The Museum of Russian Art’s latest installment of its Music at the Museum series (September 22nd from 5:00-6:30 p.m.) features gypsy tunes and folk dances that form the basis of Russia’s rich musical heritage. Entitled “Dark Eyes,” Saturday’s vocal recital performed by baritone Philip Zawisza and pianist/series artistic director Denis Evstuhin showcases some of the most famous arias found in Russian operas.
Listed below are the numbers to be performed with the sources that inspired them:
Trepak from Modest Mussorgsky’s The Fair at Sorochyntsi—Ukrainian folk dance modified for piano by Sergei Rachmaninov from a Nikolai Gogol short story.
Songs and Dances of Death by Mussorgsky—song cycle based on Arseny Golenishchev-Kutuzov‘s poems.
Islamey, an oriental fantasy by Mily Balakirev—inspired by a dance tune played by a Circassian prince during the composer’s visit to the Caucasus.
Songs by Pyotr Tchaikovsky:
- No, only those who have longed, op. 6 No. 6 (Also translated as “None but the lonely heart”)—set to Lev Mei's poem "The Harpist's Song," a translation of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship.
- Serenade of Don Juan, op. 38 No. 1—based on a drama by poet Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy.
- Amid the din of the ball, op. 38 No. 3—from an untitled poem by Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy
- Onegin’s Aria from Eugene Onegin—based on a novel in verse by Alexander Pushkin
- Robert’s Aria from Iolanta—one act lyric opera based on the Danish play Kong Renés Datter (King René’s Daughter) by Henrik Hertz.
- Yeletsky’s Aria from Queen of Spades—based on a short story by Alexander Pushkin
Lullaby, op. 16 No. 1 by Pyotr Tchaikovsky—transcription by Sergei Rachmaninoff constitutes his last work.
Aleko’s aria from Aleko by Sergei Rachmaninoff—opera adapted from Pushkin’s poem “The Gypsies.”
Comments