Sviatoslav Knushevitsky
Encyclopedia
Sviatoslav Nikolayevich Knushevitsky (also seen as Knushevitzky; 19 February 1963) was a Russian classical cellist. He was particularly noted for his partnership with the violinist David Oistrakh
and the pianist Lev Oborin
in a renowned piano trio from 1940 until his death. After Mstislav Rostropovich
, he is spoken of as one of the pre-eminent Russian cellists of the 20th century.
, on 24 December 1907/6 January 1908. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory
with Semyon Kozolupov, graduating with a gold medal. He joined the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra in 1929, remaining their principal cello until 1943.
In 1933 Knushevitsky won First Prize at the Аll-Union Music Competition. In 1940 he joined in partnership with the violinist David Oistrakh
and the pianist Lev Oborin
in a renowned piano trio, often referred to as the Oistrakh Trio, which concertised and recorded a great deal in many countries. He also joined a string quartet with Oistrakh, Pyotr Bondarenko and Mikhail Terian, known as the Beethoven Quartet. His sonata performances with Oistrakh were considered the equal in their day of the later duo of Sviatoslav Richter
and Mstislav Rostropovich.
In 1941 Knushevitsky joined the staff of the Moscow Conservatory, becoming a professor in 1950. From 1954 to 1959 he was chair of cello and double bass studies. His pupils there included the cellists Stefan Popov
, Mikhail Khomitser and Yevgeny Altman, and the double bassist Rodion Azarkhin
.
Cello concertos were written for him by:
Other composers who wrote for him were Sergei Vasilenko and Alexander Goedicke
. His repertoire included mainstream works from concertos and chamber works through to smaller pieces and arrangements, along with contemporary and rarer works such as the Richard Strauss
Cello Sonata and the Solo Cello Suites of Max Reger
.
He was awarded the USSR State Prize (1950), and the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1956).
Sviatoslav Knushevitsky was an alcoholic, which, along with his frenetic lifestyle, contributed to his early death at the age of 55 in 1963, in Moscow
.
His wife Natalia Spiller (1909–1995) was a soprano soloist of the Bolshoi Theatre for over 30 years. She was a favourite of Joseph Stalin
and often sang at the Kremlin. She taught at the Gnessin Institute 1950-76.
David Oistrakh
David Fyodorovich Oistrakh , , David Fiodorović Ojstrakh, ; – October 24, 1974, was a Soviet violinist....
and the pianist Lev Oborin
Lev Oborin
Lev Nikolayevich Oborin was a Russian pianist. He was the winner of the first International Chopin Piano Competition in 1927.The family moved a lot during his early childhood. When they settled down in Moscow in 1914, he was sent to music school. He studied with Yelena Gnessin, a pupil of...
in a renowned piano trio from 1940 until his death. After Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Rostropovich
Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, KBE , known to close friends as Slava, was a Soviet and Russian cellist and conductor. He was married to the soprano Galina Vishnevskaya. He is widely considered to have been the greatest cellist of the second half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest of...
, he is spoken of as one of the pre-eminent Russian cellists of the 20th century.
Biography
Sviatoslav Knushevitsky was born at Petrovsk, Saratov OblastPetrovsk, Saratov Oblast
Petrovsk is a town in Saratov Oblast, Russia, located on the Medveditsa River northwest of Saratov. Population:...
, on 24 December 1907/6 January 1908. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory
Moscow 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...
with Semyon Kozolupov, graduating with a gold medal. He joined the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra in 1929, remaining their principal cello until 1943.
In 1933 Knushevitsky won First Prize at the Аll-Union Music Competition. In 1940 he joined in partnership with the violinist David Oistrakh
David Oistrakh
David Fyodorovich Oistrakh , , David Fiodorović Ojstrakh, ; – October 24, 1974, was a Soviet violinist....
and the pianist Lev Oborin
Lev Oborin
Lev Nikolayevich Oborin was a Russian pianist. He was the winner of the first International Chopin Piano Competition in 1927.The family moved a lot during his early childhood. When they settled down in Moscow in 1914, he was sent to music school. He studied with Yelena Gnessin, a pupil of...
in a renowned piano trio, often referred to as the Oistrakh Trio, which concertised and recorded a great deal in many countries. He also joined a string quartet with Oistrakh, Pyotr Bondarenko and Mikhail Terian, known as the Beethoven Quartet. His sonata performances with Oistrakh were considered the equal in their day of the later duo of Sviatoslav Richter
Sviatoslav Richter
Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter was a Soviet pianist well known for the depth of his interpretations, virtuoso technique, and vast repertoire. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.-Childhood:...
and Mstislav Rostropovich.
