Tara Kamangar – East of Melancholy (2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/88,2 kHz | Time – 01:00:54 minutes | 920 MB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Delos
Russia’s centuries-old geographic proximity to Muslim regions – historically regarded as part of the “orient” – has resulted in considerable cultural and artistic cross-fertilization, particularly in the realm of music. Most Russian composers during (and since) the Romantic era have thus incorporated elements of what one could call “oriental exoticism” into their compositions. Captivating pianist Tara Kamangar – an American of Iranian descent – has made it her musical mission to explore such musical connections, specifically as they apply to the traditions of Iran and Russia. In this, Tara’s first album for Delos, we hear illustrative examples in works by Glinka, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich and Khachaturian.
But her emphasis here is on the music of two fascinating 20th-Century Iranian composers whose work remains virtually unknown in the West: Aminollah Hossein and Loris Tjeknavorian.
Tara’s virtuosity and flair for the musical traditions of her Iranian forbears combine to bring these works to thrilling and idiomatically true life.
Tracklist:
Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857) (arr. M. Balakirev)
1. A Farewell to St. Petersburg: No. 10. Zhavoronok (The Lark) 05:09
Aminollah Hossein (1905-1983)
2. Prelude No. 1 ‘Homage to Omar Khayyam’ 06:11
Aram Khachaturian (1903-1978) (arr. M. Cameron for piano)
3. Spartacus: Adagio 07:49
Aminollah Hossein (1905-1983) (arr. D. Hakimova for piano)
4. Caravan 02:27
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975): 24 Preludes, Op. 34
5. No. 10 in C-Sharp Minor 01:53
6. No. 12. in G-Sharp Minor 01:15
Aminollah Hossein (1905-1983): Persian Miniatures, Op. 25
7. No. 1. Solitude 03:46
8. No. 2. Call of the Desert 01:05
9. No. 3. Call of Remembrance 01:31
10. No. 4. Invitation to the Spell 02:11
Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
11. 13 Preludes, Op. 32: No. 12 in G-Sharp Minor: Allegro 02:38
Aminollah Hossein (1905-1983): Mosaics Suite, Op. 19
12. I. Scenes from Summer 04:41
13. II. Serenade Tartare 06:32
Tara Kamangar
14. Piano Etude, ‘East of Melancholy’ 02:37
Loris Tjeknavorian (1937-): Fantastic Dances, Op. 2
15. No. 1. Festive Dance 02:05
16. No. 2. Lyrical Dance 02:29
17. No. 3. Dance of Elegy 03:55
18. No. 4. Dance of Ecstasy 02:42
Personnel:
Tara Kamangar, piano
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