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Tchaikovsky’s music for cello and orchestra This consists of two original compositions, the Variations on a Rococo Theme and the Pezzo Capriccioso. Several other pieces that are rather frequently played and that appear on this recording are actually transcriptions, made by Tchaikovsky himself, of the Nocturne from Op.19 and the Andante from his First String Quartet. The Variations on a Rococo Theme were written during the winter of 1876–1877. Tchaikovsky had already written two concertante works, the First Piano Concerto and the Sérénade mélancolique for violin. The Variations are dedicated to the German virtuoso, Wilhelm Fitzenhagen, who gave their first performance in Moscow on 18 November 1877 under the direction of Nikolai Rubinstein. But this ‘Fitzenhagen version’, the only one that was published and performed until the publication of the original version in the 20th century, subjected the score to a reshuffling that completely upset the initial order of the variations. The rights and wrongs of this interference have been hotly disputed, one argument being that in the original version the cadenza comes after the second variation, in other words, much too early in the cycle. The attitude Tchaikovsky adopted towards Fitzenhagen’s initiative was more passive than consenting. It is the original version that is to be heard on this recording. The orchestra in the Variations corresponds to the small formation of the 18th century: two parts for each of the woodwinds and horns and strings. The theme, hinted at in the short introduction, is stated in full by the soloist. It is followed by eight variations, alternately virtuosic and lyrical, most of them in dialogue with the timbres of the woodwinds, while the function of the strings is essentially limited to that of an accompaniment. The variations form a link between two periods, the gallant 18th century which Tchaikovsky so admired, and the romantic, virtuosic 19th century. After Fitzenhagen, the remainder of Tchaikovsky’s production for the cello is associated with the name of another cellist, Anatoly Brandukov, one of the most eminent of the Russian school. It was for him that in the second half of the 1880s Tchaikovsky made the transcription of the Nocturne from the six piano pieces, Op.19 (1873) and the Andante cantabile from the First String Quartet, based on a Russian folk-song that brought tears to the eyes of Leo Tolstoy. Two melodic pieces, one of them quietly elegiac, the other of a more expansive and noble lyricism, both of them exploiting the singing qualities of the instrument. The Pezzo Capriccioso dates from the same period as the two transcriptions. It was composed in August 1887 under distressing circumstances during a stay in Aachen where Tchaikovsky had gone to bed-side of his gravely ill friend, Nikolai Kondratyev. The piece was clearly composed as a distraction. ‘It is all my inspiration has produced during the whole of this summer,’ he admitted in a letter of 30 August 1887 to his publisher Jurgenson. It was first played in Paris by Tchaikovsky and 2
Brandukov in a version for piano and cello on 28 February 1888. The Pezzo Capriccioso opens with an Andante con moto introduction whose tone of ardent mournfulness soon makes way for the more playful, animated principal subject. The middle section is particularly spectacular and perilous, with a headlong charge of staccato demisemiquavers. A succession of trills leads back to the initial theme. The coda contains a few references to the virtuosic figures. Some of the most beautiful pages in Tchaikovsky’s ballets are those for solo violin or cello. The Andante cantabile in the second act of The Sleeping Beauty (No.15 in the ballet) unfurls a superb cantilena while the Lilac Fairy grants Prince Désiré a glimpse of the vision of Princess Aurore in a blending of reverie, love and hope. The Serenade for Strings was written in September–October 1880. At first Tchaikovsky hesitated between a symphony and a quintet. Opting for a string orchestra, his thinking was that of a symphonist, as is borne out by the inscription on the manuscript: ‘The larger the number of strings, the more it will correspond to the composer’s wish.’ The Serenade was first heard at a private concert in the Moscow Conservatory on 21 November 1880. In the same way as the Variations on a Rococo Theme it demonstrates the need felt by a romantic composer to regenerate himself by a return to the classical sources. But even more than that, it constitutes a synthesis of the fundamental aspects of Tchaikovsky’s art. The Pezzo in forma di Sonatina begins with a solemn introduction before slipping into a Mozartian lightness and transparency. The Valse is a moment of perfect musical felicity. It is followed by an Elegie, which alternates between a contemplative, almost religious gravity and moments of more relaxed lyricism. And the Finale, used on two folksongs, celebrates his return to his native soil. Classical, dance-like, elegiac, nationalistic – summarized in four words, this is the musical portrait of Tchaikovsky. 훿 André Lischke Translated by Derek Yeld Alexander Rudin was born in 1960 in Moscow, where he studied piano and cello at the Gnessin Institute, before his study of conducting at the Moscow Conservatory with Dmitri Kitaienko, Lev Evgrafov and Daniil Shafran. He won numerous prizes in international competitions between 1976 and 1982 and has appeared as soloist with the all of the principal Russian orchestras and many ensembles of international renown. As a conductor Alexander Rudin has performed in Norway, Finland, Germany and Spain. In 1988 he was appointed Artistic Director of the Festival Musical Assemblies and the following year assumed direction of the Musica Viva Chamber Orchestra. He frequently performs in chamber music as a cellist and pianist, teaches chamber music at the Moscow Conservatory and regularly gives masterclasses throughout Europe. 3
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