DOCSLIB.ORG

Kovacic 1 Dustin Kovacic Shostakovich, Stalin, and Subversion

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Kovacic 1 Dustin Kovacic Shostakovich, Stalin, and Subversion Kovacic 1 Dustin Kovacic Shostakovich, Stalin, and Subversion: Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57 as a Stage for Irony and Sarcasm “You ask if I would have been different without ‘Party guidance’? Yes, almost certainly…I would have displayed more brilliance, used more sarcasm, I could have revealed my ideas openly instead of having to resort to camouflage.”1 - Dmitri Shostakovich Throughout history, oppressive political regimes were no strangers to dissident movements. Soviet Russia during the 20th Century saw many forms of subversion develop as a counter to the controlling nature of the regime. Defined as: The undermining or detachment of the loyalties of significant political and social groups within the victimized state, and their transference, under ideal conditions, to the symbols and institutions of the aggressor,2 subversion took many forms in the USSR. Subversion was prevalent in Russia throughout the 19th century, with groups such as the Decemberists and the Petrashevsky Circle that pushed a democratic agenda through underground political movements. When Joseph Stalin became the Premier of the Soviet Union in 1941, these underground subversive movements became incrementally more dangerous. With Stalin placing numerous dissidents in prison and labor camps, subversion became extremely risky and in many cases, life threatening. In the height of Soviet rule, a young composer by the name of Dmitri Shostakovich was 1 Elizabeth Wilson, Shostakovich: A Life Remembered (1994), 425-6. 2 Paul W. Blackstock, The Strategy of Subversion: Manipulating the Politics of Other Nations( Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 1964), 56. Kovacic 2 trying to gain a name and earn money for his family. Shostakovich was born in Saint Petersburg in 1906 and had spent most of his life trying to gain success through allegiance to the Communist Party. Throughout his compositional development, money remained a sort of “idée fixe” in Shostakovich’s thinking.3 Growing up hearing about his grandfather’s involvement in the Polish Uprising and firsthand experience in the Bolshevik Revolution, the young Shostakovich was in the midst of many subversive political movements. As his compositions began gaining notoriety, Shostakovich formed a connection with Soviet leaders, in particular, Joseph Stalin. While his first symphonies seemed to comply with Stalin’s strict restrictions on composition, Shostakovich did not always enjoy a positive relationship with the Communist leader and was denounced from the Party on different occasions. Nonetheless, Shostakovich’s growing relationship with the Communist Party led to his heightened visibility as a composer. At a time when he was in favor with the Party, Shostakovich wrote his second opera, Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, which suffered harsh criticisms as “muddle instead of music” in the Russian newspaper Pravda, leading many to suspect that Stalin himself wrote the article.4 The result was a major setback in Shostakovich’s success as a composer.5 To regain party favor, Shostakovich spent the next few years writing film music, and eventually composed his Symphony No. 5 – a markedly conservative work that became a Soviet anthem. Symphony No. 5 became one of Shostakovich’s most widely acclaimed works, due not only to its appeasing nature to the Communists and Stalin’s Russian ideals, but to its 3 Solomon Volkov, Shostakovich and Stalin: The Extraordinary Relationship Between the Great Composer and the Brutal Dictator (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004), 58. 4 “Muddle Instead of Music,” Pravda, January 28, 1936. 