The Russian Legacy
Georgi Vinogradov (1908-1980)
Arias Duets Songs
A whole new world of great singing
CD Contents
CD 1 [77:08] |
1 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky (1840-93):YEVGENI ONEGIN, Op. 24: Act II, No. 17 —Faint echo of my youth. VRK Orchestra, Nikolai Semyonovich Golovanov, conductor(1945) |
6:05 |
2 |
Modest Mussorgsky (1839-81):SOROCHINTSY FAIR: Act I —Why, my sad heart? Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra, Samuel Abramovich Samosud, conductor(1948) |
5:41 |
3 |
Anton Rubinstein (1829-94): THE DEMON:On desire’s soft, fleeting wing.Orchestra |
3:09 |
4 |
Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859-1935): OLE THE NORSEMAN:Ole’s Arioso—In the Wonderful Night,piano |
2:46 |
5 |
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908):Beauty, Op. 51, No. 4 Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1947) |
2:34 |
6 |
Anton Rubinstein:The Azra, Op. 32, No. 6 Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1946-53) |
2:20 |
7 |
Sergey Rachmaninoff (1873-1943):The night is sad, Op. 26, No. 12 - piano |
2:19 |
8 |
Sergey Rachmaninoff:Beloved, let us fly,Op. 26, No. 5 piano, Melodiya 12981 (78) |
2:26 |
9 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky:The mild stars shone for us, Op. 60, No. 12 |
3:03 |
|
Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1946-53) |
|
10 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky: SONGS (16) FOR CHILDREN, Op. 54: |
2:20 |
|
No. 3:The grass grows green,Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
|
11 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky: SONGS (16) FOR CHILDREN, Op. 54: |
1:56 |
|
No. 4:My little garden, Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
|
12 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky:SONGS(16)FOR CHILDREN, Op. 54: No. 9: Spring (“The snow is already melting”) Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
1:53 |
13 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky;SONGS(16)FOR CHILDREN, Op. 54: No. 10:Lullaby in a storm,Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
2:14 |
14 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky:SONGS(16)FOR CHILDREN, Op. 54: No. 13:Spring songGeorgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
2:44 |
15 |
Peter Il’yich Tchaikovsky:ROMEO AND JULIET: duet - Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova, soprano, Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Ivanovich Orlov, conductor. (1948) |
13:06 |
16 |
Mikhail Glinka (1804-57):O say, why did you come?“Tell me why” Alexander Borisovich Goldenweiser, piano |
2:41 |
17 |
Mikhail Glinka:How sweet to be with you Alexander Borisovich Goldenweiser, piano |
3:15 |
18 |
Mikhail Glinka:I am here, Inezilla. “Spanish Serenade” K. Vinogradov, piano |
1:37 |
19 |
Mikhail Glinka:Do not say your heart aches, piano |
2:12 |
20 |
Mikhail Glinka:Poor singer, piano |
3:00 |
21 |
Mikhail Glinka:You will never come again,Andrei Alexeievich Ivanov, baritone; Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
3:02 |
22 |
Anton Rubinstein:Volkslied, Op. 48, No. 12, “The Sun is shining” Andrei Alexeievich Ivanov, baritone; Georgi B. Orentlikher or K. Vinogradov, piano |
3:07 |
23 |
Aleksandr Dargomyzhsky (1813-69):Vanka-tanka, Andrei Alexeievich Ivanov, baritone; Naum Gennadievich Walter, piano |
1:48 |
CD 2 [74:11] |
1 |
Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868):IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA: Act I, No. 2,Ecco ridente il cielo, Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra, Vassili Vassilievich Nebolsin, conductor (1946) |
2:53 |
2 |
Gioacchino Rossini:IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA: Act I, No. 5, Se il mio nome,Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra Vassili Vassilievich Nebolsin, conductor (1946) |
2:21 |
3 |
Karl Millöcker (1842-99): DER BETTELSTUDENT:Ich knüpfte manche zarte Bande, (Simon’s couplets), orchestra |
2:50 |
4 |
Charles Gounod (1818-93):ROMÉO ET JULIETTE: Act I, No. 4,Ange adorable, Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova (soprano), Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra Alexander Ivanovich Orlov, conductor. (1947-48) |
4:36 |
5 |
Ambroise Thomas (1811-96): MIGNON : excerpts Act I Philine:Eh quoi! Mon cher Laërte, en vidant votre verre |
2:34 |
6 |
Act II, Scene 1 Wilhelm:Adieu, Mignon! Courage! |
2:58 |
7 |
Act II, Scene 2 Philine/Wilhelm/Lothario/Mignon:Ah! Vous voilà! Déjà vous vous faites attendre! |
0:57 |
8 |
Act III Wilhelm/Lothario:Cette chambre est fermée depuis quinze ans |
0:56 |
9 |
Wilhelm:Elle ne croyait pas dans sa candeur naïve |
4:01 |
10 |
Mignon/Wilhelm:Où suis-je? |
7:04 |
11 |
Lothario/Wilhelm/Mignon:Mignon! Wilhelm! Salut à vous! |
8:26 |
|
|
|
Nadezhda Kazantseva, soprano; N. Alexandriskaya, mezzo-soprano; G. Titz, baritone; Georgi Andreievich Abramov, bass; Vsevolod Tyutyunnik, bass; Moscow Radio Chorus and Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Ivanovich Orlov, conductor |
|
|
|
|
Russian Traditional – Folk |
|
12 |
Matvey Blanter (1903-90):In the Forest by the Front Line, Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor(1950) |
