Timofiy Bilohradsky
Encyclopedia
Timofiy Bilohradsky was a lutenist, composer
and kobzar
-bandurist
of Ukrainian ethnicity, active in St. Petersburg and Königsberg
.
Little is known about his childhood. He is thought to have been born in or near the city of Cherkasy
in Ukraine and that he learned to play the kobza
and lute
at the Hlukhiv Music Academy in Ukraine
. He had an excellent voice and great musical aptitude. In 1725 he was invited to St Petersburg to sing in the Imperial Church Capella. In 1733 Tsarina Anna
sent Bilohradsky to Dresden
in the retinue of the ambassador Count Keyserlinck to perfect his lute playing under the tutelage of Silvius Leopold Weiss - the most important lutenist-composer of the 18th century. He also studied voice with Faustina Bordoni
-Hasse, and castrato
Domenico Annibali
. Bilohradsky eventually became one of the highest trained musicians in the Russian Court Capella.
In 1739 Bilohradsky returned to St Petersburg, where he continued to work as a court musician. In 1741 he returned to Germany
where he became known as a virtuoso lutenist and singer and for some time lived in Königsberg
where he had a number of students - notably Johann Reichardt (father of Johann Friedrich Reichardt
), and Johann Georg Hamann
, the Sturm-und-Drang philosopher.
In his last years he lived in Petersburg. The "Moscow Weiss Manuscript" is ascribed to Bilohradsky or his circle. As a composer Bilohradsky is known for a set of songs and romances to the texts by Sumarokov that enjoyed considerable popularity in the 18th century.
His niece Yelizaveta Belogradskaya
became famous as an opera-singer at the Imperial St. Petersburg opera
and was also known as a composer.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and kobzar
Kobzar
A Kobzar was an itinerant Ukrainian bard who sang to his own accompaniment.-Tradition:Kobzars were often blind, and became predominantly so by the 1800s...
-bandurist
Bandurist
A bandurist is a person who plays the Ukrainian plucked string instrument known as the bandura.-Types of performers:There are a number of different types of bandurist who differ in their paricular choice of instrument, the specific repertoire they play and manner in which they approach their...
of Ukrainian ethnicity, active in St. Petersburg and Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
.
Little is known about his childhood. He is thought to have been born in or near the city of Cherkasy
Cherkasy
Cherkasy or Cherkassy , is a city in central Ukraine. It is the capital of the Cherkasy Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Cherkasky Raion within the oblast...
in Ukraine and that he learned to play the kobza
Kobza
The kobza is a Ukrainian folk music instrument of the lute family , a relative of the Central European mandora...
and lute
Lute
Lute can refer generally to any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back, or more specifically to an instrument from the family of European lutes....
at the Hlukhiv Music Academy in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. He had an excellent voice and great musical aptitude. In 1725 he was invited to St Petersburg to sing in the Imperial Church Capella. In 1733 Tsarina Anna
Anna of Russia
Anna of Russia or Anna Ivanovna reigned as Duchess of Courland from 1711 to 1730 and as Empress of Russia from 1730 to 1740.-Accession to the throne:Anna was the daughter of Ivan V of Russia, as well as the niece of Peter the Great...
sent Bilohradsky to Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
in the retinue of the ambassador Count Keyserlinck to perfect his lute playing under the tutelage of Silvius Leopold Weiss - the most important lutenist-composer of the 18th century. He also studied voice with Faustina Bordoni
Faustina Bordoni
Faustina Bordoni was an Italian mezzo-soprano.-Early career:She was born in Venice and brought up under the protection of the aristocratic brother composers Alessandro and Benedetto Marcello. Her singing teacher was another composer, Michelangelo Gasparini...
-Hasse, and castrato
Castrato
A castrato is a man with a singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto voice produced either by castration of the singer before puberty or one who, because of an endocrinological condition, never reaches sexual maturity.Castration before puberty prevents a boy's...
Domenico Annibali
Domenico Annibali
Domenico Annibali was an Italian castrato who had an active international career from 1725-1764. He began his career in his native country and was then committed to the Grosses Königliches Opernhaus in Dresden from 1729 until his retirement from the stage 35 years later...
. Bilohradsky eventually became one of the highest trained musicians in the Russian Court Capella.
In 1739 Bilohradsky returned to St Petersburg, where he continued to work as a court musician. In 1741 he returned to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
where he became known as a virtuoso lutenist and singer and for some time lived in Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
where he had a number of students - notably Johann Reichardt (father of Johann Friedrich Reichardt
Johann Friedrich Reichardt
Johann Friedrich Reichardt was a German composer, writer and music critic.-Early life:Reichardt was born in Königsberg, East Prussia, to lutenist and Stadtmusiker Johann Reichardt . Johann Friedrich began his musical training, in violin, keyboard, and lute, as a child...
), and Johann Georg Hamann
Johann Georg Hamann
Johann Georg Hamann was a noted German philosopher, a main proponent of the Sturm und Drang movement, and associated by historian of ideas Isaiah Berlin with the Counter-Enlightenment.-Biography:...
, the Sturm-und-Drang philosopher.
In his last years he lived in Petersburg. The "Moscow Weiss Manuscript" is ascribed to Bilohradsky or his circle. As a composer Bilohradsky is known for a set of songs and romances to the texts by Sumarokov that enjoyed considerable popularity in the 18th century.
His niece Yelizaveta Belogradskaya
Yelizaveta Belogradskaya
Yelizaveta Osipovna Belogradskaya was a Russian Imperial Court opera singer.She was born in St. Petersburg, the daughter of Osip Bilohradsky, a court singer and the niece of Timofiy Bilohradsky, a court lutenist...
became famous as an opera-singer at the Imperial St. Petersburg opera
Mariinsky Theatre
The Mariinsky Theatre is a historic theatre of opera and ballet in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Opened in 1860, it became the preeminent music theatre of late 19th century Russia, where many of the stage masterpieces of Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov received their premieres. The...
and was also known as a composer.