LINN RECORDS — 28 MAY 2021 | Physical & digital release — Charismatic pianist SIMON TRPČESKI performs Shostakovich’s Concertos with the outstanding Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava under CRISTIAN MĂCELARU.
— The Telegraph
In the second of his recordings for Linn, charismatic pianist Simon Trpčeski performs Shostakovich’s two Piano Concertos with the outstanding Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava under Orchestre National de France’s new Musical Director Cristian Măcelaru. Shostakovich’s impish First Piano Concerto exudes the carefree attitude and sassy swagger of the young composer, and proves a perfect match with Simon’s playful pianism and Andrei Kavalinsky’s thundering trumpet. Written as a birthday present (and what a present!) for the composer’s son Maxim, the Second Piano Concerto is an uncharacteristically light-hearted piece given the doom and gloom of the time. Simon’s fiendish virtuosity and musical intelligence revel in this energetic piano favourite. As a generous encore, Makedonissimo’s violinist Aleksandar Krapovski and cellist Alexander Somov join Simon for Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No. 2. A must have album!
Track listing
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)
Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor, Op. 35
ANDREI KAVALINSKI trumpet
1. Allegro moderato – 2. Lento – 3. Moderato – 4. Allegro con brio
Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, Op. 67
ALEKSANDAR KRAPOVSKI violin, ALEXANDER SOMOV cello
5. Andante – 6. Allegro non troppo – 7. Largo – 8. Allegretto
Piano Concerto No. 2 in F major, Op. 102
9. Allegro – 10. Andante – 11. Allegro
SIMON TRPČESKI piano
CRISTIAN MĂCELARU conductor
JANÁČEK PHILHARMONIC OSTRAVA
Visit Linn Records – Shostakovich: Piano Concertos & Piano Trio No. 2 ➭
About Simon Trpčeski
Born in Macedonia, Simon Trpčeski studied under Boris Romanov. He was a BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist and was honoured with the Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award in 2003.
Trpčeski performs with leading orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, WDR Sinfonieorchester, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Orchestre National de France, Oslo Philharmonic, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Russian National Orchestra, State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia, China Philharmonic
Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
He regularly gives solo recitals in London, New York, Paris, Munich, Amsterdam, Prague, São Paulo, Sydney, Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore and many other cities. Trpčeski is also a committed chamber musician and appears regularly with his duo partner Daniel Müller-Schott. He has recorded prolifically; his first recording (EMI, 2002) was named a Gramophone’s ‘Editor’s Choice’. His 2010 and 2011 albums of Rachmaninov’s complete concertos were awarded a Diapason d’or de l’année and a Gramophone’s ‘Editor’s Choice’ respectively. His recording of Prokofiev’s Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 3 received a Diapason d’or in September 2017. His recital album Tales from Russia was named ‘Instrumental Choice’ in January 2020 by BBC Music Magazine.
Trpčeski embarked on a new collaboration with Linn in 2020. His first album, MAKEDONISSIMO, is a folk based project devised with composer Pande Shahov, which celebrates the music and culture of his native Macedonia. It was awarded multiple accolades, such as Presto’s ‘Editor’s Choice’, five stars by BBC Music Magazine and Concerti’s ‘Album of the Week’.
With the special support of KulturOp (Macedonia’s cultural and arts organization), Trpčeski works regularly with young musicians in Macedonia to cultivate the country’s next generation of artists.
www.trpceski.com ➭
About Cristian Măcelaru
Chief Conductor of the WDR Sinfonieorchester, Cristian Măcelaru is one of the fast-rising conductors in classical music. In 2020 he took up the position of Music Director of the Orchestre National de France in Paris. Măcelaru is also Music Director and Conductor of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, the world’s leading festival dedicated to contemporary symphonic repertoire. In summer 2020, he commenced his first season as Inaugural Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra at Interlochen Center for the Arts. In January 2020, Măcelaru received his first Grammy Award for conducting Wynton Marsalis’ Violin Concerto with Nicola Benedetti and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Măcelaru has performed regularly with top American orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Cleveland Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra. He enjoys a close association with the Philadelphia Orchestra where he served three seasons as Conductor-in-Residence. In Europe, Măcelaru is in great demand as guest conductor with orchestras such as the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, Dresdner Philharmonie, Gewandhausorchester, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Rotterdams Philharmonisch Orkest, Hallé Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Danish National Symphony Orchestra.