In 1941 Knushevitsky joined the staff of the Moscow Conservatory, becoming a professor in 1950. From 1954 to 1959 he was chair of cello and double bass studies. His pupils there included the cellists Stefan Popov
Stefan Popov
Stefan Popov is a cellist who holds both Bulgarian and British nationality. He started to learn the cello at the age of 12 and, having won a scholarship, continued his training at the Moscow Conservatory where he studied under Sviatoslav Knushevitsky and Mstislav Rostropovich from 1961 to 1966...
, Mikhail Khomitser and Yevgeny Altman, and the double bassist Rodion Azarkhin
Rodion Azarkhin
Rodion Mikhaylovich Azarkhin also spelt Rodion Azarkin and Radion Azarkin, was a Russian musician. He started to practise the double bass in 1945 at the ten year music school attached to the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in the class of S. Buyanovsky and P. Weinblat...
.
Cello concertos were written for him by:
- Nikolai MyaskovskyNikolai MyaskovskyNikolai Yakovlevich Myaskovsky was a Russian and Soviet composer. He is sometimes referred to as the "father of the Soviet symphony".-Early years and first important works:...
(Cello Concerto in C minorCello Concerto (Myaskovsky)Nikolai Myaskovsky composed his Cello Concerto in C minor, Op. 66, during the years 1944-45. It ranks among the few works of the composer that is to be found most frequently in concert or on recordings.The concerto is in two movements:...
, 1944; premiered Moscow, 17 March 1945; the first recording, however, was made by Rostropovich in 1956) - Aram KhachaturianAram KhachaturianAram Ilyich Khachaturian was a prominent Soviet composer. Khachaturian's works were often influenced by classical Russian music and Armenian folk music...
(Cello Concerto in E minorCello Concerto (Khachaturian)Aram Khachaturian wrote his Cello Concerto in E minor in 1946 for Sviatoslav Knushevitsky. It was the last of the three concertos he wrote for the individual members of a renowned Soviet piano trio that performed together from 1941 until 1963...
, 1946; premiered Moscow, 30 October 1946; he had also written his Piano Concerto in D flatPiano Concerto (Khachaturian)Aram Khachaturian's Piano Concerto in D-flat major, Op. 38, was composed in 1936. It was his first work to bring him recognition in the West, and it immediately entered the repertoire of many notable pianists....
in 1936 for Lev Oborin, and his Violin Concerto in D minorViolin Concerto (Khachaturian)Aram Khachaturian's Violin Concerto in D minor was completed in 1940 and dedicated to the great Russian violinist David Oistrakh, who premièred the concerto in Moscow on November 16, 1940. Oistrakh advised Khachaturian on the composition of the solo part and also wrote his own cadenza that markedly...
in 1940 for David Oistrakh), and - Reinhold GlièreReinhold GlièreReinhold Moritzevich Glière was a Russian and Soviet composer of German–Polish descent.- Biography :Glière was born in Kiev, Ukraine...
(Cello Concerto in D minor, Op. 87, 1946).
Other composers who wrote for him were Sergei Vasilenko and Alexander Goedicke
Alexander Goedicke
Alexander Fyodorovich Goedicke was a Russian composer and pianist.Goedicke was a professor at Moscow Conservatory. With no formal training in composition, he studied piano at the Moscow Conservatory with Galli, Pavel Pabst and Vasily Safonov. Goedicke won the Anton Rubinstein Competition in 1900...
. His repertoire included mainstream works from concertos and chamber works through to smaller pieces and arrangements, along with contemporary and rarer works such as the Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
Cello Sonata and the Solo Cello Suites of Max Reger
Max Reger
Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger was a German composer, conductor, pianist, organist, and academic teacher.-Life:...
.
He was awarded the USSR State Prize (1950), and the title of Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1956).
Sviatoslav Knushevitsky was an alcoholic, which, along with his frenetic lifestyle, contributed to his early death at the age of 55 in 1963, in Moscow
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...
.
