Mussorgsky's biography will be of interest to everyone who is not indifferent to his original music. The composer changed the course of development musical culture but its reached...
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25.06.2018 20:00Mussorgsky's biography will be of interest to everyone who is not indifferent to his original music. The composer changed the course of development of musical culture, but his achievements were not recognized during his lifetime, as often happens with geniuses who are ahead of their time. Mussorgsky's operas "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina" are recognized masterpieces today, and his compositions for vocal and piano are proudly performed by the world's best musicians.
Short biography of Modest Mussorgsky
The composer was born on March 21, 1839 in the village. Karevo, which is located in the Pskov province. The biography of Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky might not have been so successful, but his father was a representative of the ancient noble family, so that the way was immediately opened for the boy in elite. Until the age of ten, the future celebrity was taught at home, and in 1849 was sent to the Petrishule school - one of the oldest and best educational institutions in St. Petersburg. Without graduating from it, in 1852 Modest transferred to the School of Guards ensigns - a privileged military school, within the walls of which many outstanding figures of Russia were brought up.
One of the teachers of the School, Father Krupsky, recognized the talent and taught Mussorgsky to understand the deep essence of church music. In 1856, the young man's education came to an end. After graduating from the School, Modest served for some time in the Life Guards, then in the engineering department, and after that in the Ministry of State Property, which was in charge of state lands, and also in state control.
"Mighty bunch"
In the 60s, Modest Petrovich became a member of the "Mighty Handful" - a community of outstanding composers of St. Petersburg. By this time, the young man managed to become a well-educated and erudite Russian officer, spoke French and German fluently, understood Greek and Latin.
Mily Alekseevich Balakirev, who was only two years older than Modest and was the founder of the "Mighty Handful", forced the young composer to devote more time to music. He played important role in the biography of Mussorgsky. Mily Alekseevich personally supervised the reading of orchestral scores, taught to analyze the harmony and form of the works of the world's greatest composers, and tried to develop critical thinking skills. Until 1871, the master did not create a single major musical composition. This period of the biography of Modest Mussorgsky was not marked by any significant achievement. The composer wrote small songs and romances, but failed to complete a single opera, although he repeatedly made attempts.
First major success
The first major work was the opera "Boris Godunov", created on the basis of the work of A.S. Pushkin. In 1870, the composer submitted the materials of the opera to the directorate of the Imperial Theaters, but was refused without explanation. However, one of Mussorgsky's friends was a member of the directorate's committee and informed the author that the opera was rejected due to the lack of the so-called "female element". Modest Petrovich finalized the work, and in 1874 its first grandiose premiere took place on the stage of the St. Mariinsky Theater.
Biography of Mussorgsky: the last years of his life
In the 1870s, the collapse of the famous "Mighty Handful" was outlined. The difference in views on music and its development has led to the fact that society has almost disintegrated and transformed. Modest Petrovich painfully experienced this event, considered the other members to be musical conformists, cowardly and hopeless, who had betrayed the great Russian idea. Mussorgsky believed that other composers were short-sighted, that they did not create anything of value, nothing new, but only rewrote what had already been created and voiced a long time ago.
A dark period has come in the biography of Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky. His work invariably met with misunderstanding by critics, viewers and officials. The composer's works were everywhere met with rejection. However, the most painful for the author was the rejection of his bold ideas by close friends - members of the "Mighty Handful" Rimsky-Korsakov, Cui, Balakirev. The stubborn author could not believe that he was wrong everywhere. It hurt him to be different sides barricades with friends.
Experiences, constant rejections and rejection led to a nervous breakdown and alcoholism, but the composer continued to create even in this state. He never took notes, did not write drafts, carefully considered all ideas, and then wrote down a completely finished work. This method of work, combined with an unstable mental state and constant drunkenness, led to a slow pace of work.
In a brief biography of Mussorgsky, it should be mentioned that he resigned from the "forest department" and lost a stable income. After that, the composer lived on occasional one-time earnings and the help of wealthier friends. His girlfriend, singer D. M. Leonova, took Modest Petrovich with her on tour in the southern regions. Mussorgsky acted as an accompanist, and also performed own works. His bold, harmonious improvisation was to the taste of the audience, and the concerts were always a success. The composer realized that his innovative view of music was finally recognized.
