PROGRAM
| Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840–1893) | Sred shumnogo bala (Amid the din of the ball), Op. 38, No. 3 Snova, kak prezhde, odin (Again, as before, I’m alone), Op. 73, No. 6 Net, tolko tot, kto znal (Only one who’s known longing), Op. 6, No. 6 Sleza drozhit (A tear trembles), Op. 6, No. 4 Humoresque, Op. 10, No. 2 Scherzo humoristique, Op. 19, No. 2 Blagoslovlyayu vas, lesa (I bless you, forests), Op. 47, No. 5 Ne sprashivai (Do not ask), Op. 57, No. 3 |
INTERMISSION
| Sergei RACHMANINOFF (1873–1943) | V molchani nochi tainoi (In the silence of the secret night), Op. 4, No. 3 Ne poi, krasavitsa, pri mne (Sing not to me, beautiful maiden) Op. 4, No. 4 Ditya! kak tsvetok, ty prekrasna (Child, thou art as beautiful as a flower), Op. 8, No. 2 Son (The Dream), Op. 8, No. 5 Vesenniye vody (Spring waters), Op. 14, No. 11 O, ne grusti (Oh, do not grieve), Op. 14, No. 8 Ya zhdu tebya (I’m waiting for you), Op. 14, No. 1 Prelude in G-sharp minor Op. 32, No. 12 Prelude in D flat, Op. 32, No. 13 Sumerki (Twilight), Op. 21, No. 3 Zdes khorosho (How fair this spot), Op. 21, No. 7 My otdokhnyom (We shall rest), Op. 26, No. 3 Dissonans (Dissonance), Op. 34, No. 13 |
TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS
TCHAIKOVSKY
| Sred shumnogo bala, Op. 38, No. 3 (1878)
[Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy] |
Amid the din of the ball |
| Sred shumnogo bala, sluchaino V trevoge mirskoi suety, Tebya ya uvidel, no taina Tvoi pokryvala cherty. Lish ochi pechalno glyadeli Mne stan tvoy ponravilsya tonkii V chasy odinokiye nochi, I grustno ya, grustno tak zasypayu, |
Amid the din of the ball, by chance in all of vain society’s alarms, I caught sight of you, but a mystery hid your features from me. Your eyes were gazing sadly I liked your slim figure At night in solitary hours, And, melancholy, I fall asleep |
| Snova, kak prezhde, odin, Op. 73, No. 6 (1893)
[Daniil Maksimovich Rathaus] |
Again, as before, I’m alone |
| Snova, kak prezhde, odin, Snova obyat ya toskoi. Smotritsya topol v okno, Ves ozaryonnyi lunoi. Smotritsya topol v okno, Vsyo, chto tvoritsya so mnoi, |
Again, as before, I’m alone, again I’m filled with longing. A poplar stands by the window, flooded with moonlight. A poplar stands by the window, I couldn’t begin to tell you |
| Net, tolko tot, kto znal, Op. 6, No. 6 (1869)
[Lev Aleksandrovich Mey, after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe] |
Only one who has known longing |
| Net, tolko tot, kto znal Svidanya zhazhdu, Poimyot, kak ya stradal I kak ya strazhdu. Glyazhu ya vdal… net sil, Akh, tolko tot, kto znal Vsya grud gorit… Kto znal |
No, only one who’s known longing to be together, can know what I’ve suffered and how I’m suffering. I gaze at the distance… faint, Ah, only one who has known My heart’s on fire… whoever’s known |
| Sleza drozhit, Op. 6, No. 4 (1869)
[Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy] |
A tear trembles |
| Sleza drozhit v tvoyom revnivom vzore— O, ne grusti, ty vsyo mne doroga! No ya lyubit mogu lish na prostore— Moyu lyubov, shirokuyu kak more, Vmestit ne mogut, net! vmestit ne mogut Zhizni berega. O, ne grusti, moi drug, zemnoye minet gore, |
A tear trembles in your jealous gaze— oh, don’t be sad, you’re dear to me as ever! But I can only love in boundless freedom— my love is wide as the sea, life’s shores cannot, no! Cannot contain it all. Oh, don’t be sad, my love, earthly grief will pass, |
| Blagoslovlyayu vas, lesa, Op. 47, No. 5 (1880)
[Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy] |
I bless you, forests |
| Blagoslovlyayu vas, lesa, Doliny, nivy, gory, vody, Blagoslovlyayu ya svobodu I golubye nebesa! I posokh moi blagoslovlyayu, I etu bednuyu sumu, I step ot krayu i do krayu, I solntsa svet, i nochi tmu, I odinokuyu tropinku, Po koyei, nishchii, ya idu, I v pole kazhduyu bylinku, I v nebe kazhduyu zvezdu! O, esli b mog vsyu zhizn smeshat ya, Vsyu dushu vmeste s vami slit, O, esli b mog v moi obyatya Ya vas, vragi, druzya i bratya, I vsyu prirodu, i vsyu prirodu V moi obyatya zaklyuchit! |
I bless you, forests, valleys, fields of grain, mountains, waters, I bless freedom and blue skies! And my pilgrim’s staff I bless, and this poor knapsack and the steppe from edge to edge the sun’s light, and night’s darkness, and the solitary path, along which I, a poor man, walk, and every blade of grass in the field, and every star in the sky! Oh, if only I could merge all of life, with my soul and all of you, oh, if I could gather in my embrace you, foes, friends, and brothers, and all of nature, and all of nature, and hold you all in my embrace! |
| Ne sprashivai, Op. 57, No. 3 (1884)
[Aleksandr Strugovshchikov, after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe] |
Do not ask |
| Ne sprashivai, ne vyzyvai priznanya! Molchanya lezhit na mne pechat; Vsyo vyskazat—odno moyo zhelanye, No vtaine ya obrechena stradat! Tam vechnyi lyod vershiny pokryvayet, I vsem, i vsem dano v chas skorbi uteshenye, |
Do not ask, nor bid me bare my soul! My vow of silence is unbreakable; my one desire is to tell everything, but my fate is to suffer in secret! Eternal ice covers the heights above, All, all are given comfort in the hour of painful grief, |
INTERMISSION
RACHMANINOFF
| V molchani nochi tainoi, Op. 4, No. 3 (1892?)
