Modest Petrowitsch Mussorgski

Songs and Dances of Death

Songs and Dances of Death (Pesni i plyaski smerti), composed in the mid-1870s, is widely considered the finest song cycle by Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881). The composer selected four poems penned by his distant cousin, Arseny Golenishchev-Kutuzov, each depicting death as a personified agent of relief from affliction. Mussorgsky passed away before completing a full orchestral version of the work.

This version, scored by Dmitri Shostakovich in 1962, was written for Russian soprano Galina Vishnevskaya, to whom he dedicated it. Reprint edition.

Movements: 1. Lullaby/Berceuse [Wiegenlied]; 2. Serenade [Wiegenlied/Ständchen]; 3. Trepak [Tanzlied]; 4. Field Marshal [Der feldherr/Feldherr tod]. Instrumentation: 2(2nd d.Picc).2.2(2nd d.BCl).2(2nd d.CBsn): 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(2): Hp: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set): Solo [Voice].