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The Nutcracker and I, by Alexandra Dariescu
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Alexandra Dariescu

The Nutcracker and I, by Alexandra Dariescu

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Signum Classics
UPC: 0635212054222
Catnr: SIGCD 542
Release date: 04 May 2018
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€ 19.95
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Label
Signum Classics
UPC
0635212054222
Catalogue number
SIGCD 542
Release date
04 May 2018
Album
Artist(s)
Composer(s)
EN

About the album

Pianist Alexandra Dariescu presents a reimagining of the classic ballet tale of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, with Alex herself taking the role of Clara, now a little girl longing to fulfil her dream of becoming a pianist. Alexandra performs extracts from the ballet in transcriptions by luminaries including Mikhail Pletnev and Percy Grainger, interspersed with narration from TV presenter Lindsey Russell in a new version of the story by Jessica Duchen.

The lavish book-bound release includes illustrations by Adam Smith, adapted from Yeast Culture’s cutting-edge digital animation that accompanies the show’s live performances.

Artist(s)

Alexandra Dariescu (piano)

Alexandra Dariescu, the creator of 'The Nutcracker and I,' is a trailblazing pianist who demonstrates fearless curiosity and groundbreaking innovation. As part of her artistic journey, Dariescu has achieved gender equality in her concerto programming for three consecutive seasons, reviving and premiering important works by both male and female composers, championing inclusion and diversity.  In demand as a soloist worldwide, she has performed with eminent orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and BBC Philharmonic Orchestras, BBC NOW, all UK Royal Orchestras (RPO, RNS, RLPO, RSNO), the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, the Hallé, Manchester Camerata, Orchestre National de France and the Royal Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestras. Further afield, Dariescu has performed with the Detroit, Houston,...
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Alexandra Dariescu, the creator of "The Nutcracker and I," is a trailblazing pianist who demonstrates fearless curiosity and groundbreaking innovation. As part of her artistic journey, Dariescu has achieved gender equality in her concerto programming for three consecutive seasons, reviving and premiering important works by both male and female composers, championing inclusion and diversity.

In demand as a soloist worldwide, she has performed with eminent orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and BBC Philharmonic Orchestras, BBC NOW, all UK Royal Orchestras (RPO, RNS, RLPO, RSNO), the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, the Hallé, Manchester Camerata, Orchestre National de France and the Royal Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestras. Further afield, Dariescu has performed with the Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Vancouver, Sydney and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras, whilst the conductors she has worked with include Adam Fischer, Cristian Măcelaru, Alain Altinoglu, Fabien Gabel, Jun Märkl, Vasily Petrenko, Ryan Bancroft, James Gaffigan, Andrew Litton, Tianyi Lu and JoAnn Falletta.

Important recent milestones in Dariescu’s career include opening the 2023/24 season for the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Sakari Oramo at the Barbican Centre in the UK premiere of Dora Pejačević’s Phantasie Concertante and giving the world premiere of a new piano concerto written for her by James Lee III - ‘Shades of Unbroken Dreams’, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a Dream” speech with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

In 2022, Dariescu made the world premiere recording of a newly discovered piano concerto by Leokadiya Kashperova (1900) with the BBC Symphony Orchestra for BBC Radio 3’s acclaimed programme ‘Composer of the Week’. Further discoveries and important premieres of unjustly neglected concertos Dariescu has given include Nadia Boulanger’s Fantaisie Variée, the recently unearthed piano concerto by George Enescu, Concierto argentino by Alberto Ginastera, Dora Pejačević’s Phantasie Concertante and four piano concertos written for Dariescu: Emily Howard’s “Mesmerism”, Daniel Dhondy’s “In Touch”, Iris ter Shiphorst’s “Sometimes” and James Lee III’s “Shades of Unbroken Dreams”.

In 2017, Dariescu took the world by storm with her successful piano recital production “The Nutcracker and I”, an original groundbreaking multimedia performance for piano solo with live dance and digital animation. It has since enjoyed international acclaim every season, and has drawn thousands of young audiences into some of the most prestigious concert halls across Europe, Australia, China, the Emirates and the US, realising Dariescu’s vision of building bridges and making classical music more accessible to the wider public.

Alexandra Dariescu is the first ever female Romanian pianist to perform at the Royal Albert Hall and performed at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Musikverein, Staatsoper Vienna, Konzerthaus Vienna, BOZAR Brussels, Staatsoper Berlin, Hamburg Laeiszhalle, Sydney Opera House, Beijing National Centre for Performing Arts, Shanghai Grand Opera, Tokyo Musashino Hall, Dubai Opera, Wigmore, Royal Festival Hall, Cadogan Hall, Barbican amongst many others.

