Great Russian composers. Great composers of classical music What composers exist
What would our life be like without music? For years, people have been asking themselves this question and coming to the conclusion that without the beautiful sounds of music, the world would be a very different place. Music helps us to experience joy more fully, to find our inner self and to cope with difficulties. Composers, working on their works, were inspired by a variety of things: love, nature, war, happiness, sadness and many others. Some of the musical compositions they created will forever remain in the hearts and memory of people. Here is a list of the ten greatest and most talented composers of all time. Under each of the composers you will find a link to one of his most famous works.
10 PHOTOS (VIDEO)
Franz Peter Schubert is an Austrian composer who lived only 32 years, but his music will live on for a very long time. Schubert wrote nine symphonies, about 600 vocal compositions, as well as a large number of chamber and solo piano music.
"Evening Serenade"
German composer and pianist, author of two serenades, four symphonies, and concertos for violin, piano and cello. He performed at concerts from the age of ten, for the first time he performed a solo concert at the age of 14. During his lifetime, he gained popularity primarily thanks to the waltzes and Hungarian dances he wrote.
"Hungarian Dance No. 5".
Georg Friedrich Handel is a German and English composer of the Baroque era, he wrote about 40 operas, many organ concertos, as well as chamber music. Handel's music has been played at the coronation of English kings since 973, it is also heard at royal wedding ceremonies and is even used as the anthem of the UEFA Champions League (with a little arrangement).
"Music on the Water"
Joseph Haydn is a famous and prolific Austrian composer of the classical era, he is called the father of the symphony, as he made a significant contribution to the development of this musical genre. Joseph Haydn is the author of 104 symphonies, 50 piano sonatas, 24 operas and 36 concertos
"Symphony No. 45".
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is the most famous Russian composer, the author of more than 80 works, including 10 operas, 3 ballets and 7 symphonies. He was very popular and known as a composer during his lifetime, performed in Russia and abroad as a conductor.
"Waltz of the Flowers" from the ballet "The Nutcracker".
Frederic Francois Chopin is a Polish composer who is also considered one of the best pianists of all time. He wrote many piano pieces including 3 sonatas and 17 waltzes.
"Rain waltz".
The Venetian composer and virtuoso violinist Antonio Lucio Vivaldi is the author of more than 500 concertos and 90 operas. He had a great influence on the development of Italian and world violin art.
"Elven Song"
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is an Austrian composer who amazed the world with his talent from early childhood. Already at the age of five, Mozart was composing small pieces. In total, he wrote 626 works, including 50 symphonies and 55 concertos. 9.Beethoven 10.Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach - German composer and organist of the Baroque era, known as a master of polyphony. He is the author of more than 1000 works, which include almost all significant genres of that time.
"Musical Joke"
Among these melodies there is a motive for any mood: romantic, positive or dreary, to relax and not think about anything, or, conversely, to collect your thoughts.
twitter.com/ludovicoeinaudThe Italian composer and pianist works in the direction of minimalism, often turns to ambient and skillfully combines classical music with other musical styles. He is known to a wide circle for atmospheric compositions that have become soundtracks for films. For example, you will surely recognize the music from the French tape "1 + 1" written by Einaudi.
themagger.net
Glass is one of the most controversial personalities in the world of modern classics, which is either praised to the skies, or to the nines. He has been with his own Philip Glass Ensemble for half a century and has composed music for more than 50 films, including The Truman Show, The Illusionist, Taste of Life and The Fantastic Four. The melodies of the American minimalist composer blur the line between classical and popular music.
latimes.com
The author of many soundtracks, the best film composer of 2008 according to the European Film Academy and a post-minimalist. Captivated critics from the first album, Memoryhouse, in which Richter's music was superimposed on reading poetry, and subsequent albums also used fictional prose. In addition to writing his own ambient compositions, Max arranges classical works: Vivaldi's The Four Seasons topped the iTunes charts in his arrangement.
