonorities led him to create quite a few sacred pieces that he no doubt had to hide from the regime's cultural watchdogs. But he was able to slip a few of them past their noses, inserting three distinguished choruses into his incidental music for Tolstoy's play, Tsar Feodor Ioannovich.
Director Patterson has apparently reinvented her choir for these performances, coaching her singers to produce the kinds of full-throated, vibrato-heavy vocal sonorities that you normally hear from only real Russian choirs. They sound uncannily authentic - with searing, sometimes strident singing from sopranos and tenors, almost masculine-sounding altos, and especially the seismically rumbling basses. But she didn't have to change much to produce the hallmark Russian spiritual intensity heard here: this choir brings a degree of spiritual sincerity and power to their singing that few choirs, professional or amateur can match. I was particularly impressed with their ability to deliver hushed pianissimos without losing the true Russian sound.
Lovely recorded sound and an excellent booklet - on top of all else - make for an irresistable release. If you love Russian sacred music, just GET it. |
| American Record Guide |
| March/April 2010 |
