Anton Rubinstein: Cello Concerto No 2 in D minor, Op. 96

Anton Rubinstein (1829-1894)

Cello Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 96

I. Allegro moderato
II. Andante 11:19
III. Allegro - Moderato - Allegro vivace 16:45

Werner Thomas, cello
Bamberger Symfoniker
Yuri Ahronovich, conductor

Anton Grigorevich Rubinstein (November 28, 1829 -- November 20, 1894) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who became a pivotal figure in Russian culture when he founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. He was the elder brother of Nikolai Rubinstein who founded the Moscow Conservatory.

As a pianist, Rubinstein ranks amongst the great 19th-century keyboard virtuosos. He became most famous for his series of historical recitals—seven enormous, consecutive concerts covering the history of piano music. Rubinstein played this series throughout Russia and Eastern Europe and in the United States when he toured there.

Although best remembered as a pianist and educator (most notably in the latter as the composition teacher of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky), Rubinstein was also a prolific composer throughout much of his life. He wrote 20 operas, the best known of which is The Demon. He also composed a large number of other works, including five piano concertos, two cello concertos, a violin concerto, six symphonies and a large number of solo piano works along with a substantial output of works for chamber ensemble. Rubinstein chose to write in an early-Romantic Germanic style and did not exploit the native characteristics of Russian music in his work until relatively late in his career, and in only a handful of compositions, including the 5th Symphony, 2nd Cello Concerto and Caprice Russe for piano and orchestra.

After Rubinstein's death, his works began to lose popularity, although his piano concerti remained in the repertoire in Europe until the First World War, and his principal works have retained a toehold in the Russian concert repertoire. Over recent years, his work has been performed a little more often both in Russia and abroad, and has often met with positive criticism. Amongst his better known works are the opera The Demon, his Piano Concerto No. 4, and his Symphony No. 2, known as The Ocean.