HATIKVA - FUKUSHIMA Symphony for Clarinet and Orchestra - Symphony for Violin and Orchestra

Giora Feidman, Clarinet - Elena Denisova, Violin - Franz Hummel, Piano

Moscow Symphony Orchestra - Alexei Kornienko, Conductor

Pic

Modern Classics

...one hears the audience humming a low sustained sound that accompanies Giora Feidman's clarinet at the beginning of "Hatikva"...
"Hatikva" means hope and is the title of the Israeli national anthem. The Israelis call it, self-ironically, the „Moldau“, because the first four bars are reminiscent of Smetana’s famous D minor theme.
I have melted down the substance of the anthem to form a melodic, hamonic concentrate that renders the atmosphere of the song in four bars and forms the passacaglia bass of the whole work. The solo clarinet is engrossed in its own excessive expression of joy and sorrow, outcry and tragedy while the yearning melodies of "Hatikva" are buried, time and again, beneath the orchestral sounds, recalling the great sufferings of the Israeli people.
Who could convey this subject with more authenticity than Giora Feidman, the genius of sensitivity, to whom I have dedicated this composition.
Towards the end of the piece, Giora and I improvise a cadenza for clarinet and piano.

I originally conceived my Violin Symphony "Fukushima" under the influence of the pictures of atomic destruction in the Japanese city Hiroshima.
The work was intended as an acoustic monument to the extermination of our world by a catastrophe caused by human hybris. The solo violin, that strays about desperately but with fearful hope in a ravaged orchestral landscape, represents the individual in the ruins of civilisation.
After the terrible moving images of the Fukushima drama have burned themselves into my mind, this castastophic symphony now seems like a dark premonition. It bears its title in memory of the Japanese victims, in the hope that their monstrous tragedy will cause mankind to rethink its handling of natural forces.
Franz Hummel



"[...] Feidman shapes and contours every note with so much emotive power, that the clarinet becomes an extension of the man. It stands out in bold relief against the rich dark colors of the orchestra. Hatikva - Symphony for Clarinet and Orchestra is a powerfully evocative new work that deserves steady presentation on the world's concert stages. Its ending may be soft and quiet, but it weighs heavily on the mind. This is a 'live' recording, with a very long stunned pause before the final applause. [...]
Violinist Elena Denisova holds her head well above the stormy waters, and delivers a riveting account of this quasi concerto [Fukushima - Violin Symphony]. Virtuosity and lyricism fused into one. The solo violin acts as both the lonely tortured soul witnessing destruction on a massive scale, and the accomplice playing its part within the orchestral fabric. A tough new challenge for musicians to surmount. Both these works are presented here in their world première recording. May there be more!"
Jean-Yves Duperron, Classical Music Sentinel (09/2012)

Review in the FAZ Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, July 14 2012, No. 162, S. Z5, "Schallplatten und Phono": Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung



CD programme:

HATIKVA - Symphony for Clarinet and Orchestra

FUKUSHIMA - Symphony for Violin and Orchestra


On this CD TYXart presents the work “HATIKVA” with the world-famous Klezmer clarinettist Giora Feidman, a unique release,
with this musician as brilliant soloist and improvisor in a contemporary composition.

The renowned Russian violinist Elena Denisova, known as
“La Piaf du violon”, interprets the solo part in the Memorial Symphony “FUKUSHIMA” for Violin and Orchestra with her characteristic sensational virtuosity.


World premiere release, first recording!
Live recording

» Detailed CD booklet includes further info (bios, photos, etc.)
» Total playing time: 54min 01sec | Booklet Text: DE, EN, FR, JP
» Format: 1 Audio-CD | Series "Modern Classics" | Release: 06/2012
» Order No.: TXA12002 | GTIN (EAN): 4250702800026
» CD available commercially or directly via TYXart

Further information:
www.elena-denisova.com
www.giorafeidman-online.com
www.alexei-kornienko.com

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