CD ECM Records Valentin Silvestrov: Metamusik / Postludium

2003

Alexei Lubimov - pian
Radio Symphonieorchester Wien, dirijor Dennis Russell Davies

Valentin Silvestrov:
- Metamusik - Symphony for piano and orchestra
- Postludium - Symphonic poem for piano and orchestra

After the Grammy-nominated chamber music album ‘leggiero, pesante’, a recording of major compositions for piano and orchestra by the man Alfred Schnittke and Arvo Pärt have both called “one of the greatest composers of our time.” He is certainly one of the most original: Valentin Silvestrov’s uniquely poetic and dreamlike music is played here with uncanny sensitivity and luminosity by Alexei Lubimov, with the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra under Dennis Russell Davies.

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Any attempt to describe the music of Valentin Silvestrov in a few words is doomed to fail, not least because of the incredible tonal and expressive variety that the 66-year-old Ukrainian composer brings to his work. This exquisitely performed and recorded disc offers two symphonic compositions in which solo piano stars. Metamusik, completed in 1992, ranges from overt Modernism to Jarrett-esque fantasy by way of Mahler, while the earlier Postludium contains a mind-blowing compression of ideas.
Andrew Stewart, Music Week

Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov’s music has been recorded by high-profile labels… With the best production values of all, ECM has launched into its own Silvestrov series, following up a fine chamber-music set from last year with this even better disc pairing two piano concertante works, “Metamusik” and “Postludium.” Shimmering like the heat haze off some celestial highway, these pieces bend in and out of aural focus, as edgy, forward-minded ideas mix with nostalgic touches of great beauty. One of Silvestrov’s prime champions, pianist Alexei Lubimov speaks his language fluently. Born in 1937, the composer fully deserves this latter-day renaissance, and ECM’s gorgeous presentation underlines its dedication to his cause.
Bradley Bambarger, Billboard Magazine

Whether or not you respond to Silvestrov, there is no doubting the qualities of imagination and the richness of invention that it possesses. … The scoring, particularly in the bass end of the spectrum, is wonderfully rich and the heavy, dark and oppressive textures are at times almost suffocating. The post-Scriabinesque moments are offset by the occasional dreamlike … hints of Mahlerian warmth. This is strong stuff, an undeniably powerful vision to which listeners will react strongly. As with any composer of vision, Silvestrov creates a world that is distinctively his own, whether or not you wish to enter and surrender to its magic… The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra under Dennis Russell Davies provides expert and authoritative playing and there is superb recorded sound. I do urge readers to investigate this.
Robert Layton, International Record Review