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- Lyadov, Anatoly
Duration: 4 minutes
Description: Anatoly Lyadov (1855–1914) composed BABA YAGA, Op. 56, in 1904, one of a series of short, vividly orchestrated tone poems inspired by Russian folklore. The work depicts the terrifying figure of Baba Yaga, the witch of Slavic legend who lives in a hut on chicken legs and flies through the forest in a mortar and pestle. Although Lyadov never produced a large-scale symphony or opera, works like BABA YAGA helped secure his reputation as a miniaturist of great imagination. Today, while it is not as frequently performed as Mussorgsky’s or Rimsky-Korsakov’s larger programmatic works, BABA YAGA remains an engaging example of late Russian Romantic orchestral writing and is appreciated for its brilliant evocation of one of folklore’s most enduringly sinister figures. Instrumentation: 2+Picc.2+EH.2+BCl.2+CBsn: 4.2.3.1: Timp.Perc(3): Str (9.8.7.6.5 in set). Reprint edition.