Koussevitzky 4: Twentieth-Century Russians

When one discusses orchestral music by Russian composers, it is important to distinguish the Russian Empire from the beginning of the twentieth century from the Soviet Union, which lasted through the better part of that century. One also needs to distinguish music that was composed in Russia from works by Russian émigrés, one of whom was Serge Koussevitzky himself. The fourth of the five two-CD albums in the Maestro Risoluto box set of recordings that Koussevitzky made with the Boston Symphony Orchestra covers both categories of compositions.

The album accounts for symphonies by three composers, each from a different period in history. Sergei Prokofiev’s Opus 100 (fifth) symphony in B-flat major was composed in the summer of 1944. Prokofiev conducted the world premiere of the symphony in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory on January 13, 1945. Before he could lead the opening measures, the audience could hear artillery fire. This turned out to be celebratory, rather than an attack, marking the first foray into German territory by the Red Army.

That symphony is coupled on the second CD with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Opus 70 (ninth) symphony in E-flat major, which was completed on August 30, 1945. This symphony was preceded by three symphonies all composed during the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union; and they are some of the darkest (as well as depressing) compositions in the entire Shostakovich catalog. This has led me to call Opus 70 the “Whoopee, the war is over!” symphony.

The symphony on the first CD is Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Opus 44 (third) in F minor. This was completed in 1936, after the composer had immigrated to the United States. It was first performed on November 6, 1936 by Leopold Stokowski conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra. The orchestra would later record the symphony for RCA with Rachmaninoff himself conducting on December 11, 1939.

The CD also includes two shorter Rachmaninoff compositions that pre-dated the Russian Revolution. The longer of these is the Opus 29 “Isle of the Dead” tone poem. The other is an orchestral version of the final song in the Opus 34 collection, given the title “Vocalise,” since no text was set by the music. Both of these were also recorded for RCA with Rachmaninoff conducting on April 20, 1929.

From a historical point of view, the Prokofiev symphony is the most significant. The recording on the CD was made during a concert recorded by Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra on November 17, 1945. This was the first time the symphony was performed in the United States. RCA would later record an album of the symphony the following February. However, the Maestro Risoluto recording is the more historically significant. On the other hand, given the dark contexts of almost all of the other selections in the collection, I have to say that Koussevitzky’s account of the Shostakovich symphony was particularly welcome!