Airat Ichmouratov: Piano Concerto, Viola Concerto No. 1

The Volga-Tatar-born Canadian composer and conductor Airat Ichmouratov conducts the London Symphony Orchestra in this recording of two of his major works, in Chandos’ third album devoted to the works of this outstanding composer. Both concertos are recorded here by the soloists who premièred them. Ichmouratov conceived his First Viola Concerto in 2004, whilst he was a conducting student at the Université de Montréal. His fellow Ph.D. candidate the violist Elvira Misbakhova wanted something new for her doctoral performance, preferably a concerto that combined lyrical impulses and virtuoso challenges. The resulting work is a large-scale piece in three movements that exploits and celebrates the naturally sombre character of the instrument. The Piano Concerto was written in six months in 2012 – 13, then lingered in a drawer for almost a decade awaiting a soloist who could both do it justice and add finishing touches to the solo part. Jean-Philippe Sylvestre, a Montrealer with a fondness for the virtuoso tradition, was himself looking for a new concerto to champion. Ichmouratov gratefully acknowledges the contributions made to the solo part by Sylvestre, the Concerto’s dedicatee.

The recording was made at LSO St Luke’s, in London, in Surround Sound, and is available as a Hybrid SACD.