Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; Benjamin Britten - Songs (Galina Vishnevskaya; Mstislav Rostropovich)

Information

Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; Benjamin Britten

1. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 1, Echo
2. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 2, My Heart, I Fancied It Was Over
3. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 3, Angel
4. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 4, The Nightingale and the Rose
5. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 5, Epigram
6. Britten - The Poet's Echo, Op. 76: No. 6, Lines Written During a Sleepless Night
7. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 6: No. 5, Why?
8. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 38: No. 3, Amid the Noise of the Ball
9. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 57: No. 2, On the Golden Cornfields
10. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 63: No. 6, Serenade. O Child! Beneath Your Window
11. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 73: No. 2, Night
12. Tchaikovsky - 6 Romances, Op. 28: No. 3, Why?

Galina Vishnevskaya, soprano

Mstislav Rostropovich, piano

Date: 1970 / 2025

Label: Decca

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Galina Vishnevskaya (1926–2012) was a celebrated Russian soprano renowned for her dramatic power and artistry. After debuting in operetta in 1944, she won a Bolshoi Theatre competition in 1952, becoming a leading soprano there. She gained international acclaim performing in major houses, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, and the Royal Opera House, with standout roles such as Aida, Tosca, and Tatyana. Composer Benjamin Britten wrote for her in War Requiem. Married to cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, she collaborated with him artistically and politically, later leaving the USSR in 1974. She founded an opera centre in Moscow, published memoirs, and left a rich recorded legacy.

Mstislav Rostropovich (1927–2007) was a Russian cellist, conductor, and pianist, hailed as one of the greatest musicians of the 20th century. Trained at the Moscow Conservatory, he became professor of cello there in 1956 and soon gained international fame, performing worldwide and collaborating with his wife, soprano Galina Vishnevskaya. Known for his expressive mastery, he inspired works by composers such as Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Britten, and Lutosławski. His support for dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn led to conflict with Soviet authorities; he and Vishnevskaya left the USSR in 1974 and lost citizenship until 1990. He later directed Washington’s National Symphony Orchestra and won numerous prestigious awards.

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