Listening to relentlessly derivative, unoriginal music such as this really enhances your appreciation for the great stuff. Still, there’s quite a bit here to enjoy. Sergey Lyapunov’s Violin Concerto, in one continuous movement–just like his two piano concertos, actually has more melodic appeal than either of those two works. It may be that as a pianist writing for the violin he was less concerned with filling the solo part with flashy figuration, and instead opted to emphasize his music’s natural lyricism. The result is lovely, despite a massive solo cadenza that goes on way too long, and it’s very beautifully played by Maxim Fedotov who captures the music’s tuneful freshness without ever letting it turn sticky.
Symphony No. 1, on the other hand, reveals the composer’s weaknesses in writing in large forms. The first movement especially seems to go on forever as Lyapunov dutifully works his way through the obligatory sonata form. Once that’s out of the way, matters improve, and there’s no questioning the confidence of Dmitry Yablonsky and his players in music that neither taxes them terribly nor challenges them (or us). It’s pretty and enjoyable in a generic, Russian fashion, and like the Violin Concerto, well recorded. For the latter work especially, this is worth considering.
