Vyacheslav Artyomov is considered by many to be Russia’s greatest living composer. His music is deep, ultimately spiritual and brilliantly crafted, with influences from the Russian symphonic tradition colored by Mahler, Scriabin, Honegger and Messiaen to name a few – but melded into a unique voice. The Divine Art Artyomov Retrospective (which to date has received wonderful reviews internationally) is a mix of new recordings and former Melodiya releases. This is the tenth album, containing 2018 recordings of two majestic and brilliant works. The Symphony In Spe (In Hope) with concertante violin and cello broke new ground in Artyomov’s writing in its use of polydynamic, ever changing textures while retaining his deep spirituality. Latin Hymns presents four sacred texts in the most virtuosic writing for choir and soloist, not only prayers to the Virgin Mary but recreating her persona in music. The performance by Nadezhda Pavlova is simply stunning.