This creator of instrumental music from Italy is not associated with sensational cinema, but is already known as a composer, virtuoso and experienced piano teacher. If you describe the work of Marradi in two words, then these will be the words "sensual" and "magical". His compositions and covers will appeal to those who love retro classics: the notes of the last century show through in the motives.
twitter.com/coslive
The famous film composer has created musical accompaniment for many high-grossing films and cartoons, including Gladiator, Pearl Harbor, Inception, Sherlock Holmes, Interstellar, Madagascar, The Lion King. His star flaunts on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and on his shelf are Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe. Zimmer's music is as different as the films listed, but regardless of the tone, it strikes a chord.
musicaludi.fr
Hisaishi is one of the most famous Japanese composers, having won four Japanese Academy Film Awards for best film score. Joe became famous for writing the soundtrack for the anime Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. If you're a fan of Studio Ghibli or Takeshi Kitano's tapes, you'll surely admire Hisaishi's music. It is mostly light and light.
twitter.com/theipaper
This Icelandic multi-instrumentalist is just a boy compared to the listed masters, but by his 30s he managed to become a recognized neoclassicist. He recorded accompaniment to a ballet, won a BAFTA award for the soundtrack to the British TV series "Murder on the Beach" and released 10 studio albums. Arnalds' music is reminiscent of a harsh wind on a deserted seashore.
yiruma.manifo.com
Lee Rum's most famous works are Kiss the Rain and River Flows in You. The Korean New Age composer and pianist writes popular classics that are understandable to listeners on any continent, with any musical taste and education. His light and sensual melodies for many became the beginning of love for piano music.
fracturedair.com
The American composer is interesting in that, but at the same time he writes the most pleasant and quite popular music. O'Halloran's tunes have been used in Top Gear and several films. Perhaps the most successful soundtrack album was for the melodrama Like Crazy.
cultureaspettacolovenesia.it
This composer and pianist knows a lot about the art of conducting and how to create electronic music. But his main field is modern classics. Cacchapalla has recorded many albums, three of them with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. His music flows like water, it's great to relax under it.
It is safe to say about each of them that he is the greatest composer who has ever been, although in fact it is impossible, and indeed impossible, to compare music written over several centuries. However, all of these composers stand out among their contemporaries as composers who have composed music of the highest caliber and have striven to push the boundaries of classical music to new limits. The list does not contain any order, such as importance or personal preference. Simply 10 great composers you should know.
1. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) The most important figure in world classical music. One of the most performed and respected composers in the world. He worked in all the genres that existed in his time, including opera, ballet, music for dramatic performances, and choral compositions. Instrumental works are considered to be the most significant in his heritage: piano, violin and cello sonatas, piano and violin concertos, quartets, overtures, symphonies. The founder of the romantic period in classical music.
An interesting fact: Beethoven first wanted to dedicate his third symphony (1804) to Napoleon, the Composer was fascinated by this man, who seemed to many at the beginning of his reign a real hero. But when Napoleon proclaimed himself emperor, Beethoven crossed out his dedication to Napoleon on the title page and wrote only one word - "Heroic".
Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata:
2. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) German composer and organist, representative of the Baroque era. One of the greatest composers in the history of music. During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. All significant genres of that time are represented in his work, except for opera; he summarized the achievements of the musical art of the Baroque period. Ancestor of the most famous musical dynasty.
Interesting fact: During his lifetime, Bach was so underestimated that less than a dozen of his works were printed.
Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by J.S. Bach:
3. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) A great Austrian composer, instrumentalist and conductor, a representative of the Vienna Classical School, a virtuoso violinist, harpsichordist, organist, conductor, he had a phenomenal musical ear, memory and ability to improvise. As a composer who has excelled in every genre, he is rightfully considered one of the greatest composers in the history of classical music.
Interesting fact: As a child, Mozart memorized and recorded the Miserere (Catholic chant to the text of the 50th Psalm of David) by the Italian Grigorio Allegri, having listened to it only once.
Mozart's Little Night Serenade:
4. Richard Wagner (1813-1883) German composer, conductor, playwright, philosopher. He had a significant impact on European culture at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, especially modernism. Wagner's operas amaze with their grand scale and eternal human values.
