Musical works by M. Mussorgsky

Biography

Mussorgsky's father came from an old noble family of Mussorgsky. Until the age of 10, Modest and his older brother Filaret received home education. In 1849, having moved to St. Petersburg, the brothers entered the German school Petrishule. A few years later, without graduating from college, Modest entered the School of Guards Ensigns, which he graduated in 1856. Then Mussorgsky served briefly in the Life Guards Preobrazhensky Regiment, then in the Main Engineering Directorate, in the Ministry of State Property and in State Control.

Modest Mussorgsky - officer of the Preobrazhensky Regiment

By the time he joined Balakirev’s musical circle, Mussorgsky was a superbly educated and erudite Russian officer (he could read and speak fluently in French and German, and understood Latin and Greek) and aspired to become (as he himself put it) a “musician.” Balakirev forced Mussorgsky to pay serious attention to musical studies. Under his leadership, Mussorgsky read orchestral scores, analyzed harmony, counterpoint and form in the works of recognized Russian and European composers, and developed the skill of their critical evaluation.

Mussorgsky began work on a large form with the music for Sophocles’ tragedy “Oedipus,” but did not complete it (one chorus was performed in a concert by K. N. Lyadov in 1861, and was also published posthumously among other works by the composer). The next big plans - an opera based on Flaubert's novel "Salambo" (another name is "The Libyan") and on the plot of Gogol's "Marriage" - were also not fully realized. Mussorgsky used music from these sketches in his later compositions.

The next major plan - the opera "Boris Godunov" based on the tragedy of A. S. Pushkin - Mussorgsky brought to the end. The premiere on the stage of the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg took place on the material second edition of the opera, in the dramaturgy of which the composer was forced to make significant changes, since the repertoire committee of the theater rejected first editors for being “unscenic.” Over the next 10 years, “Boris Godunov” was performed 15 times and then removed from the repertoire. Only at the end of November “Boris Godunov” saw the light again - in the edition of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, who “corrected” and re-instrumented the entire “Boris Godunov” at his own discretion. In this form, the opera was staged on the stage of the Great Hall of the Musical Society (the new building of the Conservatory) with the participation of members of the “Society of Musical Meetings”. The company Bessel and Co. in St. Petersburg had by this time released a new score of Boris Godunov, in the preface to which Rimsky-Korsakov explains that the reasons that prompted him to undertake this alteration were supposedly “bad texture” and “bad orchestration.” the author's version of Mussorgsky himself. In Moscow, "Boris Godunov" was staged for the first time on the stage of the Bolshoi Theater in the city. In our time, interest in the author's editions of "Boris Godunov" has been revived.

In 1872, Mussorgsky conceived a 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 “Sorochinskaya Fair” by Gogol. “Khovanshchina” was almost completely completed in the clavier, but (with the exception of two fragments) was not instrumented. The first stage version of “Khovanshchina” (including the instrumentation) was performed in 1883 by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. In the same year, Bessel and Co. published her score and clavier. The first performance of “Khovanshchina” took place in 1886 in St. Petersburg, in the Kononov Hall, by the amateur Musical and Drama Club. In 1958, D. D. Shostakovich completed another edition of Khovanshchina. Currently, the opera is staged primarily in this edition.

For “Sorochinskaya Fair” Mussorgsky composed the first two acts, as well as several scenes for the third act: Parubka’s Dream (where he used the music of the symphonic fantasy “Night on Bald Mountain”, previously made for an unrealized collective work - the opera-ballet “Mlada”), Dumka Parasi and Gopak. Nowadays this opera is staged in the edition of V. Ya. Shebalin.

Recent years

In the 1870s, Mussorgsky was painfully worried about the gradual collapse of the “Mighty Handful” - a trend that he perceived as a concession to musical conformism, cowardice, even a betrayal of the Russian idea. The lack of understanding of his work in the official academic environment, such as, for example, in the Mariinsky Theater, then led by foreigners and compatriots sympathizing with Western opera fashion, was painful. But a hundred times more painful was the rejection of his innovation by people whom he considered close friends (Balakirev, Cui, Rimsky-Korsakov, etc.):

At the first showing of the 2nd act of “Sorochinskaya Fair”, I was convinced of a fundamental misunderstanding of the music of the collapsed “bunch” of Little Russian comics: such a chill wafted from their views and demands that “the heart grew cold,” as Archpriest Avvakum says. Nevertheless, I paused, thought about it and checked myself more than once. It cannot be that I am completely wrong in my aspirations, it cannot be. But it’s a shame that the music of the collapsed “bunch” has to be interpreted through the “barrier” behind which they remained.