3:09 |
13 |
Vasily Solovyev-Sedoy (1907-79):Golden lights,accordion |
2:30 |
14 |
Traditional (Russia):The grass in the meadow Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor |
2:04 |
15 |
Traditional (Russia):By the river, in the meadow Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor |
5:27 |
16 |
Traditional (Russia):The steppe all around Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor(1945) |
5:26 |
17 |
Traditional (Russia):The grass withers on the steppe M. D. Mikhailov, bass; orchestra |
2:59 |
18 |
Anatoly Novikov (born 1896):Roads, Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor (1950) |
3:12 |
The Earliest Vinogradov Recordings |
19 |
Sergey Vassilenko (1872-1956):Armenian Serenade, piano (1938) |
3:06 |
20 |
Sergey Vassilenko:Malayan Serenade,piano (1938) |
3:12 |
|
|
|
21 |
Nikita Bogoslovsky (born 1913):Dark night,Red Army Chorus and Ensemble, A.V. Alexandrov, conductor (1944) |
2:19 |
CD 3 [64:18] |
1 |
Robert Schumann (1810-56):Meine Rose, Op. 9, No. 2 Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1950) |
2:50 |
2 |
Robert Schumann:Myrthen, Op. 25: No. 3 —Der Nußbaum Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1950) |
2:43 |
3 |
Robert Schumann: LIEDERKREIS, Op. 24: No. 9 —Mit Mythen und RosenGeorgi B. Orentlikher, piano (1950) |
3:50 |
|
Franz Schubert (1797-1828):DIE SCHÖNE MÜLLERIN, Op. 25, D. 795 Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano, (1954). |
|
4 |
Das Wandern |
2:05 |
5 |
Wohin? |
1:57 |
6 |
Halt! |
1:24 |
7 |
Dankgesang an den Bach |
1:33 |
8 |
Am Feierabend |
2:29 |
9 |
Der Neugierige |
3:00 |
10 |
Ungeduld |
2:28 |
11 |
Morgengruß |
3:51 |
12 |
Des Müllers Blumen |
3:02 |
13 |
Tränenregen |
3:57 |
14 |
Mein! |
2:25 |
15 |
Pause |
4:05 |
16 |
Mit dem grünen Lautenbande |
2:40 |
17 |
Der Jäger |
1:11 |
18 |
Eifersucht und Stolzt |
1:27 |
19 |
Die liebe Farbe |
3:30 |
20 |
Die böse Farbe |
2:07 |
21 |
Trockne Blumen |
2:21 |
22 |
Der Müller und der Bach |
3:22 |
23 |
Des Baches Wiegenlied |
4:53 |
CD 4 [73:33] |
1 |
B. Baron:The weeping willows slumber, N.N. Kruchinin (guitar) |
2:49 |
2 |
Piotr Bulakhov (1822-85):Glitter, my star,N.N. Kruchinin (guitar) |
2:35 |
3 |
Piotr Bulakhov:Little lips that pout, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
1:22 |
4 |
Piotr Bulakhov:On parting she spoke, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
2:26 |
5 |
Piotr Bulakhov:Do not awaken memories, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
2:47 |
6 |
Grigori Demidov (1838-71):It was only a dream, |
1:24 |
|
Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
|
7 |
Alexander Dubuque (1812-98):Do kiss me, my darling, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
2:42 |
8 |
Alexander Dubuque:Do not repeat those words, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:59 |
9 |
M. Gubkin:When you look at him, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
3:03 |
10 |
Alexander Gurilyov (1803-59):The little bird flew away, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
1:42 |
11 |
M. Nisnevich:My guitar, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:14 |
12 |
Yakov Prigozhi (1840-1920):Darling, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:55 |
13 |
N. Shiryaiev:Moonlit night, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:40 |
14 |
M. Shishkin:Always and everywhere I follow you, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
3:04 |
15 |
Vladimir Sokolov (1830-90):The sea and my heart, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
2:05 |
16 |
Alexander Titov:I knew her as a child, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
1:31 |
17 |
Traditional (Rom):Black eyes,N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:25 |
18 |
Traditional (Russia):You never loved me, N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
3:06 |
19 |
M. Voloshin:A twig of lilac, K. Vinogradov, piano |
3:08 |
20 |
V.V. Abaza (1861-1918):Hazy morning, K. Vinogradov, piano |
3:31 |
21 |
Mikhail Yakovlev (1798-1868):Elegy, Andrei Alexeievich Ivanov, baritone; Naum Gennadievich Walter, piano |
5:31 |
22 |
Traditional (Rom):Look at me, I. Medvedev, bass-baritone; N.N. Kruchinin, guitar |
2:57 |
23 |
Traditional (Albania):The Black-eyed girl,orchestra |
2:28 |
24 |
Sergey Taneyev (1856-1915):How you caress, silvery night,Op. 18, No. 1 Zara Alexandrovna Dolukhanova, mezzo-soprano; orchestra, Alexei Kovalyov, conductor |
3:31 |
25 |
Alexander Varlamov (1801-48):Oh, do not kiss me, Alexander Mikhailovich Ivanov-Kramskoi, guitar |
3:05 |
26 |
Alexander Varlamov:Grass, Georgi B. Orentlikher, piano |
3:11 |
Reviews for CD 2250-53 Vinogradov
American Record Guide – September / October 2004
GEORGI VINOGRADOV
Tchaikovsky, Moussorgsky, Rubinstein, Ippolitov-
Ivanov, Rimsky-Korsakoff, Rubinstein, Rach-
maninoff, Glinka, Dargomyzhsky, Rossini, Mu-
locker, Gounod, Thomas, Blanter,
Solovyevsedoy, Novikov, Vassilenko, Bogoslovsky, Schu-
mann, Schubert, Baron, Bulakhov, Demidov,
Dubuque, Gubkin, Gurilyov, Nisnevich, Prigozhi,
Shiryaiev, Shishkin, Sokolov, Titov, Voloshin,
Abaza, Yakovlev, Taneyev, Varlamov, Trad.
