FULL THE KING OF JEWS (Glazunov) St.Petersburg 2019
Information on the Performance
- Work Title: The King of Jews or Царь Иудейский
- Composer: Glazunov Alexander
- Libretto: Konstantin Konstantinovich
- Venue & Opera Company: State Academic Chapel, St.Petersburg, Russia
- Recorded: April 30, 2019
- Type: Concert Live
- Singers: Nikolai Vapton
- Conductor: Alexander Chernushenko
- Orchestra: Symphony Orchestra of St.Petersburg Chapel
- Chorus: Chorus of St.Petersburg Chapel
- Stage Director:
- Costume Designer:
Information about the Recording
- Format: Streaming
- Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
- Subtitles: nosubs
- Video Recording from: YouTube FULL VIDEO
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE
Among the major theatrical works of Glazunov, the music for the spiritual drama of the Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich “The King of the Jews”, which was shown on the stage of the Hermitage Theater in 1913, and for Lermontov’s “Masquerade” staged by the Alexandrinsky Theater, carried out under the direction of V.E. Meyerhold at the beginning of 1917.
The play “King of the Jews” (Performed mainly by amateur officers from the so-called “Izmailovsky leisure”, only some of the main roles were invited by the artists of the Alexandrinsky Theater. The performance was attended by the Court Orchestra, headed by its permanent leader G. I. Varlikh, director staged by N. N. Arbatov.) is a dramatic adaptation of the gospel story about the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, the conspiracy against him, the trial, the crucifixion and the miraculous resurrection.
Glazunov’s music goes beyond purely applied purposes. Recalling this work, the composer said: “Between the conservatory classes, I began to think about the introduction to the drama and the characterization of Christ. Before starting to orchestrate, I wanted to see the Grand Duke, and the meeting took place soon at the Pavlovsk Palace. I played him my music on the piano, which he approved. Unfortunately, due to lack of time, I was not able to find out some details, mainly the connection of the recitation with the music, and I decided to orchestrate so that my music would be adapted to the concert performance, regardless of the stage, and because of this there were subsequently small clashes.”
The orchestral introduction to the play, intermissions and several instrumental and choral numbers accompanying individual moments of the stage action represent a complete symphonic narrative, which reflects the most important moments of the dramatic plot (the score of The King of the Jews, printed by M. P. Belyaev, is prefaced with a detailed program of each number). Beethoven’s “Egmont” and “Prince Kholmsky” by Glinka served as the closest models for the composer in this respect .