A Tribute to Rudolf Barshai - Box Set 20CDs

Label : ICA
Format : Flac (image + cue)
Cover : Yes

Russian-born Rudolf Barshai (1924-2010) was possibly the most famous viola player of all time. He performed as a soloist and in chamber groups with Shostakovich, Richter, Oistrakh and Rostropovich and later with Kogan and Gilels. He won numerous Soviet and international competitions.

He was the founding violist of the Borodin Quartet in 1945 and was a member until 1953.

In 1955, Barshai formed and led the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, a superb ensemble, which soon became internationally famous until he emigrated to the West in 1977. He was the artistic director of the Israel Chamber Orchestra from 1977 to 1981.

Barshai was music director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (1981-1982), principal guest conductor of Orchestre National de France (1985-86) and music director of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (1982-88).

In addition, Barshai achieved fame as a musical interpreter and arranger of Shostakovich's and Prokofiev's music as well as a pioneer of the composer Alexander Lokshin. He was particularly noted for his arrangement of Shostakovich's String Quartet No.8 for chamber orchestra and recorded a number of Shostakovich's works, including the world premiere recording of the composer's Fourteenth Symphony in 1969.

In 2000, Barshai produced a completion of Mahler's Tenth Symphony. Many of his recordings have earned critical acclaim and have won international awards in including the 1988 Gramophone Award, as well as awards for the complete Shostakovich Symphonies.

CD1 SCHUMANN · PROKOFIEV* · FORSYTH · CHOPIN* · GRIEG · RAVEL · DEBUSSY Viola Works *arr. Rudolf Barshai
CD2 J.S. BACH · HINDEMITH · HANDEL Works for viola and orchestra
CD3 BUNIN · KRYUKOV · KHANDOSHKIN Viola Sonatas & Concertos
CD4 BEETHOVEN String Trios 1 & 3
CD5 FAURÉ Piano Quartet No.1 op.15 · SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Quintet Op.57
CD6 SHOSTAKOVICH String Quartets 1, 3 & 4
CD7 BEETHOVEN String Quartet No.7 · TCHAIKOVSKY String Sextet Op.70 ‘Souvenir de Florence’
CD8 BOCCHERINI Symphony No.2 · VIVALDI Concertos RV 547 & 580 · The Four Seasons
CD9 ALBINONI · TARTINI · VIVALDI · J.S. BACH Works for strings and orchestra
CD10 J.S. BACH Concertos for violin and orchestra BWV 1041, 1042 & 1049 · MOZART Symphony No.40 K550
CD11 MOZART Divertimento No.1 K136 (K125a), Sinfonia concertante K364 · Rondo in C major K373, Symphony No.29 K201
CD12 MOZART Symphony No.10 K74, Violin Concerto No.5 K219 · Piano Concerto No.21 K467, Rondo in D major for piano and orchestra K382
CD13 HAYDN Symphonies 49 La passione & 104, Piano Concerto Hob.XVIII:11
CD14 SCHUBERT Symphony No.5 D485 · SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No.14 op.135
CD15 LOKSHIN Symphonies 4 & 5 · 3 Scenes from Faust
CD16 MARTINU · BARTÓK Divertimentos · STRAVINSKY Concerto grosso · Apollonmusagète
CD17 PURCELL Two Phantasies for string orchestra · BRITTEN Simple Symphony Op.4 · TIPPETT Concerto for double string orchestra, Ritual Dances from The Midsummer Marriage
CD18 MOZART Symphony No.35 K385· DVORˇÁK Symphony No.9 ‘From the New World’ · MAHLER Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen
CD19 MAHLER Symphony No.10
CD20 BORODIN · TCHAIKOVSKY · SHOSTAKOVICH Chamber Symphonies