Kirill Gerstein - Music In Time Of War - Debussy,Komitas - Import 2 CD

Credits:

Kirill Gerstein

Description:

The most intelligent virtuoso of our time, Kirill Gerstein, performs all 12 of Debussy's superbly crafted exercises and other pieces, accompanied by a gorgeous hardcover informative booklet, in a richly illustrated 2-CD set! Pianist Kirill Gerstein, who gave a wonderful performance of Rachmaninoff with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Kirill Petrenko, is also featured in "Music in Time of War. The 2-CD set entitled "Music in Time of War" features Debussy's 12 Etudes (all composed in 1915) and his later works, as well as works for two pianos and four hands, and a work by Armenian composer Komitas. Komitas was a pioneer in ethnomusicology and the founder of the Armenian National Music School. The music of Komitas is juxtaposed with that of Debussy, whom he deeply admired. Komitas was greatly influenced by the Armenian genocide and Debussy by the First World War, both of which were spectacular events in their own right. This project was created by Gerstein, who was fascinated by the power of music to reflect stories and times.Debussy's "12 Exercises," composed in 1915, is a beautiful but difficult work, and Gerstein had always played it during the pandemic. When thinking of a coupling, he decided that the Armenian Dances by Komitas, which he had learned from an acquaintance more than 20 years earlier, would be the most appropriate. This piece was composed in the last years of his life. Shortly after he wrote this piece, a genocide took place in Armenia, and a heartbroken Komitas spent the rest of his life in a mental hospital. The program also includes other late piano pieces composed to raise funds for the war effort, as well as "Black and White," an anti-war statement, an elegy written the week after Debussy's surgery, and "An Evening by Burning Coals," a gift to a coal merchant who provided fuel for heating during the wartime winter. Each piece has a deep story to tell.The booklet includes a text by historian Annette Becker on Debussy's role as an artist in wartime France, and a history of Armenia by Hachig Mouradian, and an essay on Komitas by musicologist Artur Avanesov, and a conversation between Gerstein and Heinz Holliger. (No Japanese translation is provided). In addition, there are some unexpected discoveries, such as the later discovery that a cousin of soprano Mantasian's great-grandfather supported Komitas financially by buying him a piano while he was studying in Berlin. The Debussy Etudes alone are worth listening to, but this product is the fruit of both Kirill Gerstein's musical sense, backed by his creative and intellectual gaze, and his insight in bringing the project to fruition from an academic perspective. The product is a message about time, peace, war, and music, among many other things. King International