Interesting fact: Wagner took part in the failed revolution of 1848-1849 in Germany, and was forced to hide from Franz Liszt's arrest.
"Ride of the Valkyries" from Wagner's opera "Valkyrie":
5. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) Russian composer, one of the best melodists, conductor, teacher, music critic. His works have made an invaluable contribution to world musical culture. One of the most popular composers among classical music lovers, Tchaikovsky's unique style successfully combines the Western symphonic heritage of Beethoven and Schumann with the Russian traditions inherited from Mikhail Glinka.
Interesting fact: From his youth, Tchaikovsky had an irresistible thirst for knowledge, and in a variety of fields. So, one of the first among his contemporaries, he met with a new invention of the XIX century, which was destined for a great future. It was Edison's phonograph that ushered in the era of sound recording.
"Waltz of the Flowers" from Tchaikovsky's ballet "The Nutcracker":
6. Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) Italian composer, central figure of the Italian opera school. Verdi had a sense of the stage, temperament and impeccable skill. He did not deny operatic traditions (unlike Wagner), but rather developed them (the traditions of Italian opera), he transformed Italian opera, filled it with realism, gave it the unity of the whole.
Interesting fact: Verdi was an Italian nationalist and was elected to the first Italian parliament in 1860, after Italy's independence from Austria.
Overture to Verdi's La Traviata:
7. Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky (1882-1971) Russian (American - after emigration) composer, conductor, pianist. One of the most important composers of the twentieth century. Stravinsky's work has been united throughout his career, although at different periods the style of his works was different, but the core and Russian roots remained, which manifested themselves in all his works, he is considered one of the leading innovators of the 20th century. His innovative use of rhythm and harmony has inspired and continues to inspire many musicians, and not just in classical music.
Fun Fact: During World War I, Roman customs officials confiscated a portrait of Stravinsky by Pablo Picasso when the composer was leaving Italy. The portrait was painted in a futuristic manner and the customs officers mistook these circles and lines for some kind of encrypted secret material.
Suite from Stravinsky's The Firebird:
8. Johann Strauss (1825-1899) Austrian light music composer, conductor and violinist. "King of Waltzes" - he worked in the genre of dance music and opperta. His musical heritage includes more than 500 waltzes, polkas, square dances and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas and ballets. Thanks to him, the waltz became extremely popular in Vienna in the 19th century.
Interesting fact: The father of Johann Strauss is also Johann and also a famous musician, and therefore the “king of waltzes” is called the younger or son, his brothers Joseph and Eduard were also famous composers.
Strauss Waltz "On the beautiful blue Danube":
9. Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninov (1873-1943) Russian composer, pianist and conductor, the largest representatives of Russian and world musical culture of the late 19th - first half of the 20th centuries. Rachmaninov's style, which grew out of late romanticism, goes far beyond the post-romantic tradition and at the same time does not belong to any of the stylistic currents of the musical avant-garde of the 20th century. Rachmaninov's work stands apart in the world music of the 20th century, his style has remained uniquely individual and original, unparalleled in world art.
Interesting fact: The premiere of Rachmaninov's First Symphony ended in complete failure, both because of poor performance and because of the innovative nature of the music, far ahead of its time. This event caused a serious nervous illness.
Rachmaninov Concerto Piano Concerto 4 – Movement 1:
10. Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) Austrian composer, one of the prominent representatives of the Viennese classical music school and one of the founders of romanticism in music. In his short life, Schubert made significant contributions to orchestral, chamber and piano music that influenced an entire generation of composers. However, his most striking contribution was to the development of German romances, of which he created more than 600.
Interesting fact: Schubert's friends and fellow musicians got together and played Schubert's music. These meetings were called "Schubertiads" (Schubertiads). Some first fan club!
Ave Maria Schubert:
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven- The greatest composer of the early 19th century. Requiem and Moonlight Sonata are immediately recognizable by any person. The immortal works of the composer have always been and will be popular because of the unique style of Beethoven.
