Vassily Savenko / Michael Dussek

Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)

Benediction: I bless you forests Op 47/5 (Count Alexei Tolstoy)

Nikolai Rimsky- Korsakov ( 1844-1908 )

When the ripening cornfield gently sways Op. 40/1 (Lermontov)

The Messenger Op. 4/2 (Heine/Mikhailov)

Cesar Cui ( 1835- 1918 )

The Fountain Statue at the Tsarskoye Selo Op.57/17 (Pushkin)

Modest Mussorgsky ( 1839- 1881 )

The leaves rustled (1859) (Plescheyev)

Sergei Taneyev ( 1856- 1915 )

Winter Journey Op. 32/4

And the foes stood trembling Op. 26/8 (Heredia)

Anton Arensky ( 1861- 1906 )

Autumn Op. 27/2 (Fet)

Nikolai Medtner(1880-1951)

I have outlived my aspirations Op.3/2 (Pushkin)

The horse Op. 29/4 (Pushkin)

Sergei Rachmaninov ( 1873-1943 )

She is as fair as noon Op. 14/ 9 (Minsky)

I shall tell you nothing (Fet)

Georgy Sviridov ( 1915-1998 )

3 songs from the song cycle Robert Burns Song ( 1955 )

But Lately seen in gladsome green

Robin

Findlay

Dmitry Shostakovich ( 1906- 1975 )

Six Romances to Verses by W. Raleigh, R. Burns and W. Shakespeare, Op. 62 ( 1945 )

To my son

Oh wert thou in the cauld blast

Macpherson's farewell

Jenny

Sonnet LXVI

The King's campaign

Vassily Savenko was born near Odessa, Ukraine. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Alexei Bolshakov, and later with Mikhail Kiselev. He won both the Mussorgsky and Lysenko Competitions and has sung principal roles for major opera houses in his native Ukraine and in Russia, including the Bolshoi Opera, Moscow, and the Kirov Opera, St Petersburg, where he sang Iago (Otello) under Gergiev.

In the early 90's he moved to Britain where he has built up a considerable reputation as a recitalist appearing regularly at the Wigmore Hall and the South Bank as well as the Cheltenham and Three Choirs Festivals. He has received particular praise for his recitals of Russian Art Song. Special projects have included a series of song recitals celebrating the Bicentenary of Alexander Pushkin's birth, with the pianist Boris Berezovsky, and recitals of Russian settings of Robert Burns for festivals in Scotland. Burns to set the heather afire... an exhilarating experience was how one critic responded.

Recent and future operatic appearances include Baron Miserly Knight and Lanciotto Malatesta Francesca da Rimini in a Rachmaninov double-bill for Chelsea Opera; Tomsky/ Plutus Queen of Spades for Opera Ireland; Prince Zhemchuzhny Oprichnik for Teatro Lirico di Cagliary under Gennadi Rozhdestvensky; Foka The Enchantress with Kirov Opera for Teatro Nacional de Sao Carlos, Lisbon; Baldassare L'Arlesiana for Opera Holland Park; Ferrando Il Trovatore, Bonzo Madame Butterfly for WNO; Prince Nikita Kurlyatev The Enchantress for Grange Park Opera, and Il Commendatore Don Giovanni for Opera de Nantes.