Various - L'Histoire de la Romance Russe, Vol. 1

The Russian word romans ('romance') denotes an art song whose lyrics usually � but not always! � deal with the subject of Romantic love. A counterpart to the German Lied or French romance, the Russian romans embarked on its journey late in the 18th century. The album starts with a romans from the �reign of three Alexanders� � Alexander Aliabiev, Alexander Varlamov and Alexander Guriliov. All three were primarily song composers and were as immensely popular as the whole phenomenon of the romans. In �Maiden�s Sorrow� (Track 1) Alexander Guriliov captures the sadness of a maiden abandoned by the young man she loved. The lyrics by Alexei Koltsov (1809 1842) are an elegant imitation of folk poetry, and Guriliov�s music skillfully engages the same game. The Dashkova Ensemble is dedicated to the little-known early repertories of Russian music, from the 18th to the early 20th century. Its founding members are the German mezzo-soprano Anna Bineta Diouf, who loves the Russian language, and Oleg Timofeyev, who dedicated decades of his life to the revival of Russia�s forgotten treasure, the Russian seven-string guitar.