From "Classics Today," on the new Haenssler Classic - 93008 (CD), JEWISH
CHAMBER MUSIC, Works by Alexander Weprik, Alexander Krejn, Michail Gnesin,
Grigorij Gamburg, & Ernest Bloch; Tabea Zimmerman (viola); Jascha Nemtsov
(piano) -
The enduring legacy of anti-Semitism in Russia and the Soviet Union
is well documented. But perhaps some of the most eloquent evidence
of just how damaging that bigotry was to Russian life and culture--to
say nothing of the murders committed and individual lives ruined--comes
from the pens of a generation of Russian Jewish composers who suffered
the direct effects of this prejudice: Alexander Weprik, who was sent
to the Gulag in 1950; Grigorij Gamburg, who couldn't find outlets
for his compositions; Michail Gnesin, one of the founders of the
influential Society for Jewish Music in Moscow, who struggled in vain
to keep the organization alive in the late 1920s; and Alexander Krejn,
who found favor with Stalin only by disowning his heritage.
Their contributions to Moscow's rich musical life shouldn't be
underestimated: Bloch's lovely Suite for Viola and Piano is included
here because many of his works were premiered in Russia under the
auspices of the Society. If there is a common aesthetic to these
works, it is a shared love of melodically and harmonically complex
structures, influenced by both Jewish tradition and by the contemporary
evolution of tonality, as well as by a great affinity for the viola's
smoky warmth. The disc goes from strength to strength, but the three
works by Alexander Weprik are special joys for their sophistication
and wit. Tabea Zimmerman and Jascha Nemtsov are an extraordinary
duo, whose technical virtuosity is matched by the special regard that
they clearly have for this music. Putting together this program was
surely a labor of love. The sound is vibrant and full, and the piano
doesn't overwhelm the more muted tones of Zimmerman's viola.
--Anastasia Tsioulcas
Janos Gereben/SF, CA
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