Last performance
The last public concert in the biography of M. Mussorgsky took place on February 4, 1881. An evening in memory of Dostoevsky was held in St. Petersburg, where Modest Petrovich performed on a par with other musicians. A portrait of the writer was installed on the stage, the composer took a seat at the piano and performed an impromptu mourning chime of bells. Those present were struck by the depth of his grief.
On February 13, Modest Petrovich had an attack of delirium tremens, and he was urgently hospitalized. Already in the hospital, the master was visited by Ilya Repin and painted the only lifetime portrait brilliant composer. A month later, Mussorgsky's heart stopped forever. He was buried on the territory of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.
Creation
Mussorgsky's biography consists of ups and downs. His original, original understanding of music was not understood by his contemporaries, but his descendants considered him a genius. Modest Petrovich rejected the routine, did not recognize the authorities, ignored the rules, considering them only a collection of archaisms. Throughout his life, the author strove for novelty. The main specialization of the composer is vocal music. With the help of sound, the author was able to give weight to the words, the necessary emotion and touch the listener to the depth.
However, Modest Petrovich achieved the most significant success in the field of opera. He created a special kind of this genre, which he called "musical drama". During this period, romantic operatic aesthetics were popular, but Mussorgsky completely rejected the existing canons. With the help of specific musical methods, he created a tragic collision, which he embodied in the work "Boris Godunov". Critics reacted unkindly to the author's innovative ideas, calling the libretto unsuccessful and the music rough. Even close friends, members of the "Mighty Handful" considered Mussorgsky inexperienced, noted the absence storyline and lack of character development. The music of Modest Petrovich received recognition only after the death of the author.
Most famous works:
- opera "Boris Godunov";
- opera "Khovanshchina";
- opera "Sorochinsky Fair";
- song "Where are you, little star?";
- romance "I have many houses and gardens";
- romance "What are the words of love to you";
- lullaby "Sleep, sleep, peasant son."
When describing a brief biography of Mussorgsky, one cannot fail to note an interesting fact from the life of an outstanding composer. Although the author did not create literary works, his outstanding literary skill was manifested in letters, which were subsequently published as a separate book.
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The content of the article
MUSSORGSKY, MODEST PETROVICH(1839–1881), Russian composer. Born on March 9 (21), 1839 in the village of Karevo, Toropetsky district, Pskov province. Mussorgsky early showed musical abilities, from 1849 to 1854 he studied with the famous pianist and teacher A.A. Gerke. However, following the family tradition, in 1852 he entered the St. Petersburg School of Guards ensigns and cavalry cadets, from which he graduated in 1856. Having become an officer of the guard, he gained fame as a talented amateur musician - pianist and composer; soon Mussorgsky met M.A. Balakirev, later the head of the New Russian music school(“The Mighty Handful”), and began to take composition lessons from him (these classes, however, were not systematic). In 1858 Mussorgsky retired to devote himself entirely to music. Soon his first compositions were publicly performed in St. Petersburg: a scherzo in B-flat major (composed in 1858, performed under the baton of Anton Rubinstein in 1860) and a choir from the tragedy Oedipus Rex Sophocles (composed in 1859, performed in 1861). The ruin of the family, caused by the reform of 1861, forced Mussorgsky to enter the civil service (from 1863 to 1867 - in the Engineering Department, from 1869 to 1880 - in the Forest Department and State Control). Nevertheless, already during the 1860s, a number of his outstanding works appeared - wonderful songs and romances for voice and piano; orchestral pieces, including Midsummer Night on Bald Mountain(1867; better known in the edition and instrumentation of Rimsky-Korsakov under the title Night on Bald Mountain); scenes from two operas - a "big" romantic opera Salambo after Flaubert (1863–1864) and realistic experimental chamber opera Marriage according to Gogol (1868). Mussorgsky's next major work, completed in 1869, was seven scenes based on Pushkin's tragedy. Boris Godunov, in which two trends intertwine and interact: relatively speaking, lyrical-romantic and naturalistic (from the "natural" school that dominated the literature of that time). This first edition Boris Godunov was rejected by the imperial stage, which prompted Mussorgsky to radically remake the opera, introducing into it a whole "Polish" act and new ending- a popular revolt ("Under the Kroms"), as well as to change other scenes in many ways. Second edition Boris Godunov(1872) was staged at the Mariinsky Theater on February 8, 1874.
