Russian Reflections I

musical evening of RUSSIAN REFLECTIONS I, featuring some of the most glorious masterworks by Medtner, Prokofiev, Myaskovsky, Borodin, and Auerbach that shed light on Russia's rich and multifaceted musical heritage. Our all-Russian program will open on an enchanting note with Nikolai Medtner's Canzona and Dance in C Major for violin and piano, op. 43 (1922-24) - a pair of evocative miniatures filled with an air of Russian nostalgia and melancholy, folklike lyrical melodies, exotic modal harmonies, intricate cross rhythms, complex counterpoint, and touches of wit and humor. In stark contrast, Prokofiev's chillingly haunting Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor for violin and piano, op. 80 (1938-1946) is one of his darkest and most brooding works whose ghostly violin scales at the end of the first and fourth movements evoke the "wind passing through a graveyard" (Prokofiev) and whose first and third movements were played at Prokofiev's funeral. Lera Auerbach's 24 Preludes for violin and piano, op. 46 (1999, rev. 2003) follow in the foosteps of Shostakovich's 24 Preludes yet inhabit their own unique sound world with a daring and wide-ranging exploration of instrumental textures, registers, dynamics, sonorities, and moods, such as in the delightfully folklike Prelude No. 9, marked pizzicato alla balalaika - an explicit reference to a traditional Russian folk stringed instrument. One of the members of the progressive Russian coalition of composers known as the "Mighty Five", Alexander Borodin was a chemist and a Romantic Russian composer best known for his symphonies, his opera, Prince Igor, and his two string quartets. Of the latter, his String Quartet No. 2 in D Major (1881) includes a famous heavenly slow movement, Nocturne in D Major, arr. for violin and piano (1881) by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov - another member of the Mighty Five and one of the greatest orchestrators of all time. An exact contemporary of Nikolai Medtner, a pupil of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and a lifelong friend of Sergei Prokofiev, Nikolai Myaskovsky was a Russian-Soviet composer often referred to as the "Father of the Soviet Symphony" whose chamber music output includes 13 String Quartets, 2 Cello Sonatas, and his one-and-only Violin Sonata in F Major, op. 70 (1946-47) whose second and final movement is cast as set of twelve imaginative, increasingly rhapsodic variations on a wistful Slavic folk theme. Don't miss this poignant program of Russian Reflections I!
Emilie and I look forward to seeing you all on Sunday, March 24th!
Best,

Dr. Yelena Grinberg, founder and artistic director of the Grinberg Classical Salon Series

When: Sunday, March 24th, 2019, 5 p.m.
          Doors will open at 4:30 p.m.           There will be no late seating          Food-and-wine reception to follow the performance
Where: Private residence on the Upper West Side (upper 90s)
          You will receive the exact address after you register through this website
Admission: $35
          Admission price includes food-and-wine reception with guest Artists          Attendance is limited to just 21 guests          Note: Advance ticket purchase through this site is required
Contact: Yelena Grinberg (ygpiano@gmail.com)
Russian Reflections:
MEDTNER - Canzona and Dance in C Major for violin and piano, op. 43 (1922-24)PROKOFIEV - Violin Sonata in F Minor, op. 80 (1938-46)AUERBACH - Select Preludes for violin and piano (1999, rev. 2003)BORODIN - Nocturne in D Major, arr. for violin and piano (1881)MYASKOVSKY - Violin Sonata in F Major, op. 70 (1946-47)
For more information on the Grinberg Classical Salon Series, please visit: http://yelenagrinberg.com/grinberg-classical-salon-series/