Măcelaru was born in Timișoara, Romania, and comes from a musical family. As the youngest of ten children, he received violin lessons at an early age. His studies took him from Romania to the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan, University of Miami in Florida and Rice University in Houston, where he studied conducting under Larry Rachleff.
www.macelaru.com ➭
About Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava
The Janáček Philharmonic, based in Ostrava, is one of the leading symphonic orchestras from the Czech Republic. Maintaining long-established orchestral traditions, its distinctive bohemian sound and progressive repertoire it is held to the highest esteem by audiences and critics alike. Officially established in 1954, the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava soon developed into one of the rising Czech symphonic ensembles. Many world-renowned conductors and soloists have collaborated with the orchestra: Sir Charles Mackerras, Karel Ančerl, Mariss Jansons, Sviatoslav Richter and Rudolf Firkušný, to name but a few.
The Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava has toured Europe extensively, as well as China and South Korea. It has performed in the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Musikverein in Vienna, Philharmonie in Berlin and Gasteig in Munich, among others. Artists who have played with the orchestra include Lisa Batiashvili, Midori, Sergey Khachatryan, Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann, Patricia Petibon, Rolando Villazón, Piotr Beczała, Boris Giltburg, Lukáš Vondráček and Federico Colli.
The prominent Russian conductor Vassily Sinaisky is the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava. Petr Popelka is the Principal Guest Conductor. The orchestra has cooperated with conductors such as Michail Jurowski, Antoni Wit, Jakub Hrůša, Krzysztof Penderecki and Stanislav Kochanovsky.
www.jfo.cz ➭
About Andrei Kavalinski (trumpet)
Andrei Kavalinski is one of the most versatile trumpeters of his generation. A prizewinner at many international competitions, he has appeared as a soloist with major orchestras, including the Orchestre National de France, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Brussels Philharmonic.
Kavalinski has collaborated with renowned conductors such as Semyon Bychkov, Charles Dutoit, Daniele Gatti, Valery Gergiev, Bernard Haitink, Mariss Jansons, Neeme Järvi, Fabio Luisi, Sir Neville Marriner and Riccardo Muti. He has performed at major festivals, including Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Grachtenfestival Amsterdam, ECLAT Festival, Yeosu International Music Festival & Ensemble and Flanders Festival.
Kavalinski studied trumpet under Reinhold Friedrich and Edward Tarr at the Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe. Additionally, he studied in Kürten under Karlheinz Stockhausen. He is currently Premier Solo of the Orchestre National de France.
About Aleksandar Krapovski (violin)
Aleksandar Krapovski has collaborated with leading orchestras and conductors around the world. He is the first musician from Macedonia to play solo at the Weill Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, New York. Krapovski is a member of the Orquesta Sinfónica del Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona and a visiting Concertmaster of the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès, Real Filharmonía de Galicia, Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife and Oper Frankfurt.
Krapovski is a committed chamber musician; the project MAKEDONISSIMO with Simon Trpčeski celebrates the music and culture of Macedonia. He greatly enjoys sharing his musical experience, and has given masterclasses in Spain, Malta and Macedonia. Krapovski studied under Dora Ivanova at the State Academy in Sofia, Bulgaria, and Mintcho Mintchev at the Folkwang Universität der Künste, Germany. He is prizewinner of several competitions, including Pancho Vladigerov International Competition in Bulgaria.
About Alexander Somov (cello)
Alexander Somov was born in Sofia. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London, where he became the first East-European winner of the Gold Medal, previously awarded to Jacqueline du Pré, William Primrose and Bryn Terfel. Somov has performed concerto repertoire with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg and Stadtkapelle Achern, among others. He has worked with conductors such as Thierry Fischer, Paul McCreesh, Sir James MacMillan, Lionel Bringuier, Emil Tabakov and Georgi Dimitrov.
Somov is a keen chamber mucisian. His partners include Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Thomas Zehetmair, Gérard Caussé and Tasmin Little. He currently holds the post of Violoncelle Super Solo of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg. He has been guest-principal cellist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra and Philharmonia Orchestra.
For further information, please contact:
Timothée van der Stegen: timothee@outhere-music.com
+ 44 (0) 7873 999 564