Guild 2250-53 [4CD] 289 minutes
Apart from a single CD from Preiser (89118)
containing Schumann's Dichterliebe and a
clutch of Russian art songs, this delightful lyric
tenor has remained largely unknown to the
Western world. The fact that his career was
almost entirely as a radio artist and his few
recordings rarely filtered out of Russia, may
partly explain this. But judged solely from his
recorded legacy, he deserves to be at least as
well known and highly regarded as his more
famous colleagues, Sergei Lemeshev and Ivan
Kozlovsky. He was perhaps sweeter voiced
than either and certainly less mannered than
the latter. He seems rarely to have made a poor
or indifferent recording.
Certainly the voice and artistry can stand
comparison with such tenors as Schipa,
Simoneau, Valletti, and the young Vanzo, making his neglect even more extraordinary. But
he is not the only Russian tenor of the recent
past still remaining largely unknown in the
West-two others that immediately spring to
mind are Zurab Sotkilova and Vladimir
Kilchevsky. Like Vinogradov, they retained the
style of earlier singers, offering a variety of
nuance and dynamics missing from many of
today's leading tenors.
Guild has found many rare Russian LPs
and a few extremely rare 78 rpm sides to
assemble this four-disc tribute. Perhaps the
large number of Russian folksongs could be
considered rather too much of a good thing;
but, taken in small doses, many of them prove
highly enjoyable. Some duets with great singers such as Zara Dolukhanova and Andrei
Ivanov help leaven the mix.
Not everyone will be immediately attracted
to hearing German lieder (including a corn-
plete Schöne Müllerin ) sung in Russian. But
such is the quality of the singer's diction,
voice, and artistry that the language difference
is quickly forgotten. The Schubert cycle is subtly inflected and so well conceived overall,
despite the language and a less than ideal
pianist, as to make it worthy to rank with the
best on record.
Nevertheless, for the true genius of this
singer it is necessary to hear the operatic arias
and Russian art songs. Few tenors have sung
Lensky's final aria with such beauty of tone, tenderness, and real poetry. He is just as
affecting in other Russian standards like arias
from Sorotchinsky Fair (rivalling Smirnoff's
famous recording), The Demon , and Ole the
Norseman . Only in the Tchaikovsky duet from
Romeo and Juliet , with his teacher Valeria
Barsova, is there any slight sense of strain.
Other arias and concerted items from
French, German and Italian works serve to
reveal the extent of his talents. The serenade
and 'Ecco Ridente' from Barber of Seville are
superbly handled, and the Bettelstudent couplets are delivered to perfection with a true
Viennese lilt. Sheer perfection also describes his
handling of all Wilhelm Meister's music from a
complete radio broadcast of Thomas's Mignon.
The aria 'Elle ne Croyait pas' was missing, but
an account by him, found on a pre-war 78 rpm
record, has been cleverly inserted. This is the
Wilhelm of one's dreams, and his colleagues in
these excerpts do not let him down.
Indeed, the whole production has been
generally well handled. Still, some translations
would have been appreciated in place of the
slightly hyperbolic notes. Numerous photographs of composers are included, but one
or two of the tenor would have been more
appropriate for such an ambitious memorial
set. Nevertheless, this is a most worthwhile
accomplishment.
Vivian Liff
FANFARE June/July 2004
It’s difficult to describe to current fans of opera the state
of singing that prevails in a truly opera-mad culture during its most productive
years. For example, we’re used to three or four international tenors in all the
leading houses trading off responsibilities for everything in the main
repertoire, regardless of a given work’s style and language of origin. The idea
of a single nation possessing a dozen world-class tenors at the one and same
time seems to us inconceivable—yet such a condition has prevailed at various
times and in various places; most recently, in the Soviet Union during the
1950s.
It was a period of fortunate confluence. The old guard,
singers who had been on the scene since the 1920s (Lemeshev, Kozlovsky, etc.)
were still singing strongly; some would argue, better than ever, and setting a
standard for future generations. Younger singers were gaining attention by
providing similar virtues of effortless production, beauty of tone, and
attention to line. Even if we eliminate fine artists such as Dobrin or Yelnikov
from this list as essentially secondary character performers (and Jadan, who
left the Soviet in the 1940s), that still leaves Lemeshev, Kozlovsky, Orfenov,
Ivanovsky, Ognovoi, Kromchenko, Nelepp, Vinogradov, Makhov, Khanaev, Maslennikov,
and Alexandrovitch—each of them arguably of international caliber and featured
in many Soviet recordings of the period.