- German composer of the 18th century. Without a doubt, the founder of modern music. His works were based on the versatility of harmonies of various instruments. He created the rhythm of music, so his works are easily amenable to modern instrumental processing.
- The most popular and understandable Austrian composer of the late 18th century. All his works are simple and ingenious. They are very melodic and pleasant. A little serenade, a thunderstorm and many other compositions in rock arrangement will have a special place in your collection.
- Austrian composer of the late 18th, early 19th century. A true classical composer. The violin for Haydn was in a special place. In almost all the works of the composer, she is the soloist. Very beautiful and captivating music.
- Italian composer of the first half of the 18th century No. 1. National temperament and a new approach to arrangement literally blew up Europe in the middle of the 18th century. The symphonies "The Seasons" are the hallmark of the composer.
- Polish composer of the 19th century. According to some information, the founder of the combined genre of concert and folk music. His polonaises and mazurkas blend seamlessly with orchestral music. The only drawback in the composer's work was considered too soft style (lack of strong and incendiary motives).
- German composer of the late 19th century. He was spoken of as the great romantic of his time, and his "German Requiem" eclipsed other works of his contemporaries with its popularity. The style in Brahms' music is qualitatively different from the styles of other classics.
- Austrian composer of the early 19th century. One of the greatest composers unrecognized during his lifetime. A very early death at 31 prevented the full development of Schubert's potential. The songs he wrote were the main source of income when the greatest symphonies were gathering dust on the shelves. Only after the death of the composer, the works were highly appreciated by critics.
- Austrian composer of the late 19th century. Ancestor of waltzes and marches. We say Strauss - we mean waltz, we say waltz - we mean Strauss. Johann Jr. grew up in the family of his father, a composer. Strauss senior treated the works of his son with disdain. He believed that his son was engaged in nonsense and therefore humiliated him in every way in the world. But Johann Jr. stubbornly continued to do what he loved, and the revolution and the march written by Strauss in her honor proved the genius of his son in the eyes of European high society.
- One of the greatest composers of the 19th century. Master of Opera Art. "Aida" and "Otello" by Verdi are extremely popular today thanks to the true talent of the Italian composer. The tragic loss of his family at the age of 27 crippled the composer, but he did not give up and delved into creativity, writing several operas at once in a short time. High society highly appreciated Verdi's talent and his operas were staged in the most prestigious theaters in Europe.
- Even at the age of 18, this talented Italian composer wrote several operas that became very popular. The crown of his creation was the revised play "The Barber of Seville". After its presentation to the public, Gioachino was literally carried in his arms. The success was intoxicating. After that, Rossini became a welcome guest in high society and gained a solid reputation.
- German composer of the early 18th century. One of the founders of opera art and instrumental music. In addition to writing operas, Handel also wrote music for the "people", which was very popular in those days. Hundreds of songs and dance melodies of the composer thundered in the streets and squares in those distant times.
- Polish prince and composer - self-taught. Having no musical education, he became a famous composer. His famous polonaise is known all over the world. At the time of the composer, a revolution was taking place in Poland, and the marches written by him became the hymns of the rebels.
- Jewish composer, born in Germany. His wedding march and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" have been popular for hundreds of years. The symphonies and compositions written by him are successfully perceived all over the world.
- German composer of the 19th century. His mystically - anti-Semitic idea of the superiority of the Aryan race over other races was adopted by the Nazis. Wagner's music is very different from the music of his predecessors. It is aimed primarily at connecting man and nature with an admixture of mysticism. His famous operas "Rings of the Nibelungs" and "Tristan and Isolde" confirm the revolutionary spirit of the composer.
- French composer of the mid-19th century. Creator of Carmen. From birth he was a brilliant child and at the age of 10 he already entered the conservatory. During his short life (he died before the age of 37) he wrote dozens of operas and operettas, various orchestral works and ode symphonies.
- Norwegian composer - lyricist. His works are simply saturated with melody. During his life he wrote a large number of songs, romances, suites and sketches. His composition "The Cave of the Mountain King" is very often used in cinema and modern stage.
