Cat. No. 9.70894 (UPC: 730099789417)
Ukrainian composer Galina Grigorjeva - a modernist who respects the past

Born in Crimea, Ukraine, Galina Grigorjeva (1962) is one of the most original composers on the contemporary soundscape, creating timeless, ethereal music whose roots lay deep within Slavonic and western sacred music traditions. Grigorjeva “orchestrates” her celestial polyphonies with remarkable skill and grace, creating soulful bridges that span the centuries of sacred chant. Gramophone magazine has described her as “the mistress of cadential suspense, a modernist who respects the past.”
Galina Grigorjeva studied at the Simferopol Music School and Odessa Conservatoire. Following graduation from the St. Petersburg Conservatoire she emigrated to Estonia where she studied with Lepo Sumera at the Estonian Academy of Music 1994–1998 and has remained in Estonia as a resident where she now works as a freelance composer.
Lament, for solo Tenor Recorder (2000), is a remarkable work, wonderfully engaging with a definite Slavic qual-ity evoking the sounds of the Ukrainian overtone flute, the kalyuka. Beginning with an octave and-a-half -cry of anguish, wisps of melody become increasingly passionate and frantic, with stuttered rhythms sounding like a terrifying vision of Messiaen’s “Abyss of the Birds” from the Quartet for the End of Time, before retreating in resignation and acceptance. The piece is a tour de force of virtuoso technique and an extraordinary addition to the modern recorder literature.
Originally commissioned by the International David Oistrakh Festival the piece was chosen to represent Estonian music at the International Rostrum of Composers in Paris in 2002.
The music of Galina Grigorjeva has been performed worldwide by ensembles and soloist including Hortus Musicus, Andres Mustonen, Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Paul Hillier, Kremerata Baltica, Gidon Kremer, Kroumata, Michala Petri and many others.

Recorded March 22th 2022 in Nørre Herlev Church, Denmark Producer, edit and mix: Mette Due Executive producer: Lars Hannibal Notes by Joshua Cheek
Cover photo from Nørre Herlev Church: Lars Hannibal
Artwork: CEZBP/OUR Recordings