I. E. Repin. Portrait of the composer M. P. Mussorgsky

These experiences of misrecognition and “misunderstanding” were expressed in a “nervous fever” that intensified in the 2nd half of the 1870s, and as a result, in an addiction to alcohol. Mussorgsky was not in the habit of making preliminary sketches, sketches and drafts. He thought about everything for a long time, composed and recorded completely finished music. This feature of his creative method, coupled with nervous illness and alcoholism, was the reason for the slowdown in the process of creating music in the last years of his life. Having left the “forestry department,” he lost a permanent (albeit small) source of income and was content with odd jobs and minor financial support from friends. The last bright event was a trip arranged by his friend, singer D. M. Leonova in July-September 1879 in the south of Russia. During Leonova's tour, Mussorgsky acted as her accompanist, including (and often) performing his own innovative compositions. Concerts of Russian musicians, which were given in Poltava, Elizavetgrad, Nikolaev, Kherson, Odessa, Sevastopol, Rostov-on-Don and other cities, were held with constant success, which assured the composer (albeit not for long) that his path was “to new shores” chosen correctly.

Mussorgsky died in a military hospital, where he was admitted after an attack of delirium tremens. There, a few days before his death, Ilya Repin painted (his only lifetime) portrait of the composer. Mussorgsky was buried at the Tikhvin Cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. In 1935-1937, in connection with the reconstruction and redevelopment of the so-called Necropolis of Art Masters (architects E. N. Sandler and E. K. Reimers), the area in front of the monastery was significantly expanded and, accordingly, the line of the Tikhvin cemetery was moved. At the same time, the Soviet government moved only the tombstones to the new location; the graves were covered with asphalt, including Mussorgsky’s grave. At the burial site of Modest Petrovich there is now a bus stop.

Among Mussorgsky's orchestral works, the symphonic painting “Night on Bald Mountain” gained worldwide fame. Nowadays it is practiced to perform this work in the edition of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, less often in the author’s edition.

The bright colors, sometimes even the figurativeness of the piano cycle “Pictures at an Exhibition” inspired several composers to create orchestral versions; The most famous and most widely presented orchestration of “Pictures” on the concert stage belongs to M. Ravel.

Mussorgsky's works had a tremendous influence on all subsequent generations of composers. The specific melody, which the composer viewed as an expressive extension of human speech, and innovative harmony, anticipated many features of 20th-century harmony. The dramaturgy of Mussorgsky's musical and theatrical works greatly influenced the work of L. Janacek, I. F. Stravinsky, D. D. Shostakovich, A. Berg (the dramaturgy of his opera “Wozzeck” according to the “scene-fragment” principle is very close to “Boris Godunov” ), O. Messiaen and many others.

List of essays

Memory

Monument at the grave of Mussorgsky (St. Petersburg, Alexander Nevsky Lavra)

Streets named after Mussorgsky

Monuments

Other objects

Ural State Conservatory in Yekaterinburg since 1939
Mikhailovsky Theater in St. Petersburg
Music school in St. Petersburg.
Minor planet 1059 Mussorgskia.
A crater on Mercury is named after Mussorgsky.

Astrakhan Music College named after M.P. Mussorgsky.

Notes

Astrakhan Music College

Literature

Mussorgsky M. P. Letters and documents. Collected and prepared for publication by A. N. Rimsky-Korsakov with the participation of V. D. Komarova-Stasova. Moscow-Leningrad, 1932 (all letters known to this date, with detailed comments, chronograph of Mussorgsky’s life, letters addressed to him)
Roerich N. K. Mussorgsky // Artists of Life. - Moscow: International Center of the Roerichs, 1993. - 88 p.
Stasov V.V. article in “Bulletin of Europe” (May and June).
Stasov V.V."Perov and M." (“Russian Antiquity”, 1883, vol. XXXVIII, pp. 433-458);
Stasov V.V. In memory of Mussorgsky // Historical Bulletin, 1886. - T. 23. - No. 3. - P. 644-656. ; his, “In Memory of M.” (SPb., 1885);
V. Baskin, “M. P. M. Biographical. essay" (Russian Thought, 1884, books 9 and 10; separately, M., 1887);
Kruglikov S. Mussorgsky and his “Boris Godunov” // Artist, 1890, No. 5.
Trifonov P. Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky // Bulletin of Europe, 1893, December.
Tumanina N. M. P. Mussorgsky. M. - L., 1939.
Asafiev B.V., Izbr. works, vol. 3, M., 1954;
M. P. Mussorgsky. On the fiftieth anniversary of his death 1881-1931. Articles and materials. Edited by Yu. Keldysh and V. Yakovlev. Moscow: Gosmuzizdat, 1932 (contains valuable articles and a list of works prepared by P. A. Lamm, memoirs of contemporaries, letters, detailed indexes, the first publication of the satirical painting by K. E. Makovsky “The Mighty Handful”, etc.)
Orlova A. Works and days of M. P. Mussorgsky. Chronicle of life and creativity. - Moscow: State Music Publishing House, 1963. - 702 p. (book format enlarged; contains detailed chronograph)
Shirinyan R.K. Opera dramaturgy of Mussorgsky. - M., 1981.
Mussorgsky M. P. Letters. Moscow, 1984.
The legacy of M. P. Mussorgsky. Collection of materials (for the release of the Complete Academic Works of M. P. Mussorgsky in 32 volumes). Moscow: Music, 1989 (contains a detailed bibliography and a complete list of Mussorgsky’s autographs).
Kholopov Yu. N. Mussorgsky as a composer of the 20th century // Mussorgsky and music of the 20th century. Moscow, 1989.
M. P. Mussorgsky in the memoirs of his contemporaries. Moscow, 1989.
Berchenko R. E. Composer's direction by Mussorgsky. Moscow: URSS, 2003.
Vasilyeva A. Russian labyrinth. Biography of M. P. Mussorgsky. . Pskov: Pskov Regional Printing House, 2008.
Fedyakin S. R. Mussorgsky // Life of remarkable people. Moscow: Young Guard, 2009.

