Russian Composer Research Articles

РОССИЙСКАЯ КОМПОЗИТОРСКАЯ ПЕДАГОГИКА И ВКЛАД Е. К. ГОЛУБЕВА

The article reveals for the first time the main historical stages in the formation of Russian composer’s pedagogy. The contribution of the first Russian conservatories in Saint Petersburg and Moscow to the development of music education is highlighted. A systematic analysis of Russian composition textbooks by M. F. Gnesin, O. A. Evlakhov, E. I. Messner, S. M. Slonimsky is carried out, and comparisons are made with Arnold Schoenberg’s Fundamentals of Musical Composition. The contribution to the education of creative youth made by one of the leading master teachers, Professor of the Moscow Conservatory Evgeny Kirillovich Golubev (1910–1988), a student and follower of N. Ya. Myaskovsky, is considered. Golubev’s recollections from his diary Alogisms are presented, revealing the composer’s aesthetic views and the essence of his pedagogical method. The article analyses the stylistic features of Golubev’s students, including G. Shantyr, T. Nikolaeva, A. Kholminov, A. Eshpai, T. Kuliev, G. Grigoryan, A. Schnittke, A. Isakova, K. Batashov, I. Krasilnikov, A. Golovin, A. Koblyakov, Y. Vorontsov and many others. E. K. Golubev, developing the traditions of his great predecessors — N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, N. Ya. Myaskovsky, S. I. Taneyev, S. S. Prokofiev and others, created one of the most significant schools of composition in Russia. The traditions of his school are being developed by new generations of musicians.

Хор как «вокальный оркестр» в творчестве современных российских композиторов

The article presents the first analytical description of a new trend in the development of contemporary Russian music — creation of compositions for solo instrument and choir as a "vocal orchestra". Analysis of 20th century works (A. Schoenberg, A. Lurie, L. Nono, D. Ligeti) allows the authors to conclude that there are general grounds for the emergence of the phenomenon of "vocal orchestra", and also to understand more deeply the originality of its embodiment in the works of modern Russian composers — A. Tchaikovsky, E. Podhaits, K. Bodrov. On the basis of the considered compositions of recent years, which have become a notable event in the concert life of our country — Concerto for choir and solo piano "Gloria", Concerto for domra and choir a cappella by K. Bodrov, A. Tchaikovsky's piece "Cherry Orchard" for domra and choir and E. Podgaits' "Prayer to the Virgin Mary" for accordion and choir — the authors come to the following conclusions: the phenomenon of the "vocal orchestra" in the understanding of modern Russian composers is primarily associated with the transfer of the functions of the orchestra to the choir in works of concert or concert-related genres. The work of prominent Russian musicians is also identified as a "catalyst" of the trend under study: Е. Mechetina (piano), E. Mochalova (domra) and M. Vlasova (accordion).

The role of "Hail" by M.I. Glinka in the music of the parades of the second half of the XX – beginning of the XXI century

The article is devoted to the study of the problems of adapting the works of the academic tradition to the conditions of military practice of the XX century. The creation of adapted versions of famous works of classical music by domestic and foreign composers intended for performance in conditions of military ceremonies, parade grounds concerts, festivals and competitions has significantly expanded the scope of the sphere of academic musical culture. The article focuses on the academic music of Russian composers in the repertoire of military orchestras. The subject of the work is E. P. Makarov's arrangement of the final chorus "Hail" from M. I. Glinka's opera "Life for the Tsar" ("Ivan Susanin"). The purpose of the work is to study the changes Makarov made to Glinka's work and their impact on the perception of "Glory" in the context of the 1945 Victory Day Parade. The study of the arrangements of the "Glory" choir, adapted to performance by military orchestras, required the use of general scientific and special methods. To study the materials related to the activities of Russian military musicians, the methods of source studies and textual criticism, cultural-historical and comparative were used. The scientific novelty of the work is determined by the fact that for the first time it provides a detailed comparative analysis of Glinka's scores and Makarov's processing, which made it possible to identify the principles of adapting works of academic music for performance in conditions of military rituals. The study of the issues raised in the study allows us to develop an original concept of the formation and development of the arranging activities of military conductors, considered in the context of the change of cultural paradigms of the XIX – early XXI century. In conclusion, the author notes that a comparative analysis of the scores of Glinka and Makarov showed that Makarov not only shortened the work, but also rethought it, creating a new musical form corresponding to the military ritual. As a result of these changes, "Hail" turned into a concise and dynamic march that became a symbol of patriotism and the strength of the Russian people.

