|
|
Alexander Borodin (1833 - 1887)
Overture "Prince Igor"
Several Russian composers of the 19th century started
in professions other than music : . Rimsky Korsakov started
as a naval officer, while Tchaikovsky began his career
as a lawyer. Only Borodin held a non-musical post for
all his career. He was an industrial chemist who thought
of his music very much as a hobby, and regarded the founding
of a School of Medicine for Women as his greatest achievement.
He is now, however, most remembered for his music, where
his greatest achievement is surely his opera Prince Igor,
even though he left it unfinished and in some confusion
at his death. Even the sequence of the acts was not entirely
clear. It was completed and brought to a performing version
by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov - the hand of Rimsky can
be detected in the famous Polovtsian Dances, while the
overture was rather more simply edited by Glazunov.
The sleepy calm of the opening is disturbed by fanfares,
leading to a bold Russian theme. A sinuous oriental sounding
clarinet tune is followed by a bold climax, and in turn
followed by a luminous horn solo. The remainder of the
overture, which is based on these fine melodies, does
not need further description; just enjoy Borodin at his
finest and most fluent. |