- An American composer of the early 20th century - the author of "Rhapsody in Blues", which is especially popular to this day. At 26, he was already Broadway's first composer. Gershwin's popularity quickly spread throughout America, thanks to numerous songs and popular shows.
- Russian composer. His opera "Boris Godunov" is the hallmark of many theaters in the world. The composer in his works relied on folklore, considering folk music to be the music of the soul. "Night on Bald Mountain" by Modest Petrovich is one of the ten most popular symphonic sketches in the world.
The most popular and greatest composer of Russia, of course, is. "Swan Lake" and "Sleeping Beauty", "Slavic March" and "The Nutcracker", "Eugene Onegin" and "The Queen of Spades". These and many more masterpieces of musical art were created by our Russian composer. Tchaikovsky is the pride of Russia. All over the world they know "Balalaika", "Matryoshka", "Tchaikovsky"...
- Soviet composer. Stalin's favorite. The opera "The Tale of a Real Man" was strongly recommended to listen to Mikhail Zadornov. But mostly Sergey Sergeyevich has serious and profound works. "War and Peace", "Cinderella", "Romeo and Juliet", a lot of brilliant symphonies and works for orchestra.
- Russian composer who created his own inimitable style in music. He was a deeply religious person and a special place in his work was given to writing religious music. Rachmaninov also wrote a lot of concert music and several symphonies. His last work "Symphonic Dances" is recognized as the greatest work of the composer.
The Russian school of composers, whose traditions were continued by the Soviet and today's Russian schools, began in the 19th century with composers who combined European musical art with Russian folk melodies, linking together the European form and the Russian spirit.
A lot can be said about each of these famous people, all of them have not simple, and sometimes tragic fates, but in this review we have tried to give only a brief description of the life and work of composers.
1. Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka
(1804-1857)
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka while composing the opera Ruslan and Lyudmila. 1887, artist Ilya Efimovich Repin
“In order to create beauty, one must be pure in soul.”
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka is the founder of Russian classical music and the first domestic classical composer to achieve world fame. His works, based on the centuries-old traditions of Russian folk music, were a new word in the musical art of our country.
Born in the Smolensk province, educated in St. Petersburg. The formation of the worldview and the main idea of Mikhail Glinka's work was facilitated by direct communication with such personalities as A.S. Pushkin, V.A. Zhukovsky, A.S. Griboyedov, A.A. Delvig. The creative impetus to his work was added by a long-term trip to Europe in the early 1830s and meetings with the leading composers of the time - V. Bellini, G. Donizetti, F. Mendelssohn and later with G. Berlioz, J. Meyerbeer.
Success came to M.I. Glinka in 1836, after staging the opera “Ivan Susanin” (“Life for the Tsar”), which was enthusiastically received by everyone, for the first time in world music, Russian choral art and European symphonic and opera practice were organically combined, and a hero similar to Susanin also appeared, whose image summarizes the best features of the national character.
VF Odoevsky described the opera as "a new element in Art, and a new period begins in its history - the period of Russian music."
The second opera - the epic "Ruslan and Lyudmila" (1842), the work on which was carried out against the backdrop of Pushkin's death and in the difficult living conditions of the composer, due to the deeply innovative nature of the work, was ambiguously received by the audience and the authorities, and brought M.I. Glinka hard experiences. After that, he traveled a lot, living alternately in Russia and abroad, without stopping composing. Romances, symphonic and chamber works remained in his legacy. In the 1990s, Mikhail Glinka's "Patriotic Song" was the official anthem of the Russian Federation.
Quote about M.I. Glinka:“The entire Russian symphonic school, like the whole oak in an acorn, is contained in the symphonic fantasy “Kamarinskaya”. P.I. Tchaikovsky
Interesting fact: Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka was not distinguished by good health, despite this he was very easy-going and knew geography very well, perhaps if he had not become a composer, he would have become a traveler. He knew six foreign languages, including Persian.
2. Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin
(1833-1887)
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin, one of the leading Russian composers of the second half of the 19th century, in addition to his talent as a composer, was a chemist, doctor, teacher, critic and had a literary talent.
