Alexander Gretchaninov
Encyclopedia
Alexander Tikhonovich Gretchaninov ' onMouseout='HidePop("69911")' href="/topics/Moscow">Moscow
– 3 January 1956, New York City
) was a Russia
n Romantic
composer.
in 1881 against his father's wishes and without his knowledge. His main teachers there were Sergei Taneyev
and Anton Arensky
. In the late 1880s, after a quarrel with Arensky, he moved to St. Petersburg where he studied composition and orchestration with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
until 1893. Rimsky-Korsakov immediately recognized Gretchaninov's extraordinary musical imagination and talent and gave him much extra time as well as considerable financial help. This allowed the young man, whose parents were not supporting him, to survive. Out of this came an important friendship, which only ended in 1908 with Rimsky's death. As such, it is not surprising that Rimsky's influence can be heard in Gretchaninov’s early works, such as his String Quartet No.1, a prize-winning composition.
Around 1896, Gretchaninov returned to Moscow and was involved with writing for the theater, the opera, and the Russian Orthodox Church
. His works, especially those for voice, achieved considerable success within Russia, while his instrumental works enjoyed even wider acclaim. By 1910, he was considered a composer of such distinction that the Tsar awarded him an annual pension.
Though Gretchaninov remained in Russia for several years after the Revolution, he ultimately chose to emigrate, first to France
in 1925, and then to the United States
in 1939. He remained in the U.S. the rest of his life and eventually became an American citizen. He died in New York at the age of 91 and is buried outside the church at Rova Farms, a Russian enclave in Jackson Township
, Ocean County, New Jersey
.
.
Gretchaninov wrote five symphonies
, the first premiered by Rimsky-Korsakov; four string quartet
s, the first two of which won important prizes, two piano trio
s, sonatas for violin, cello, clarinet, piano and balalaika, several opera
s, song cycle Les Fleurs du Mal
, op. 48 (setting lyrics by Baudelaire
) and much other music.
Like Vladimir Rebikov
, his position in the history of Russian music was mainly transitional, his earlier music belonging firmly in that earlier Romantic tradition while his later work is influenced by some of the streams that also affected Igor Stravinsky
and Sergei Prokofiev
.
Sketches for an unfinished sixth symphony from the 1940s exist.
He also composed a number of small scale piano pieces.
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
– 3 January 1956, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
) was a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Romantic
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
composer.
His life
Gretchaninov started his musical studies rather late because his father, a businessman, had expected the boy to take over the family firm. Gretchaninov himself related that he did not see a piano until he was 14 and began his studies at the Moscow ConservatoryMoscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory is a higher musical education institution in Moscow, and the second oldest conservatory in Russia after St. Petersburg Conservatory. Along with the St...
in 1881 against his father's wishes and without his knowledge. His main teachers there were Sergei Taneyev
Sergei Taneyev
Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev , was a Russian composer, pianist, teacher of composition, music theorist and author.-Life:...
and Anton Arensky
Anton Arensky
Anton Stepanovich Arensky -Biography:Arensky was born in Novgorod, Russia. He was musically precocious and had composed a number of songs and piano pieces by the age of nine...
. In the late 1880s, after a quarrel with Arensky, he moved to St. Petersburg where he studied composition and orchestration with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as The Five.The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie, refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev , César...
until 1893. Rimsky-Korsakov immediately recognized Gretchaninov's extraordinary musical imagination and talent and gave him much extra time as well as considerable financial help. This allowed the young man, whose parents were not supporting him, to survive. Out of this came an important friendship, which only ended in 1908 with Rimsky's death. As such, it is not surprising that Rimsky's influence can be heard in Gretchaninov’s early works, such as his String Quartet No.1, a prize-winning composition.
Around 1896, Gretchaninov returned to Moscow and was involved with writing for the theater, the opera, and the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
. His works, especially those for voice, achieved considerable success within Russia, while his instrumental works enjoyed even wider acclaim. By 1910, he was considered a composer of such distinction that the Tsar awarded him an annual pension.