Between the creation of the first and second editions Boris Mussorgsky wrote his first vocal cycle Children's(1868–1872); later two other cycles appeared: Without the sun in 1874 and Songs and dances of death in 1875–1877. Even before the premiere Boris he began work on the second historical musical drama - Khovanshchina, which he continued to compose until 1880 (with interruptions). Since 1876 (and according to some sources - earlier) he also took up the comic opera Sorochinskaya Fair according to Gogol, which he wrote in fits and starts. Since the mid-1870s, his addiction to alcohol had an increasingly destructive influence on the composer, and the only major work, apart from the vocal cycles, that he managed to complete during this period was the piano suite Pictures from the exhibition(1874; also widely known in the orchestration of Ravel), inspired by the drawings and watercolors of Mussorgsky's friend, the artist V.A. Hartmann.
Mussorgsky was not fired from service only thanks to the patronage of his boss in the State Audit Office, a major official and a great connoisseur folk songs T.I. Filippov, however, in 1880 he was forced to leave his post and during the last 14 months of his life he existed at the expense of Filippov and other admirers of his talent. He also worked as an accompanist and teacher. musical theory at private singing courses of his friend - Daria Leonova. In February 1881, after an attack of delirium tremens, he was placed in a St. Petersburg military hospital (where, by the way, I.E. Repin painted the famous portrait of the composer).
Critical Assessment.
During the life of Mussorgsky, only part of his legacy was published - Boris Godunov and a few vocal works; other things remained unpublished, and two operas remained unfinished. Rimsky-Korsakov, an old friend of Mussorgsky's, voluntarily took upon himself the responsibility of putting in order and publishing all of Mussorgsky's works. However, while completing and orchestrating the unfinished material, Rimsky-Korsakov made many changes in the melodic and harmonic order in the works completed by the author. This also affected Boris Godunov, in which Rimsky-Korsakov made a number of changes, reductions, relocations, and also completely re-instrumented the opera. It should be recognized that this opera first won Russian and then world fame in the edition of Rimsky-Korsakov, and only in the mid-1920s did a major Russian textual critic P.A. Lamm publish the author's score. Boris and proceeded to publish the collected works of Mussorgsky in original editions (it remained unfinished).
Rimsky-Korsakov's goal was above all to give a professionally impeccable appearance to Mussorgsky's sharply original and often clumsy, from the usual point of view, manner. But now such an intention seems to be at least controversial, since, for example, Mussorgsky's "empirical" harmony is much more expressive than Rimsky-Korsakov's more academic version. Mussorgsky's ideal, like many other Russian artists and writers of the 1860s, was not harmony of form, but the truth of life. The best of the composer's songs, the best pages of his operas, are scenes directly observed in reality and then embodied in music with amazing originality and persuasiveness. A living stream flows into the works of Mussorgsky with lyrics coming from folk songwriting: in the song the composer saw the most important element national identity. Creating a masterpiece - opera Boris Godunov, where Mussorgsky's style reaches a harmonious balance, the composer's remarkable dramatic flair contributed a lot. Folk songs become even more important in the compositions of the next period, especially in the opera Khovanshchina.
Mussorgsky, the brightest representative of the Russian "Five" - "Mighty Handful", was among his comrades and the most ardent patriot. He knew and loved folk art and sought to create a work imbued with the Russian spirit, embodying the features national character. He widely used typical folklore modes, “empty” chords and unisons characteristic of the old peasant song polyphony; his metrically free, melodious recitative also has a source of folk speech and folklore narrative genres. Mussorgsky's opera orchestra, with great expressiveness, is quite ascetic and completely subordinate to the vocal parts. In his editorial Boris Rimsky-Korsakov sacrificed to brilliant instrumentation the flexibility and variety of correlations between voices and the orchestra, which form a kind of timbre blocks in the original score. The clavier of the second edition of the opera was published in 1874, in 1928 the clavier and score became available, combining the first and second author's editions; today in the composition Complete Works composer, each edition is published separately (in the form of both clavier and score).
Mussorgsky's work is clearly nationally expressed, which is reflected in the harmonious and melodic features of his music, appeal to Russian folklore and national subjects. In his well-known operas - "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina", the composer managed to show the horizon previously unknown in the history of music in terms of the depth of the disclosure of the image of the common people.
