a startling emotional range in their interpretation… a radiant meditation, a revelation of the subtlety of Rachmaninov’s music.
– The Guardian
Rachmaninoff Vespers
The recording was made live at the North Wales International Music Festival in conjunction with Boosey & Hawkes, Music Publishers Ltd. The roots of the Russian Orthodox Church are traceable back into the Third Century A.D. Whilst Western forms of Christianity continued to evolve, the Orthodox tradition has been preserved largely intact since the 11th Century, despite persecution of the Church under an intolerant Communist regime in Russia.
The music of the Russian Orthodox Church features vocal chants, the oldest of which is known as znamenny (from the Slavonic znamia meaning “sign”). The melody of this chant is extremely simple, and whilst other composers added their characteristic harmonic effects, Rachmaninoff consciously preserved the modal purity of the original in his setting of the Vespers.
a startling emotional range in their interpretation… a radiant meditation, a revelation of the subtlety of Rachmaninov’s music.
– The Guardian
- Release Date: 01 January 2005
- Record Label: Signum Classics
- Catalogue Number: SIGCD054
- Location of Recording: St Asaph Cathedral, Wales
- Total Running Time: 01:00:18
- View/Download Liner Notes
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Individual Tracks
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| Buy | # | Title | Composer | Duration | Price | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Come, let us worship (Priidite, poklonimsya) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:13 | £ | Listen | |
| 2 | Bless the Lord, O my soul (Blagoslovi, dushe moya, Gospoda) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 04:46 | £ | Listen | |
| 3 | Blessed is the man (Blazhen muzh) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 05:15 | £ | Listen | |
| 4 | Gladsome light (Svete tikhyi) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:35 | £ | Listen | |
| 5 | Lord, now lettest thou (Nïne otpushchayeshi) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 03:11 | £ | Listen | |
| 6 | Rejoice, O Virgin (Bogoroditse Devo) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 03:05 | £ | Listen | |
| 7 | The six Psalms (Shestopsalmiye) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:28 | £ | Listen | |
| 8 | Praise the name of the Lord (Khavalite imya Gospodne) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:04 | £ | Listen | |
| 9 | Blessed art Thou, O Lord (Blagosloven esi, Gospodi) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 05:35 | £ | Listen | |
| 10 | Having beheld the resurrection of Christ (Voskresenie Khristovo videvshe) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:57 | £ | Listen | |
| 11 | My soul magnifies the Lord (Velichit dusha moya Gospoda) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 08:10 | £ | Listen | |
| 12 | The Great Doxology (Slavoslovie velikoe) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 07:06 | £ | Listen | |
| 13 | Today salvation has come (Dnes spaseniye) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 01:44 | £ | Listen | |
| 14 | Thou didst rise from the tomb (Voskres iz groba) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 03:17 | £ | Listen | |
| 15 | To Thee, the victorious Leader (Vzbrannoy voyevode) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 02:46 | £ | Listen | |
| 16 | We praise thee (Tebe poyem) | Sergei Rachmaninov | 03:02 | £ | Listen |
Nigel Short and Tenebrae have just the right balance of control and passion, reverence and exuberance that makes for such a superb performance.
– The Organ
The result is both intimate and powerfully atmospheric, shedding new and memorable light on what usually comes across as a massive choral spectacular.
– Classic FM Magazine