Жанр фортепианного концерта в творчестве отечественных композиторов XX–XXI веков

The genre of piano concerto by Russian composers of the second half of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st centuries is considered in the aspect of embodying sacred themes. The compositions of A. Karamanov ("Concerto No. 3 'Ave Maria'", 1964), S. Gubaidulina ("Introitus", 1978), A. Lubchenko (chamber concerto "Prayer Song", 2006), and I. Sokolov (concerto, 2020) are analyzed. Conclusions are drawn regarding the general and individual characteristics of the works, their dramaturgy, hidden meanings, and the use of musical expressive means. The scientific novelty lies in the analysis of concertos by A. Lubchenko and I. Sokolov not previously presented in musicology.

ОПЕРА «ЗОЛОТОЙ ТЕЛЕНОК» Т. ХРЕННИКОВА: СТИЛЕВЫЕ И ЖАНРОВЫЕ ОСОБЕННОСТИ

The life and work of the famous Russian composer Tikhon Nikolayevich Khrennikov have always been in the mainstream of musicological research, which does not lose its relevance even nowadays. It seems impossible to add anything new to this list. However, this judgement is deceptive, as the opera The Golden Calf vividly reveals facets of the composer’s talent that have not been noted before. The comic vision of the artistic images in The Golden Calf speaks of Khrennikov’s love of life, which in its essence is the most modern problem of our time — the loss of joy and the prospect of a “happy tomorrow”. During his long life, the composer expressed his talent in almost all musical genres. Perhaps that is why the complexity of life is juicy in this work: comedy and tragedy, the richness and poverty of human emotions, their poignancy and nakedness. Tikhon Nikolaevich expressed through music the whole palette of bright, deliberate and memorable images, filled with humour and satire on the one hand, and grotesque on the other. A characteristic feature of a great artist is the ability to embrace many musical genres with his talent, which is fully demonstrated in T. N. Khrennikov’s opera The Golden Calf.

М. Вайнберг. «Детская тетрадь» № 2 ор. 19: Вопросы жанровой и стилевой преемственности

The article examines the cycle of preludes for piano by M. Weinberg "Children’s Notebook". The significance of this work in the composer’s oeuvre and its autobiographical nature are analyzed. Semantic and stylistic intersections of the composition with works by foreign and Russian composers of the 19th–20th centuries (Chopin, Schumann, Mussorgsky, and Shostakovich) are noted, as well as references to various genre prototypes. The compositional and dramaturgical principles of the cycle, as well as tonal and intonational features, are explored. Parallels are drawn between Weinberg’s composition and Mussorgsky’s vocal cycle "The Nursery", as well as Shostakovich’s "24 Preludes" op. 34. Previously, the cycle of preludes "Children’s Notebook" No. 2 by Weinberg has not been considered from a genre and stylistic perspective.

Boleslav L. Yavorsky’s Activities in Saratov: Following the Pages of the Archived Materials

The article is focused on analysis of the Saratov period of the academic and pedagogical activities of outstanding Russian musicologist Boleslav Leopoldovich Yavorsky. Based on the study of the archival documents preserved at the Saratov L. V. Sobinov Conservatory, this article dwells upon the music theorist’s stay in Saratov in 1916 and during the years 1941–1942. Our study is centered around two episodes of the scholar’s life: the first time Yavorsky became acquainted with the Saratov Conservatory (1916), where he arrived in the role of the chairman of the final examinations, as well as his scholarly and pedagogical activities during the years of the evacuation of the Moscow Conservatory to Saratov (1941–1942). During the period of evacuation, the theorist worked meticulously and fruitfully: he organized the Bach seminar and realized the large-scale scholarly project “Creative Thinking of Russian Composers from Glinka to Scriabin.” Mention is made of the immense aid of Sergei Vladimirovich Protopopov, Yavorsky’s friend and student, who collected his manuscripts and prepared them for publication after the scholar’s death (November 1942). They constitute the bases for the study of the spheres of Yavorsky’s academic and pedagogical activities, as well as for the comparative analysis of the typeset texts from the Saratov archive, on the one hand, and Yavorsky’s published articles and memoirs about him, on the other hand. The article demonstrates that the documents preserved in Saratov possess their own specific features, and in some cases demonstrate a significant divergence from the published texts. The article also dwells on the topicality of Yavorsky’s scholarly works for contemporary musicology.

MUSIC AND WORD IN THE CULTURAL DIALOGUE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND CHINA IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE 20th CENTURY: THE PERSPECTIVE OF PEDAGOGICAL HERMENEUTICS

The article is devoted to the cultural contacts between the Russian and Chinese traditions of the first half of the 20th century from the perspective of pedagogical hermeneutics, which contributes to understanding the mechanisms of mastering the chamber and vocal works of Russian composers in higher educational institutions of China as cultural texts capable of influencing students’ personalities and thereby determining the strategies of “understanding” education.