5 Brian Morton, Shostakovich: His Life and Music (London: Haus, 2006), 44. Kovacic 3 compositional mastery. Thematically based on a motive found in Mahler’s Fourth Symphony, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 avoided the eccentricities of his previous works, which were sometimes criticized for chaotic arrangements and melodic lines.6 As a result of the negative press he received in the Pravda, Shostakovich wrote an inscription to the symphony stating it was a “practical creative reply of a Soviet musician to just criticism.”7 In borrowing from Mahler, Shostakovich began a trend of employing quotations, which would extend to later works and become one of his signature compositional techniques. Continuous themes of Soviet allegiance found his Symphony No. 5, Shostakovich’s later symphonies address themes including war as well as principle Communist ideologies. Although initially these may appear to be written only to serve as a Soviet didactic of socialism, there appears to be meaning beyond such themes. In fact, later in his life, Shostakovich shared that “the majority of [these] symphonies are tombstones.”8 Throughout my research, I have found it challenging to distinguish whether Shostakovich meant this literally, as a commemoration of those who lost their lives in wars or purges, or as a representation of the death of freedom inherent in Soviet rule. Only at age fifty, after a lifetime of falling in and out of favor with the Communist Party, did Shostakovich finally join the Communist Party in 1960 after being offered a post as General Secretary of the Composers’ Union. While marking a significant turning point in Shostakovich’s life both financially and politically, this decision was one of the hardest he had ever made, as relayed by those closest to him. In many ways, this moment represented a period of “moral 6 “Muddle Instead of Music,” Pravda. 7 Dmitri Shostakovich, Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57, 8 Solomon Volkov, tr. Antonina W. Bouis, Testimony: The Memoirs of Dmitri Shostakovich (New York; Harper & Row, 1979), 156. Kovacic 4 death” in Shostakovich’s life,9 which stated by his friend Isaak Glikman, led to the contemplation of suicide.10 With such distressing thoughts swirling in his mind, Shostakovich was driven to compose his String Quartet No. 8 that same year. The work begins with a motive on D, E-flat, C, and B, which spells DSCH using German notation and represents the composer’s initials and is perhaps that best example of Shostakovich’s recurrent use of a musical signature. The motive takes shape throughout the movements in each instrument, indicative of Shostakovich’s passion for recurrent themes. Interpretations of the meaning of this work vary among scholars, with many believing the work represents an epitaph to the composer - a recognition that a part of him died when he was forced to join the Party. In a symposium in 1992, Shostakovich’s son, Maxim, highlighted the work’s personal nature, stating one can hear “the knocks on the door by the KGB.”11 A question that arises when studying the life and music of Dmitri Shostakovich is whether he, by tailoring his compositions to Stalin’s restrictions, was “the most loyal son of the Soviet regime” or a subtle subversive.12 Although much research has been presented to suggest that the former was not the case, many look to Shostakovich’s music for hints that would express the real intentions behind his compositions. Any blatant disregard for the Communist Party could have put Shostakovich in danger. As a result of Soviet censorship and secret police, there is 9 Wilson, Life Remembered, 162. 10 Isaak Glikman’s commentary to an exchange he had with Shostakovich in Story of A Friendship; The Letters of Dmitry Shostakovich to Isaak Glikman 1941-1975 (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2001), 92. 11 Harlow Robinson, “And Art Made Tongue-Tied By Authority: The Dialogue Between Shostakovich and Shakespeare” (paper presented at the Brown Symposium XVII, Southwestern University, February 23, 1995). 