Family
Sviatoslav Knushevitsky's brother Victor (1906–1974) was a violinist and from 1936 the conductor of a renowned Russian jazz ensemble, the State Jazz Orchestra of the USSR.His wife Natalia Spiller (1909–1995) was a soprano soloist of the Bolshoi Theatre for over 30 years. She was a favourite of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
and often sang at the Kremlin. She taught at the Gnessin Institute 1950-76.
Honours and awards
- Stalin Prize - 1950
- Honoured Artist of the RSFSR
Recordings
Sviatoslav Knushevitsky's many recordings include:- BeethovenLudwig van BeethovenLudwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
: Triple Concerto in CTriple Concerto (Beethoven)Ludwig van Beethoven's Concerto for Violin, Cello, and Piano in C Major, Op. 56, more commonly known as the Triple Concerto, was composed in 1803 and later published in 1804 under Breitkopf & Hartel. The choice of the three solo instruments effectively makes this a concerto for piano trio and the...
; Oborin, Oistrakh, Knushevitsky, with the Philharmonia OrchestraPhilharmonia OrchestraThe Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
under Sir Malcolm SargentMalcolm SargentSir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works... - Beethoven: Archduke Trio
- BorodinAlexander BorodinAlexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian–Russian parentage. He was a member of the group of composers called The Five , who were dedicated to producing a specifically Russian kind of art music...
: String Sextet in D minor - BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
: Double ConcertoDouble Concerto (Brahms)The Double Concerto in A minor, Op. 102, by Johannes Brahms is a concerto for violin, cello and orchestra.- Origin of the work :The Double Concerto was Brahms' final work for orchestra. It was composed in the summer of 1887, and first performed on 18 October of that year in the Gürzenich in Köln,...
, with Oistrakh and the USSR Symphony Orchestra under Karl EliasbergKarl EliasbergKarl Ilitch Eliasberg was a Soviet conductor.Eliasberg graduated from the Leningrad Conservatory as a violinist in 1929, and was conductor of the Leningrad Theatre of Musical Comedy from 1929 to 1931 before joining Leningrad Radio as conductor.-The siege of Leningrad:Eliasberg was conductor of... - ChopinFrédéric ChopinFrédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
: Piano Trio in G minorPiano Trio (Chopin)The Piano Trio, Op. 8, is a piano trio in G minor composed by Frédéric Chopin. It has four movements:#Allegro con Fuoco#Scherzo#Adagio Sostenuto#Finale: Allegretto...
, Op. 8 - DvořákAntonín DvorákAntonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
: Piano Trio No. 4, Dumky TrioPiano Trio No. 4 (Dvorák)The Piano Trio No. 4 in E Minor is a piece by Antonin Dvořák for piano, violin and cello...
, Op. 90 and Trio in F minor, Op. 65 - KhachaturianAram KhachaturianAram Ilyich Khachaturian was a prominent Soviet composer. Khachaturian's works were often influenced by classical Russian music and Armenian folk music...
: Cello Concerto in E minor (the premiere performance; and a later one conducted by Aleksandr GaukAleksandr GaukAleksandr Vassilievich Gauk was a Russian/Soviet conductor and composer.Aleksandr Gauk was born in Odessa in 1893. He recalled his first experience as hearing army bands and his mother singing and accompanying herself at the piano...
) - MyaskovskyNikolai MyaskovskyNikolai Yakovlevich Myaskovsky was a Russian and Soviet composer. He is sometimes referred to as the "father of the Soviet symphony".-Early years and first important works:...
: Cello Sonata No. 1 in D, Op. 12 - PopperDavid PopperDavid Popper was a Bohemian cellist and composer.-Life:He was born in Prague, and studied music at the Prague Conservatory. He studied the cello under Julius Goltermann , and soon attracted attention...
: Cello Concerto in C - RachmaninoffSergei RachmaninoffSergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
: Cello Sonata in G minorCello Sonata (Rachmaninoff)Sergei Rachmaninoff's Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 19, a sonata for cello and piano, was completed in November 1901 and published a year later. As typical of sonatas in the Romantic period, it has four movements. Rachmaninoff disliked calling it a cello sonata because he thought the two instruments...
, Op. 19 - RavelMaurice RavelJoseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
: Piano Trio in A minorPiano Trio (Ravel)Maurice Ravel's Trio for piano, violin and cello is a chamber work composed in 1914. Dedicated to Ravel's counterpoint teacher André Gedalge, the trio was first performed in Paris in January 1915, by Alfredo Casella , Gabriel Willaume , and Louis Feuillard... - Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai 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...