1. Life and work
Mussorgsky - cadet of the Preobrazhensky Regiment
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky was born on March 9, 1839 on the estate of his father, a poor landowner, in the village of Karevo, Toropetsky district (now Kuninsky district) in the Pskov region, died on March 16 in St. Petersburg), Russian composer, member of the Mighty Handful. He spent his childhood on the estate of his parents, from the age of six Mussorgsky began to study music under the guidance of his mother. In his autobiography, Mussorgsky wrote:
Modest (right) and his brother Philaret (left) in 1858
2. List of works
2.1. operas
- "Salambo" (based on the novel by G. Flaubert, 1863-1866, not finished)
- "Marriage" ("Marriage") (to the text of the comedy by N. V. Gogol, 1st act, 1868; completed and orchestrated by M. M. Ippolitov-Ivanov, staged in 1931, radio theater, Moscow)
- "Sorochinsky Fair" (according to the novel by Gogol, 1874-80, completed by Ts. A. Cui, 1916, post. 1917, Theater of Musical Drama, Petrograd; edited by V. Ya. Shebalin, 1931, Maly opera theater, Leningrad; in red. P. A. Lamm and Shebalina, 1932, Mus. tr im. V. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko, Moscow, also 1952, Branch of the Bolshoi Theater, Moscow)
2.2. Works for orchestra
- scherzo in B flat major (1858)
- Alla marcia notturna (1861)
- Symphony in D major: Andante, Scherzo, and Finale (1861-1862)
- "Midsummer Night on Bald Mountain" (1867)
- Symphonic intermezzo in the classical spirit (1867)
- "Solemn March: The Capture of Kars? (1880)
2.3. Works for piano
2.4. Works for choir
- Original version (1867)
- revised version (1874)
- "Jesus Nun" (Alto/Bass/Chorus/piano) (1874-77)
- 3 Vocalises (Women's choir for 3 parts) (1880)
- 5 Russian Folk Songs (Male choir, 4 parts) (1880)
2.5. romances
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Biography
Following that, Mussorgsky wrote several romances and set to work on the music for Sophocles' tragedy Oedipus; latest work was not completed, and only one choir from the music to Oedipus, performed in the concert by K. N. Lyadov in 1861, was published among posthumous works composer. Mussorgsky first chose Flaubert's novel Salammbo for opera adaptation, but soon left this work unfinished, as well as an attempt to write music for the plot of Gogol's The Marriage.
Mussorgsky's fame was brought by the opera Boris Godunov, staged at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg in the city and immediately recognized as an outstanding work in some musical circles. This was already the second version of the opera, significantly changed dramaturgically after the repertory committee of the theater rejected its first version for being "unscenic". Over the next 10 years, "Boris Godunov" was given 15 times and then removed from the repertoire. Only at the end of November, Boris Godunov saw the light again - but already in the edition, redone by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, who "corrected" and re-instrumented the entire "Boris Godunov" at his discretion. This is how the opera was staged. Great Hall Musical Society (new building of the Conservatory) with the participation of members of the "Society of Musical Meetings". Firm Bessel and Co. in St. Petersburg. by this time had released a new clavier of Boris Godunov, in the preface to which Rimsky-Korsakov explains that the reasons that prompted him to undertake this alteration were the supposedly “bad texture” and “poor orchestration” of the author’s version of Mussorgsky himself. In Moscow, "Boris Godunov" was staged for the first time at the Bolshoi Theater in the city. In our time, interest in the author's editions of "Boris Godunov" is being revived.
Portrait by Repin
In 1875, Mussorgsky began the dramatic opera (“folk musical drama”) “Khovanshchina” (according to the plan of V.V. Stasov), while simultaneously working on a comic opera based on the plot of Gogol’s “Sorochinsky Fair”. Mussorgsky almost managed to finish the music and text of Khovanshchina - but, with the exception of two fragments, the opera was not instrumented; the latter was done by N. Rimsky-Korsakov, who at the same time finished Khovanshchina (again, with his own adaptations) and adapted it for the stage. The firm Bessel & Co. published the score of the opera and the clavier (g.). "Khovanshchina" was performed on the stage of the St. Petersburg Music and Drama Circle in the city, under the direction of S. Yu. Goldstein; on the stage of the Kononovsky Hall - in the city, by a private opera partnership; at Setov, in Kyiv, in the city. In 1960, the Soviet composer Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich made his own version of the opera Khovanshchina, in which Mussorgsky's opera is now being staged all over the world.
