Russian Orthodox Church Music (rec 1975)

Hybrid/SACD DSD remastered Playable on all compactdisc players

"The mixed choir of the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of Paris under Eugen Evetz achieve a radiantly beautiful and transparent sonic quality in such selections as "Invincible Lord of Hosts" (Ancient Hymn), "The Angel declared to Mary" (Kompaneysky), "Standing by the Cross" (Lvov), and "On this day the Virgin" (Kastalsky). The women's voices are particularly lovely, and the blends are ideal for this tradition of music.”
---Dr Phil Muse, Classik Reviews (January 2004)

"Nicola Gedda (b.1925) is perfect to participate in these performances; during Gedda's early days in Leipzig his father was cantor for the Russian Orthodox congregation and he still was in fine condition vocally. Unfortunately he sings only in four of the pieces. CD… Evetz and his Paris Choir of the Orthodox Cathedral are excellent and they have been recorded with an appropriately broad sonic perspective… Intriguing repertory and fine sound; too bad there isn't more of it.”
--Robert Benson,classicalcdreview

"Gedda is not the first opera star to record Russian liturgical music (Boris Christoff did, for one), and his contribution is not to be discounted. He adds enormously to the total effect. The Paris choir is superb, preserving their grasp of the idiom even after decades in exile…. Taken on its own terms, this program will give much listening pleasure to anyone who simply wishes to bask in the sound of beautiful singing.”
--J. F. Weber, FANFARE

The peoples of the former Soviet Union have always been great music-lovers and, among them, the Russians hold a very special position. Long before the arrival of the Christian faith in 988, the rulers of the various kingdoms maintained their own court singers and musicians, and every village had its own troubadour, who drew his repertoire from the extensive sources of oral tradition.

When Prince Vladimir Sviatoslavovitch of Novgorod (956-1015) decided to convert to the Orthodox Christian faith according to Byzantine model, Russian sacred music came under the influence of Byzantine church songs for seven centuries. The take-over of the Byzantine traditions took place in three stages: the 11th, 14th and 17th centuries were the cornerstones in this process.

Following the ascent to the throne of the Romanovs in 1613, sacred music began to take on its present form. The rulers of the Orthodox church emphatically defended the purity of this music, mainly against the introduction of instruments and especially against the organ. In order to compete against the charm of this "soulless music", as the Patriarch Nikon called it, a revision of liturgical hymns was commenced: to make them more attractive, composers arranged them for four, five, six, and even eight voices. This was all codified under the rule of Peter the Great (1672-1725).

During the rule of Catharine the Great (1729-1796), religious music in Russia received new impulses thanks to the contacts between Russian and West-European cultures. We know that the Empress brought many foreign composers to St. Petersburg; therefore, we can bump into quite surprising names such as Galuppi, Paisiello or Cimarosa, who devoted themselves to Orthodox liturgical music. An "Italian style" was developed. The sacred music of the time was also increasingly influenced by secular genres, such as opera and instrumental music. The first great Russian composers of this music were Stepan Degiarov (1766-1813), A. Wedel (1767-1806), Peter Turchaninov (1799-1856), Maxim Berezovsky (1745-1777) and, especially, Dimitri Bortnyansky (1751-1825). The latter, who was a student of Galuppi and maestro di cappella for Paul I, left behind no less than 45 psalms and motets, various masses and liturgies, as well as an impressive oeuvre of secular music.

The now quickly widening breach between western music and sacred music resulted, among others, in a major census by the church, supported by Alexander I, which was carried out by the Imperial Court Chapel of Petersburg under the leadership of Alexis Lvov (1799-1870); his attempt at creating a high-level, contemporary style of sacred music was not convincing. The "purification" of sacred music from foreign influence and additions, carried out by both him and others, led to a strong reduction in development in many Russian towns. Alexander's successor, Nicholas I, appointed Michail Glinka (1803-1857), "the father of Russian music", to continue with Lvov's work. According to tradition, he said the following to Glinka: "Take good care of my singers, but please do not in any way let them turn into Italians."

From the middle of the 19th century until the revolution, numerous great Russian composers (including Arensky, Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff) were composing sacred music. There were also composers who wrote almost exclusively religious music; compositions by the main representatives from this group are recorded on this CD: N. Kompaneisky (1848-1910), Alexander Kastalsky (1856-1926), Nikolai Solokov (1859-1922) and P. Chesnokov (1877-1944).