Links

Mussorgsky Modest Site about Mussorgsky.
Mussorgsky Modest Site about the life and work of the Russian composer.
Mussorgsky Modest Creative portrait on the site Belcanto.Ru.

The ideas and thoughts of M. P. Mussorgsky (1839-1881), a brilliant self-taught composer, were in many ways ahead of their time and paved the way for the musical art of the 20th century. In this article we will try to most fully characterize the list of Mussorgsky's works. Everything written by the composer, who considered himself a follower of A. S. Dargomyzhsky, but went further, is distinguished by deep penetration into the psychology of not only an individual 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

The list of Mussorgsky's works in this genre covers three types of moods:

Lyrical in early works and turning into lyric-tragic in later works. The pinnacle is the cycle “Without the Sun,” created in 1874.
"Folk 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” (the “Dance of Death” cycle).
Social satire. These include the romances “Goat”, “Seminarist”, “Classic”, created during the 1860s of the next decade. The pinnacle is the “Paradise” suite, which embodies a gallery of satyrs.

Separately on the list are the vocal cycle “Children’s” created in his own words in 1872 and “Songs and Dances of Death”, in which everything is filled with tragic moods.

In the ballad “Forgotten,” created based on the impression of a painting by V.V. Vereshchagin, which was later destroyed by the artist, the composer and 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.

“The 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 completely 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. Over the 42 years of his life, he managed to write only three operas, but what ones! “Boris Godunov”, “Khovanshchina” and “Sorochinskaya 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. At the same time, each character is given personal traits. Most of all, the composer is concerned about his native country during times of unrest and upheaval.

In "Boris Godunov" the country is on the threshold of the Time of Troubles. It reflects the relationship between the king and the people as a single person, animated by one idea. The composer wrote the folk drama “Khovanshchina” based on his own libretto. In it, the composer was interested in the Streltsy revolt and church schism. But he did not have time to orchestrate it and died. The orchestration was completed by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. The role of Dosifey at the Mariinsky Theater was performed by F. Chaliapin. It does not have the usual main characters. Society is not opposed to the individual. Power ends up in the hands of one or another character. It recreates episodes of the struggle of the old reactionary world against Peter's reforms.

"Pictures at an Exhibition"

The composer's work for piano is represented by 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 capabilities of the instrument. These musical works by Mussorgsky are so bright and virtuosic that they amaze with their “orchestral” sound. Six pieces under the general title “Walk” are written in the key of B flat major. The rest are in B minor. By the way, they were often arranged for orchestra. M. Ravel succeeded best of all. The composer's vocal motifs with their recitativeness, songfulness and declamatory quality were organically included in this work by M. Mussorgsky.

Symphonic creativity

Modest Mussorgsky creates a number of musical works in this area. The most important is Midsummer's Night on Bald Mountain. Continuing the theme of G. Berlioz, the composer depicted a witches' Sabbath.

He was the first to show Russia evil fantastic pictures. 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 ineptitude 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 large operas on a historical theme: “Boris Godunov” and “Khovanshchina” are staged on the best stages around the world. These 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. The Soviet government, doing redevelopment, destroyed his grave, filled the place with asphalt and made it a bus stop. This is how we treat recognized world geniuses.

