{"product_id":"rachmaninoff-dissonance","title":"Rachmaninoff: Dissonance","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShortlisted for the Gramophone Awards!\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eFollowing her triumphs on the stages of the Salzburg and Bayreuth festivals and at Covent Garden, Asmik Grigorian now belongs to the world’s vocal elite. She joins Alpha Classics for several projects and presents here her very first recital, devoted to one of her favorite composers, Sergei Rachmaninov. This album, titled \u003cem\u003eDissonance\u003c\/em\u003e, assembles vocal works carefully chosen by the soprano for the contrasts they generate when grouped together: ‘Most of Rachmaninov’s songs really call for operatic power. In fact, he wrote mini-operas lasting a few minutes.’ While this album is called \u003cem\u003eDissonance\u003c\/em\u003e, in reference to the ‘internal conflicts’ that punctuate these songs, the duo formed by the Lithuanian singer and her pianist compatriot Lukas Geniušas is one of total consonance!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"dcr-1obw15y\"\u003e[Grigorian's] powers of expression are as fierce in front of the microphone as they are on the stage...\u003c\/span\u003eHer tone at its fullest, all velvet-wrapped steel, gleams with enough edge to cut through anything a full-throttle Rachmaninov piano part can throw at it, and Geniušas does not give the impression of holding back[.] As a duet partner, he’s just soloistic enough, with an attentive ear for the detail of what Grigorian wants to achieve with the shape of a phrase.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"dcr-1obw15y\"\u003e\"The program, in a sequence chosen by the performers, ranges from some of the Op. 4 songs Rachmaninov wrote as a student to his Op. 34. Some last barely 90 seconds, but here they still seem like a scene rather than merely a song – a panoramic view, not a snapshot. Grigorian and Genušias will make you wonder why you don’t hear them more often.\" -The \u003cem\u003eGuardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"dcr-1obw15y\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"\u003c\/em\u003eThere’s a palpable energy between the [performers] on this recording. [Grigorian] unfurls her otherworldly quality—what Barrie Kosky once called 'Planet Grigorian'—like a banner; [\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eGeniušas]\u003c\/span\u003e provides the breeze to hold it aloft. By no means are the songs on \u003cem\u003eDissonance\u003c\/em\u003e calm or gentle, but Grigorian and Geniušas handle them lovingly.\" -\u003cem\u003eVan\u003c\/em\u003e Magazine\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alpha","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":49309984522520,"sku":"3760014197963","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0687\/4346\/3192\/files\/4063784-2807395.jpg?v=1777720086","url":"https:\/\/hbdirect.com\/products\/rachmaninoff-dissonance","provider":"HBDirect","version":"1.0","type":"link"}