Aaron Copland; Samuel Barber - Concertos (Lev Markiz)

Information

Composer: Aaron Copland; Samuel Barber

• Copland - Clarinet Concerto in C Major
• Barber - Capricorn Concerto, Op. 21

Lev Mikhailov, clarinet

Albert Hofmann, flute / Anatoly Lyubimov, oboe / Anatoly Maximenko, trumpet

Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Lev Markiz

Date: 1974 / 2026

Label: Melodiya

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This recording highlights two seminal figures of the mid-twentieth-century American school of composition, Aaron Copland and Samuel Barber, who successfully established a distinct national musical identity alongside prevalent European influences. Copland’s 1948 Clarinet Concerto, written for Benny Goodman, expertly integrates folk motifs and classical jazz idioms within a continuous two-part structure linked by a virtuoso solo cadenza. Conversely, Barber’s 1944 Capricorn Concerto employs a concerto grosso instrumentation reminiscent of Bach’s Second Brandenburg Concerto, fusing neo-baroque structural counterpoint and neo-romantic expression with subtle jazz inflections. Together, these works showcase the rich rhythmic vitality, accessible language, and inventive instrumentation characteristic of modern American concert literature.

Lev Markiz (1930–2023) was an esteemed Soviet-Russian violinist and conductor who significantly shaped the international chamber music landscape. After training at the Gnessin State Academy of Music under Yuri Yankelevitch, Maria Yudina, and Kirill Kondrashin, Markiz performed with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra and subsequently led his own ensemble of elite Moscow soloists. Following his emigration to the Netherlands in 1981, he gained global acclaim, founding the Nieuw Sinfonietta Amsterdam and serving as artistic director until 1997. Renowned for collaborating with top-tier virtuosos and championing contemporary Russian premieres, Markiz leaves behind a legacy defined by masterly artistry and cross-cultural musical synthesis.

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