12 Richard Taruskin, “A Martyred Opera Reflects Its Abominable Time,” New York Times, November 6, 1994. Kovacic 5 limited evidence in his actions or conversations with confidants or journalists that would concretely answer the question of true loyalty. Whether or not Shostakovich was an “ardent patriot of his Motherland” remains a topic of high debate among scholars.13 One controversial book is Solomon Volkov’s Testimony: The Memoirs of Dmitri Shostakovich. The book is comprised of interviews that, according to the author, he had with the composer, in which Shostakovich shared his sincere feelings about colleagues, family, and life under Communist rule. The book’s controversy centers on the authenticity of the composer’s memoirs with regard to the interviews. Critics have concluded that Volkov added a copious amount of information to these interviews, which some question ever occurred at all.14 Discussion of the authenticity of Memoirs could be a research topic in itself, but credibility exists that may lead one to investigate Shostakovich’s allegiance to the Communist Party. Memoirs introduces themes within Shostakovich’s life and compositional style that reflect Russian cultural traditions. One tradition is found through the use of “vranyo,” (meaning “lies” or “fibs” in Russian) which experienced heightened use in the Soviet era. “Vranyo” often emerged as overstated sarcasm, almost to the extent of “ridiculousness,” and became “a favorite 13Veniamin Basner et al., “Pitiful Forgery. Concerning the So-called ‘Memoirs’ of D.D. Shostakovich,” Literaturnaya Gazeta, November 16, 1979, 8. (pg. 60 of Recon. ) 14In Taruskin’s response to Testimony, (“The Opera and the Dictator,” New Republic, 200/12, March 20, 1989, 34) he states that, “any proper scholar could plainly see, the book was a fraud. Yet even those who could did not want to see.” Kovacic 6 Russian rhetorical device.”15 Shostakovich manifested this sarcasm throughout his compositions, which I will address later in regard to the work I am performing tonight. “Vranyo,” also widespread in Soviet theatre and art, became a way for authors and composers to stay within the confines of Soviet censorship, while poking fun at the overstated happiness and uniformity of the regime. This idealist nature of the Communist Party began to manifest itself in art as Stalin pioneered the idea of a unified people, happy to work hard and not be burdened by the disparity of social classes.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Sofia Gubaidulina AUSSERDEM Prokofjew, Denissow, Kantscheli, Geringas, Chatschaturjan U.A
    AUSGABE 1. 2020 GEBURTS- UND GEDENKTAGE 90. GEBURTSTAG 2021 Sofia Gubaidulina AUSSERDEM Prokofjew, Denissow, Kantscheli, Geringas, Chatschaturjan u.a. INHALT / CONTENT Liebe Leserinnen, 03 / 22 liebe Leser, Sofia Gubaidulina 90. Geburtstag im Jahr 2021 die russische Komponistin Jelena Firssowa sagte ein- 06 / 24 mal über die von ihr bewunderte Sofia Gubaidulina, Georgische Musik sie sei eine „Schamanin in der Musik”, eine der tief- des 20. Jahrhunderts gründigsten und interessantesten Komponistinnen Kantscheli, Zinzadse, der Gegenwart. Im Jahr 2021 begeht Gubaidulina Nassidse ihren 90. Geburtstag. In diesem Magazin, das Kompo- nistenjubiläen der bervorstehenden Jahre 2021 und 08 / 26 2022 zum Inhalt hat, berichten wir von neuesten Sergej Prokofjew Werken Gubaidulinas und veröffentlichen zudem ein zum 130. Geburtstag dieser Komponistin gewidmetes Exklusiv-Interview 12 mit dem Dirigenten Kent Nagano. 100. Geburtstage von Francisco Tanzer & Stanisław Lem Ein weiteres Jubiläum steht uns mit Sergej Prokof- jews 130. Geburtstag im April 2021 bevor. Wir ver- 14 / 29 binden einen Rückblick auf die spektakuläre Neuin- 10. Todestag von szenierung von Prokofjews Oper „Die Verlobung im Karen Chatschaturjan Kloster” an der Staatsoper Berlin 2019 mit Kurzdar- stellungen ausgewählter Werke. 15 / 29 Edison Denissow Der 25. Todestag des Russen Edison Denissow, aus- 25. Todestag am 24. November 2021 gewählte Gedenktage von Komponisten aus Georgien 18 / 30 und zwei 100. Geburtstage von bedeutenden Text- Jubiläen litauischer dichtern wie Stanisław Lem und Francisco Tanzer Interpreten und Komponisten sind weitere Themen dieser Ausgabe. David Geringas & Bronius Kutavičius Wir wünschen Ihnen eine interessante Lektüre und viele Entdeckungen, 20 / 32 News Winfried Jacobs 19 Geschäftsführer Geburts- und Kennen Sie auch die anderen Gedenktage 2021 Hefte des SIKORSKI Magazins? 21 Vorschau 2022 IMPRESSUM FOTONACHWEISE Titel Sofia Gubaidulina © Priska Ketterer S.
