Dias da Música – Imperial Russia

The concert begins with 8 Russian Popular Songs arranged for orchestra by Anatol Lyadiov, in 1906. One of the greatest passions of this composer was to collect and research Russian folk melodies and make frequent use them in many of his works. In 1906 he decided to compose a suite deeply rooted in Russian traditions and his starting point was precisely that collection of popular melodies.

Two years before that, in 1904, Alexander Glazunov wrote his Violin Concert in A Minor, one of his most well-known compositions. Dedicated to the violinist Leopold Auer, this work was premiered at the St. Petersburg Russian Musical Society on 15^th. February, 1905.

The concert closes with Alexander Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances by Alexander Borodin, a piece also very popular by this Russian composer. These Polovtsian Dances are part of ‘Prince Igor’ an opera that Borodin left uncompleted but later finished by Alexander Glazunov and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.

Violin | Tatiana Samouil

Conductor | Jan Wierzba

OSP – Portuguese Symphony Orchestra
Principal Conductor | Joana Carneiro

Teatro Nacional de São Carlos Chorus
Principal Conductor | Giovanni Andreoli

Photography Credits | David Rodrigues

Anatol Lyadov | 8 Russian Popular Songs, op. 58

Alexander Glazunov | Violin Concert in A minor, op. 82

Alexander Borodin | Polovtsian Dances