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Mussorgsky is a brilliant composer whose work was initially underestimated. An innovator, a seeker of new paths in music, he seemed to his contemporaries to be a dropout. Even his close friend Rimsky-Korsakov believed that Mussorgsky's works could only be performed by correcting the harmony, form and orchestration, and after Mussorgsky's untimely death he carried out this enormous work. It was in Rimsky-Korsakov’s versions that many of Mussorgsky’s works were known for a long time, including the operas “Boris Godunov” and “Khovanshchina”. Only much later was the true significance of Mussorgsky’s work revealed, which was first correctly assessed by Stasov, who said: “Mussorgsky is one of the people to whom posterity erects monuments.” His music had a strong influence on composers of the 20th century, in particular French, not to mention Russian, among whom the largest were Prokofiev and Shostakovich. “To create a living person in living music”, “To create a life phenomenon or type in a form inherent to them, which has not been seen before by any of the artists” - this is how the composer himself defined his goal. The nature of his work determined Mussorgsky's primary appeal to vocal and stage genres. His highest achievements are the operas "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina", the vocal cycles "Children's", "Without the Sun" and "Songs and Dances of Death".

Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky was born on March 9 (21), 1839 on the Karevo estate near the town of Toroptsa, Pskov province, into an old noble family that traces its ancestry to the Rurikovichs - the descendants of the legendary Rurik, who was called to reign over Rus' from the Varangians. From early childhood, like all noble children, he studied French and German, as well as music, showing great success, especially in improvisation. At the age of 9, he was already playing a concerto by J. Field, but, of course, there was no talk of professional music studies. In 1849 he was sent to St. Petersburg, where after three years of training he entered the School of Guards Ensigns. These three years were not lost on music - the boy took piano lessons from one of the best teachers in the capital, A. Gerke, a student of the famous Field. In 1856, Mussorgsky graduated from school and was assigned to serve in the Preobrazhensky Life Guards Regiment. During one of his duties at a military land hospital, he met Borodin, then a doctor at the same hospital. But this acquaintance did not yet lead to friendship: their ages, interests, and the environment surrounding each of them were too different.

Lively interested in music and eager to become more familiar with the works of Russian composers, Mussorgsky at the age of 18 ended up in Dargomyzhsky’s house. Under the influence of the prevailing situation there, he begins to compose. The first experiments were the romance “Where are you, little star”, the idea of the opera “Gan the Icelander”. At Dargomyzhsky's he meets Cui and Balakirev. This last acquaintance has a decisive impact on his entire future life. It was with Balakirev, around whom a circle of musicians formed, which later became famous under the name of the Mighty Handful, that his composition studies began. During the first year, several romances and piano sonatas appeared. Creativity captivates the young man so much that in 1858 he resigns and selflessly engages in self-education - psychology, philosophy, literature - and tries himself in various musical genres. And although he still composes in small forms, he is most attracted to opera, in particular, the plot of “Oedipus”. On the advice of Balakirev, in 1861-1862 he wrote a symphony, but left it unfinished. But the next year he was captivated by the plot of “Salammbô” based on Flaubert’s novel, which had just been published in Russian translation. He has been working on the opera “Salambo” for about three years and creates many interesting fragments, but gradually realizes that it is not the East, but Rus' that attracts him. And “Salambo” also remains unfinished.

In the mid-60s, Mussorgsky's works appeared, clearly showing which path he decided to follow. These are the songs “Kalistrat” based on Nekrasov’s poems about the difficult peasant lot (the composer called “Kalistrat” a sketch in the folk style), “Sleep, sleep, peasant son” in the spirit of folk songs based on the text from A. Ostrovsky’s drama “The Voevoda”, an everyday picture “ Svetik Savvishna” in his own words. After listening to the latter, the famous composer and authoritative music critic A. Serov said: “A terrible scene. This is Shakespeare in music." Somewhat later, “Seminarist” appears, also based on his own text. In 1863, the need arises to earn a living - the family estate is completely destroyed and no longer brings in any income. Mussorgsky enters the service: in December he becomes an official of the Engineering Directorate.

In 1867, the first major orchestral work was finally created - “ Midsummer Night on Bald Mountain”. At the same time, under the influence of Dargomyzhsky’s “The Stone Guest,” Mussorgsky began work on the opera “Marriage” based on the prose text of Gogol’s comedy. This bold idea fascinates him very much, but after a while it becomes clear that this is only an experiment: he does not consider it possible to create an opera based on one recitative, without arias, choirs, and ensembles.

The 60s were a time of fierce struggle between the Balakirev circle and the so-called conservative party, to which belonged the professors of the recently opened first Russian conservatory, supported by Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna. Balakirev, who was for some time the director of the Russian Musical Society (RMS), was dismissed from his position in 1869. In opposition to this institution, he organizes a series of concerts of the Free Music School, but the fight is obviously lost, since, unlike the RMS, the BMS is not subsidized by anyone. Mussorgsky gets excited about the idea of embodying the opponents of the Mighty Handful in music. This is how “Rayok” appears - a unique satirical vocal composition, according to Stasov, a masterpiece of “talent, causticity, comedy, ridicule, brilliance, plasticity... Even those who were ridiculed laughed to tears, so talented and infectiously cheerful, this original novelty was funny” .