    [Show full text]
  • 094-Au91431 1956 31
    BRAHMS: Viola Sonatas, Op. 120 A These are the "clarinet" sonatas, so called because Brahms composed them for a clarinetist friend. They Paul Doktor, violist. Nadia Reisenberg, A were published alternately for the viola, however, and the rich, mellow tones of this instrument are perfectly pianist A suited to them. Doktor's superb musicianship weaves a mood all its own, but Miss Reisenberg's sensitive Westminster WN- or SWN-18114 12" pianism is complementary in the extreme. The sound is unusually lifelike. RP GINASTERA: Quartet No. 1 B-B Ginastera's slow movement has a certain atmospheric beauty; its mingling of impressionism and jungle LAJHTA: Quartet No. 7, Op. 49 A-A evocations recalls early Villa-Lobos. His fast movements, however, are built on rhythmic ostinati that become Paganini Quartet B-B tiresome. La¡hta is a kind of Hungarian Virgil Thomson. His language is diatonic, spiced with dissonance and Decca DL-9823 12" Magyar tunes. His Opus 49 is attractive but inconsequential. Earnest performances. AS LECLAIR: 6 Violin Sonatas • Leclair's music does not stray far from the idiom of his time (when polyphony was "old fashioned" but George Alès, violinist; Isabelle Nef, harp- • melodic writing had not yet found its strength). These sonatas are thoroughly violinistic, and if the listener sichordist • can occasionally predict the next passage of sequential modulation there are compensating moments of London L'Oiseau -Lyre OL-50087 8 2-12" lovely invention. Playing is vigorous, musical, sometimes rough in tone. SF PROKOFIEV: Violin Sonata, op. 94 A-B The transcribed flute sonata of Prokofiev has enjoyed a succession of variously KAREN KHACHATURIAN: Violin A-A superb performances on LP.
    [Show full text]
  • A Russian Eschatology: Theological Reflections on the Music of Dmitri Shostakovich
    A Russian Eschatology: Theological Reflections on the Music of Dmitri Shostakovich Submitted by Anna Megan Davis to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Theology in December 2011 This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. 2 3 Abstract Theological reflection on music commonly adopts a metaphysical approach, according to which the proportions of musical harmony are interpreted as ontologies of divine order, mirrored in the created world. Attempts to engage theologically with music’s expressivity have been largely rejected on the grounds of a distrust of sensuality, accusations that they endorse a ‘religion of aestheticism’ and concern that they prioritise human emotion at the expense of the divine. This thesis, however, argues that understanding music as expressive is both essential to a proper appreciation of the art form and of value to the theological task, and aims to defend and substantiate this claim in relation to the music of twentieth-century Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich. Analysing a selection of his works with reference to culture, iconography, interiority and comedy, it seeks both to address the theological criticisms of musical expressivism and to carve out a positive theological engagement with the subject, arguing that the distinctive contribution of Shostakovich’s music to theological endeavour lies in relation to a theology of hope, articulated through the possibilities of the creative act.