For the Sorochinsky Fair, Mussorgsky managed to compose the first two acts, as well as for the third act: The Dream of the Parubka (where he used a reworking of his symphonic fantasy Night on Bald Mountain, made for the still unrealized teamwork- opera-ballet "Mlada"), Dumku Parasi and Gopak. The opera is staged in the editorial outstanding musician Vissarion Yakovlevich Shebalin.
Mussorgsky was an unusually impressionable, enthusiastic, soft-hearted and vulnerable person. For all his external compliance and pliability, he was extremely firm in everything that concerned his creative convictions. Addiction to alcohol, which progressed strongly in the last decade of his life, acquired a destructive character for Mussorgsky's health, his life and the intensity of his work. As a result, after a series of failures in the service and the final dismissal from the ministry, Mussorgsky was forced to live on odd jobs and thanks to the support of friends.
Creativity belongs to a group of musical figures who strove - on the one hand - for formalized realism, on the other hand - for a colorful and poetic disclosure of words, texts and moods through music, flexibly following them. Mussorgsky's national thinking, as a composer, also shows through in his ability to handle folk song, and in the very warehouse of his music, in its melodic, harmonic and rhythmic features, and finally - in the choice of subjects, mainly from Russian life. Mussorgsky is a hater of routine, for him there are no authorities in music; he paid little attention to the rules of musical grammar, seeing in them not the provisions of science, but only a collection of composing techniques of previous eras. Mussorgsky everywhere gave himself up to his ardent fantasy, everywhere he strove for novelty. Humorous music generally succeeded Mussorgsky, and in this genre he is diverse, witty and resourceful; one has only to recall his fairy tale about the "Goat", the story of the "Seminarian" pounding Latin, in love with the priest's daughter, "Picking Mushrooms" (May's text), "Feast".
Mussorgsky rarely dwells on "pure" lyrical themes, and they are not always given to him (his best lyrical romances are "Night", to the words of Pushkin, and "Jewish Melody", to the words of May); on the other hand, Mussorgsky's work is widely manifested in those cases when he turns to Russian peasant life. The following songs of Mussorgsky are noted for their rich coloring: "Kalistrat", "Lullaby of Eremushka" (words by Nekrasov), "Sleep, sleep, peasant son" (from Ostrovsky's "Voevoda"), "Gopak" (from "Shevchenko's Gaidamaks"), "Svetik Savishna "And" Mischievous "(both the latter - to the words of Mussorgsky himself) and many others. others; Mussorgsky very successfully found here a truthful and deeply dramatic musical expression for that heavy, hopeless grief that is hidden under the external humor of the lyrics.
A strong impression is made by the expressive recitation of the songs "Orphan" and "Forgotten" (on the plot famous painting V. V. Vereshchagin).
In such a seemingly narrow field of music as "romances and songs", Mussorgsky was able to find completely new, original tasks, and at the same time apply new unique techniques for their implementation, which was vividly expressed in his vocal paintings from childhood life, under under the general title “Children’s” (text by Mussorgsky himself), in 4 romances under the general title “Songs and Dances of Death” ( -; words by Golenishchev-Kutuzov; “Trepak” is a picture of a tipsy peasant freezing in a forest, in a snowstorm; “Lullaby "draws a mother at the bedside of a dying child; the other two: "Serenade" and "Commander"; all are very colorful and dramatic), in "King Saul" (for a male voice with piano accompaniment; text by Mussorgsky himself), in "The Defeat of Sennacherib" ( for choir and orchestra; words by Byron), in Joshua, successfully built on the original. Jewish topics.
Mussorgsky's specialty is vocal music. He is an exemplary reciter, grasping the slightest bends of the word; in his works, he often gives a wide place to the monologue-recitative warehouse of presentation. Akin to Dargomyzhsky in terms of his talent, Mussorgsky shares his views on musical drama inspired by Dargomyzhsky's opera The Stone Guest. However, unlike Dargomyzhsky, in his mature compositions Mussorgsky overcomes the pure "illustrativeness" of the music passively following the text, which is characteristic of this opera.