[Afanasy Afanasyevich Fet] |
In the silence of the secret night |
| O, dolga budu ya, v molchani nochi tainoi,
Kovarnyi lepet tvoi, ulybku, vzor, vzor sluchainyi, Sheptat i popravlyat bylye vyrazhenya O, dolgo budu ya, v molchani nochi tainoi, Zavetnym imenem budit nochnuyu tmu. |
O, long will I, in the silence of the secret night, your sly chatter, smile, glance, casual glance, hair pliant to my fingers, your thick shock of hair, and in rapture against all reason, |
| Ne poi, krasavitsa, pri mne Op. 4, No. 4 (1892–93?)
[Alexander Pushkin] |
Sing not to me, beautiful maiden |
| Ne poi, krasavitsa, pri mne Ty pesen Gruzii pechalnoi; Napominayut mne one Druguyu zhizn i bereg dalnoi. Uvy, napominayut mne Ya prizak milyi, rokovoi, Ne poi, krasavitsa, pri mne |
Sing not to me, beautiful maiden, your songs of sad Georgia; they remind me of another life and distant shore. Alas, they bring back memories, Seeing you, I forget Sing not to me, beautiful maiden, |
| Ditya! kak tsvetok, ty prekrasna, Op. 8, No. 2 (1893)
[Aleksey Pleshcheyev, after Heinrich Heine] |
Child, thou art as beautiful as a flower |
| Ditya! kak tsvetok, ty prekrasna, Svetla, i chista, i mila, Smotryu na tebya, i lyubuyus, I snova dusha ozhyla… Okhotno b tebe na golovku |
Child, thou art as beautiful as a flower, bright, and pure, and dear, I look at you and admire you, and again my soul is alive… Gladly would I lay |
| Son, Op. 8, No. 5 (1893)
[Aleksey Pleshcheyev, after Heinrich Heine] |
The dream |
| I u menya byl krai rodnoi; Prekrasen on! Tam yel kachalas nado mnoi… No to byl son! Semya druzei zhiva byla |
I, too, had a native land; so beautiful! A fir tree swayed above me there… but it was a dream! My family were living friends |
| Vesenniye vody, Op. 14, No. 11 (1896)
[Fyodor Tyutchev] |
Spring waters |
| Yeshchyo v polyakh beleyet sneg, A vody uzh vesnoi shumyat, Begut i budyat sonnyi breg, Begut, i bleshchut, i glasyat… Oni glasyat vo vse kontsy: “Vesna idyot! Vesna idyot!” |
The fields are still white with snow, but already the waters are proclaiming spring, running along and waking sleepy riverbanks, running and glittering and declaring. They declare in all directions: “Spring is coming! Spring is coming!” |
| O, ne grusti, Op. 14, No. 8 (1896)
[Aleksey Apukhtin] |
Oh, do not grieve |
| O, ne grusti po mne! Ya tam, gde net stradanya. Zabud bylykh skorbei muchitelnye sny… Pust budut obo mne tvoi vospominanya Svetlei, chem pervyi den vesny. O, ne toskui po mne! Mezh nami net razluki: Zhivi! ty dolzhen zhit. I yesli siloi chuda |
Oh, do not grieve for me! There is no suffering where I am. Forget the painful dreams of past sorrows. May all your memories of me be brighter than the first day of spring. Oh, do not pine for me! We are not separated from each other. I am as near to you in soul as in the past. As before, your anguish troubles me, and your longing brings me pain. Live! You must live! And if by some miracle |
| Ya zhdu tebya, Op. 14, No. 1 (1894)
[Mariya Davidova] |
I’m waiting for you |
| Ya zhdu tebya! Zakat ugas, I nochi tyomnye pokrovy Spustitsya na zemlyu gotovy I spryatat nas! Ya zhdu tebya! Dushistoi mgloi Ya zhdu! Terzayas i lyubya, |
I’m waiting for you! Dusk has fallen, and night’s dark veils are ready to descend to earth and make us hidden. I’m waiting for you! Night has suffused I’m waiting! In torment and in love, |
| Sumerki, Op. 21, No. 3 (1902)
[Ivan Ivanovich Tkhorzhevsky, after Jean-Marie Guyau] |
Twilight |
| Ona zadumalas. Odna, pered oknom,
Sklonyas, ona sidit, i v sumrake nochnom Mertsayet dolgii vzor; i v sineve bezbrezhnoi |