    [Show full text]
  • RUSSIAN, SOVIET & POST-SOVIET CONCERTOS a Discography Of
    RUSSIAN, SOVIET & POST-SOVIET CONCERTOS A Discography of CDs and LPs Prepared by Michael Herman Edited by Stephen Ellis Composers H-P GAGIK HOVUNTS (see OVUNTS) AIRAT ICHMOURATOV (b. 1973) Born in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia. He studied clarinet at the Kazan Music School, Kazan Music College and the Kazan Conservatory. He was appointed as associate clarinetist of the Tatarstan's Opera and Ballet Theatre, and of the Kazan State Symphony Orchestra. He toured extensively in Europe, then went to Canada where he settled permanently in 1998. He completed his musical education at the University of Montreal where he studied with Andre Moisan. He works as a conductor and Klezmer clarinetist and has composed a sizeable body of music. He has written a number of concertante works including Concerto for Viola and Orchestra No1, Op.7 (2004), Concerto for Viola and String Orchestra with Harpsicord No. 2, Op.41 “in Baroque style” (2015), Concerto for Oboe and Strings with Percussions, Op.6 (2004), Concerto for Cello and String Orchestra with Percussion, Op.18 (2009) and Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, Op 40 (2014). Concerto Grosso No. 1, Op.28 for Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello, Piano and String Orchestra with Percussion (2011) Evgeny Bushko/Belarusian State Chamber Orchestra ( + 3 Romances for Viola and Strings with Harp and Letter from an Unknown Woman) CHANDOS CHAN20141 (2019) 3 Romances for Viola and Strings with Harp (2009) Elvira Misbakhova (viola)/Evgeny Bushko/Belarusian State Chamber Orchestra ( + Concerto Grosso No. 1 and Letter from an Unknown Woman) CHANDOS CHAN20141 (2019) ARSHAK IKILIKIAN (b. 1948, ARMENIA) Born in Gyumri Armenia.
    [Show full text]
  • Program Notes
    27TH APRIL, FRIDAY, 7 PM, CONSERVATORY CONCERT HALL SENIOR RECITAL: “ANOTHER STEP ON THE BRICK ROAD” ANDREW NG WEN HAO, VIOLIN Johann Sebastian Bach (15’) Sonata for Solo Violin No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005 I. Adagio II. Fuga. Alla breve Einojuhani Rautavaara (9’) Lost Landscapes I. Tanglewood IV. West 23rd Street, New York -Intermission- Mervyn Lee (9’) Fantasy for Violin and Piano (Premiere) Karen Khachaturian (15’) Violin Sonata in G Minor, Op. 1 I. Allegro II. Andante III.Presto Programme Notes A whimsical journey along an winding brick road path provides endless possibilities for a vivid imagination to conjure up numerous fantastical apparitions; in the case of this one, a tiny and stern-looking reporter gnome with tiny octagonal glasses and a fastidious approach to modern journalism. I heard you’re