Georgi Vinogradov (1908–1980) was not the least famous name
at that time. Like Joseph Schmidt and Zara Dolukhanova, he was essentially a
radio singer. He made his first recordings in 1938, and continued through the
mid 1950s. After that, for nearly two decades, nothing; the large discography
comprising operatic excerpts, classical song cycles, Russian romances, folk and
popular tunes simply ceased to grow except as reissues. Rumors have circulated
for years about a drunken brawl with a Polish officer that embarrassed the
Soviet hierarchy, but they make no sense and have never been substantiated.
According to official Soviet sources, Vinogradov made concert appearances in the
latter part of his life and passed on his knowledge to a new generation of
singers—whether through individual teaching, master classes, or example,
we’re
not told.
Whatever the reason for the sudden cessation of his
recordings and radio work, we’re left with a great deal of fine material.
Vinogradov was emphatically not “much overlooked by the recording industry,” as
Robert Caniell’s notes would have it on this album, in favor of Lemeshev and
Kozlovsky. He was not as well-represented on record as Lemeshev or Kozlovsky,
but both of those stars had careers that were 15 years going and strong when
Vinogradov’s started. They also gave frequent concert performances and national
tours individually, with local opera companies in many of the satellite
republics and with the Bolshoi, while Vinogradov did no touring during his
recording career and never joined an opera company. Lemeshev and Kozlovsky were
national stars, while Vinogradov’s popularity was primarily regional and
Russian. But Vinogradov recorded frequently and left an impressive legacy for
later generations to evaluate. While not complete, this set represents a large
and representative compilation of material drawn from the artist’s entire
recording career. Much of it is rare. All of it is welcome, since Vinogradov has
been poorly represented on audio discs since the collapse of the Soviet.
Vinogradov’s voice was exceptional. It lacked the ringing
virility and emotional range of Lemeshev and later, Maslennikov, but it was a
lyric tenor of pure, poetic beauty, unmatched by any of his Soviet competitors
in this regard save Ognevoi and Orfenov; and Ogenvoi deteriorated early, while
Orfenov’s voice become hard and unattractive at louder volume levels. The
emission was dead-on, the tone sitting squarely on the breath without ever a
hint of effort. Like Björling, he was capable of giving the impression that
singing was remarkably easy; everything in this album testifies to that. There
is nothing strenuous or forced. Had Vinogradov pursued a touring career before
live audiences, he might have been expected to evince impaired health and vocal
problems from time to time, but the image he left on records is completely
unspoiled by this reality. He gives us a kind of perfection, in an intimate,
melancholy sphere, that remains etched on memory forever, as much as Lisitsian’s
gleaming baritone or Kozlovsky’s extraordinary interpretative depth.
Like Schipa, Vinogradov’s diction and phrasing were flawless.
He also had Schipa’s ability to take seeming trifles and, by treating them with
all his art, turn them into artistic miniatures at no expense to their immediacy
and charm. Solovyev-Sedoy’s Golden Lights, a folk-like piece with
accordion accompaniment, is such a trifle: simple and repetitive in structure,
the pathos of its minor-key melody enhanced by brief major-key episodes—in other
words, a typically haunting Russian tune, not unlike the ever-popular Moscow
Nights that was once adopted as an unofficial anthem by Radio Moscow. (It
was also composed by Solovyev-Sedoy.) Vinogradov doesn’t oversize the piece,
foregoing operatic heroics, and limns its melody simply and effectively. His
second verse is slightly more fierce at first, in keeping with the words, but he
never strays from the notes. Somewhere along the way, thanks to his excellent
diction, softly lyric voice, evident sincerity, and chaste musicality, Golden
Lights achieves a memorability that entirely swamps its musical worth. So
much else on this album shares a similar quality, whether it’s the
guitar-accompanied romances of Piotr Bulakhov or that traditional Russian gypsy
favorite, Black Eyes. Many fine artists leave a great impression of
themselves on the more ephemeral material they perform, but Vinogradov has a way
of bringing out a luster in all he sings without imposing a large personality on
the music.
Curiously enough, the tenor had admirable facility with
coloratura, despite the fact that few of his recordings allow us to hear and
evaluate this facet of his art. Both the Rossini selections from Il barbiere
di Siviglia demonstrate it, however, along with a fluency that few of his
international contemporaries possessed. For all we know, he may have also been
adept at singing the more exuberant folk tunes meted out to lyric tenors, but
these, too, were generally not recorded, presumably because the coloration of
his sound, his persuasive use of mixed voice, and the intimacy of his manner
suggested the poetic or despondent character of so much Russian music. The one
example of extroverted singing that is included, Dargomyzhsky’s duet
Vanka-tanka, is more successful for Andrei Ivanov’s broad contribution.
Mention of Il barbiere di Siviglia brings to mind the
one defect I find in Vinogradov, an unusual one for a performer trained in the
era of Soviet culture: an element of reticence, an unwillingness to use rubato,
which is better suited to classical song than to opera. The tenor’s “Ecco
ridente” is exquisitely phrased, but the aria moves staidly forward without any
of that sense of ardent, almost improvised wooing which is so important to its
character. Vinogradov’s “Elle ne croyait pas” (from Thomas’s Mignon)
similarly just misses the mark; and the degree to which this occurs can be heard
by comparing these two performances with Kozlovsky’s complete recording of
Barbiere, and di Stefano’s live performance of Mignon recorded in
1949 in Mexico City. Sometimes, even in classical song, Vinogradov’s refusal to
bend the line lends an air of impersonality to this most personable of artists.