Особенности романсового творчества Цезаря Кюи

The article examines the features of style in the romance art of the Russian composer of the XIX century César Antonovich Cui. The analysis of important key points in the construction of his musical and artistic works is car-ried out. It is emphasized that C. Cui was partly a follower of the realistic trend in Russian music, the founder of which is considered to be A. Dargomyzhsky. The analysis of the form of romances and songs by C. Cui reveals the composer’s desire to unite music and lyrics, the meticulous process of creating natural-speech intonations in vocal parts with an obvious attraction to melodic, a song recitative without tendencies to ostentatious and diverting from the natural expression of singing cantilena. The peculiarity of C. Cui’s composing style deter-mines the merits of his musical creations, consisting in the beauty of intonation warehouse, elegance, originali-ty and harmony of vocal works.

EASTERN MOTIFS IN VIOLIN LITERATURE

Violin repertoires one of the brightestpages of music history. New playing techniques have been developed throughout the history of violin art, in addition to this, virtuoso violin works, which requirenew playing techniques, have emerged. These are violin sonatas, variations, concertos. These works are also dedicated to different motifs and themes. Among theexamples are A. Vivaldi’s Four Violin Concertos the four seasons, Paganini’s Prayer Variations from G. Rossini’s “Moses”, or the Violin Caprices about Hunting or War (No. 9, 14, 17) . In the violin literature, there are many works of world composers devoted to Eastern motifs. Since the Baroque period, composers began to apply these motifs. This tendency continued all the time and led to the formation of a wider repertoire. Great interest in Oriental music is growing from both European and Russian composers. Passion for the Orient W. A. Mozart’s “Die Entführung aus dem Serail”, C. Saint-Saens’ “Samson et Dalilah”, J. Bizet’s “Jamele”, N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Scheherazade”, Reinhold Glière’s “Shakh-Senem” and has been seen many other works. These motives considered asnot only in large genres, but also in works of small genres. In this context, romance, suite and other works for violin attract attention.
 In this study, it is aimed to examine the period and composer styles in popular works of the violin repertoire composed on Eastern motifs such as “Romanza Andaluza” by P. Sarasate, “Orientale” by C. Cui, “Baal Shem” by E. Bloch and “Tzigane” by M. Ravel. These works were examined in terms of harmonic structure.

Музыкальное искусство России начала ХХ века: Expansio

The essay is devoted to the consideration of such a phenomenon as the aggressiveness complex in the history of the Russian musical art of the early XX century. The author focuses on the peculiarities of formation and development of the phenomenon in question in I. Stravinsky’s, S. Prokofiev’s works. In particular, the manifestations of aggressiveness in Stravinsky’s ballet “The Rite of Spring” (1913) are analysed in detail. In addition, attention is paid to musical grotesque, which came into contact with the aggressiveness complex in certain manifestations, in the works of Russian composers of the early XX century. As a result, the author comes to the conclusion that it is important to note the mood of the early XX century itself, its tendency to such manifestations, which resulted from time to time in breakthroughs of open extremism: one of the missions of this century was to open the gateway to the flow of aggressiveness, negativism, rigidity and alienation. That is why it is necessary to reflect not so much on art as on reality itself, which put forward such phenomena that were reflected in the mirror of artistic creativity.

“Children’s Album” by P. I. Tchaikovsky and Its Musical Context

The “Children’s Album” by P. I. Tchaikovsky remains the most popular and beloved cycle in the repertoire of young musicians to this day. It is also performed by adult pianists, because the music of the pieces in the “Children’s Album” refl ects the unique style of the great Russian composer. Among the famous masters of piano art who performed the “Children’s Album” are outstanding Russian pianists Alexander Goldenweiser, Yakov Flier, Arkady Sevidov, Mikhail Pletnev, as well as American pianist of German origin Michael Ponti. In Russian, many works, popular and scientifi c, have been devoted to the analysis of the “Children’s Album”. Researchers refl ect on the internal structure of the collection, describe the history of its creation, and explain the content of the pieces in the “Children’s Album”. The article presents analytical notes about the editions of the collection and the context in which the composer himself immersed the pieces of the “Children’s Album”.

