Tikhon Khrennikov

[alberto]

Today unsung, in the past not so (even in the West), T.K. appears to have been the politically more prominent of Soviet composers since 1948 and for decades (appointed personally by Stalin as Secretary of the Union of Soviet Composers).
Unlikely to be mentioned or remembered as a "symphatetic guy", he appears however a not ungifted composer.
At least in the Symphony n.1 op.4 (1935, T.K. aged 22) he is not negligible (the work was premiered in US by Stokowsky in 1936).I have a "Monitor" LP recording by Gauk. Svetlanov recorded all three symphonies (not heard by me).
The Violin Concerto op.14 is rather tuneful (I have a LP recording with Kogan, Leningrad Phil. and K.Sanderling- remote "Joker " label. Other exists (even by Vengerov and Repin when -I suppose- T.K. power had faltered).
More ordinary for me (but playful) "Three songs for violin and orch. op.26 (I have a CD "Audiophile Classics" by Igor Oistrakh, cond. A.Katz). I don't know other works (he -with a lot of political charges- reached op.42).
About performances:
Oddly enough (at least for the first one) the First Symphony has been performed in Torino three times (not by Soviet visiting orchestras, but by the Torino Radio Orchestra).
The first , an absolute oddity, in wartime 1941, conducted by Willy Ferrero (a former child prodigy and a great conductor, himself worthy a digression), who evidently chose himself the work (and succeeded in conducting it in wartime).
The second in 1960 was conducted by Kirill Kondrashin (then aged 46). Maybe it was a "duty" for the great conductor (certainly not an "apparatus" man).
The third was conducted in 1974 by the young Mariss Jansons (born 1943) on the occasion of a three concert "Festival of Russian and Soviet Union in the frame of cultural exchanges between Italy and Soviet Union".
On that occasion Yuri Temirkanov conducted a (rather fine) Sviridov cantata . The rest was Sciostakovich (living), Tchaicovskj and Prokofiev.
Has anyone some to say/comment about T.K.?   

[Alan Howe]

I have added alberto's post to the older thread on Khrennikov....