"Boris Godunov" by Mussorgsky, written based on the drama of the same name by Pushkin (and also under the great influence of Karamzin's interpretation of this plot), is one of the best works world musical theater, whose musical language and dramaturgy already belong to a new genre that took shape in the 19th century in various countries - to the genre of musical stage drama, on the one hand, breaking with many routine conventions of the then traditional opera theater, on the other hand, striving to reveal dramatic action in primarily through musical means. At the same time, both author's editions of "Boris Godunov" (1869 and 1874), differing significantly from each other in terms of dramaturgy, are essentially two equivalent author's solutions to the same plot. Especially innovative for its time was the first edition (which was not staged until the middle of the 20th century), which was very different from the then-dominated routine opera canons. That is why, during the years of Mussorgsky's life, the opinion prevailed that his "Boris Godunov" was distinguished by an "unsuccessful libretto", "many rough edges and blunders."
Such prejudices were in many respects characteristic primarily of Rimsky-Korsakov, who claimed that Mussorgsky was inexperienced in instrumentation, although it was sometimes not without color and a successful variety of orchestral colors. This opinion was typical for Soviet textbooks. musical literature. In reality, Mussorgsky's orchestral writing simply did not fit into the canvas that suited Rimsky-Korsakov in the main. Such a lack of understanding of orchestral thinking and Mussorgsky's style (to which he, indeed, came almost self-taught) was due to the fact that the latter was strikingly unlike the lushly decorative aesthetics of orchestral presentation, characteristic of the second half of XIX century - and, especially, Rimsky-Korsakov himself. Unfortunately, the belief cultivated by him (and his followers) about supposedly “shortcomings” musical style Mussorgsky for a long time - almost a century ahead - began to dominate the academic tradition of Russian music.
Even more skeptical attitude of colleagues and contemporaries touched Mussorgsky's next musical drama - the opera "Khovanshchina" on the theme of historical events in Russia at the end of the 17th century (split and streltsy revolt), written by Mussorgsky on his own script and text. He wrote this work with long breaks, and by the time of his death it remained unfinished (among the existing editions of the opera, performed by other composers, the orchestration by Shostakovich and the completion of the last act of the opera, made by Stravinsky, can be considered the closest to the original). Unusual and the idea of this work, and its scale. Compared to Boris Godunov, Khovanshchina is not just a drama of one historical person(through which the philosophical themes of power, crime, conscience and retribution are revealed), but already a kind of “impersonal” historiosophical drama in which, in the absence of a pronounced “central” character (characteristic of the standard operatic dramaturgy of that time), whole layers of folk life and the theme of the spiritual tragedy of the entire people, which takes place during the destruction of its traditional historical and way of life, is raised. To emphasize this genre feature opera "Khovanshchina", Mussorgsky gave it the subtitle "folk musical drama".
Both Mussorgsky's musical dramas won a relatively quick worldwide recognition after the death of the composer, and to this day they are among the most frequently performed works Russian music (their international success was greatly facilitated by the admiring attitude of such composers as Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky - as well as the entrepreneurial activity of Sergei Diaghilev, who staged them for the first time abroad at the beginning of the 20th century in his Russian Seasons in Paris). Nowadays, most of the world's opera houses strive to stage both Mussorgsky's operas in urtext editions that are as close as possible to the author's. At the same time, in different theaters there are different author's editions of Boris Godunov (either the first or the second).
Mussorgsky had little inclination towards music in "finished" forms (symphonic, chamber, etc.). Of Mussorgsky's orchestral works, in addition to those already mentioned, the Intermezzo (composed in , instrumented in ) deserves attention, built on a theme reminiscent of music XVIII century, and published among Mussorgsky's posthumous works, with Rimsky-Korsakov's instrumentation. The orchestral fantasy "Night on Bald Mountain" (the material of which was subsequently included in the opera "Sorochinsky Fair") was also completed and instrumented by N. Rimsky-Korsakov and performed with great success in St. Petersburg; this is a brightly colorful picture of the "coven of the spirits of darkness" and "the magnificence of Chernobog."
