DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH

 

The Nose

 

Vladislav Sulimsky

Alexei Tanovitski

Tatiana Kravtsova

Andrei Popov

Sergei Semishkur

Gennady Bezzubenkov

Vadim Kravets

Sergei Skorokhodov

Yevgeny Strashko

Elena Vitman

Zhanna Dombrovskaya

 

Mariinsky Orchestra & Chorus / Valery Gergiev

 

Sung in Russian

 

Dmitri Shostakovich's satirical opera The Nose was premièred in 1930 and set in St Petersburg. Based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, its absurd plot revolves around the exploits of a pompous government official and his nose. After a visit to the barber, the nose absconds from the man's face and takes on a life of its own; the pretentious bureaucrat is reduced to desperation, frantically searching the city for his lost appendage.Although primarily a comic opera, The Nose touches on the struggle between the individual and society (here portrayed by a cast of over 80 characters), and its spiky score is a 1920's Modernist masterpiece from the prodigiously talented young composer.

 

Valery Gergiev became Music Director of the Mariinsky Theatre in 1988 and has since led an extraordinary renaissance at the theatre in the post-Communist era. He has overseen the development of the Mariinsky Concert Hall and is the driving force behind a new project to build a second theatre. He has also led the Mariinsky Orchestra, Opera and Ballet companies on numerous international tours. Since 2007 he has held the position of Principal Conductor with the London Symphony Orchestra.

 

Includes 104 page book

Notes in Russian (cyrillic), English, French, German

 

Mariinsky 2SACDs MAR0501