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Fikret AMIROV (1922-1984)
Symphony “To the memory of Nizami” (1941) [21:42]
One Thousand and One Nights – Suite (1979) [35:38]
Kyiv Virtuosi Symphony Orchestra, Dmitri Yablonsky
rec. 2018/19, Large Concert Studio of Ukraine National Radio, Kyiv, Ukraine
NAXOS 8.573803 [57:22]

This is not the first appearance of Amirov’s music in the Naxos catalogue (review).

This CD begins with a four-movement symphony for strings composed in 1941. The composer designed it to illustrate the life of the celebrated 12^th-century Azerbaijani poet, Nizami Ganjavi. Naturally enough, given the demands that the Soviet musical authorities placed on their composers, the work is thoroughly tonal, using a melodic tag derived from Azerbaijani material. To my ears, this sounds somewhat neo-classical and academic in style. The booklet notes state that it is not impossible to detect the style of Rimsky-Korsakov in the first movement, also referencing Rheinhold Gliere. I cannot hear any such derivations. By far the most attractive movement is the third, an Andante, in which the rather busy style of the outer movements is jettisoned in favour of a pleasantly lyrical effusion; it slowly rises to a brief impassioned climax, then falls away before rising into the highest regions of the violins. The last movement begins in a scurrying manner, but soon becomes statelier, with a distinct oriental colouration. The faster manner soon returns, alternating as the movement proceeds.

The larger work is a suite, extracted in 2017 from the 1979 full-length ballet Arabian Nights, also known as One Thousand and One Nights. I find this to be a far more attractive listen than the symphony, but even here, comparisons with Rimsky are somewhat wide of the mark. More obvious is a kinship with the Armenian Aram Khachaturian, whose sinuous melodies those of Amirov rather resemble. It strikes me, though, that Amirov had not even half the melodic inspiration that Khachaturian displays in such scores as Spartacus, Gayaneh, Masquerade and the Violin Concerto. In particular, Khachaturian’s Sabre Dance has far more sheer verve and orchestral interest than Amirov manages in the many percussive interludes played here. He relies too much on repeated drum beats for my taste.
 
The booklet makes play regarding the two lyrical parts of the score, Sheherazade’s Love Theme and Sadness of Sheherazade, once again invoking Rimsky-Korsakov. Khachaturian would be a better comparison.

The recording is good, the playing fine and the booklet documentation decent.

Jim Westhead