RACHMANINOFF: ALEKO
Vassily Gerello, baritone Aleko
Olga Guryakova, soprano Zemfira
Vsevolod Grivnov, tenor The Young Gypsy
Mikhail Kit, bass The Old Gypsy
Constantine Orbelian, conductor
Moscow Chamber Orchestra
Yurlov Capella Stanislav Gusev, director
Opera may not have been of central importance to Sergei Rachmaninoff’s long and diverse creative life, but if one looks at the early years of his professional career a very different picture emerges. Aleko premiered at the Bolshoi on April 27, 1893, and began as a composition assignment. While at the Moscow Conservatory, the nineteen-year old Rachmaninoff composed and orchestrated the entire opera in a twenty-four hour firestorm of energy. The opera, based on Pushkin’s tale of love and murder, The Gypsies, received the grade of 5+ (A+) and also the Great Gold Medal. Delos’ complete recording of the opera features four star soloists, Constantine Orbelian and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra and a unique value-added spoken word companion disc with Michael York and Russian actor Vassily Lanovoy. A Virtual Reality (VR2) Recording 2-for-1 priced 2-cd set
DISC ONE
ALEKO Based on Pushkin’s “The Gypsies”
DISC TWO
THE GYPSIES Complete poem by Alexander Pushkin Read in English by Michael York Read in Russian by Vassily Lanovoy