She’s lost in thought. Alone, before the window, she sits, her head inclined, and in the evening dusk a long gaze radiates from her eyes; and in the boundless blue of the darkening sky, sending down tender rays of light, little stars come out in a silent throng; and it seems some kind of bright swarm |
| Zdes khorosho, Op. 21, No. 7 (1902)
[Glafira Adol’fovna Galina] |
How fair this spot |
| Zdes khorosho… Vzglyani: vdali Ognyom gorit reka, Tsvetnym kovrom luga legli, Beleyut oblaka. Zdes net lyudei… Zdes tishina… |
How fair this spot… Look: in the distance the river glitters like fire, the meadows are a carpet of color, there are white clouds overhead. Here there are no people… it’s so quiet… |
| My otdokhnyom, Op. 26, No. 3 (1906)
[Anton Pavlovich Chekhov] |
We shall rest, Op. 26, No. 3 |
| My otdokhnyom! My uslyshim angelov, My uvidim vsyo nebo v almazakh, My uvidim, kak vsyo zlo zemnoye, |
We shall rest! We shall hear the angels, we shall see the heaven, all clad in diamonds, we shall see all earthly evil, all our sufferings drown in mercy, a mercy that will cover the whole earth, and our lives will become as peaceful, tender, and sweet as a caress. I believe… I believe…. We shall rest… we shall rest. |
| Dissonans, Op. 34, No. 13 (1912)
[Yakov Polonsky] |
Dissonance |
| Pust po vole sudeb ya rasstalas s toboi, Pust drugoi obladayet moyei krasotoi! Iz obyatii ego, iz nochnoi dukhoti, Unoshus ya dalyoko na krylyakh mechty. Vizhu snova nash staryi, zapushchyonnyi sad, Otrazhyonni v prude potukhayet zakat, Pakhnet lipovym tsvetom v prokhlade allei… Za prudom, gde-to v roshche, urchit solovei… Ya steklyanuyu dver otvorila, drozhu; Ya iz mraka v tainstvennyi sumrak glyazhu… Chu! tam khrustnula vetka, ne ty li shagnul? Vstrepenulasya ptichka, ne ty li spugnul? Ya prislushivayus, ya muchitelno zhdu, Ya na shelest shagov tvoikh tikho idu— Kholodit moi chleny to strast to ispug— Eto ty menya za ruku vzyal, milyi drug? Eto ty ostorozhno tak obnyal menya, Eto tvoi potselui—potselui bez ognya? S bolyu v trepetnom serdtse, s volnenyem v krovi, Ty ne smeyesh otdatsya bezumstvam lyubvi, I, vnimaya recham blagorodnym tvoim, Pust vladeyet on zhalkoi moyei krasotoi! V etot sad, v etu tem, vot na etu skamyu, Ya dushoyu slivayus s tvoyeyu dushoi, |
Never mind that fate has parted us, and another man possesses my beauty! From his embraces, in the stifling night, I am carried far away on wings of a dream. I see again our garden, old and overgrown, the setting sun reflected in the pond; the air smells of blossoms in the cool linden alleys… past the pond, in the grove, a nightingale is warbling… I open the glass door, trembling; in darkness I gaze into the mysterious shadows… Hark! a stick cracked, was that you taking a step? A bird flew up—was it you who startled it? I listen intently in an agony of expectation, I tiptoe toward the rustle of your footsteps, my limbs shiver with passion and fright— is it you taking my hand, my darling? Is this cautious embrace you, Is this kiss yours—a kiss without fire? With pain in your trembling heart, with excitement in your blood, you don’t dare to surrender to mad flights of love, and, listening to your noble words, I dare not give vent to my own feelings, and I tremble, and whisper to you: darling of mine! So what if he possesses my poor beauty! From his embraces, in the stifling night, I am carried away again on wings of a dream, to this garden, this darkness, this bench, where you first listened secretly to my soul… And again I merge my soul with yours— |