The composer devoted the years 1868-1869 to working on “Boris Godunov”, and in 1870 he presented the score to the Mariinsky Theater. But the opera is rejected: it is too unconventional. One of the reasons for the refusal was the lack of a major female role. The following years, 1871 and 1872, the composer reworks “Boris”: Polish scenes and the role of Marina Mniszech appear, the scene near Kromy. But even this option does not satisfy the committee in charge of accepting operas for production. Only the persistence of singer Y. Platonova, who chose Mussorgsky’s opera for her benefit performance, helps “Boris Godunov” to see the spotlight. While working on the second edition of the opera, Mussorgsky rented an apartment together with Rimsky-Korsakov. They share time at the piano in a friendly manner, both write operas based on plots from Russian history (Rimsky-Korsakov creates “The Woman of Pskov”) and, very different in character and creative principles, perfectly complement each other.

In 1873, “Children’s”, designed by Repin, was published and received wide recognition from both the public and musicians, including Liszt, who highly appreciated the novelty and unusualness of this work. This is the only joy of a composer who is not spoiled by fate. He is depressed by the endless troubles associated with the production of “Boris Godunov”, and is tired of the need to serve, now in the Forestry Department. Loneliness is also depressing: Rimsky-Korsakov got married and moved out of their shared apartment, and Mussorgsky, partly by his own conviction, partly under the influence of Stasov, believes that marriage will interfere with creativity and sacrifices his personal life for it. Stasov is traveling abroad for a long time. Soon, the composer's friend, artist Victor Hartmann, dies suddenly.

The next year brings both great creative success - the piano cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition", created under the direct impression of Hartmann's posthumous exhibition, and a new great sorrow. The composer's longtime friend Nadezhda Petrovna Opochinina, with whom he apparently was deeply but secretly in love, dies. At this time, a gloomy, melancholy cycle “Without the Sun” was created based on the poems of Golenishchev-Kutuzov. Work is also underway on a new opera - “Khovanshchina” - again based on a plot from Russian history. In the summer of 1874, work on the opera was interrupted for the sake of “Sorochinskaya Fair” based on Gogol. The comic opera is progressing with difficulty: there are too few reasons for fun. But an inspired vocal ballad “Forgotten” appears based on a painting by Vereshchagin, which he saw at an exhibition in the same 1874.

The composer's life becomes more and more difficult and hopeless. The actual collapse of the Mighty Handful, which he repeatedly complains about in letters to Stasov, has a heavy impact on him, who has always strived for close friendly communication. People in the service are dissatisfied with him: he often skimps on his duties, both for the sake of creativity, and, unfortunately, because, under the influence of sad life circumstances, he increasingly resorts to the generally accepted Russian consolation - the bottle. Sometimes his need becomes so strong that he does not have the money to pay rent. In 1875 he was evicted for non-payment. For some time he finds refuge with A. Golenishchev-Kutuzov, then with an old friend, Naumov, a former naval officer, a big fan of his work. Based on the poems of Golenishchev-Kutuzov, he creates the vocal cycle “Songs and Dances of Death”.

In 1878, friends helped Mussorgsky find another position - junior auditor of the State Audit Office. It is good because the composer’s immediate boss, T. Filippov, a great lover of music and a collector of folk songs, turns a blind eye to Mussorgsky’s absenteeism. But the meager salary barely allows him to make ends meet. In 1879, in order to improve his financial situation, Mussorgsky, together with the singer D. Leonova, went on a large tour that covered all the major cities of southern Russia. The performance program includes arias from operas by Russian composers, romances by both Russian composers and Schubert, Schumann, Liszt. Mussorgsky accompanies the singer and also performs solo numbers - transcriptions from “Ruslan and Lyudmila” and his own operas. The trip has a beneficial effect on the musician. He is inspired by the beautiful southern nature, rave reviews from newspapers, which highly appreciate his gift as a composer and pianist. This causes uplift and new creative activity. The famous song “The Flea”, piano pieces, and the idea of a large suite for orchestra appear. Work continues on “Sorochinskaya Fair” and “Khovanshchina”.