graduating soon, she said. Yes. What was it like? What was? Your university life. Ah! My four years. Hardship and struggle, my friend. But if I had to do it all over again, I probably would have. There has been much I have learned about love, life and friendship throughout the journey. -pause- And about music. Yes. But that no longer is the sole focus. Tell me more. You know, I started on this road with a single-minded intent to study the classics of violin repertory and get good at them. Bach, Mozart, Paganini. Especially Bach. I loved Bach. His solo works for violin? Simply sublime. The opening of the third solo violin sonata sounds like church bells for a funeral, doesn’t it? Doleful and full of sorrow.
    [Show full text]
  • Aram & Karen Khachaturian
    95357 ARAM & KAREN KHACHATURIAN Music for Violin and Piano Ruben Kosemyan violin · Natalya Mnatsakanyan piano Karen Khachaturian 1920-2011 · Aram Khachaturian 1903-1987 Karen Khachaturian (1920-2011) is considered one of the most notable composers of Armenia. He was the nephew of the composer Aram Khachaturian. Each of his works clearly demonstrates an unerring feeling for musical form and Karen Khachaturian structure and a keen ear for timbre and harmony. In addition to the Violin Sonata Violin Sonata in G minor Op.1 (1947) (1947), his works include a Cello Sonata (1966), a String Quartet (1969), four 1. Allegro 5’42 symphonies (1955, 1968, 1982, 1991) and a ballet “Cipollino” (1973), as well as 2. Andante 4’04 various other orchestral works and music for the theatre and films. 3. Presto 5’00 Karen Khachaturian’s Sonata for violin and piano (1947) brought him international attention. Rhythmic drive and an idiomatic use of the instrumental forces characterize this attractive and colourful work. Aram Khachaturian 4. “ Sabre Dance” from “Gayane” ballet (transcription by J. Heifetz) 2’17 5. “Dance” 4’24 6. “ Lullaby” from “Gayane” ballet 3’20 7. “ Ayesha’s Dance” from “Gayane” ballet (transcription by J. Heifetz) 2’19 8. “ Song-Poem” (in Honor of Ashugs) arranged by R. Kosemyan 6’17 9. “ Adagio” from “Spartacus” ballet (transcription by H. Smbatyan) 6’46 10. “ Andante Sostenuto” from violin concerto 10’10 Ruben Kosemyan violin · Natalya Mnatsakanyan piano Recording: October 2017, “Composers Union of Armenia” Sound engineer: Sergey Gasparyan Photos by H. Karapetyan and B. Khachaturyan Cover: Laguna Landscape, by Joseph Kleitsch (Oil On Canvas, 1925) p & © 2018 Brilliant Classics Ruben Kosemyan (left) & Karen Khachaturian (right) 2 3 Aram Khachaturian (1903-1978) was the most famous Armenian composer of the Aram Khachaturian's 20th century and the author of ballet music, symphonies, concertos, and film scores.
