Polish nursery tunes remembered from the cradle and a ditty about a funicular ride up Mount Vesuvius provide two unlikely sources of inspiration for the Russian composer in his final years. Plus we hear Rachmaninov's interpretation of Rimsky-Korsakov's most famous work refracted through the lens of the so-called 'reproducing piano', designed to preserve performances by the greats at the dawn of the recording age.

Neapolitan Song
Anthony Goldstone, piano
Caroline Clemmow, piano

Pan Voyevoda: Mazurka
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra
Bystrík Režucha, conductor

A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op 56 No 2
Natalia Gerassimova, soprano ,
Vladimir Skanavy, piano

Dubinushka, Op 62
USSR Radio Symphony Orchestra
Vladimir Fedoseyev, conductor

The Golden Cockerel: Suite
Russian National Orchestra
Mikhail Pletnev, conductor

Flight of the Bumble Bee
Sergei Rachmaninov, reproducing piano. Show less