The booklet notes for this Naxos release berate Western listeners for not understanding Russian folklore, but do nothing to establish a context for the pieces on the program, which are diverse and consistently enjoyable. Why should Russia have a flourishing contemporary guitar composition scene? All the uninitiated listener can do for now is listen and enjoy. The program has substantial pieces at each end surrounding more traditional and more tonal works. The performance of Valery Biktashev's Orpheus -- Poem (the reader ...
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The booklet notes for this Naxos release berate Western listeners for not understanding Russian folklore, but do nothing to establish a context for the pieces on the program, which are diverse and consistently enjoyable. Why should Russia have a flourishing contemporary guitar composition scene? All the uninitiated listener can do for now is listen and enjoy. The program has substantial pieces at each end surrounding more traditional and more tonal works. The performance of Valery Biktashev's Orpheus -- Poem (the reader does not even learn the composition dates of these works) is a world premiere. It is a programmatic work recognizably depicting (even though no program is supplied) the events of the Orpheus legend, and it embodies the sheer drama of the tale. The work makes use of extended techniques on the guitar, but the real pathbreaker in this regard is Nikita Koshkin's The Prince's Toys -- Suite, where the guitar's capacity to produce noises beyond simple string vibration is maximally exploited....
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