Born in St. Petersburg, since childhood, everyone around him noted his unusual activity, enthusiasm and abilities in various directions, primarily in music and chemistry.
A.P. Borodin is a Russian nugget composer, he did not have professional musician teachers, all his achievements in music are due to independent work on mastering the technique of composing.
The formation of A.P. Borodin was influenced by the work of M.I. Glinka (as well as all Russian composers of the 19th century), and two events gave an impetus to the close occupation of composition in the early 1860s - firstly, acquaintance and marriage with the talented pianist E.S. Protopopova, and secondly, the meeting with M.A. Balakirev and joining the creative community of Russian composers, known as the "Mighty Handful".
In the late 1870s and 1880s, A.P. Borodin traveled and toured extensively in Europe and America, met with the leading composers of his time, his fame grew, he became one of the most famous and popular Russian composers in Europe at the end of the 19th century. th century.
The central place in the work of A.P. Borodin is occupied by the opera “Prince Igor” (1869-1890), which is an example of the national heroic epic in music and which he himself did not have time to finish (it was completed by his friends A.A. Glazunov and N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov). In "Prince Igor", against the backdrop of majestic pictures of historical events, the main idea of \u200b\u200bthe composer's entire work was reflected - courage, calm grandeur, spiritual nobility of the best Russian people and the mighty strength of the entire Russian people, manifested in the defense of the motherland.
Despite the fact that A.P. Borodin left a relatively small number of works, his work is very diverse and he is considered one of the fathers of Russian symphonic music, who influenced many generations of Russian and foreign composers.
Quote about A.P. Borodin:“Borodin's talent is equally powerful and amazing both in the symphony, and in the opera and in the romance. Its main qualities are gigantic strength and breadth, colossal scope, swiftness and impetuosity, combined with amazing passion, tenderness and beauty. V.V. Stasov
Interesting fact: The chemical reaction of silver salts of carboxylic acids with halogens, resulting in halogen-substituted hydrocarbons, was named after Borodin, which he was the first to investigate in 1861.
3. Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky
(1839-1881)
“The sounds of human speech, as external manifestations of thought and feeling, must, without exaggeration and rape, become truthful, accurate music, but artistic, highly artistic.”
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky is one of the most brilliant Russian composers of the 19th century, a member of the Mighty Handful. Mussorgsky's innovative work was far ahead of its time.
Born in the Pskov province. Like many talented people, from childhood he showed talent in music, studied in St. Petersburg, was, according to family tradition, a military man. The decisive event that determined that Mussorgsky was born not for military service, but for music, was his meeting with M.A. Balakirev and joining the Mighty Handful.
Mussorgsky is great because in his grandiose works - the operas "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina" - he captured in music the dramatic milestones of Russian history with a radical novelty that Russian music did not know before him, showing in them a combination of mass folk scenes and a diverse richness of types, the unique character of the Russian people. These operas, in numerous editions by both the author and other composers, are among the most popular Russian operas in the world.
Another outstanding work of Mussorgsky is the cycle of piano pieces "Pictures at an Exhibition", colorful and inventive miniatures are permeated with the Russian refrain theme and the Orthodox faith.
There was everything in Mussorgsky's life - both greatness and tragedy, but he was always distinguished by genuine spiritual purity and disinterestedness.
His last years were difficult - unsettled life, non-recognition of creativity, loneliness, addiction to alcohol, all this determined his early death at 42, he left relatively few compositions, some of which were completed by other composers.
The specific melody and innovative harmony of Mussorgsky anticipated some features of the musical development of the 20th century and played an important role in the development of the styles of many world composers.
Quote about M.P. Mussorgsky:“Originally Russian sounds in everything that Mussorgsky did” N. K. Roerich
Interesting fact: At the end of his life, Mussorgsky, under pressure from his "friends" Stasov and Rimsky-Korsakov, renounced the copyright to his works and presented them to Tertiy Filippov.
4. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
(1840-1893)
“I am an artist who can and must bring honor to his Motherland. I feel a great artistic power in myself, I have not yet done even a tenth of what I can do. And I want to do it with all the strength of my soul.”
