SMIRNOV Abel. to be or not to be.... FIRSOVA Piano Quartet No. 2, “Four Seasons.” Quartet for the Time of Grief • Rudersdal C Players • OUR 8.226932 (55:00)

I can think of a few husband-and-wife pairs of composers. Robert and Clara Schumann come to mind first, obviously, and then Bernard Rands and Augusta Read Thomas. I was not aware of Dmitri Smirnov (1948-2020) and Elena Firsova (b. 1950)...in fact, I am not sure that I knew Smirnov or his music at all before this release came my way. Born in the USSR, they were fellow students at the Moscow Conservatory, and Edison Denisov was their mentor. Both were denounced by Tikhon Khrennikov in 1979, an act that effectively silenced them in their homeland, although the rest of the world became more curious about who they were. They and their children finally moved to England in 1991. All of the works on this CD, titled Of Love and Loss, were composed during their years of self-imposed exile, the earliest being Smirnov's Abel (1991) and the most recent being Firsova's Quartet for the Time of Grief (2023). Firsova composed this last work in memory of her husband, who was a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Based on this small sample size, I think it would be hasty for me to comment that Smirnov and Firsova composed in a similar style, but it is safe to say that they are more alike than different, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The first composer who came to mind as I heard these works was Schnittke, although I think Schnittke embraced the avant-garde more tightly, and also had more stylistic arrows in his quiver. Although the music on this CD is earnest, and much of it earnest to the point of grimness, its earnestness is well-earned and not put-on. Given the title of Smirnov's two works, this is not a surprise. Abel was inspired by William Blake's tempera drawing The Body of Abel Found by Adam and Eve, located in the Tate Gallery. Smirnov assigns an instrument to each of the individuals: Abel (clarinet), Eve (violin), Adam (cello), and Cain, dead in his grave (piano). Smirnov's work is an unquiet meditation on the first murder, and its implications for the future of humankind. to be or not to be... (2018-19) is, of course, inspired by Hamlet and by the title character's monologue. Here, the viola “plays” the role of Hamlet, down to duplicating the rhythm of Shakespeare's text as it would be spoken by an actor. The other instruments are violin, cello, and piano. The work also includes allusions to Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time. Both of these works are unbothered by any music that is light and carefree, the melodic language is rock-like, and the harmonies often astringent. However, one senses the composer's integrity and his trueness to self, and while this music might not be immediately likeable, it definitely commands respect.
The four seasons in Firsova's Piano Quartet No. 2 (2019) are British. This quartet does not tender a strong recommendation for the British climate, and I do not mean that flippantly. The quartet starts with the pallor of winter, and the bird song in spring sounds more desperate than joyful. Summer is very much the shortest movement (no surprise!), and it contains the most restless music on this CD. Autumn ends the work despondently, with some consolation offered by the multi-colored leaves suggested by the music. As with Smirnov's work, this isn't music that most listeners will respond to immediately, but there's more than enough going on here to encourage repeated listening. The Quartet from 2023, as already mentioned, is Firsova's in memoriam for her husband. Scored for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano, here again there are parallels with Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, and also with to be or not to be.... It is in a single movement, just over ten minutes in length, and one might assign the music's shifting moods with the five stages of grief as identified by psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross.
Starting in 2019, the Rudersdal Chamber Players enjoyed a productive working relationship with both composers, and the ensemble continues to work with Firsova. The ensemble's violinist, Elisabeth Pryn, relates in the booklet how this relationship came to be, and expresses her appreciation for Smirnov's and Firsova's legacy. I do not expect to hear better performances to these four works, and this CD is treasurable for that reason, as well as for the quality of the music, and for what the music asks of us and the performers. Raymond Tuttle

5 stars: A composer couple who left their homeland so their music could blossom. The USSR's loss was our gain.