The Structure of the Children's Musical Narrative on the Example of V. Rebikov's Miniature "Lesson Preparation" Op. 37 No. 2

The subject of the study is the structure of children's musical narrative on the example of a miniature by a Russian composer, pianist, representative of musical modernism, musical reformer and writer Vladimir Ivanovich Rebikov (1866-1920) "Preparing a lesson" from the cycle "Pictures for Children" Op. 37. Narrative means the presence of a musical narrative structure, assuming the narrator's voice, plot, main character hero, chronotope. The analysis of these components will enable a comprehensive understanding of the concept of the composition. The aim of the work is to analyze the structure of the children's musical narrative through the prism of the perception and interpretation of musical text characteristic of the child's skills and abilities. The methods used in the work are : source studies, musical and stylistic analysis. The scientific novelty of the work consists in determining the features of the children's narrative in the musical art, lexical preferences defined by the children's picture of the world, which can include the character, title, remarks, design and musical "children's mistakes" expressed using syncopation, dynamics, fermated pauses, fermata, pedals, harmony, register and pitch; construction models of their description by referring to topos (figures); characteristics of the originality of the children's narrative in relation to piano performance. The results of the study reveal the specifics of the syntactic features of the children's narratives of Vladimir Rebikov's miniature and the representation of the viability of this phenomenon in the musical art.

TECHNICAL IMPROVEMENT OF PIANISTS USING THE “NOTEBOOK FOR THE YOUTH” BY RODION SHCHEDRIN

The paper deals with the original work of the Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin “Notebook for the Youth”. It is based on the analysis of technical problems facing teachers and students when learning this composition. A young pianist faces extraordinary tasks related to the peculiarities of the composer’s modern musical language, which gives rise to unusual technical difficulties. The paper is devoted to the ways to overcome them.

Formation of vocal and pedagogical traditions of the Saratov Conservatory in the context of the pedagogical views of M. E. Medvedev and A.M. Paskhalova

The article, based on archival data, as well as preserved testimonies of students, attempts to reconstruct the pedagogical views of M. E. Medvedev and A.M. Paskhalova, whose teaching activity was the basis for the subsequent formation of the vocal and pedagogical traditions of the Saratov Conservatory. The object of research here is the vocal and pedagogical traditions of the Saratov Conservatory, the subject is the pedagogical views of the professors of the initial period of activity of the educational institution under consideration - M. E. Medvedev and A.M. Paskhalova. The paper analyzes the book of the student M. E. Medvedev baritone S. Y. Levik "Notes of an opera singer", as well as the methodological work of A.M. Paskhalova "Work on the production of voice for the leaders of the Russian folk song choir". It is revealed that, despite the differences in some aspects of the vocalist's voice production (soundless exercises, scientific foundations of vocalist education, the use of vocalizations, etc.), the activities of M. E. Medvedev and A. M. Paskhalova is characterized by the following general provisions: a rather low type of breathing, increased attention to the development of a sense of sound support, a cautious attitude to the development of a full range of voice, the development of clear diction, evenness of sound studies, smoothness of register transitions; soft sound attack; the ability to vocalize various dynamic gradations of vocalization qualitatively; the use of a "concentric" teaching method in the pedagogical process, increased attention to the upbringing of the emotional and dramatic component of the performer's personality. The analysis also showed that the features distinguishing the pedagogical views of professors of the initial period of the Saratov Conservatory's activity can be attributed to the use of the repertoire of Russian composers in classroom work at the initial stage of training singers.

THE SPECIFICS OF MASTERING THE “TRADITIONAL” AND “NEW” FLUTE IN THE SPECIALTY CLASS (BASED ON THE WORKS BY S. PROKOFIEV AND S. GUBAIDULINA)

The article examines the ways to develop the expressive capabilities of the flute in the music of Russian composers of the 20th century and the specifics of mastering some of them in the specialty class. The practice of playing wind instruments in the 20th century has changed significantly. First of all, new performing techniques appeared and established. Those techniques were tested by composers mainly in solo compositions. For a considerable time, timbre served a subordinate function, being closely associated with melody and especially with harmony. In addition, the changes also affected the pedagogical principles of teaching flute. This was largely facilitated by the new views of composers on the instrument. In this regard, the author considered the works of S. Prokofiev as a representative of the traditional attitude towards the flute and S. Gubaidulina, a composer who was looking for new, experimental ways to develop performance on the flute. In addition, the author specifies the most significant techniques for mastering the artistic, expressive and technical features of the works considered by flute students in the specialty class.

