Recordings

Following the success of her debut album, 20th Century Russian Piano Sonatas in 2021, Anastasia Yasko continues her journey through the fascinating world of Russian piano sonatas of the twentieth century. For the second album, Anastasia has chosen three masterpieces of Russian piano literature that are less well-known but all the more impressive: Sergei Rachmaninoff’s first piano sonata, the second piano sonata by Dmitri Shostakovich and the third piano sonata by Dmitri Kabalevsky.

“Although the three piano sonatas I selected for this recording were all composed during the first half of the 20th century, each conveys a very different musical impression. Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich and Kabalevsky are three composers with their own personalities and distinctive compositional styles, and this diversity opens up three unique musical worlds. At the same time, the shared genre of the piano sonata provides us with an insight into the musical and cultural development of Russia and of the Soviet Union between 1908 and 1946. Dramaturgically, these works lead us through the uncertain and turbulent period between revolutions and the First World War, through the tragedy of the Second World War, and to a hopeful outlook on a 'bright future' in more peaceful times. For me, all three works are among the hidden treasures of the piano repertoire.”
Anastasia Yasko

For this recording, Russian pianist Anastasia Yasko has chosen four important works from different creative periods in Chopin’s life: Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise brillante op. 22; Polonaise-Fantaisie op. 61; Ballade No. 4 op. 52, and the Sonata in B minor op. 58. “…The music of Frédéric Chopin has always been very close to my heart. From the first years in music school and later at Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, I had a special relationship with Chopin’s music. In my opinion, Chopin was a very 'pianistic' composer. More than 200 of his roughly 230 surviving works were written exclusively for the piano. But it is more than the high proportion of piano works that made him a 'pianistic' composer. For Chopin, the piano represented an unmistakable, autonomous world of sound; he made no attempt to exceed the limits of the instrument or to use it to imitate other instruments. There is an almost immeasurable depth and a broad horizon in his music… You will find everything here that is cherished about the piano playing: a beautiful, vocal-like melody permeates every part of his frequently polyphonic textures; the delicate brilliance of his melodic passages; and his exquisite phrasing and pedaling. Although Chopin is often referred to as a 'poet of the piano', his music was usually not entiteled with programmatic associations, in contradiction of the romantic tradition of his time. His music speaks for itself and immerses the listener in a world of fantasy. Chopin composed in many different genres. As a musician, one could devote one’s entire life to mastering his most monumental and complex works as well as his highly intricate miniatures.”

Among the genres of piano music, the piano sonata is a particularly complex and exciting phenomenon with a rich history. In Russia, the piano sonata flourished at the turn of the 20th century. A number of piano sonatas by various composers from different eras have a permanent place in the repertoire. When we talk about piano sonatas by Russian composers, we usually refer to works from the first half of the 20th century by well-known and popular composers such as Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Prokofiev. However, the majority of piano sonatas written by Soviet composers after the Second World War are still languishing in obscurity, both in Russia as well as on the international concert scene.

On this recording, the Russian pianist Anastasia Yasko presents a selection of magnificent but little-known piano sonatas by Sergei Prokofiev, Georgy Sviridov, Samuil Feinberg, and Mieczysław Weinberg. By presenting both the various stylistic directions of New Music as well as the distinguishing features of the Russian musical tradition, the selection paints a diverse picture of the Soviet era. The idea for the project arose from Anastasia Yasko’s scientific research as a doctoral candidate at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg.