Music Appreciation

《Chant du Ménestrel, Op.71》

Alexander Glazunov (1865-1936)

Performer:
大提琴:劉姝嫥、鋼琴:王文娟
Instrument:
Antonio Stradivari "Pawle",Vc (1730)
Click the title to play

Born in St. Petersburg, Glazunov studied under the great composer Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov (1844-1908) . From 1905-1928, he served as director of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. While Glazunov’s music shows clear links to the Russian nationalist composers, he was also influenced by Spanish and Hungarian folk music, and his early works also incorporate elements from Asian music. This piece, Chant du Ménestrel, starts with a recitative, which is then interleaved with a smooth-flowing, highly melodic tune, depicting both the romance and the hardship of a wandering minstrel’s life. Glazunov dedicated Chant du Ménestrel to the Polish cellist Aleksander Wierzbilowicz (1850–1911) , his friend and colleague at the St. Petersburg Conservatory.