Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony Op. 73a & Op. 83a (Arr. by Rudolf Barshai) Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne & Joshua Weilerstein

• Dmitri Shostakovich (1906 - 1975): Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a:
• 1 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a: I. Allegretto "Blithe Ignorance of the Future Cataclysm" (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73) 07:45
• 2 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a: II. Moderato con moto "Rumblings of Unrest and Anticipation" (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73) 05:48
• 3 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a: III. Allegro non troppo "Forces of War Unleashed" (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73) 04:25
• 4 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a: IV. Adagio "In Memory of the Dead" (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73) 06:21
• 5 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a: V. Why? and for What?" (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 3 in F Major, Op. 73) 10:40
• Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a:
• 6 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a: I. Allegretto (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83) 04:24
• 7 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a: II. Andantino (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83) 07:28
• 8 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a: III. Allegretto (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83) 04:53
• 9 Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a: IV. Allegretto (Arr. of the String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83) 11:14
• Presentation of the Chamber Symphony:
• 10 Presentation of the Chamber Symphony in F Major, Op. 73a 04:49
• 11 Presentation of the Chamber Symphony in D Major, Op. 83a 04:47
• Total Runtime 01:12:34

Info for Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony Op. 73a & Op. 83a (Arr. by Rudolf Barshai)

Founded nearly eighty years ago, the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne enjoys an enviable reputation and has welcomed the greatest artists as its guests, from Clara Haskil and Alfred Cortot to Murray Perahia and Martha Argerich, from Paul Hindemith to Günter Wand. Despite its long history, the orchestra has had only six musical directors, including Armin Jordan from 1973 to 1985. The young American conductor Joshua Weilerstein succeeded Christian Zacharias in 2015. In addition to his conducting skills and his interest in rare repertory, he has also brought a love of musical outreach. His very popular podcast, ‘Sticky Notes’, discusses music in an accessible way. This recording is devoted to Shostakovich’s Chamber Symphonies opp.73a and 83a, which are Rudolf Barshai’s arrangements of the String Quartets nos. 3 and 4. Barshai, one of the leading violists of his time, was a friend of Shostakovich and their collaboration was long and intensive. The chamber orchestra arrangements of these famous quartets offer a completely different perspective on the original works and were praised by Shostakovich himself, who reportedly said of one of them that it ‘sounded better than the original’. As a complement to the two works, Joshua Weilerstein shares his interpretation in a bonus spoken word track.

Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne
Joshua Weilerstein, conductor

Joshua Weilerstein
is the Artistic Director of the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, where his contract has been extended through the 2020/21 season. Weilerstein enjoys a flourishing guest conducting career and has established a number of close relationships in both the U.S. and Europe, including the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Bergen Philharmonic, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Finnish Radio Symphony, New York Philharmonic, and the symphony orchestras of Baltimore, Detroit and Milwaukee, among others. Praised for “intense, eloquently moving and spectacularly knife-edge” performances, Weilerstein is highly sought after and respected for his enthusiasm and profound insight into composers spanning from Gesualdo to Rouse.

Highlights of Weilerstein’s 2020/21 season include a return to the London Philharmonic Orchestra in a live-streamed performance, three live-streamed programmes with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, his debut with the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne, and return engagements with NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover, Danish National Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Belgian National and Netherlands Philharmonic orchestras.

Over the past six seasons, the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne has thrived under Weilerstein’s leadership and cemented its reputation as one of Europe’s leading chamber orchestras. Weilerstein has greatly expanded the scope of the orchestra’s repertoire, and together they have released successful and critically acclaimed recordings, and toured throughout Europe, joined by soloists such as Juan Diego Florez, Lucas Debargue, and Albrecht Mayer.

Born into a musical family, Joshua Weilerstein’s formative experience with classical music was as a violinist on tour to Panama and Guatemala with the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of Boston, where the orchestra performed for thousands of young people who had never heard a live orchestra concert. This sparked a desire in Weilerstein to pursue a career in classical music. While pursuing his Master’s degree in violin and conducting at the New England Conservatory, Weilerstein won both the First Prize and the Audience Prize at the Malko Competition for Young Conductors in Copenhagen in 2009. He was subsequently appointed as Assistant Conductor of the New York Philharmonic, where he served from 2012-2015.

Weilerstein is deeply committed to programming both traditional and contemporary repertoire and endeavours to present music from under-represented composers at each concert. He hosts a wildly successful classical music podcast called “Sticky Notes” for music lovers and newcomers alike, which has been downloaded nearly a million times in 154 countries. An advocate for easy communication between the audience and the concert stage, Weilerstein encourages discussion about all aspects of classical music, programming, and the experience of concert-going.

Booklet for Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony Op. 73a & Op. 83a (Arr. by Rudolf Barshai)