tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post1067679575494552743..comments2024-02-26T13:12:10.143-05:00Comments on Lizok's Bookshelf: Demons, Anyone? Orlov’s Violist Named DanilovLisa C. Haydenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-57821354336365583552009-07-19T12:03:37.450-04:002009-07-19T12:03:37.450-04:00I also appreciate the musical recommendations, roo...I also appreciate the musical recommendations, rootlesscosmo. I enjoyed the Shostakovich viola sonata very, very much and will certainly look up the preludes and fugues. I've only recently begun to warm to Shostakovich so it's been very nice to hear your suggestions!Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-70421463978837412132009-07-19T11:14:32.329-04:002009-07-19T11:14:32.329-04:00I'm glad for the off-topic comments, because I...I'm glad for the off-topic comments, because I love Shostakovich and appreciate the recommendations.Languagehathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285708503881129380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-61655784710352937842009-07-17T10:16:12.138-04:002009-07-17T10:16:12.138-04:00I have that Creitz/Sarbu version and like it--the ...I have that Creitz/Sarbu version and like it--the violist with whom I played the piece recommended it.<br /><br />Further off-topic: if you get a chance, listen to the Shostakovich 24 Preludes & Fugues for piano, Op. 87. There are lots of recordings; I like Tatyana Nikolayeva's which sort of has the composer's official blessing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-12281986378805603422009-07-17T09:12:12.010-04:002009-07-17T09:12:12.010-04:00rootlesscosmo, I appreciate all your recommendatio...rootlesscosmo, I appreciate all your recommendations, thank you! As for the musicians performing the Shostakovich, here's a comment from the person who posted the clips: "James Creitz plays the viola and is accompanied by Mihail Sarbu on the piano." I liked their quick tempo, but this was also new music for me so I wasn't comparing tempi in my head.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-52894147664889786852009-07-17T01:00:41.486-04:002009-07-17T01:00:41.486-04:00Thanks for the links. I actually ordered the Bashm...Thanks for the links. I actually ordered the Bashmet disc of the Britten Double Concerto (not on Amazon US but available at Amazon UK and even cheaper at Crotchet.) Do you know who the performers are on that YouTube video? I liked them a lot--a very brisk tempo in the first movement, but I thought it worked. (Nobuko Imai takes almost 10 minutes, they took just over 8.)<br /><br />The Bartok Viola Concerto is also terrific. And the Brahms Sonatas, Kegelstatt Trio, Hindemith Sonatas--the repertoire isn't huge, but it sure has some good music in it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-10732621393417163242009-07-16T19:29:22.724-04:002009-07-16T19:29:22.724-04:00Thank you for mentioning the Shostakovich, rootles...Thank you for mentioning the Shostakovich, rootlesscosmo. I didn't mention any viola concerti or other pieces... nor did I mention <a href="http://www.yuribashmet.com/" rel="nofollow">Yury Bashmet</a>, a famous violist if ever there was one. <br /><br />Incidentally, if anyone's interested, the Shostakovich Viola Sonata is available on YouTube, beginning with <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwKI2fVJ4rc&feature=related" rel="nofollow">Moderato</a>. I definitely agree that it's stark and neither playful nor cheery, but I've (just now!) been finding it nice to listen to.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-16466163955816213752009-07-16T17:57:14.015-04:002009-07-16T17:57:14.015-04:00I haven't read the novel but I think many USSR...I haven't read the novel but I think many USSR readers in the 80's would have thought of Shostakovich's Viola Sonata Op. 147, his last work (completed in the hospital) and by general consensus a very stark piece. He insisted this wasn't true but I've heard several versions and played it (the piano part) and it certainly isn't anybody's idea of playful or cheery.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-65743647545379540062009-07-14T10:49:49.012-04:002009-07-14T10:49:49.012-04:00Alex, it's funny that you say you're burnt...Alex, it's funny that you say you're burnt out on demons: <i>Danilov</i> inspired me to move Sologub's <i>Мелкий бес</i> up on my reading list for a completely different take on demons. I loved it (in translation) many years back and am looking forward to reading it in Russian this time. <br /><br />Language Hat, I had a funny feeling you'd read <i>Danilov</i>. I asked two Russian friends about <i>Danilov</i> this weekend: one said almost exactly what you wrote; the other loved it, in large part because of the Moscow setting.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-19942599465487819302009-07-14T10:03:27.022-04:002009-07-14T10:03:27.022-04:00Not yet.
I've been meaning to read it for qui...Not yet. <br />I've been meaning to read it for quite some time, though. <br /><br />Currently a bit burnt out on demon stories after trying to get through <a href="http://magazines.russ.ru/authors/k/kim" rel="nofollow">Anatoliy Kim</a>'s obtuse mystical/philosophical novel "Онлирия" last week, so "Danilov" will have to wait a bit.Alex Zaitsevhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10967865590559149442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-40659944113789782922009-07-14T09:59:00.525-04:002009-07-14T09:59:00.525-04:00I once dated a violist (who loved viola jokes) and...I once dated a violist (who loved viola jokes) and gave her a copy of this novel (in translation). She was polite about it but I don't think it was really her thing. I enjoyed it, but have to confess not much sticks in my memory after over a decade.Languagehathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285708503881129380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-84467296207804587782009-07-14T09:13:57.160-04:002009-07-14T09:13:57.160-04:00Thanks, Alex,
I always appreciate nitpicking... ...Thanks, Alex, <br /><br />I always appreciate nitpicking... and those can labels get tricky and surprisingly subjective! I'll amend the main part of my post.<br /><br /><i>The New York Times</i>, <i>Library Journal</i>, and <i>Publishers Weekly</i>, in their reviews of the English translation, called <i>Danilov</i> Orlov's first novel. Which makes me suspect that's how publicity materials and/or Orlov referred to it -- that would make sense (particularly in the '80s) if the previous full-length works are often considered young adult fiction. <br /><br />Have you read <i>Danilov</i>, Alex?<br /><br />L.Lisa C. Haydenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10139281544357167953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7932429135630556215.post-85801126302556065282009-07-14T07:28:46.391-04:002009-07-14T07:28:46.391-04:00Some nitpicking:
"Danilov" is actually O...Some nitpicking:<br />"Danilov" is actually Orlov's <i>fourth</i> novel, albeit arguably his first major work. His first three novels ("Соленый aрбуз", "После дождичка в четверг", "Происшествие в Никольском") are supposedly more conventional, categorized as "молодежная проза" or "бытовая драма". Never read them myself.Alex Zaitsevhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10967865590559149442noreply@blogger.com