Shchedrin – The Enchanted Wanderer (2SACDs, Mariinsky)

Following works by Shostakovich and Tchaikovksy, the Mariinsky label turns to music by one of Russia’s greatest living composers for its fourth release. Shchedrin’s ‘concert opera’ The Enchanted Wanderer was premièred in New York in 2002 and did not receive its Russian premiere until 2007. However it has rapidly entered the Mariinsky Theatre’s repertory both in St Petersburg and on tour. Based on a story by the 19th-century Russian author Nikolai Leskov, the opera is steeped in Russian folklore and beliefs. The release also features four fragments from Shchedrin’s 1955 ballet score The Little Humpbacked Horse and his 1963 Concerto for Orchestra Naughty Limericks.