Though Gretchaninov remained in Russia for several years after the Revolution, he ultimately chose to emigrate, first to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1925, and then to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1939. He remained in the U.S. the rest of his life and eventually became an American citizen. He died in New York at the age of 91 and is buried outside the church at Rova Farms, a Russian enclave in Jackson Township
Jackson Township, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 42,816 people, 14,176 households, and 11,269 families residing in the township. The population density was 427.9 people per square mile . There were 14,640 housing units at an average density of 146.3 per square mile...
, Ocean County, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
.
His music
Most of Gretchaninov's manuscripts reside in the Music Division of The New York Public Library for the Performing ArtsNew York Public Library
The New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
.
Gretchaninov wrote five symphonies
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
, the first premiered by Rimsky-Korsakov; four string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
s, the first two of which won important prizes, two piano trio
Piano trio
A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music...
s, sonatas for violin, cello, clarinet, piano and balalaika, several opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s, song cycle Les Fleurs du Mal
Les Fleurs du mal
Les Fleurs du mal is a volume of French poetry by Charles Baudelaire. First published in 1857 , it was important in the symbolist and modernist movements...
, op. 48 (setting lyrics by Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire was a French poet who produced notable work as an essayist, art critic, and pioneering translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His most famous work, Les Fleurs du mal expresses the changing nature of beauty in modern, industrializing Paris during the nineteenth century...
) and much other music.
Like Vladimir Rebikov
Vladimir Rebikov
Vladimir Ivanovich Rebikov was a late romantic 20th century Russian composer and pianist.-Biography:Rebikov began studying the piano with his mother. His sisters also were pianists. He graduated from the Moscow University faculty of philology. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory with N....
, his position in the history of Russian music was mainly transitional, his earlier music belonging firmly in that earlier Romantic tradition while his later work is influenced by some of the streams that also affected Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
and Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor who mastered numerous musical genres and is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century...
.
Sketches for an unfinished sixth symphony from the 1940s exist.
He also composed a number of small scale piano pieces.
Orchestral
- Symphony No.1, op.6 (1894)
- CelloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
concerto, op.8 (1895) - Symphony No.2, op.27 (1908)
- Symphony No.3, op.100 (1923)
- Symphony No.4, op.102 (1927)
- ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
concerto, op.132 (1932) - Symphony No.5, op.153 (1936)
- Concerto for fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, harpHarpThe harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
and strings, op.159 (1938)
Secular vocal
- Several operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s - Lieder (a cycle "Les Fleurs du malLes Fleurs du malLes Fleurs du mal is a volume of French poetry by Charles Baudelaire. First published in 1857 , it was important in the symbolist and modernist movements...
" op. 48) - Sonetti romani op. 160, for voice and piano (Russian text)
- Piazza di Spagna op. 160 n. 1
- Fontana della Tartaruga op. 160 n. 2
- Triton op. 160 n. 3
- Il tramontare del sole al Pincio op. 160 n. 4
- Fontana di Trevi op. 160 n. 5
- Vers la victoire (Toward Victory) (1943)
Liturgical vocal
- Passion Week, op.58 (1911)
- All-Night Vigil, op.59 (1912)
- Kvalite Boga, op.65 (1915)
- Liturgica Domestica, op.79 (1917)
- Missa Oecumenica, op.142 (1936)
- Missa Festiva, op.154 (1937)
- Missa Sancti Spiritus, op.169 (1940)
- Et in Terra Pax, mass, op.166 (1942)
Chamber Music
- Four string quartetString quartetA string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
s (1893, 1914, 1916, 1929) - Two piano trioPiano trioA piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music...
s (1906, 1931) - Two piano sonataPiano sonataA piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement , two movements , five or even more movements...
s (1931, 1942) - Pieces for solo piano
External links
- Gretchaninov manuscripts in the Music Division of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
- Alexander Gretchaninov String Quartet Nos. 1 & 2, Opp. 2 & 70 Soundbites & short biography.