[ Alpha / CD ]
Release Date: Friday 12 January 2024
Whereas Prokofiev was captivated by Romeo and Juliet, Ravel had shut himself away a quarter of a century earlier in Levallois Perret to compose Gaspard de la nuit, inspired by Aloysius Bertrand's collection of poems subtitled Fantaisies a la maniere de Rembrandt et de Callot. In 1973, the Uzbek composer Dilorom Saidaminova paid tribute to Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and composed The Walls of Ancient Bukhara, which offers a sonic view of the historic centre of the Central Asian city founded four or five centuries before the common era. Her compatriot Behzod Abduraimov was keen to pay tribute to this little-known composer and record her music, which, like the other two works on this album, is evocative and colourful.
"Throughout this release, one consistently gets caught up in Abduraimov's gorgeous and focused sonority, his rock-solid rhythm, his boundless portfolio of shadings and nuances, plus a specificity of articulation that conveys a sense of air between the notes and the utmost in characterisation." Gramophone Recording of the Month February 2024
"His account of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet suite affords further evidence that he is one of the world's most accomplished poets of the keyboard, and I have never heard 'Ondine' so dainty and insinuating , or 'Le gibet ' so gravely beautiful." BBC Music Instrumental Choice Feb 24
Prokofiev: Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75
Saidaminova: The Walls of Ancient Bukhara
Ravel: Gaspard de la Nuit