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, perhaps the greatest Russian composer of the 19th century, raised Russian musical art to unprecedented heights. He is one of the most important composers of world classical music.
A native of the Vyatka province, although his paternal roots are in Ukraine, Tchaikovsky showed musical abilities from childhood, but his first education and work was in the field of law.
Tchaikovsky is one of the first Russian "professional" composers - he studied music theory and composition at the new St. Petersburg Conservatory.
Tchaikovsky was considered a “Western” composer, in contrast to the folk figures of the “Mighty Handful”, with whom he had good creative and friendly relations, however, his work is no less permeated with the Russian spirit, he managed to uniquely combine the Western symphonic heritage of Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann with Russian traditions inherited from Mikhail Glinka.
The composer led an active life - he was a teacher, conductor, critic, public figure, worked in two capitals, toured Europe and America.
Tchaikovsky was a rather emotionally unstable person, enthusiasm, despondency, apathy, irascibility, violent anger - all these moods changed in him quite often, being a very sociable person, he always strove for loneliness.
It is a difficult task to single out something the best from Tchaikovsky's work, he has several works of equal size in almost all musical genres - opera, ballet, symphony, chamber music. And the content of Tchaikovsky's music is universal: with inimitable melodism, it embraces images of life and death, love, nature, childhood, works of Russian and world literature are revealed in a new way, deep processes of spiritual life are reflected in it.
Composer quote:“Life has charm only when it consists of the alternation of joys and sorrows, of the struggle between good and evil, of light and shadow, in a word, of diversity in unity.”
"Great talent requires great hard work."
Composer quote: “I am ready day and night to stand as a guard of honor at the porch of the house where Pyotr Ilyich lives - to such an extent I respect him” A.P. Chekhov
Interesting fact: Cambridge University in absentia and without defending a dissertation awarded Tchaikovsky the title of Doctor of Music, as well as the Paris Academy of Fine Arts elected him a corresponding member.
5. Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov
(1844-1908)
N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov and A.K. Glazunov with their students M.M. Chernov and V.A. Senilov. Photo 1906
Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov is a talented Russian composer, one of the most important figures in the creation of an invaluable domestic musical heritage. His peculiar world and worship of the eternal all-encompassing beauty of the universe, admiration for the miracle of being, unity with nature have no analogues in the history of music.
Born in the Novgorod province, according to family tradition, he became a naval officer, on a warship he traveled around many countries in Europe and two Americas. He received his musical education first from his mother, then taking private lessons from the pianist F. Canille. And again, thanks to M.A. Balakirev, the organizer of the Mighty Handful, who introduced Rimsky-Korsakov to the musical community and influenced his work, the world did not lose the talented composer.
The central place in Rimsky-Korsakov's heritage is occupied by operas - 15 works demonstrating the diversity of genre, stylistic, dramatic, compositional decisions of the composer, nevertheless having a special style - with all the richness of the orchestral component, melodic vocal lines are the main ones.
Two main directions distinguish the composer's work: the first is Russian history, the second is the world of fairy tales and epic, for which he received the nickname "storyteller".
In addition to direct independent creative activity, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov is known as a publicist, compiler of collections of folk songs, in which he showed great interest, and also as the finalist of the works of his friends - Dargomyzhsky, Mussorgsky and Borodin. Rimsky-Korsakov was the founder of the composer school, as a teacher and head of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, he produced about two hundred composers, conductors, musicologists, among them Prokofiev and Stravinsky.
Composer quote:“Rimsky-Korsakov was a very Russian man and a very Russian composer. I believe that this primordially Russian essence of his, his deep folklore-Russian basis, should be especially appreciated today. Mstislav Rostropovich
Fact about the composer: Nikolai Andreevich began his first lesson in counterpoint like this:
Now I will talk a lot, and you will listen very carefully. Then I will speak less, and you will listen and think, and, finally, I will not speak at all, and you will think with your own head and work independently, because my task as a teacher is to become unnecessary to you ...