Another outstanding work of Mussorgsky is Pictures at an Exhibition, written for piano in 1874, as musical illustrations-episodes for watercolors by V. A. Hartmann. The form of this work is a “through” suite-rondo with sections soldered together, where the main theme-refrain (“Promenade”) expresses the change of moods when walking from one picture to another, and the episodes between this theme are the very images of the paintings in question. This work has repeatedly inspired other composers to create its orchestral editions, the most famous of which belongs to Maurice Ravel (one of Mussorgsky's most staunch admirers).
In the 19th century, Mussorgsky's works were published by the firm V. Bessel and Co. in St. Petersburg; much was also published in Leipzig by the firm of MP Belyaev. In the 20th century, urtext editions of Mussorgsky's works in original versions began to appear, based on a thorough study of the original sources. The pioneer of such activity was the Russian musicologist P. Ya. Lamm, who for the first time published the urtext claviers Boris Godunov and Khovanshchina, the author's editions of all Mussorgsky's vocal and piano works.
The works of Mussorgsky, in many respects anticipating new era, had a huge impact on composers of the 20th century. The attitude to the musical fabric as an expressive extension of human speech and the coloristic nature of its harmonic language played an important role in the formation of the "impressionistic" style of C. Debussy and M. Ravel (by their own admission), Mussorgsky's style, dramaturgy and imagery greatly influenced creativity L. Janachek, I. Stravinsky, D. Shostakovich (characteristically, they are all composers Slavic culture), A. Berg (the dramaturgy of his opera "Wozzeck" on the principle of "scene-fragment" is very close to "Boris Godunov"), O. Messiaen and many others.
Major works
- "Boris Godunov" (1869, 2nd edition 1872)
- "Khovanshchina" (1872-80, completed by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, 1883)
- "Kalistrat",
- "Orphan"
- "Sorochinsky Fair" (1874-80, completed by Ts. A. Cui, 1916),
- satirical romances "Seminarian" and "Classic" (1870)
- vocal cycle "Children's" (1872),
- piano cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition" (1874),
- vocal cycle "Without the Sun" (1874),
- vocal cycle "Songs and Dances of Death" (1877)
- symphonic poem "Night on Bald Mountain"
Memory
Monument at the grave of Mussorgsky
Streets named after Mussorgsky in cities
Monuments to Mussorgsky in cities
- Karevo village
Other objects
- Ural State Conservatory in Yekaterinburg.
- Opera and ballet theater in St. Petersburg.
- Musical school in St. Petersburg.
see also
Bibliography
Antonina Vasilyeva. Russian labyrinth. Biography of M. P. Mussorgsky. Pskov regional printing house, 2008.
- Roerich N. K. Mussorgsky // Artists of Life. - Moscow: International Center of the Roerichs, 1993. - 88 p.
- V. V. Stasov, article in Vestnik Evropy (May and June).
- V. V. Stasov, "Perov and M." (“Russian Antiquity”, 1883, vol. XXXVIII, pp. 433-458);
- V. V. Stasov, "M. P. Mussorgsky. In memory of him ("Histor. Vestn.", 1886, March); his own, "In Memory of M." (St. Petersburg, 1885);
- V. Baskin, “M. P. M. Biographical. essay "(" Russ. Thought ", 1884, books 9 and 10; separately, M., 1887);
- S. Kruglikov, "M. and his" Boris Godunov ("Artist", 1890, No. 5);
- P. Trifonov, “Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky” (“Vestn. Evropy”, 1893, Dec.).
- Tumanina N., M. P. Mussorgsky, M. - L., 1939;
- Asafiev B.V., Izbr. works, vol. 3, M., 1954;
- Orlova A., Works and days of MP Mussorgsky. Chronicle of life and creativity, M., 1963
- Khubov G., Mussorgsky, M., 1969.
- Shlifshtein S. Mussorgsky. Painter. Time. Fate. M., 1975
- Rakhmanova M. Mussorgsky and his time. - Soviet music, 1980, No. 9-10
- MP Mussorgsky in the memoirs of his contemporaries. M., 1989
Links
- Mussorgsky Modest A site about Mussorgsky.
- Mussorgsky Modest A site about the life and work of the Russian composer.
- Mussorgsky Modest Creative portrait at Belcanto.Ru.