    [Show full text]
  • TOCC0514DIGIBKLT.Pdf
    HERMAN GALYNIN – A CANDLE BURNING AT BOTH ENDS by Yuri Abdokov The history of Herman Galynin – a musician considered a natural genius by his teachers Dmitry Shostakovich and Nikolai Myaskovsky – could provide the basis of a tumultuous novel, and this despite the fact that he lived for only 44 years, with the larger, and the more important, part of his output composed during the short time he spent as a student. Herman Hermanovich Galynin1 was born on 30 March 1922 in the ancient city of Tula, located in the north of the Central Russian Upland near the Upa river, 200 kilometres south of Moscow. Tula has long been famous for three diverse crafts that have become historical symbols of the city: weapons, samovars and gingerbread production.2 The future composer came from a family of skilled workers at the Tula arms factory. He lost his parents at the age of seven3 and, like hundreds of thousands of children after the Civil War in post-revolutionary Russia, became homeless. For two years, the boy wandered with a group of ragged and impoverished children of more or less the same age, earning his bread in street brawls, which often ended in the death of street children or their disappearance without trace. Herman was the fourth child in his family; the fate of his siblings is unknown. It is possible that the trials that befell him during this period of starved vagrancy fatally affected his life many years later. In the mid-1930s, thousands of orphanages were opened across the country, thanks to which many orphans were not only physically safeguarded but also raised 1 In some positions the Russian letter Г (ge) is conventionally transcribed into the Roman alphabet with an H.
    [Show full text]
  • San Francisco Symphony 2021–22 Season Concert Calendar
    San Francisco Symphony 2021-22 Season Calendar Contact: Public Relations San Francisco Symphony (415) 503-5474 [email protected] www.sfsymphony.org/press SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY 2021–22 SEASON CONCERT CALENDAR PLEASE NOTE: Single tickets for the San Francisco Symphony’s 2021–22 concerts go on sale TUESDAY, August 31 at 10am and can be purchased online at www.sfsymphony.org or by phone at (415) 864-6000. All concerts are at Davies Symphony Hall, 201 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, unless otherwise noted. FILM SERIES The Princess Bride—Film with Live Orchestra Wednesday, September 22, 2021 at 7:30pm Thursday, September 23, 2021 at 7:30pm Sarah Hicks conductor San Francisco Symphony MARK KNOPFLER The Princess Bride ROB REINER director FILM SERIES Apollo 13—Film with Live Orchestra Friday, September 24, 2021 at 7:30pm Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 7:30pm Constantine Kitsopoulos conductor San Francisco Symphony JAMES HORNER Apollo 13 RON HOWARD director SPECIAL EVENT All San Francisco Concert Thursday, September 30, 2021 at 7:30pm Esa-Pekka Salonen conductor Esperanza Spalding vocalist and bass Alonzo King LINES Ballet San Francisco Symphony JOHN ADAMS Slonimsky’s Earbox ALBERTO GINASTERA Estancia Suite WAYNE SHORTER Selected Songs SILVESTRE REVUELTAS Noche de encantamiento, from La noche de los Mayas SPECIAL EVENT San Francisco Symphony Re-Opening Night Friday, October 1, 2021 at 7pm Esa-Pekka Salonen conductor Esperanza Spalding vocalist and bass Alonzo King LINES Ballet San Francisco Symphony JOHN ADAMS Slonimsky’s Earbox
    [Show full text]
  • RUSSIAN, SOVIET & POST-SOVIET SYMPHONIES Composers
    RUSSIAN, SOVIET & POST-SOVIET SYMPHONIES A Discography of CDs and LPs Prepared by Michael Herman Composers H-R ALEXEI HAIEFF (1914-1994) Born in Blagoveshchensk, Siberia and then moved to China in 1920. After emigration to America in 1931, he studied at the Juilliard School with Frederick Jacobi and Rubin Goldmark and later with Nadia Boulanger in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Paris. He held various teaching positions around the United States and eventually settled in Rome. He composed ballets, orchestral, chamber and solo instrumental works. His Symphony No. 1 was written in 1941. Symphony No. 2 (1958) Charles Munch/Boston Symphony Orchestra ( + Blackwood: Symphony No. 1) RCA VICTOR LSC-2352 (LP) (1959) Symphony No. 3 (1961) Frank Brieff/New Haven Symphony Orchestra ( + Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1) CARILLON RECORDS M80P 7385-6 (private New Haven Symphony LP) (1961) AIRAT ICHMOURATOV (b. 1973) Born in Kazan, Tatarstan. He studied Clarinet at the Kazan Music School N3, Kazan Music College and Kazan Conservatory, graduating in 1996. In 1993, when he was appointed as Associate clarinetist of the Tatarstan's Opera and Ballet Theatre, and of the Kazan State Symphony Orchestra. He went Canada to to participate as a student at Orford Art's Centre Festival, where he met Yuli Turovsky, Soviet-born Canadian cellist and conductor, who later became his mentor. In 1998, he permanently moved to Montreal. He follows the triple career of clarinetist, conductor and composer. He has composed orchestral, chamber, instrumental and vocal works. Symphony No. 1 in A minor, Op. 55 “On the Ruins of an Ancient Fort” (2015-17) Jean-Philippe Tremblay/Olivier Charetter (violin) /Patrick Namur (cello)/Daniel Venflar (trumpet)/ Orchestre de la Francophonie ( + Youth' Overture and Maslenitsa' Overture) CHANDOS CHAN 20172 (2020) MIKHAIL IPPOLITOV-IVANOV (1859-1935) MusicWeb International Last updated: August 2020 Russian, Soviet & Post-Soviet Symphonies H-R Born in Gatchina, near St.
