^aQuan Yuan (violin), ^adDavid Witten (piano) with ^cdSue-Ellen Hershman-Tcherepnin (flute); ^cIan Greitzer (clarinet); ^cDonald Berman (piano)

Alexander Tcherepnin Arabesque Op.11/5 (1921)a; Violin Sonata in F major Op.14 (1921)b; Romance WoO7a (1922)a; Élégie Op.43 (1927)a
Ivan Tcherepnin Cadenzas in Transition (1963)c; Pensamiento (1996)d
Nikolai Tcherepnin Poème lyrique Op.9 (1900)a; Andante and Finale Op. posth (1943)a

Toccata Next TOCN0012 [63’40”]

Producers / Engineers ^abJoel Gordon, ^cFrank Cunningham, ^dMicha Schattner

Live performances on ^c9 February 1997, ^d3 January 2002, ^aApril 18/19, 2019, ^b27 July 2021

Reviewed by Richard Whitehouse

What’s the story?

Toccata Classics’s Next imprint continues its enterprising schedule with a release of chamber music by three generations of the Tcherepnin musical dynasty, thereby illustrating the stylistic differences between them while also a degree of continuity across almost a century of music.

What’s the music like?

Nikolai Tcherepnin (1872-1945) may best be remembered as teacher (not least of Prokofiev) and conductor (including the first season of Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes), but he left a sizable output across the broad range of genres. Cannily representative of either end of his creativity, Poème Lyrique exudes a demonstrably fin-de-siècle Romanticism in its emotional flights of fancy within an already heightened expressive context, while Andante and Finale finds the aging composer looking back with affection – just a little tinged with regret – to an era four decades passed. If the former piece admits of impressionist elements, the latter looks to the full-blooded manner of Russia’s ‘silver age’ in its bracing energy and ultimate extroversion.

Alexander Tcherepnin (1899-1977) left a representative body of chamber music, not least for violin and piano – the brief Romance evincing a wistful lyrism that becomes darker and more ambiguous in the Élégie, having found its more capricious outlet in the Arabesque (fifth in a set of five). Much the most substantial of these works, the Violin Sonata comes after the First Piano Concerto and before three sets of songs to Sergei Gorodetzky (as recorded on Toccata TOCC0537). Its three concise movements proceed from an Allegro moderato whose agitation is redolent of Prokofiev, via a Larghetto whose pensive initial bars for piano build to a climax of real eloquence, to a Vivace whose capering dialogue makes its way to an affirmative close.

Ivan Tcherepnin (1943-98) may have left a less tangible legacy than his predecessors, owing largely to his activities earlier being focussed on electronic and installation media. Not that the brief Pensamiento is other than alluring with its interplay between flute and piano, which are joined by clarinet for Cadenzas in Transition. Written while the composer was still in his teens, this ranges freely across textures and moods without ever arriving at a destination – a trajectory which is most likely embodied in its title. Certainly, the contributions of Sue-Ellen Hershman-Tcherepnin and Ian Greitzer, alongside that of Donald Berman, make the strongest case for a piece that is disconcertingly formless or teasingly improvisatory according to taste.

Does it all work?

Almost always. It has been said that the Tcherepnin’s tended to be reactive in their musical idioms instead of setting the pace for others, but that would be to overlook the distinctiveness of Alexander’s output in particular – a legacy such as deserves to reclaim at least some of the standing it enjoyed in the mid-20th century. Those of Nikolai and especially Ivan can only be reassessed when more of their larger pieces are available. Neither performances nor recording leave anything to be desired, as is equally true of David Witten’s comprehensive booklet notes.

Is it recommended?

Yes, and hopefully Toccata will be issuing more from this source. Nikolai’s later ballets and symphonic poems, or Ivan’s Grawemeyer Award-winning Double Concerto would be a good place to start – while not forgetting the latter’s sons, Stefan and Sergei, are also composers.

For further information on this release, and to purchase, visit the Toccata Classics website. Click on the names to read more about The Tcherepnin Society, and artists Quan Yuan, David Witten, Sue-Ellen Hershman-Tcherepnin, Ian Greitzer and Donald Berman

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