Content area
Full text
A Russian maestro once told Japanese violinist HIDEKO UDAGAWA that her grasp of that nation's composers indicated she had Russian blood coursing through her veins. Udagawa's latest CD, Aram Khachaturian: Sonata and Dances (Koch), is further evidence that this former child prodigy is tapped into Russia's collective soul. The stunning disc (with Russian pianist BORIS BEREZOVSKY) features seven world-premiere recordings. It commemorates the centennial year of Khachaturian (1903-1978), one of Russia's best-loved composers before he was denounced in 1948 by the Soviet regime-along with Shostakovich and Prokofiev-for writing elitist works.
The disc also enjoys a bond with filmmaker Peter Rosen's...