Handel, Bottesini, Rossini: Duets with Double Bass


The Legendary Moscow Virtuosi: Duets with Double Bass

Melodiya reissues one of the last vinyl records of 1991. Now digitally remastered, it reveals the bright performing potential of the musicians who constituted the initial lineup of Vladimir Spivakov’s orchestra. The soloists of the Moscow Virtuosi – double bass players Grigory and Evgeny Kovalevsky, cellist Mikhail Milman, violinist Boris Garlitsky, and harpsichordist Sergei Bezrodny – recorded the concert duets with double bass by composers of the 18th and 19th centuries.

The recording of the album was initiated by an outstanding dynasty of double bass players, father and son Kovalevsky, who played in the Virtuosi from their first concerts. With the participation of like-minded musicians, Boris Garlitsky and Mikhail Milman, who were concertmasters for the Moscow Virtuosi, and pianist Sergei Bezrodny, who played the harpsichord part, they perform rare compositions for double bass – the Sonata for bass instruments by George Frideric Handel, the “bass” duet by Gioachino Rossini, and a large concert duet for violin and double bass with orchestra by Giovanni Bottesini (with the orchestra conducted by Amayak Durgaryan). The recording was made in 1990.


Track list

    • CD1
  • 1 Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393: I. Andante
    Grigory Kovalevsky, Evgeny Kovalevsky, Sergei Bezrodny (George Frideric Handel)
    05:04
  • 2 Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393: II. Allegro
    Grigory Kovalevsky, Evgeny Kovalevsky, Sergei Bezrodny (George Frideric Handel)
    02:29
  • 3 Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393: III. Largo
    Grigory Kovalevsky, Evgeny Kovalevsky, Sergei Bezrodny (George Frideric Handel)
    03:53
  • 4 Trio Sonata in G Minor, HWV 393: IV. Allegro
    Grigory Kovalevsky, Evgeny Kovalevsky, Sergei Bezrodny (George Frideric Handel)
    03:02
  • 5 Duet for Cello and Double Bass in D Major: I. Allegro
    Mikhail Milman, Grigory Kovalevsky (Gioachino Rossini)
    08:31
  • 6 Duet for Cello and Double Bass in D Major: II. Andante molto
    Mikhail Milman, Grigory Kovalevsky (Gioachino Rossini)
    03:41
  • 7 Duet for Cello and Double Bass in D Major: III. Allegro
    Mikhail Milman, Grigory Kovalevsky (Gioachino Rossini)
    03:52
  • 8 Gran Duo Concertante
    Moscow Virtuosi, Boris Garlitsky, Evgeny Kovalevsky, Amayak Durgaryan (Giovanni Bottesini)
    14:28
  • Total time: 45:00