: Piano Trio in C (1897, incomplete; completed 1939 by Maximilian SteinbergMaximilian SteinbergMaximilian Osseyevich Steinberg was a Russian composer of classical music born in what is now Lithuania.-Life:...
; world premiere recording) - Saint-SaënsCamille Saint-SaënsCharles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
: Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minorCello Concerto No. 1 (Saint-Saëns)Camille Saint-Saëns composed his Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33 in 1872, when the composer was age 37. He wrote this work for the Belgian cellist, viola de gamba player and instrument maker Auguste Tolbecque. Tolbecque was part of a distinguished family of musicians closely associated...
, Op. 33 - SchubertFranz SchubertFranz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
: Octet in F majorOctet (Schubert)The Octet in F major, D. 803 was composed by Franz Schubert in March 1824. It was commissioned by the renowned clarinetist Ferdinand Troyer and came from the same period as two of Schubert's other major chamber works, the Rosamunde and the Death and the Maiden string quartets.-Structure:Consisting...
, D. 803 - Schubert: Piano Trio No. 1 in B flatPiano Trio No. 1 (Schubert)The Trio No. 1 in B-flat major for piano, violin, and cello, D. 898, was written by Franz Schubert in 1827. The composer finished the work in 1828, in the last year of his life. It was published in 1836 as Opus 99, eight years after the composer's death....
- Schubert: Piano Trio No. 2 in E flatPiano Trio No. 2 (Schubert)The Trio No. 2 in E-flat major for piano, violin, and violoncello, D. 929, was one of the last compositions completed by Franz Schubert, dated November 1827. It was published by Probst as opus 100 in late 1828, shortly before the composer's death and first performed at a private party in January...
- SchumannRobert SchumannRobert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
: Piano Trio No. 2 in F, Op. 80 - ShostakovichDmitri ShostakovichDmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich was a Soviet Russian composer and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century....
: Piano Trio No. 2 in E minorPiano Trio No. 2 (Shostakovich)The Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, Op. 67, by Dmitri Shostakovich was written in 1944, in the midst of World War II.-Composition history:The composition was dedicated to Shostakovich's good friend, Ivan Sollertinsky, a Russian polymath and avid musician, who had recently died at age 41. The work...
, Op. 67 - SmetanaBedrich SmetanaBedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...
: Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 15 - TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
: Variations on a Rococo ThemeVariations on a Rococo ThemeThe Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33, for cello and orchestra was the closest Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ever came to writing a full concerto for cello and orchestra. The style was inspired by Mozart, Tchaikovsky's role model, and makes it clear that Tchaikovsky admired the Classical style very...
, Op. 33 (conducted by Aleksandr Gauk) - Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio in A minorPiano Trio (Tchaikovsky)Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50, was written in Rome between December 1881 and late January 1882. It is subtitled In memory of a great artist, in reference to Nikolai Rubinstein, his close friend and mentor, who had died on 23 March 1881...
, Op. 50 - Tchaikovsky: String Sextet in D minor, Souvenir de FlorenceSouvenir de FlorenceThe String Sextet in D minor "Souvenir de Florence", Op. 70, is a string sextet scored for 2 violins, 2 violas, and 2 cellos composed in the European summer of 1890 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Tchaikovsky dedicated the work to the St. Petersburg Chamber Music Society in response to his becoming an...
, Op. 70, with Elizaveta GilelsElizabeth GilelsElizabeth Gilels - was a Soviet violinist from a musical family.-Biography:Born in Odessa, to a Jewish musical family ....
(violin), Rudolf BarshaiRudolf BarshaiRudolf Borisovich Barshai was a Soviet/Russian conductor and violist.Barshai was born in Stanitsa Lobinskaya, Krasnodar Krai, and studied at the Moscow Conservatory under Lev Tseitlin and Vadim Borisovsky. He performed as a soloist as well as together with Sviatoslav Richter, David Oistrakh, and...
and Genrikh Talalyan (violas), and Mstislav RostropovichMstislav RostropovichMstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, KBE , known to close friends as Slava, was a Soviet and Russian cellist and conductor. He was married to the soprano Galina Vishnevskaya. He is widely considered to have been the greatest cellist of the second half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest of...
(cello).