    [Show full text]
  • Chatschaturjan Werkverzeichnis.Pdf
    ARAM KHACHATURYAN SIKORSKI MUSIKVERLAGE HAMBURG SIK 4/5618 SIKORSKI MUSIKVERLAGE 20139 HAMBURG phone: (+ 49) (0)40 / 41 41 00-0 · fax: (+ 49) (0)40 / 41 41 00-41 www.sikorski.de · [email protected] 2 9 AUGUST 2 0 1 8 Cover Photo by Sikorski Archives CONTENTS PREFACE ........................................... 6 VORWORT ......................................... 8 AWARDS AND PRIZES ............................. 10 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF WORKS ............... 13 UNDATED WORKS ................................ 113 SYSTEMATIC INDEX OF WORKS Stage Works ........................................ 114 Orchestral Works .................................... 114 Orchestral Works with Instrumental Soloists ................ 115 Vocal-Symphonic Works ............................... 115 Works for Wind Orchestra .............................. 115 Instrumental Chamber Music ........................... 115 Works for Piano ...................................... 116 Works for Voice and Piano Songs ........................................... 117 Song Arrangements ................................ 118 Songs from Films and Incidental Music ................. 119 Incidental Music ..................................... 119 Film Music ......................................... 120 Suites from Film Music, Incidental Music or Stage Works ...... 121 INDEX Alphabetic Index of Works ............................. 122 Alphabetic Index of Names ............................. 130 5 PREFACE Aram Khachaturyan, born on 6 June (24 May) 1903 in Kodzhori near Tbilisi, Georgia, was born
    [Show full text]
  • Alfred Schnittke's Concerto for Piano and Strings Within
    ALFRED SCHNITTKE’S CONCERTO FOR PIANO AND STRINGS WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF HIS PIANO WORKS A Monograph Submitted to The Temple University Graduate Board In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS By Anna Kislitsyna May 2018 Examining Committee Members: Charles Abramovic, Advisory Chair, Professor of Piano, Chair of Keyboard Studies Stephen Willier, Associate Professor of Music History Sara Davis Buechner, Associate Professor of Piano Jeffrey Solow, Professor of Instrumental Studies ii ABSTRACT Alfred Schnittke’s Concerto for Piano and Strings within the Context of his Piano Works Anna Kislitsyna Doctor of Musical Arts Temple University, 2018 Doctoral Advisory Committee Chair: Dr. Charles Abramovic The musical compositions of Alfred Schnittke (1934-1998) have their own unique voice, and the Concerto for Piano and Strings is not an exception. Through the examination of Schnittke’s life and piano works in the context of the art and literature of his time, this monograph introduces Schnittke’s Concerto for Piano and Strings as something much more than just the analysis of a typical piano concerto while giving meaning to the polystylism existent in his works. Alfred Schnittke was of Jewish and German background and experienced living in the Soviet Union during World War II. An internal struggle for identity and the conflict present in the world at that time is evident in the works of Schnittke, which juxtaposes the dichotomy of good and evil. One cannot clearly understand the meaning behind the many different techniques and compositional devices of Schnittke’s music without a deeper knowledge of his life and the literature and art of the time; his music poses many poignant questions about religion and philosophy.
    [Show full text]
  • Boris TCHAIKOVSKY
    Boris TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Trio Cello Sonata • Solo Cello Suite Christopher Marwood, Cello Haik Kazazyan, Violin • Olga Solovieva, Piano Boris Tchaikovsky (1925–1996) In the following movement, Aria , a yearning melody an aria that takes lyrical flight from two tender phrases: a Piano Trio • Cello Sonata • Solo Cello Suite emerges in three-part counterpoint, its individual phrases descending figure introduced by the piano in the opening delicately exchanged and interwoven among the three bars, and a phrase in dotted rhythm that follows on the Boris Tchaikovsky stands out as one of the most original playful at one moment and deeply moving in the next. instruments in a gracefully flowing dialogue. Following a cello. As the music progresses, the two ideas are composers of instrumental music in the post- Tchaikovsky’s quest for formal innovation continues in the more relaxed central section with a lilting piano exchanged back and forth between the instruments in Shostakovich generation. In his lifetime, he composed works written after 1970, consolidating this decade of accompaniment, the themes from the first section return elegantly dovetailed counterpoint, its airborne quality numerous highly praised works that include two expansion. and lead to a crescendo, by way of a rapturous duet abetted by the gentle interplay between two and three numbered symphonies, a Sebastopol Symphony and In the works dating before 1960, three of which are on between violin and cello. beats per measure. On display is Tchaikovsky’s ability to Symphony with Harp , a Chamber Symphony , four solo this recording, one already finds a number of features that In the final Variations , the theme lumbers out in summon the most beautiful lyricism from the simplest concertos and six string quartets, among other chamber anticipate the transformations that were to follow.
    [Show full text]