He had, seemingly, the perfect voice and talent for Schumann’s Der Nussbaum,
for instance, but the recording itself is disappointing: too fleet, unyielding,
and prosaic. Perhaps it was Vinogradov’s lack of experience in live performance
that caused this; or maybe it was over-fastidiousness before the recording
microphone. Whatever the cause, the results misfire.
But it is an infrequent flaw by any means in the work of
Vinogradov, and the virtues of his art easily overwhelm it. His first act aria
from Mussorgsky’s Sorochintsy Fair is without a regular tempo, hence a
wonderful vehicle for Vinogradov to display his smoothly equalized tone,
interpretative sensibilities, and command of dynamics. If “Faint Echo of My
Youth” (Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin) falls short of Kozlovsky’s
brilliantly conceived, egotistically introverted poet, it’s still wonderfully
“inner” and beautifully sung; while his “Adieu, Mignon!” is ravishing in its
combination of simplicity and tenderness. Ole’s Arioso (Ippolitov-Ivanov’s
Ole the Norseman) has all the open yearning one could wish for, just the
right degree of rubato, and a fine, lengthy diminuendo on the tenor’s final
note.
The recordings themselves point to mixed origins. Most are
presented without any apparent filtering, even to allowing the occasional
repeating scratch from original 78 sources to occur without digital correction.
A very few of the items, however, sound as though they were severely
gate-filtered, with the usual unfortunate result in which passages of music and
noise end over-abruptly whenever the singing comes to a temporary halt. No
matrix numbers are presented. Recording dates are provided for some items,
nothing for others, and date ranges (in one case, 1946–1953) for a third group.
Where accompaniment can be identified, it’s listed; and all the artists that
appear in duets with Vinogradov (Doluhkanova, Mikhailov, Andrei Ivanov, Barsova,
etc.: a distinguished group) are given. In addition to the notes by Richard
Caniell, there are also very lengthy and informative notes on both Vinogradov
and much of the music by Larry Friedman.
All in all, this is an evident labor of love on behalf of one of the neglected
greats of Soviet opera and song. There’s a great deal of fine material to enjoy
here, and eminent reason to praise the album’s producers. Highly
recommended.
Barry Brenesal
GRAMOPHONE May 04
GEORGI VINOGRADOV
More of Russia's musical history revealed by this compendium of a fine tenor's art
For most of us, large areas of Russia and its history remain terra incognito, and this applies to
singers as to much else. Syd Grays pioneering LP albums on his Rubini
label and the monumental (and prize-winning) 'Singers of Imperial Russia' on
Pearl helped to chart the early years, and by 1970 singers had begun to emerge
through gaps cautiously opened in the iron curtain. But (roughly) from 1917 to
'67 is still misty, or known only in part.
This tenor, Georgi Vinogradov, for
instance, came to notice outside the USSR only in a few anthologies; but then
notice was taken, for his record of the solo from Sorochintsy Fair
challenged comparison with the famous one by Dmitri Smirnov, and his account of
Lenski's 'Kouda' was clearly in the best and most authentic line. I don't
suppose many thought of him in Schubert and Schumann, or even in operas such as
Il barbiere di Siviglia and Mignon, all of which are delightfully
represented here. With these four CDs, there is now, in fact, a very nearly
complete map of his career as a recording artist; and so a bit more of the
Soviet Union in song comes into focus.
How important is it, and how good? Vinogradov was a light lyric tenor who recorded extensively
from 1938 to the mid-'50s: but even here, in this reclaimed area, dates are in
short supply. Kutsch and Riemens' encyclopedia gives his dates as 1908-80 (I
can't see any reference to his death in the ample and well-produced booklet). No
evidence seems to be forthcoming to show that he had a stage career at all,
though he sang some principal lyric roles in opera on radio. Then, although
there is general allusion to concert work, nothing very specific appears to be
known. The usual reason for a concentration on radio and recording is either
some sort of physical disability for the stage (no photograph seems to have been
available) or a voice of very limited carrying-power which suits the microphone
but not an opera house.
The second question ('How good?')
can be answered more decisively. This is a voice of fine quality, exceptionally
easy in the upper range (E to A), evenly produced, with admirable fluency and
clean articulation. An apparently instinctive knowledge of when to use
portamento, to join phrases, to quicken or slow the pulse, links him back
with the bel canto singers of an earlier age; yet unlike some of these he
had the taste and musicianship to sing Lieder with distinction (albeit in
Russian). As with many of his predecessors, he often fulfills himself most
endearingly in quite simple, popular music - and it is not a bad idea to get the
flavour of his singing and a faithful sound-picture of his voice, by sampling
first a few of the songs with guitar on the fourth disc. Some of the claims made
on his behalf in the notes may be excessive: for instance, Lensky’s aria is
indeed beautifully sung but expresses sadness of a sweet disposition without
capturing the tension and pain of a young man who knows that he probably has
less than an hour to live.
