Ballettsuiten / Kinderalbum Anna Malikova

• Pjotr Iljitsch Tschaikowski (1840-1893): Konzertsuite aus dem Ballett "Dornröschen", op. 66 (arr. Mikhail Pletnev):
• 1 Prolog 07:01
• 2 Tanz der Pagen 02:01
• 3 Vision 01:24
• 4 Andante 05:04
• 5 Die Silberfee 01:08
• 6 Der gestiefelte Kater und das weiße Kätzchen 02:21
• 7 Gavotte 00:55
• 8 Der zwitschernde Kanarienvogel 00:33
• 9 Rotkäppchen und der Wolf 01:27
• 10 Adagio 04:34
• 11 Finale 03:44
• Kinderalbum, op. 39:
• 12 Morgengebet 01:20
• 13 Wintermorgen 00:51
• 14 Auf dem Steckenpferd 00:38
• 15 Mama 01:16
• 16 Marsch der Spielzeugsoldaten 01:00
• 17 Die kranke Puppe 00:00
• 18 Puppenbegräbnis 01:43
• 19 Walzer 01:12
• 20 Die neue Puppe 00:34
• 21 Mazurka 01:15
• 22 Russisches Lied 00:32
• 23 Ein Bauer spielt Harmonika 00:53
• 24 Kamarinskaja 00:36
• 25 Polka 00:46
• 26 Italienisches Lied 00:57
• 27 Altes französisches Lied 01:02
• 28 Deutsches Lied 00:55
• 29 Neapolitanisches Lied 01:11
• 30 Ammenmärchen 00:52
• 31 Die Waldhexe 00:41
• 32 Süße Träumerei 01:57
• 33 Lerchengesang 00:54
• 34 Der Leierkastenmann singt 00:58
• 35 In der Kirche 02:07
• Konzertsuite aus dem Ballett "Der Nussknacker", op. 71 (arr. Mikhail Pletnev):
• 36 Marsch 01:58
• 37 Tanz der Zuckerfee 02:01
• 38 Tarantella 01:22
• 39 Intermezzo 04:05
• 40 Trepak (Russischer Tanz) 01:21
• 41 Chinesischer Tanz 01:23
• 42 Andante maestoso 05:34
• Total Runtime 01:12:06

Info for Ballettsuiten / Kinderalbum

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s body of work contains a considerable number of piano pieces, but only a few of these are included in pianists’ regular repertoires. People are mostly only aware of the composer for his symphonies, instrumental concertos, operas and above all his ballets.

“Sleeping Beauty” and “The Nutcracker” are counted among his great classics. With enchanting melodies, drama, richness of colour, - music to pull your heart strings, his mastery of music is unsurpassed. Musical gems such as these have repeatedly inspired arrangements. Probably the best known piano arrangements are the Concert Suites by Mikhail Pletnev. This pianist, conductor and composer had a weakness for romantic and Russian music, and he contributed to the repertoire with his own piano arrangements and transcriptions.

Anna Malikova: “When I discovered these two concert suites by Mikhail Pletnev, I was hooked. Pletnev managed to create highly virtuoso, cultured and original versions of these two ballets. Both suites are marked by brilliance, virtuosity, and a great sense of the technical possibilities of the piano. And since these immortal classics of ballet are enchanting to children both young and old, it seemed the obvious choice to couple them with the rarely played 24 pieces from the ‘Album for Children’.”

Anna Malikova, who comes from Uzbekistan and studied at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, is an ideal exponent of Russian music of the 19th century. Through her exemplary technique, which even in the most complex of passages allows her playing to ripple like pearls, the Concert Suites take on the highest degree of brilliance and sincerity. Ms Malikova has found the natural flow of the music, and eschewing any extroverted display, treats us to both technical bravura and keen vitality with impressive elegance. This is her contribution to a symbiosis of Russian music.

Anna Malikova, piano

Anna Malikova
was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, where she received her first piano lessons from Tamara Popovich. She studied in Moscow with Lev Naumov at the Central Music School and at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory, where she graduated in 1991. Afterwards she held a teaching position at the Conservatory for several years. Her solo career began in the former Soviet Union, giving solo recitals in cities like Moscow, St Petersburg, Omsk, Baku, among others and also appearing as a soloist with orchestras including those of Ekaterinburg, Minsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan and Tashkent.

As a prizewinner of important international competitions in Oslo, Warsaw (Chopin Competition) and Sydney, Anna Malikova began to perform more and more in the West. She was invited to play with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Warsaw National Philharmonic, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and the Bavarian Radio Orchestra – among many others.

In 1993, Anna Malikova was awarded first prize at the ARD Competition in Munich - the only first prize for a pianist awarded over a twelve year period. This success established her in the international music scene. Today she gives solo recitals, performs chamber music and concertos all over Europe, South America, and the Middle and Far East. She is invited to sit on juries of international piano competitions including the Chopin Competitions in Moscow and Beijing, the Vianna da Motta in Lisbon, “Armenian Legacy” in Erevan and the Gyeongnam Competition in Korea.

In addition to her busy concert schedule, Anna Malikova continuously increases her output on record. To date she has recorded most of the important works of Chopin as well as works of Schubert, Liszt, Shostakovich, Prokofiev and Soler. She released an important new recording of the five piano concertos of Camille Saint-Saëns, accompanied by the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne under the baton of Thomas Sanderling. This production received an unusual amount international attention and has received the coveted Classical Internet Award in 2006, the culmination of countless international and enthusiastic reviews. In autumn 2010, a CD with piano works of Tchaikovsky was released. Projects in 2011 and beyond include appearances throughout Europe, Korea, Japan, China and South America. Anna Malikova is active as a recital and concerto soloist and sits on the jury of competitions such as the European Piano Competition in France, the Maria Canals Competition in Spain and the Chopin Youth Competition in Moscow.

Booklet for Ballettsuiten / Kinderalbum