Метаморфозы музыкального языка А. Т. Гречанинова 1910-х годов. Цикл фортепианных пьес «Пастели» ор. 61

The research aims to shed light on the metamorphoses of the musical language of the famous Russian composer A. T. Gretchaninov, active in the late XIX century – the first half of the XX century, which occurred in the 1910s. The paper pays special attention to the identification of the stylistic singularity of “Pastels” Op. 61 (1912-1913), a cycle of piano pieces. The scientific originality of the research is connected with the fact that A. T. Gretchaninov’s creative work has not been previously considered in the context of the changes that took place in the composer’s musical style in the 1910s. As a result, it has been revealed that the novelty of Gretchaninov’s musical language in the period under consideration was due to both changes in Russian art in general (in particular, the influence of impressionism on the composer’s work turned out to be significant) and crises in Alexander Tikhonovich’s personal and creative life. In particular, this trend can be traced in the history of creation of the cycle “Pastels”: during a difficult, critical period, Gretchaninov turned to composing music for children, in which he would find solace, but the piano pieces in the cycle turned out to be generally sad in an unchildlike way and psychologically saturated with deeply “adult” feelings and experiences.

Стратегии репрезентации русской литературной классики в романе Дж. Барнса «Шум времени»

The paper is devoted to the analysis of the novel “The Noise of Time” by Julian Barnes through the lens of Russian classical literature. The aim of the study is to determine the role of the Russian classical literature of the XIX century and the strategies of its representation in “The Noise of Time”. The novel unusually depicts biography of D. D. Shostakovich, Barnes’ favourite Russian composer. The work emphasises and describes the main characteristics of the English writer’s poetics, as well as the literary devices he employs: intertextuality, fragmentation, fabulation and irony. Main attention is paid to the analysis of the intertextual references to Russian literature in “The Noise of Time”. In the novel, the reader can discover references and quotations from the short stories “The Overcoat” and “The Nose” by N. V. Gogol, the article “Hamlet and Don Quixote” by I. S. Turgenev, the short story “A Letter to a Learned Neighbor” by A. P. Chekhov and others, which additionally shed light on the main character’s image. The originality of the study lies in identifying the specific role of Russian classical literature in the imaginary world of “The Noise of Time”. As a result, it has been demonstrated that Russian literature is presented in the novel as an important aspect of Russian culture, as well as world culture and has made a tremendous impact on Barnes’ creative life.

Великие музыканты рубежа XIX-ХХ веков в кафедральном соборе Ясс: Гавриил Музыческу

In the Romanian Orthodox Church, for many years, at the initiative of His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, each calendar year has been dedicated to a cultural, spiritual, social event or theological subject/segment of theological life. In this sense, the calendar year is intersected by scientific and cultural events organized by the Church, institutions of pre-university and university theological education. These manifestations are realized through symposiums and scientific congresses, concerts and the like. 2023 has been named the Year of Respect for the Pastor of the Aged. A memorable year for hymnographers and church singers (psalts). Without claiming to be exhaustive and taking into account the second part of the general theme, we propose to further highlight the great musical personality of Iasi of the 19th century, Gavriil Muzycescu. The article reveals three hypostases of his activity - a teacher, a choirmaster and a composer. The significant role of Gavriil Muzycescu in the development of Orthodox singing in Romania is noted, the stylistic features of the composer's spiritual chants are analyzed in conjunction with the traditions of the Russian composer school in the field of choral music, as well as their development. On the example of the concert chant "I will proclaim Your mercy", its design features and stylistic signs of belonging to the concert style are considered. It is suggested that the role of the composer in the development of the Orthodox singing tradition is underestimated.

The Polystylistics of Svyatoslav Lunyov’s Paraliturgical Music

Paraliturgical music is a sophisticated expression of the composer’s pure faith, acquired through knowledge of his craft in historical and technical progress. Many examples of sacred music have come down to us from the past, and most of them were in the territory of modern Ukraine, along with works by Russian composers that are still a priority in some churches. One way to rethink this topic is to study the work of Ukrainian composers, particularly in the context of paraliturgical music. One example is the work of contemporary Ukrainian composer Svyatoslav Lunyov. While many scholarly studies have been analyzing liturgical genres and music in the liturgy in various aspects, including canonical music and the work of S. Lunyov, the question of the place of the choral symphony “Strasna Sedmytsia” in the context of paraliturgical music remains unresolved. Due to its scientific novelty, the study of Lunyov’s choral symphony in the context of Ukrainian paraliturgical music became the subject of a special musical and cultural analysis for the first time. Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, the spiritual revival has become more and more important. The historical path of development of church culture, which was deliberately almost destroyed at the beginning of the last century, is being rehabilitated as a result of the establishment of church-state relations. Currently, sacred music is subject to very mixed opinions among scholars, composers, church leaders, philosophers, and people of different faiths. Music based on the canonical texts that form the basis of the church rite but interpreted by contemporary composers seems impossible to introduce into the service on an everyday level. Such music is defined as “paraliturgical.” Today, there are many different examples of music of this genre, as almost all academic composers turn to.