The set is nevertheless enriching
and deserves all gratitude. The original material is of great rarity (and,
incidentally, should be properly documented). Richard Caniell's transfers, Larry
Friedman's notes and the inspiration of the dedicatee Donald Jackson, are all
included in the debt which lovers of good recorded vocal art will be happy to
acknowledge.
John Steane
CLASSIC RECORD COLLECTOR Spring 2004
GEORGI VINOGRADOV
The tenor Georgi Vinogradov (b. Kazan, 1908 - d. Moscow, 1980) gets no entry in any of the
recent Grove's Dictionary opuses. This is symptomatic: his name is unknown to
all but the most militant devotees of Russian singing. For myself, before
embarking on this set I knew almost nothing of him - apart, that is, from having
heard the single track in EMI's fourth volume of The Record of Singing,
and recalling those phrases of warm praise offered in description of his Lensky
(by Alan Blyth) and Mignons Wilhelm Meister (by John Hughes) in volumes 1
and 3 respectively of Opera on Record (edited by Blyth). In the Lieder
volume of Song on Record (also edited by Blyth), more praise for
Vinogradov crops up, this time for his Schubert singing (in Russian
translation). Even so, I was unprepared for the pleasures afforded by these
discs - intense pleasures generously piled, and affording along the way more
than one moment of the special frission that all true lovers of great singers
and singing experience when making brand-new discoveries on the highest levels
the art has to offer.
How is it possible for any singer of this caliber to have been (outside Russia) this
unknown? The essayals in the Guild booklet, Richard Caniell (responsible for the
'recreation and restoration' of the original recordings) and Larry Friedman,
outlines in as much detail as they have available, Vinogradov's career. It seems
to have taken a strange course, which does much to explain why and how he
remained completely sealed off from any world reputation. After an early start
in Moscow concerts in the 1930s he appears to have become pigeonholed as almost
exclusively a Soviet radio performer, participating in occasional opera
broadcasts - the source of the sizeable excerpts from Mignon that are
among the jewels of this set - and generally, in Friedman's words, singing 'an
extremely large repertoire, ranging from jazz to opera to art songs in those
compositions often rather euphemistically called "Soviet Lyric Songs"'.
These latter fill up disc 4; on Disc 2, alongside the Mignon items and those
others, by turns fresh, delightful and exquisitely fashioned, from Rossini's
Barbiere, Millöcker's Bettelstudent and Gounod's Roméo et Juliette,
there is a group of traditional Russian songs with the Red Army Chorus and
Ensemble, with which he sang regularly in the years 1943-51. (After this period
he seems to have disappeared almost entirely from public performance, for
reasons that remain obscure.) Disc 1 features Russian opera and songs by
Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Glinka and others. Disc 3 is devoted to Lieder: three
Schumann songs (but not Vinogradov's Dichterliebe, since this has already
been reissued by Preiser) and that complete Schone Müllerin praised in
Song on Record.
What all four CDs add up to, whether in music 'classical' or 'popular', is a conspectus
of wonderful lyric tenor singing: of notes of unfailingly fine quality spun into
lines legato-sustained with aristocratic elegance, of words and phrases
fastidiously shaped and directed, and, beyond that, graced with a gentle poetry
that seems peculiarly Russian but that was jettisoned in later eras. In terms of
tone-colour and-character Vinogradov puts me often in mind of Cesare Valletti,
another lyric tenor of exceptional refinement, poetry and grace, and also
exceptionally wide range; but whereas the Italian could on occasion produce
somewhat dry, edgy sounds at the top of his compass, the Guild discs amply
demonstrate that the Russian remained sweet and true in all registers. (The
nearest he comes to being taxed is in the horrid, vocally strenuous duet adapted
from Tchaikovsky's fantasy overture Romeo and Juliet, sung with his
sometime teacher, the fine Bolshoi soprano Valeria Barsova.)
For myself I find him more appealing, easier to love, than either of those much more famous
20th-century Russian tenor 'names' Kozlovsky and Lemenshev. Immediate points of
comparison arise in the sample of Lensky which opens Disc 1 - the Act 2 solo -
and which surely courts among the peak points of Onegin performance on record:
it is a reading of incomparable nobility and poetic atmosphere, of fine-drawn
tone expertly sustained. Another highlight immediately follows, the sparely
accompanied solo from Act I of Mussorgsky's Sorochintsï Fair (which
Stravinsky must have had prominently in mind while composing the opening bassoon
solo of The Rite of Spring); again, Georgi Vinogradov's delicacies of
colour and phrase-shaping take one's breath away. In the popular and traditional
repertory, in songs sad, nostalgic or high-spirited, an irresistible charm of
personality is here revealed, sufficient to make magic of trifles; the
Schumann-Schubert disc celebrates the power of his entirely unmannered command
of the medium - he possessed, among other virtues, compelling ability as a
story-teller - and in doing so mounts a strong argument for the now
unfashionable art of Lieder-in-translation. All four discs, indeed, underline
en passant the communicative benefits that accrue from singing in one's
native tongue.
Instead of running on in the same vein for paragraphs more, let me shower praise
on everyone concerned with so loving and skillful a presentation: notable care
has been taken over both transfers and documentation - and there is very little
duplication of what is on the Preiser disc. This Vinogradov collection is a
treasure trove.
