The rarity here is the Moscow Cantata, completed in 1883 and premiered at the coronation of Czar Alexander III . The extremely short deadline required Tchaikovsky to interrupt work on his opera Mazeppa, which may explain why much of the music is more operatic than cantata-like. Mezzo Liubov Sokolova sings beautifully in her two numbers (the second of which bears thematic similarity to the Intermezzo from Tchaikovsky's Orchestral Suite No. 1), while baritone Alexey Markov provides solid, rich tone for his one solo. The choral writing is in the standard 19th-century Russian style. The composer's dramatic sense and melodic ingenuity make for an engaging 25 minutes.

Celebrating the Czar doesn't end with the cantata: the 1812 Overture and Marche Slave (both of which receive suitably dramatic renditions), the worthy but rarely heard Danish Festival Overture, and the brief, by-the-book Festival Coronation March all feature the Russian anthem "God Save the Tsar". The Mariinsky Orchestra catches the music's nationalistic spirit under Valery Gergiev's direction, but the shallow-sounding recording somewhat dims the fire (the chorus and orchestra portions bring to mind the old Melodiya days). You won't buy this for the 1812--there are many better-recorded renditions available--but the program's novelty will make this CD very attractive to Tchaikovsky collectors.

--Victor Carr Jr