In January of the following year, Mussorgsky finally left public service. Friends - V. Zhemchuzhnikov, T. Filippov, V. Stasov and M. Ostrovsky (the playwright's brother) - contribute to a monthly stipend of 100 rubles so that he can finish Khovanshchina. Another group of friends pays 80 rubles a month under the obligation to complete the Sorochinsky Fair. Thanks to this help, in the summer of 1880, “Khovanshchina” was almost completed in the clavier. Since the fall, Mussorgsky, at the suggestion of Leonova, has become an accompanist at her private singing courses and, in addition to accompaniment, composes choirs for students based on Russian folk texts. But his health is completely undermined, and at one of his home student concerts he loses consciousness. Stasov, Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin arrived and found him delirious. Urgent hospitalization is required. Through a friend of the doctor L. Bertenson, who worked at the Nikolaev military hospital, Mussorgsky managed to get hired there, signing him up as “a civilian orderly for resident Bertenson.” On February 14, 1881, the unconscious composer was taken to the hospital. For a while he gets better, he can even receive visitors, among them Repin, who painted the famous portrait of Mussorgsky. But soon there is a sharp deterioration in the condition.

Mussorgsky died on March 16, only 42 years old. The funeral took place on March 18 at the cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. In 1885, through the efforts of faithful friends, a monument was erected at the grave.

L. Mikheeva

Key dates of life and work:

1839. - 9 III. In the village of Karevo, a son, Modest, was born into the Mussorgsky family - landowner Pyotr Alekseevich and his wife Yulia Ivanovna (nee Chirikova).

1846. - First successes in learning to play the piano under the guidance of his mother.

1848. - Mussorgsky's performance of J. Field's concerto (at his parents' house for guests).

1849. - VIII. Admission to the Peter and Paul School in St. Petersburg. - Start of piano lessons with Ant. A. Gehrke.

1851. - Mussorgsky's performance of A. Hertz's "Rondo" at a home charity concert.

1852. - VIII. Admission to the school of guards ensigns. - Publication of the piano piece - polka "Ensign" ("Porte-enseigne Polka").

1856. - 17 VI. Graduation from the School of Guards Ensigns. - 8 X. Enrollment in the Preobrazhensky Guards Regiment. - X. Meeting with A.P. Borodin on duty at the 2nd land hospital. - Winter 1856-1857. Meeting A. S. Dargomyzhsky.

1857. - Acquaintance with Ts. A. Cui and M. A. Balakirev in the house of Dargomyzhsky, with V. V. and D. V. Stasov in the house of M. A. Balakirev. - Start of composition classes under the guidance of Balakirev.

1858. - 11 VI. Retirement from military service.

1859. - 22 II. Mussorgsky's performance of the main role in the comic opera "The Son of a Mandarin" by Cui in the author's house. - VI. A trip to Moscow, getting to know its sights.

1860. - 11 I. Performance of the B-dur scherzo in a concert of the Russian Musical Society under the baton of A. G. Rubinstein.

1861. - I. A trip to Moscow, new acquaintances in the circles of advanced intelligentsia (youth). - 6 IV. Performance by the choir from the music to the tragedy "Oedipus the King" by Sophocles in a concert conducted by K. N. Lyadov (Mariinsky Theatre).

1863. - VI-VII. Stay in Toropets due to concerns about the estate. - XII. The concept of the opera "Salammbô" based on the novel by G. Flaubert. - 15 XII. Entering the service (as an official) in the Engineering Department.

1863-65. - Life in a “commune” with a group of young friends (under the influence of the novel “What is to be done?” by N. G. Chernyshevsky).

1864. - 22 V. Creation of the song "Kalistrat" based on the words of N. A. Nekrasov - the first in a series of vocal scenes from folk life.

1866. - The beginning of friendship with N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov.

1867. - 6 III. Performance of the choir "The Defeat of Sennacherib" in a concert of the Free Music School under the direction of Balakirev. - 26 IV. Leaving service in the Engineering Department. - 24 IX. Complaints about the difficult financial situation in a letter to Balakirev.

1868. - Getting closer to the Purgold family, participating in their home musical gatherings. - 23 IX. Screening of "Marriage" at Cui's house. - Meeting the literary historian V.V. Nikolsky, starting work on “Boris Godunov” on his advice. - 21 XII. Enrollment in the Forestry Department of the Ministry of State Property.

1870. - 7 V. Display of "Boris Godunov" in the house of the artist K. E. Makovsky. - Prohibition of the song “Seminarist” by censorship.

1871. - 10 II. The Opera Committee of the Mariinsky Theater rejected the opera "Boris Godunov".

1871-72. - Mussorgsky lives in the same apartment with Rimsky-Korsakov, working on the 2nd edition of Boris Godunov.

1872. - 8 II. Performance of the opera "Boris Godunov" in a new edition in the house of V. F. Purgold. - 5 II. Performance of the finale of the 1st movement of "Boris Godunov" at the RMO concert under the direction of E. F. Napravnik. - II-IV. Collective work (together with Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov and Cui) on the opera-ballet "Mlada" commissioned by the directorate of the imperial theaters. - 3 IV. Performance of a polonaise from "Boris Godunov" in a concert of the Free Music School conducted by Balakirev. - VI. Start of work on "Khovanshchina".

