Anton Arensky - 24 Morceaux caractéristiques Op. 36 (audio + sheet music)

Little known today, Anton Arensky was one of the brightest stars of the late nineteenth century Russian music scene. Arensky was born in 1861 to a pair of devoted amateur musicians under whose guidance he began his training. After private studies (piano and composition) with Zikke in St. Petersburg, Arensky entered that city’s conservatory in 1879, taking lessons from Rimsky-Korsakov. He scored consistently high marks with conservatory faculty during his three years as a student, eventually graduating with a gold medal; upon the completion of his studies in 1882 Arensky became one of the youngest professors ever hired by the Moscow Conservatory. Arensky’s years at Moscow were fruitful; between 1882 and his resignation from the Conservatory’s faculty in 1895 he completed most of his larger works (including the early Piano Concerto of 1882 and both Symphonies: B minor 1883; A major 1889). In 1891 his first opera, Son na Volge (A Dream on the Volga) -- which he had worked on intermittently sin