Konstantin Scherbakov (piano)*
Russian Philharmonic Orchestra
Dmitry Yablonsky

A student of Rimsky-Korsakov and later a teacher of Rachmaninov, Scriabin and Glière, Anton Arensky was a precocious composer whose youthful Piano Concerto combines Lisztian dramatic bravura with Chopin’s virtuosic lyricism, the 5/4 metre of its final movement finding its way into Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony.

The Symphonic Scherzo is probably also an early work, while the Fantasia on Russian Folksongs (also called Ryabinin Fantasia) of 1899 and To the memory of Suvorov (Pamyati Surova) of 1900, which celebrated General Suvorov’s triumphs in the Russo-Turkish War, are works of Arensky’s maturity.

“Scherbakov, praised by Richter and recently hailed as a 'modern Rachmaninov', is now more attuned to Medtner's widely flunctuating idion, complementing his unquestioned virtuosity with inwardness and conviction… you will hear the sort of eloquence that warms the hearts of all true Russians.”
Gramophone