1873. - 5 II. Performance of three scenes from "Boris Godunov" at the Mariinsky Theater. - V. Performance by F. Liszt in Weimar for a group of musicians of the "Children's" cycle by M.

1874. - 27 I. Premiere of "Boris Godunov" at the Mariinsky Theater. - 7-19 V. Creation of a ballad for voice and piano “Forgotten” to the words of Golenishchev-Kutuzov, dedicated to V.V. Vereshchagin. - VII. The origin of the concept of the opera "Sorochinskaya Fair".

1875. - 13 II. Mussorgsky's participation as an accompanist in a concert in favor of needy students of the Medical-Surgical Academy. - 9 III. Participation in the musical and literary evening of the St. Petersburg Society to benefit students of medical and pedagogical courses.

1876. - 11 III. Participation in the musical evening of the St. Petersburg meeting of artists in favor of needy students of the Medical-Surgical Academy.

1877. - 17 II. Participation in the concert of Yu. F. Platonova. - Participation in a concert in favor of the Society of Cheap Apartments.

1878. - 2 IV. Performance with singer D. M. Leonova at the concert of the Society for Benefits for Students of Women's Medical and Pedagogical Courses. - 10 XII. Resumption of "Boris Godunov" (with large bills) at the Mariinsky Theater.

1879. - 16 I. Performing the scene in the cell from "Boris Godunov" in a concert of the Free Music School conducted by Rimsky-Korsakov (staged by the Mariinsky Theater and released). - 3 IV. Participation in the concert of the Society for Benefits for Students of Women's Medical and Pedagogical Courses. - VII-X. Concert trip with Leonova (Poltava, Elizavetgrad, Kherson, Odessa, Sevastopol, Yalta, Rostov-on-Don, Novocherkassk, Voronezh, Tambov, Tver). - 27 November Performing excerpts from “Khovanshchina” in a concert of the Free Music School conducted by Rimsky-Korsakov.

1880. - I. Leaving service. Deterioration of health. - 8 IV. Performing excerpts from “Khovanshchina” and “Song of the Flea” in Leonova’s concert with an orchestra conducted by Rimsky-Korsakov. - 27 and 30 IV. Two concerts by Leonova and Mussorgsky in Tver. - 5 VIII. Message in a letter to Stasov about the end of “Khovanshchina” (with the exception of small passages in the last act).

1881. - II. A sharp deterioration in health. - 2-5 III. I. E. Repin paints a portrait of Mussorgsky - 16 III. Death of Mussorgsky in the Nikolaev military hospital from erysipelas of the leg. - 18 III. Mussorgsky's funeral at the Alexander Nevsky Lavra cemetery in St. Petersburg.

Mussorgsky's brief biography and interesting facts from the life of the Russian composer and pianist are presented in this article.

Modest Mussorgsky short biography

Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich was born on March 21, 1839 in the village of Karevo into a family of Smolensk nobles.

At a young age he learned to play keyboard instruments. Having moved to St. Petersburg, Modest studies with the great pianist Gerke. The teacher encouraged his student to write music. Mussorgsky's first musical work was the polka Porte-enseigne Polka, written in 1852.

Following in the footsteps of his family, in 1852 he entered the School of Cavalry Junkers and Guards Ensigns in St. Petersburg. From 1856 to 1858 he served with the rank of Life Guards officer in the Preobrazhensky Regiment.

At the service he meets with composer Alexander Borodin, Cesar Cui, Alexander Dargomyzhsky, Vladimir Stasov and Mily Balakirev. Modest joined the “New Russian Music School”, which they created. Its broader name is “The Mighty Handful.” Under the influence of Balakirev, Mussorgsky devoted all his time to composition, leaving the service in 1858.

During the 1850s-1860s, he created many piano and orchestral works, romances and songs. But certain circumstances forced him to go into service again in 1863. Until 1868, Modest worked as an official in the Engineering Department. From 1868 to 1879 he moved to a new place of service - the Forestry Department, and a year later - to the State Control.

In 1879, as an accompanist, he made a concert tour with the singer Leonova across Russia. In the period 1880-1881 he worked as an accompanist in her open Music classes.

Mussorgsky's health deteriorated sharply in February 1881. He was placed in the Nikolaev military hospital. One day, a visitor, Ilya Repin, came to him and painted his famous portrait. The composer died on March 28, 1881 in the same hospital.

