A super-class performance and recording that reproduces the powerful power of primordial Russia.

■Gergiev, spreading the charm of Russian music to the world

In 1988, at the age of 35, Valery Gergiev (born 1953 in Moscow) was appointed music director of the Mariinsky Theater in St.・Succeeded in renovating and bringing fame beyond the Bolshoi Theater. Russian opera covers not only popular works but also unknown works comprehensively, and by strengthening the network with outside Russia and actively conducting overseas tours, the depth and charm of Russian music will be spread to the world. I have delivered. In Russia, he founded the White Nights Music Festival in 1993 and a concert hall in 2006, then opened the new Mariinsky Theater II in 2013, and also opened the Mariinsky Theater in Vladivostok and Vladikavkaz. By providing a hall function as a branch, the Mariinsky Theater has transformed into a large-scale complex facility that cannot be compared anywhere in the world. Due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, various posts outside Russia have been stripped, and international tours are no longer possible. He conducts his own repertoire.

■ Recording on the former Phillips label, which spread fame

Not only the moving tour of the opera house, but also the CD recording had an important meaning for Gergiev. In 1989, he signed a contract with the Phillips label in the Netherlands, and began recording with the Mariinsky Theater Orchestra from Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" in 1990, and from Mussorgsky's "Khovanshchina" in 1991, all Russian opera songs. I also embarked on recording. While recording opera works by Glinka, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and others one after another and appealing the true value of Russian opera through recordings, as the number of concerts and tours with the Mariinsky Theater Orchestra increases, Recordings of orchestral music also gradually increased. Three songs included in this album were recorded during that period.

■ The power and brilliance of rough stones that are barbaric

Scriabin “Prometheus” in 1997, Stravinsky “The Rite of Spring” and Scriabin “Ecstasy” in 1999 were all recorded at tour destinations outside Russia, and the latter won the Record Academy Award in Japan. It is a masterpiece that has been highly acclaimed since its release, including winning the Grand Prize Silver Award (2001). The characteristics of Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra's performances are, above all, full of vitality and passion, full of rich primary colors, and equipped with dramatic intensity and grand scale. prize. At the end of the 20th century, there was a strong tendency toward performances that were meticulously arranged down to the smallest detail, but Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra brought this back to the starting point, and at the time the work was conceived, there was a certain We have revived the power and brilliance of the gemstones, which are out of the ordinary and even barbaric. The 3 songs on this album demonstrate Gergiev's ability in every aspect, and let us rediscover the primitive power that we have long forgotten. The bold rubato that can be heard here and there in "The Rite of Spring" (especially the part where the tempo is extremely slowed down at the end of the song), and Scriabin's two songs keep the volume up until the end without getting out of breath. The toughness to keep running in gear is the unique charm of this combination.

■ Recording in a hall outside Russia where both reverberation and sound clarity are compatible

When Gergiev and the former Philips recording of the Mariinsky Opera Orchestra began in 1991, the orchestra was placed in the flat floor of the Mariinsky Opera in St. Petersburg, where the chairs were removed. However, since the original purpose of the opera house was to deliver the voice of the singer clearly to the audience, there was no reverberation, and it was difficult to create a rich sound on recording. For this reason, it gradually began to be recorded at opera houses and halls with excellent acoustics during overseas tours, and this album was also recorded in Baden-Baden, Germany and Mikkeli, Finland. Opened in 1998, the Baden-Baden Festival Theater is a 2,500-seat hall that can be used for both concerts and opera performances. It has a large space that can be used for stage performances, so it seems that the hall has both moderate reverberation and clarity of sound.

recorded music

Igor Stravinsky

--Igor Stravinsky

Ballet The Rite of Spring (revised 1947)

Le Sacre du printemps

Part 1: Praise for the Earth

Part 1: L'Adoration de la terre

[1] Introduction

Introduction

[2] Signs of Spring - Dance of the Maidens

Les Augures printaniers - Danses des adolescentes

[3] Kidnapping Game

Jeu du rapt

[4] Spring Rondo

Rondes printanières

[5] The Fools of the Enemy City

Jeu des cités rivales

[6] March of the Wise

Cortège du sage

[7] Kiss the Earth

Le sage

[8] Dance of the earth

Danse de la terre

Part 2: Sacrifice

Part 2: Le Sacrifice

[9] Introduction

Introduction

[10] Mysterious Gathering of Maidens

Cercles mystérieux des adolescents

[11] Praise of the Sacrifice

Glorification de l'élue

[12] Ancestor calls

Évocation des ancêtres

[13] Ancestral Ceremonies

Action rituelle des ancêtres

[14] Sacrifice Dance

Danse sacrale

Alexander Scriabin

Alexander Scriabin

[15] Ecstasy (Symphony No. 4, Op. 54)

Le Poème de l'extase, Op.54

[16] "Prometheus - Fire Song" (Symphony No. 5, Op. 60)

Prométhée le Poème du feu, Op.60

Alexandre Thorase (piano)

Alexander Toradze, Piano

Kirov Choir

Kirov Chorus, St Petersburg

Mariinsky Theater Orchestra

Kirov Orchestra, Mariinsky Theater, St Petersburg

Conductor: Valery Gergiev

Conducted by Valery Gergiev

[recording]

July 24-27, 1999, Germany, Baden-Baden, Festspielhaus (Spring Festival, Ecstasy)

Michaeli Hall (Prometheus), Mikkeli, Finland, July 1997

[First Appearance] 468 035-2 (The Rite of Spring, Ecstasy) (2001), 446 715-2 (Prometheus) (1998)

[First appearance in Japan] UCCP1035 (Spring Festival, Hojo no Uta) (July 25, 2001)

PHCP11121 (Prometheus) (October 1, 1998)

[Original recording] Recording with Jaap de Jong vacuum tube equipment

[Executive Producer] Anna Barry

[Producer] Stan Thal (Rite of Spring, Ecstasy), Anna Barry (Prometheus)

[Balance Engineer] Jaap De Jong (The Rite of Spring, Ecstasy), Erdo Float (Prometheus)

[Recording Engineer] Teeth Hextra

[Editing Engineer] Stan Thal (The Rite of Spring, Ecstasy), Thies Hekstra (Prometheus)

[Mastering] Audio Archiving (The Rite of Spring, Poetry of Joy)

[Super Audio CD Producer] Motoaki Omachi (Esoteric Co., Ltd.)

[Super Audi o CD Remastering Engineer] Shinya Higashino (Esoteric Inc.)

[Technical Manager Tetsuya Kato (Esoteric Co., Ltd.)

[Super Audio CD Remaster] September 2022 Esoteric Audio Room, "Esoteric Mastering" System