Today, the second and final part of César Cui’s works.
César Antonovitsj Cui (1835-1918) was the lesser-known member of the famous ‘The Mighty Little Heap’, a group of Russian composers including Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, and Moessorgski.
Cui was born in Vilnius. He was the son of a French army officer from Napoleon’s army who, after returning from Moscow, stayed behind in Lithuania and married a Lithuanian woman. in 1851, Cui moved to St. Petersburg where he first studied engineering and then was accepted at the military academy. He became an expert in the science of fortifications. He tutored several members of the House of Romanov, including the later Czar Nicolaas II.
Besides his military activities, he was highly interested in music. Cui is mostly known for his instrumental miniatures and songs. However, he also wrote fifteen operas but those are rarely ever recorded or put on the repertoire anymore.
Playlist:
- César Cui: Prelude to Le Flibustier. Czech-Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Robert Stankovsky
- César Cui: three Scherzos for orchestra, Op. 82. Russian State Symphony Orchestra conducted by Valeri Polyansky
- César Cui: Bagatelle in B-flat major, Op. 22 No. 2 (‘Bagatelle Italienne’); Nocturne in F-sharp minor, Op. 22 No. 3; Quasi scherzo, Op. 22 No. 4. Gert Drost, piano
- César Cui: Miniatures, Op. 39. Maria Ivanova and Alexander Zagarinskiy, piano
- César Cui: Tarantella for orchestra, Op. 12. Czech-Slovak Radio Symphony orchestra conducted by Ondrej Lenárd
- Toegift – César Cui: Barcarolle, Op. 81. Leonid Gorokhov, cello; Colin Stone, piano