Max Loppert
MusicWeb February 02, 2004
GUILD- THE RUSSIAN LEGACY SERIES
Georgi VINOGRADOV
(tenor) sings Arias, Duets and Songs
This set opens with a performance of Lensky’s aria from ‘Eugene Onegin’ which incarnates
the melancholy poet perfectly. Vinogradov’s honeyed voice is one of the most
beautiful tenor voices that I have come across. The singer uses his voice’s
rather melancholy cast to illuminate the character of Lensky. And he manages to
combine a wonderful sense of line with superb diction (in Russian), no mean
feat. The flexibility of his phrasing is notable as is the evenness of his voice
over the whole range. These superb characteristics carry over into all the other
tracks on these discs. In many ways, each track is a vocal revelation.
After hearing his voice, my response was to wonder why I had not heard more of
Vinogradov. Born in 1908 and living until 1980, you would expect that he would
crop up on the many operas recorded during the Soviet period, but he does not.
This 4 CD boxed set is a magisterial survey of his surviving recordings, but
there are only four arias from Russian opera. In fact, Vinogradov never seems to
have performed on stage and worked for Moscow Radio. Though he did perform a
number of operas for them, the bulk of his recording career seems to have been
involved with lighter items. Also, it is reported that shortly after the war
Vinogradov got into a drunken brawl with some Polish officials and profoundly
embarrassed the government so that he was effectively retired. Officially he
kept singing until 1963, but there is no record of his activities and official
records from the 1950s and 1960s virtually ignore him.
This collection endeavours to cover all aspects of Vinogradov’s art. Some of his
recordings have become exceedingly rare indeed, so we must be grateful to Guild
for issuing this comprehensive survey, especially as Richard Caniell has gone to
much trouble to ensure that all items are played at the correct speed, thus
correcting errors that were perpetrated in previous issues of some of the discs.
The first disc covers Russian opera and song, the second Italian and French
opera recorded in Russian, including the celebrated excerpts from Thomas’s
‘Mignon’. In fact, the entire set is recorded in Russian, something which is not
entirely clear from a summary reading of the notes. The second disc is completed
with a group of folk items. The third disc is lieder and the fourth Russian
romances.
On the first disc, the quality of Vinogradov’s performances in the opera arias makes
one long for more. Lensky’s aria is followed by a haunting performance of an
aria from Mussorgsky’s ‘Sorochinsky Fair’ and an aria from Anton Rubinstein’s
rarely heard ‘The Demon’. But the Russian songs are equally illuminating and
Vinogradov’s performances of them are shapely, subtle and supple. The disc
includes five items from Tchakovsky’s ‘Songs for Children’ which are not very
well known in the west. A real curiosity on this disc is Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and
Juliet duet, based on material from the Fantasy overture. This was left
incomplete at his death and completed by S.I. Taneiev. Vinogradov sings with
honeyed tones and fine ardour, but the soprano Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova does
get rather shrill. Vinogradov himself is not perfect and his passage-work can be
a little sketchy. On the second disc, though he acquits himself creditably in
the Rossini items, he does not seem quite at home in the repertoire. The
melancholy cast to his voice makes him seem more suitable as Romeo in the Gounod
excerpt and especially as Wilhelm in the substantial excerpts from ‘Mignon’.
Here Vinogradov sounds magical, but I am afraid that I ran up against a problem.
Whilst welcoming recordings and performances in the language of the relevant
listeners, I find that hearing Italian opera and German lieder performed in
Russian limits the performances’ attractiveness. This is a purely personal
matter, but one that potential buyers should bear in mind when considering this
set.
The folk items on the second disc include a number with the Red Army Chorus and Ensemble.
I was quite surprised by these items; for all their vigour and overt populism,
they prove surprisingly subtle. The third disc is devoted to a complete
performance of ‘Die Schöne Müllerin’. Recorded in 1954, it is one of the latest
items on the disc and shows Vinogradov still at the height of his powers,
bringing a good range of colour and subtlety to his performance, aided ably by
the accompaniment of Georgi B. Orentlikher. The final disc is entirely devoted
to what could be called lighter items. Throughout his career Vinogradov produced
recordings of Romances, generally with guitar accompaniments. These melancholy,
folk-like songs suit Vinogradov admirably and their haunting simplicity enables
him to make the most of the poetically musical Russian language. None of the
composers are well known, but artless simplicity of the songs combined with
Vinogradov’s technique mean that the songs stay in the memory.
Guild have gone to a great deal of trouble to assemble the items for these discs and to
ensure that the individual tracks are presented in the best way possible.
Unfortunately this level of care does not seem to have been lavished on the
notes. There are at least two places where the printed order of the tracks does
not correspond to what is played on the CD. And, though the set comes with a
fine set of notes, there are no words for any of the items. This is not
disastrous for the more common pieces, but it would have been extremely helpful
for some of the lesser known Russian items.
This boxed set will be of great interest to anyone seriously interested in Russian singing.
But the quality of the Russian items, particularly, make them essential
listening for anyone interested in opera or the voice. The limitations in
Vinogradov’s recorded legacy mean that not everyone will relish the entire
repertoire of these discs and I cannot help feeling that Guild should consider a
single disc to showpiece Vinogradov’s undeservedly neglected talents.
