Leokadiya Kashperova was Igor Stravinsky’s piano teacher, having herself been a student of Anton Rubinstein. To this day, however, her compositions remain in the shadow of the male Russian masters, a fate shared by many other women of this era. Although her output is nowhere near as comprehensive as that of her contemporaries, what she did produce demonstrates incredible talent, mature skill and a deeply Romantic Russian idiom so typical of its time. The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra is conducted here by Ann Skryleva, an internationally acclaimed artist who has won awards for expanding the standard orchestral repertoire; and there could be no better soloist in Kashperova’s Piano Concerto than Oliver Triendl, a devoted champion of the works of neglected and rarely played composers, whose tireless commitment in this regard is reflected in his tally of some 150 recordings.

Pianist Fabio Banegas, protégé of Argentine composer José Antonio Bottiroli and now his greatest champion, compiled and catalogued Bottiroli’s complete works in 2011. This is the fourth and final volume in Banegas’ recordings of all Bottiroli’s compositions featuring the piano, encompassing works both with orchestra and with chamber ensemble, as well as works for solo piano and duet. This programme spotlights Bottiroli’s paraphrases of music by overlooked older composers, the creative refashioning and expansion of earlier works, and his use of Argentine folk dances. Short musical forms proved the ideal medium for his expression, which he infused with diverse moods, extreme subjectivism and intimacy. This album is certain to enjoy a repeat of the sentiment expressed following the release of Vol. 2: ‘There’s some lovely music here that other pianists should pay attention to.’ (American Record Guide)

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Dark Fall is an opera about love and longing in old age. The subject of the story is a married woman, Ellen, who is showing the first signs of Alzheimer's disease. Despite these symptoms, or perhaps because of them, she falls in love with Owen, an old friend who visits Ellen and her husband. Dark Fall questions ideas of love and partnership in old age: when are we too ill or too old to be allowed to fall in love again?; or to start a new life with a new partner and be able to leave someone else?; or too limited in our autonomy to freely decide our lives? Together with Dark Spring (UA Mannheim 2020) Dark Fall is conceived as the second part of a theatrical Diptych of Desire. The pieces can be performed either separately or together as a double feature.

Rodion Shchedrin, who died last year, was one of the leading figures of post-war Soviet music who floated freely across styles, combining influences and materials from multiple sources. From 1973 to 1990 he was president of the Composers’ Union of the Russian Federation, succeeding no less a figure than Shostakovich. He described himself as ‘post-avant-garde’ and unlike many modernists was unwilling to anchor himself to strictly defined stylistic parameters. This album by the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor Olli Mustonen brings together four of his works, including material from his ballet The Lady with the Lapdog, as well as his viola concerto titled Concerto dolce, performed by Lawrence Power, one of the great violists of our time. Rodion Shchedrin passed away while this album was in preparation, which is a monument to the unique friendship and artistic collaboration that Olli Mustonen and Rodion Shchedrin cultivated over the course of three decades.