# Reinhold Glière, let's talk about him



## Tarneem (Jan 3, 2022)

when I think about Reinhold Glière, when I listen to his music, the word "elegant" is the first thing that comes to my mind. 


Yeah he didn't compose that much of catchy melodies, his music is ain't easy to sell. But still he deserves much more recognition. 

if you are not familiar with him, I highly recommend you to listen to his FABOLOUS harp concerto, his gigantic 3rd symphony and his magnificent French horn concerto.

if you are familiar with him, would you consider sharing your thought about him. what are your favorite pieces that were composed by him??


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Gliere "elegant"? I might use "bombastic" and "forceful". Refined to a degree. He will always remain one of those great "what ifs". What if the Soviets hadn't won the revolution and he was able to continue the way he wanted? He did a skillful job of navigating the dangerous political waters, rarely coming under fire. The quality of his music suffered, I think. The concertos for harp and soprano are pleasant enough. The symphonies are Russian to the core, but never rise to the level of memorability of Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Prokofieff or Shostakovich. His use of folk materials is third-rate compared to Khachaturian. I've quite a Gliere collection, but as much as I love Russian music, he's not one of my favorites.

However....

There's that third symphony, Ilya Murometz, that I've been a fan of and hardcore collector of for over 50 years. There's something about that work - bombast, vulgar, repetitive it is - that just speaks to me. I probably have 15 recordings of it (I don't think I've missed any) and will always be first in line to buy new ones, rare though they are. I really prefer the work uncut and played as written; no added percussion! I listen to Ilya probably once a month and it's my go-to music for a stormy summer night. Turn off the lights, put the headphones on, turn the volume up and wallow in all its schlockiness. Someday, I hope, the symphony will get the royal treatment: a great orchestra (Berlin, Philadelphia, Chicago level), a sympathetic and understanding conductor who will let all hell break loose, and all recorded in splendid Surround Sound on a Blu Ray disk. I've always hoped that Neeme Jarvi would record it, it would seem natural material for him, but it never happened. He did it with Philly, too. His son Paavo is too chaste and buttoned down to really let it fly.


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## Animal the Drummer (Nov 14, 2015)

There's a lovely little piano piece of his entitled "Le Soir" which I learned decades ago and still dust off from time to time.


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