The composer-pianist Igor Raykhelson was born in Leningrad in 1961, lived in New York for a while and is now based in Moscow. In his early days he studied both classical and jazz piano, influences which have combined to create a uniquely personal, Rachmaninov-plays-the-blues Neo-Romantic style. Not only is Raykhelson unafraid to write a good tune – it’s clear right away whose tune it is. In his chamber and instrumental works, the intimate, parlando manner that Raykhelson absorbed from jazz becomes particularly effective. This recording features some of the best-known Russian musicians of today, including the world-famous Borodin Quartet, the cellist Alexander Kniazev and pianist Konstantin Lifschitz.

Ekaterina Astashova, born in 1980, studied at the Gnessin State Musical College and the Moscow Conservatoire. Her interests range from Baroque to jazz. She is married to Igor Raykhelson and has premiered several of his works.

Alexander Kniazev, born in 1961 in Moscow, is an organist as well as a cellist; his enormous repertoire includes a huge number of cello works and many more for organ.

Konstantin Lifschitz, born in 1976 in Kharkov, is also increasingly active as a conductor. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in London.

The Borodin Quartet has been celebrated for its insight and authority in the chamber-music repertoire for more than seventy years. The connection of the Borodin Quartet with Shostakovich’s chamber music is intensely personal, since it was stimulated by a close relationship with the composer, who personally supervised its study of each of his quartets.