This Week in Classical Music: April 10, 2023.Pletnev and Caballé.Mikhail Pletnev is a wonderful pianist and an interesting conductor.He was born on April 14th of 1957 in the northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk.In 1978, when he was 21, Pletnev won the first prize at the sixth Tchaikovsky competition.That brought him international recognition and his career took off.He debuted in the US the following year and since then has performed in all major venues and played concerts with the best conductors, Claudio Abbado, Bernard Haitink, Lorin Mazel, and Zubin Mehta among them.As a pianist, Pletnev has a special affinity with Rachmaninov and is acknowledged as one of the best performers of his music.In 1990, Pletnev founded the Russian National Orchestra (RNO), the first non-governmental orchestra in the country since 1917, and developed it into one of the best orchestras in Russia.The NRO recordings of Tchaikovsky’s symphonies are especially good.Everything changed in 2022 with the Russian aggression against Ukraine.Pletnev’s reaction was both negative and direct.In an interview, he said: “Who starts the wars?Only stupid politicians.Not a single normal person likes the war.But the politicians use propaganda and manipulation, and they use them for their own benefit, not ours.”Of course, in a country with only one politician, Mr. Putin, this couldn’t be tolerated.First, the Russian government fired RNO’s executive director, a Pletnev supporter, and then practically banned Pletnev from conducting his own orchestra.Since then, Pletnev has created another ensemble he calls the Rachmaninoff International Orchestra.Among its members are musicians from Eastern and Western Europe, and 18 former members of the RNO.
Here are several piano recordings by Mikhail Pletnev.First, Rachmaninov’s Corelli Variations, recorded live in Moscow in 2001 (here).Then, another live recording, made in Luxemburg in 2015: a rather idiosyncratic interpretation of Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor op. posth. (here).And lastly, from Carnegie Hall, also live, the year 2000 recording of Chopin’s Scherzo no. 1 (here).
The great Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé, “La Superba,” was born on April 12th of 1933 in Barcelona.Here she sings the aria Donde Lieta Usci from Puccini’s La Bohème.Charles Mackerras conducts the London Symphony Orchestra.
Pletnev and Caballé, 2023
This Week in Classical Music: April 10, 2023. Pletnev and Caballé. Mikhail Pletnev is a wonderful pianist and an interesting conductor. He was born on April 14th of 1957 in the
northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk. In 1978, when he was 21, Pletnev won the first prize at the sixth Tchaikovsky competition. That brought him international recognition and his career took off. He debuted in the US the following year and since then has performed in all major venues and played concerts with the best conductors, Claudio Abbado, Bernard Haitink, Lorin Mazel, and Zubin Mehta among them. As a pianist, Pletnev has a special affinity with Rachmaninov and is acknowledged as one of the best performers of his music. In 1990, Pletnev founded the Russian National Orchestra (RNO), the first non-governmental orchestra in the country since 1917, and developed it into one of the best orchestras in Russia. The NRO recordings of Tchaikovsky’s symphonies are especially good. Everything changed in 2022 with the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Pletnev’s reaction was both negative and direct. In an interview, he said: “Who starts the wars? Only stupid politicians. Not a single normal person likes the war. But the politicians use propaganda and manipulation, and they use them for their own benefit, not ours.” Of course, in a country with only one politician, Mr. Putin, this couldn’t be tolerated. First, the Russian government fired RNO’s executive director, a Pletnev supporter, and then practically banned Pletnev from conducting his own orchestra. Since then, Pletnev has created another ensemble he calls the Rachmaninoff International Orchestra. Among its members are musicians from Eastern and Western Europe, and 18 former members of the RNO.
Here are several piano recordings by Mikhail Pletnev. First, Rachmaninov’s Corelli Variations, recorded live in Moscow in 2001 (here). Then, another live recording, made in Luxemburg in 2015: a rather idiosyncratic interpretation of Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor op. posth. (here). And lastly, from Carnegie Hall, also live, the year 2000 recording of Chopin’s Scherzo no. 1 (here).
The great Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé, “La Superba,” was born on April 12th of 1933 in Barcelona. Here she sings the aria Donde Lieta Usci from Puccini’s La Bohème. Charles Mackerras conducts the London Symphony Orchestra.