Robert Hugill
MusicWeb January 12, 2003
GUILD- THE RUSSIAN LEGACY SERIES
Georgi VINOGRADOV
(tenor) sings Arias, Duets and Songs
The name of Georgi Vinogradov (1908-1964) is not one that will ‘grab’ the passing
browser, or even the opera buff. Nonetheless, his recordings on 78s and LPs
command a hefty price in the market place and vocal cognoscenti eagerly seek
copies in good condition. But, is the scarcity of recorded material of this
singer, at least outside Russia, allied to his vocal qualities, enough to
justify a 4CD set? Certainly Richard Caniell, guiding light of Guild’s
‘Historical Series’ thinks so, and in the usual detailed booklet makes a
convincing argument, including an account of his own introduction to the
singer’s art.
Vinogradov’s singing is an art in the best sense. His voice is that of a very
light lyric tenor which might be better described as ‘tenore di grazia’, but
with a touch, a very slight touch, of metal softened with honey. Heft doesn’t
come into it, as the singer never sang on the operatic stage so his voice never
needed to fill a theatre. All his recordings derive from radio broadcasts often
with piano or guitar accompaniment. These recording conditions make it
impossible to make comments about the size of Vinogradov’s voice. The lighter
accompaniments do allow the singer to exhibit the full range of his soft singing
from a honeyed chest register, evenly through the passaggio into an ethereal
head tone. This is often supported, on the breath, by a thread of tone. These
qualities are heard throughout but particularly in the Russian songs on CD 4,
albeit that many are not particularly demanding or of great musical interest.
However, in the greater vocal and interpretive demands of Glinka and Tchaikovsky
on CD1 the listener can really begin to hear what the enthusiasts rave about. In
the poetic expressive imperatives of Die Schöne Müllerin, (CD 2.
trs. 4-23) the use of Russian inhibited my enjoyment of his interpretation,
although I was able to sense, through the quality of the vocal nuance and
variation of inflection and tone, something of what the singer was striving to
convey.
The extracts from ‘Mignon’ (CD 2. trs.5-11, recorded for a radio broadcast in 1947)
allow the best opportunity for analysis of the singer although his ‘Elle ne
croyant’ (tr.9) is in a different acoustic, a point explained by Caniell on p.32
of the booklet. In these extracts, even more than in the songs, I can hear why
enthusiasts breathe Vinogradov’s name alongside the likes of Schipa, Gigli,
Thill and the young Björling. Even in Russian Vinogradov is able to express the
sense of the aria and the character.
The sound on these discs is generally good. Whilst there are some admittedly
noisy surfaces particularly on some of the songs on CD 1 this limitation didn’t
inhibit my own voyage of discovery or enjoyment. It is that last word that it is
important to stress, for this singing is highly enjoyable. The voice has those
qualities exhibited by the greatest of singers: individuality and character. Has
it enough to hold the listener through 4 CDs? The buyer must decide. For me I
would have preferred a 2 CD introduction to the considerable vocal qualities of
a singer known to far too few people. However, given the modest cost, vocal
enthusiasts in particular will welcome the availability, for the first time on
CD, of so much of Vinogradov’s recorded legacy.
Robert J Farr
CLASSICS TODAY November 30, 2003
GEORGI VINOGRADOV
About Vinogradov's recorded performance of Lensky's aria, this set's annotator, Larry Friedman,
writes, "Has it ever been done more poetically, more stylishly and with such
beauty of tone? His voice arches and falls, sighs, murmurs and calls out,
bringing the young Lensky to life as no one else has." Well, our first instinct
is to presume we're dealing with a vaguely deranged fan. But in fact, he's
right: the voice we hear, from a 1945 recording (the 93 selections included in
this nearly five hours of music were recorded between 1938 and 1954), is
meltingly beautiful, naturally produced, plangent and plaintive without ever
being sloppy or maudlin or resorting to any non-musical means. The tenor gives
attention to the text as if he were living the thoughts for the first time, but
without any emphasis not suggested by the composer or the notes. Vinogradov
never sang opera on a stage; after World War II he took part in some radio
broadcasts. He had a penchant for Russian popular song, and there's plenty of
that here (certainly more than anyone needs), and indeed everything on these
four discs is sung in Russian, including Die schöne Müllerin.
In brief, Vinogradov is just gorgeous in the excerpts from Mignon--perhaps the most lyrical expressions
of this music ever recorded (it's almost a half-hour of highlights, with other
Russian singers); he has no trouble with Almaviva's coloratura in "Ecco ridente
in cielo" (although he certainly lacks joy); and in a duet from Gounod's Romeo
et Juliette (with a
forgettable Valeria Vladimirovna Barsova) he's ravishing.
The Die schöne Müllerin is weird, and it's not just the language--Vinogradov
seems thoroughly disconnected until about the fifth song. Rachmaninov's "The
night is sad" is touching and atmospheric, as are all of the
feel-bad-about-the-universe Russian art songs.
The voice seems to be solid up to a B-flat, which Vinogradov can deal with in mezza voce; in fact, he
almost never sings above mezzo-forte and you wonder if he can, without
stretching and straining. I think what we have here is a voice limited in range
and volume, but one that is so beautiful that every note, every intelligently
sculpted phrase, is worth hearing. I wish a single-CD set of his work were
available. This one is quite a commitment--and how many songs by Varlamov,
Sokolov, Shiryaiv (with guitar accompaniment), Dubuque, and others do you really
need? Even with the Red Army Chorus as a bonus. But indeed, Vinogradov is a
ravishing singer, and you should know his work.
|