Mieczyslaw Weinberg (1919-1996)
World
premiere recording: Gidon Kremer's ingenious transcription of the
Weinberg Preludes
The 24 Preludes for solo cello by Mieczysław Weinberg have a special
history. He composed them in the late 1960s for Mstislav
Rostropovich, who never played them. Their musical language is
aphoristic, often brutal, provocative, and marked by an inner
conflict
The preludes reveal many different and very strong gestures. Their
performance may have been problematic in Soviet times.
Gidon Kremer has adapted the Preludes for solo violin and this is
the world premiere recording of his adaptation. In his concerts he
often plays them to projections of images by the famous Lithuanian
photographer Antanas Sutkus.
Gidon Kremer's earlier approaches to the music of the long-critically
neglected genius composer Weinberg, in whom many from today's
perspective see a legitimate musical heir to Dmitri Shostakovich,
have been highly praised by music critics worldwide.
Kremer, with his very own tone, seems to be the ideal interpreter
for this exciting repertoire.