The ideas and thoughts of M. P. Mussorgsky (1839-1881), a brilliant self-taught composer, were ahead of their time in many ways and paved the way musical art XX century. In this article we will try to most fully characterize the list of works by Mussorgsky. Everything written by the composer, who considered himself a follower of A. S. Dargomyzhsky, but went further, is distinguished by a deep penetration into the psychology of not only a single person, but also the masses of the people. Like all members of the "Mighty Handful", Modest Petrovich was inspired by the national direction in his activities.
vocal music
Mussorgsky's list of works of this genre covers three types of moods:
- Lyrical in early compositions and turning into lyrical-tragic in later compositions. The cycle “Without the Sun”, created in 1874, becomes the peak.
- "People's Pictures". These are scenes and sketches from the life of peasants (“Lullaby to Eremushka”, “Svetik Savishna”, “Kalistrat”, “Orphan”). Their culmination will be "Trepak" and "Forgotten" (cycle "Dance of Death").
- social satire. These include the romances "Goat", "Seminarian", "Classic", created during the 1860s of the next decade. The suite "Rayok", which embodied a gallery of satyrs, becomes the pinnacle.
The list separately includes the vocal cycle "Children's" and "Songs and Dances of Death", created in his own words in 1872, in which everything is filled with tragic moods.
In the ballad “The Forgotten One”, inspired by a painting by V.V. Vereshchagin, which was later destroyed by the artist, the composer and the author of the text contrasted the image of a soldier lying on the battlefield and the gentle melody of a lullaby that a peasant woman sings to her son, promising a meeting with his father. But her child will never see him.
"Flea" from Goethe was performed brilliantly and always as an encore by Fyodor Chaliapin.
Means of musical expression
M. Mussorgsky updated the entire musical language, taking recitative and peasant songs as a basis. His harmonies are quite unusual. They correspond to new feelings. They are dictated by the development of experience and mood.
operas
It is impossible not to include his operatic work in the list of Mussorgsky's works. For 42 years of his life, he managed to write only three operas, but what! "Boris Godunov", "Khovanshchina" and "Sorochinsky Fair". In them, he boldly combines tragic and comic features, which is reminiscent of the works of Shakespeare. The image of the people is the fundamental principle. In addition, each character is given personal traits. Most of all, the composer is worried about his native country during times of unrest and upheaval.
In "Boris Godunov" the country is on the verge of Troubles. It reflects the relationship between the king and the people as a single person, who is animated by one idea. The composer wrote the folk drama "Khovanshchina" according to his own libretto. In it, the composer was interested in the Streltsy rebellion and the church schism. But he did not have time to orchestrate it and died. Finished orchestrated by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. The role of Dositheus at the Mariinsky Theater was played by F. Chaliapin. It doesn't have the usual main characters. Society is not opposed to the individual. Power is in the hands of one or the other character. It recreates episodes of the struggle of the old reactionary world against the reforms of Peter the Great.
"Pictures at an Exhibition"
Creativity for pianoforte is presented by the composer in one cycle, created in 1874. "Pictures at an Exhibition" is a unique work. This is a suite of ten different pieces. Being a virtuoso pianist, M. Mussorgsky took advantage of all the expressive possibilities of the instrument. These musical works by Mussorgsky are so bright and virtuoso that they amaze with their "orchestral" sound. Six pieces under the general title "The Walk" are written in the key of B-flat major. The rest are in B minor. By the way, they were often arranged for the orchestra. M. Ravel did it best of all. The composer's vocal motifs with their recitativeness, songliness and declamatory nature organically entered this work of M. Mussorgsky.
Symphonic creativity
Modest Mussorgsky creates a number of musical works in this area. The most important is Ivan's Night on Bald Mountain. Continuing the theme of G. Berlioz, the composer depicted a coven of witches.
He was the first to show evil fantastic pictures to Russia. The main thing for him was maximum expressiveness with a minimum of means used. Contemporaries did not understand the novelty, but mistook it for the ineptness of the author.
In conclusion, we must name the most famous works of Mussorgsky. In principle, we have listed almost all of them. These are two great operas on historical theme: "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina" are staged on the world's best stages. They also include the vocal cycles "Without the Sun" and "Songs and Dances of Death", as well as "Pictures at an Exhibition".
The brilliant author was buried in St. Petersburg on the Soviet government, making redevelopment, destroyed his grave, filled this place with asphalt and made it a bus stop. This is how we treat recognized world geniuses.