Dariescu has released eight albums to critical acclaim, the latest disc being her Decca recording with Angela Gheorghiu. The discography includes a Trilogy of Complete Preludes series consisting of Chopin, Dutilleux, Shostakovich, Szymanowski, Messiaen, Faure and Lili Boulanger as well as Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Darrell Ang (Signum Records), in addition to “The Nutcracker and I” audio book.

Mentored by Sir András Schiff and Dame Imogen Cooper, Dariescu studied at the Royal Northern College of Music with Nelson Goerner, Alexander Melnikov, Dina Parakhina, Mark Ray; at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Ronan O’Hora; and in her hometown Iasi with Mihaela Constantin and Cornelia Apostol. She was a Laureate of the Verbier Festival Academy, receiving the UK’s Women of the Future Award in the Arts and Culture category. Dariescu holds many special accolades including Cultural Ambassador of Romania, Officer of the Romanian Crown from the Royal Family and Young European Leader by Friends of Europe. In 2020, Dariescu received the Order 'Cultural Merit' in the rank of Knight from the Romanian President and became an Associated Member of the Royal Northern College of Music, where she also holds the distinguished position of Professor of Piano.


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Composer(s)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky is considered as one of the most talented Russian composers of the 19th century. Unlike many other Russian composers of his time, he studied at a conservatory and made the western music theory his own. So, he was not as distrustful of western music as the group of nationalistic composers surrounding Balakirev. Yet, Tchaikovsky sought to express the typical Russian mentality just as much and used many Russian folk songs in his music.  He had a good relationship with Balakirev, who helped him with constructive feedback on his first masterpiece, the overture of Romeo and Juliet. At times, Tchaikovsky was emotionally unstable, which has often been attributed to struggles with his homosexuality. His decision to marry proved to be disastrous...
more
Tchaikovsky is considered as one of the most talented Russian composers of the 19th century. Unlike many other Russian composers of his time, he studied at a conservatory and made the western music theory his own. So, he was not as distrustful of western music as the group of nationalistic composers surrounding Balakirev. Yet, Tchaikovsky sought to express the typical Russian mentality just as much and used many Russian folk songs in his music. He had a good relationship with Balakirev, who helped him with constructive feedback on his first masterpiece, the overture of Romeo and Juliet. At times, Tchaikovsky was emotionally unstable, which has often been attributed to struggles with his homosexuality. His decision to marry proved to be disastrous and plunged him into a deep crisis. Yet, the passionate letters of his fiance, even though they barely knew each other, did inspire him to compose his succesful opera Evgenij Onegin. Tchaikovsky had the wonderful gift of composing the most beautiful, lyric melodies. He had a feeling for creating a certain atmosphere in his music and mastered the art of orchestration. Moreover, he excelled in dance music, which made him the ideal composer for ballet. With his ballets The Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, and The Nutcracker he brought the genre to a higher level. During his life, he was already a celebrity. He often did tours to conduct his music and in the USA he was welcomed as a star. He died unexpectedly, nine days after the premiere of his incredibly gloomy Sixth Symphony, probably of cholera. Some other highlights of his body of works are his First Piano Concerto, his Violin Concerto and the Rococo-variations.
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Press

Play album Play album
01.
The Nutcracker and I: Scene
05:07
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
02.
The Nutcracker and I: Miniature Overture
03:04
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
03.
The Nutcracker and I: Opening Act One
03:14
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
04.
The Nutcracker and I: March
01:59
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
05.
The Nutcracker and I: The Battle / Pas de Deux in the Snow
08:02
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
06.
The Nutcracker and I: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fair
02:35
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
07.
The Nutcracker and I: Tarantella
01:35
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
08.
The Nutcracker and I: Arabian Dance
03:55
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
09.
The Nutcracker and I: Russian Dance (Trepak)
01:51
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
10.
The Nutcracker and I: Chinese Dance
01:30
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
11.
The Nutcracker and I: Dance of the Reed Flutes
02:28
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
12.
The Nutcracker and I: Pas de Deux
06:02
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
13.
The Nutcracker and I: Waltz of the Flowers
07:29
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
14.
The Nutcracker and I: Finale Act Two
03:58
(Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) Alexandra Dariescu, Lindsey Russell
show all tracks

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