"Tsar of Instruments" Chandos 10043
Glazunov: Prelude and Fugue in D major Op. 93
Gliere: Fugue on a  Russian Christmas Song
Glinka: Three Fugues
Grechaninov: Three Pieces
Rachmaninoff: Andante in F major
Glazunov: Prelude and Fugue in D minor
Taneyev: Choral Varie
Shostakovich: Credo and Cathedral Service from the Gadfly
Glazunov: Fantasy Op. 110

Summary from the busy non-executive: "Sturmohzny und dranginshky"  (For the
most part).

Russia isn't known for its organ literature, though there aren't many
great organs in the country to inspire.  Where did they all go?  Well.
In the early eighteenth century the Eastern Orthodox Church got bitten
by the iconoclast bug and proclamated a "ukase" instructing that musical
instruments were to be broken and burned-and this included church organs.
No more organs, nyet, nyet nyet.  So one by one these instruments of
supposed "mass" destruction were destroyed.   (Some organs survived in
civic centers and pre-revolutionary country homes).

In the early 1860's when formal music conservatories were established
in the country,  Anton Rubinstein and his brother Nikolai, being typically
annoying liberal academic types, said, "Look, if the Church is going to
deny the centrality and relevance of the organ in spiritual life, then
it's up to us to build replicas in our schools and show the children of
Russia how to use them."  The Church scoffed: "So you're going to show
young and impressionable students where the "swell" button is and then
expect them not to push it when no one is looking, or before they're
ready?"

For better or worse, from the late 1860's onward, instruction in organ
playing formed part of the musical curriculum in Russia.  "Tsar of
Instruments" brings together occasional-and sometimes quite memorable-works
by a few of Russia's more important composers.

The first piece on the program, Glazunov's "Prelude and Fugue in D," op.
93, sounded disappointingly cosmopolitan and anonymous to my ears for
an opener, given the dramatically "Russian" cover art of the recording.
It's grand and well-proportioned but more workman-like than inspired; I
didn't find the proceedings particularly memorable.

After the rather underwhelming Glazunov opener, Mother Russia comes into
view with Gliere's offering, "Fugue on a Russian Christmas Song". This
short but delightful gem is a fugal treatment of an extremely fetching
traditional melody. (Gliere is my hero of the day, BTW. I'm having a
great time listening to Telarc's recent recording of his 3rd Symphony.
Is the Faberman worth hunting down, being that it's on the "Uniform
Dontgotta" label?).

Glinka's "Three Fugues" is fine enough, showing the young composer's
command of the medium, but as with the Glazunov op. 93, I was left
unmoved.

I'm not sure what I think of Gretchaninov yet; I've listened to his
handsomely produced "Vespers" on Hyperion a couple of times but nothing
has stuck.  Chandos gives us a premier recording of his "Three Pieces."
Aside from the drone-like Bartokian-in-a-folksy-mood centerpiece, the
meditative outer mov'ts get dangerously close to sounding "churchlady-esque."
(It should be noted that Gretchaninov has written a huge amount of music
of which only a small portion has been recently recorded; maybe I've run
into the misses first.)

Rachmaninoff's "Andante" in F major is vintage.  Written upon the
death of Tchaikovsky and originally a harmonium part in the second Trio
elegiaque, it 's a slow, soulful, occasionally soaring chorale-a miniature
that reverberates in the memory way beyond it's 2'48" duration.

Now we get to the sturmohzny und dranginshky!  Glazunov's "Prelude and
Fugue in Dm," dedicated to Saint Saens, really impresses, and left rings
of dust on the floor in front of my subs.  After a noble choral, we're
treated to a highly angular hell-storming double fugue which leads
into a Maestoso coda featuring deliciously wicked and surprising chord
modulations-the kind of modulations with which Bruckner liked to lead
into his 1st mov't codas.  (Really enjoying Wand's final Bruckner 8th
with the Berlin Phil these days, BTW).  Mr. Iain Quinn really lets the
Winchester Cathedral Organ rip in this one.

Taneyev's "Choral Varie" is compelling in a variety of different ways.
His Chorale, two variations, and Fughetta are garbed in a variety of
orchestral colors that really show off the Winchester instrument.  After
the chorale which contains some delightful harmonic surprises here and
there, the two variations-a canon and a basso ostinato-are highly polished
but allow room for many poignant turns of phrase; something I missed in
Glinka's fugues.  The Fughetta cap is very satisfying.

With "Credo" and "Cathedral Service" from the film "The Gadfly," we get
Shostakovich doing Shostakovich on the organ.  It's funny how quickly
one can recognize a musical personality sometimes, regardless of the
instrument of ensemble.  The "Credo" begins as a heavy and gloomy affair:
variations above a plodding 10-note ground bass momentarily lit toward
the end by a lone sunbeam-quite dramatically I might add-before receding
back into the darkness.

The CD ends with another very inspired Glazunov piece, his "Fantasy" Op.
110.  While his "Prelude and Fugue" in D minor was a wicked romp, the
"Fantasy" is a sunny meditation capped grandly by a warm but sturdy coda.

If you're expecting organ music with a distinctly Russian flavor, you're
not going to get it here, for the most part, so don't let the cover art
get you too exited.  While Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, and Gliere provide
just enough local soul to outline the "fertile triangle," so to speak,
the majority of the dishes sound pretty cosmopolitan.  No one will be
notifying the waiter that there's a gadfly in the cabbage soup....

So: three works of sublimity, the Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, and the
Taneyev; two gargantuan crowd-pleasers, the Glazunov's; and one little
gem, the Gliere.  Six out of Ten worked for me, but of course, one's
mileage may vary.

John Smyth
Sacramento, CA