Composer of the Week - Reinhold Gliere (1875-1956) - Episode 3

Donald Macleod is joined by Russian music expert Gerard McBurney to explore Gliere's life and work, from his beginnings in Kiev to his later prominent position in Moscow as both composer and teacher. They focus on Gliere's short-lived career as a conductor, studying in Berlin. From a recording made in 1949, we hear Gliere conducting part of his Second Symphony, which was hailed by critics as 'vivid and fresh' and a significant step forward in the composer's symphonic evolution. There are also two unusual works for wind: Song, Op 35 No 3 - for oboe and piano, and the Concerto for Horn and Orchestra inspired by Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto. Song (Pieces, Op 35 No 3) Ivan Paisov (oboe) Natalia Shcherbakova (piano) Naxos 8.570596, Tr 3 Symphony No 2 in C minor (Allegro giocoso) All-Union Radio Orchestra Reinhold Gliere (conductor) Consonance 81-3002, Tr 2 Stars in a spring night, Op 18 No 3 Elena Prokina (soprano) Semion Skigin (piano) Conifer 75605 513032, Tr 12 Phoenix; Allegro; Romance; Ensemble Dance; Red Ship (The Red Poppy, Act 2) Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra Yuri Fayer (conductor) Olympia OCD202, Trs 5-6 Concerto in B flat for horn and orchestra, Op 91 Hermann Baumann (horn) Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra Kurt Masur (conductor) Philips 416380-2, Trs 1-3.