COMPOSERS: Popov
LABELS: Olympia
WORKS: Symphony No. 1; Symphony No. 2
PERFORMER: Moscow State SO, USSR Radio & TV SO/Gennady Provatorov
CATALOGUE NO: OCD 576 DDD/AAD
Gavriil Popov (1904-72) is virtually unknown in the West. In Russia his modernist leanings brought him condemnation, but his wartime Second Symphony (1943) must have pleased Party officials. Much of it derives from the patriotic film She Defends the Motherland, and it does its optimising, Sovietising job with skill and taste. Yet the First (1928-34), a manic expressionistic phantasmagoria, outdoing even Shostakovich in subjectivity, is the masterpiece. These are committed performances with brilliant sound. George Hall
Popov
Gavriil Popov (1904-72) is virtually unknown in the West. In Russia his modernist leanings brought him condemnation, but his wartime Second Symphony (1943) must have pleased Party officials. Much of it derives from the patriotic film She Defends the Motherland, and it does its optimising, Sovietising job with skill and taste. Yet the First (1928-34), a manic expressionistic phantasmagoria, outdoing even Shostakovich in subjectivity, is the masterpiece. These are committed performances with brilliant sound. George Hall
Published: January 20, 2012 at 3:09 pm