Works by Mussorgsky -“Salambo”, “Boris Godunov”, “Marriage”, “Khovanshchina”, “Sorochinskaya Fair”, “Seminarist”, “Goat”, “Revel”, “Sleep, Sleep, Peasant Son”, “Gopak”, “Svetik Savishna” ", "Flea", "Kalistrat", "Picking mushrooms", "Eremushka's Lullaby", "Mischief", "Night on Bald Mountain", "Intermezzo".

Modest Mussorgsky interesting facts

From the age of 6 he studied music, under the guidance of his mother.

He had an excellent musical memory and could immediately remember complex operas.

During his short life (42 years), Mussorgsky created 5 operas(4 of which are unfinished), a number of symphonic works, cycles of vocal and piano music, many romances and choirs.

Since 1863, the composer began adding the letter “G” to his surname. Until this year, all documents were signed as Mussorsky.

Ilya Repin created the only portrait painted during Modest’s lifetime.

At the burial site of the great composer there is now a bus stop.

In the last years of his life Mussorgsky experienced severe depression due to lack of recognition of his creativity, loneliness, everyday and material difficulties.

Mussorgsky suffered from binge drinking. After another drinking session, he developed delirium tremens. Once in the hospital, he was strictly forbidden to drink alcohol. But Modest bribed the worker and he bought him a bottle of wine. And the next day the composer was gone.

The brothers entered the German School of Saints Peter and Paul. In the year Modest entered the School of Guards Ensigns, which he graduated in the year. Then M.P. Mussorgsky served briefly in the Life Guards Preobrazhensky Regiment and in the Main Engineering Directorate. After retirement, he served in the Ministry of State Property and in the Department of State Control.

By the time M.A. joined the music club. Balakireva M.P. Mussorgsky was a well-educated and erudite Russian officer, he could read and speak fluently in French and German, understood Latin and Greek, and strived to become (as he himself put it) a “musician.” Balakirev forced M.P. Mussorgsky to pay serious attention to musical studies. Under his leadership M.P. Mussorgsky read orchestral scores, analyzed harmony, counterpoint and form in the works of recognized Russian and European composers, and developed his composition skills.

Playing the piano by M.P. Mussorgsky studied with Anton Gehrke and became a good pianist. Naturally possessing a beautiful chamber baritone, he willingly sang at evenings in private musical gatherings.

Modest Mussorgsky - officer of the Preobrazhensky Regiment.

Creation

Painful for M.P. Mussorgsky had a lack of understanding of his work in the official academic environment, such as, for example, in the Mariinsky Theater, which was then led by foreigners and compatriots sympathizing with Western opera fashion. But a hundred times more painful was the rejection of his innovation by people whom he considered close friends (Balakirev, Cui, Rimsky-Korsakov, etc.):

“At the first showing of the 2nd act of the Sorochinskaya Fair, I was convinced of a fundamental misunderstanding of the music of the collapsed “bunch” of Little Russian comics: such a chill wafted from their views and demands that “my heart grew cold,” as Archpriest Avvakum says. Nevertheless, I paused , thought about it and checked myself more than once. It cannot be that I am completely wrong in my aspirations, it cannot be. But it’s a shame that I have to interpret the music of the collapsed “bunch” through the “barrier” behind which they remained. Letter to A.A. Golenishchev-Kutuzov, November 10th.

These experiences of the composer as a result of lack of recognition and “misunderstanding” became the cause of a “nervous fever” that intensified in the 2nd half of the 2010s, and as a result - his addiction to alcohol.

M.P. Mussorgsky was not in the habit of making preliminary sketches, sketches and drafts. He thought about everything for a long time, composed and recorded completely finished music. This feature of his creative method, coupled with nervous illness and alcoholism, was the reason for the slowdown in the process of creating music in the last years of his life. Having left the “forestry department,” he lost a permanent (albeit small) source of income and was content with odd jobs and minor financial support from friends.

The last bright event in the life of M.P. Mussorgsky was organized by his friend, singer Daria Mikhailovna Leonova, on a trip in July-September to the south of Russia. During the tour Leonova M.P. Mussorgsky acted as her accompanist and also performed his own innovative compositions. Concerts of Russian musicians, which were given in Poltava, Elizavetgrad, Nikolaev, Kherson, Odessa, Sevastopol, Rostov-on-Don and other cities, were held with constant success, which assured the composer (albeit for a short time) that his path was “to new shores” chosen correctly.

Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky died in a military hospital, where he was admitted after an attack of delirium tremens. There, a few days before his death, Ilya Repin painted (his only lifetime) portrait of the composer.

M.P. Mussorgsky died on March 28 of the year in St. Petersburg and was buried at the Tikhvin cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. In - years, in connection with the reconstruction and redevelopment of the so-called “Necropolis of Art Masters” (architects E. N. Sandler and E. K. Reimers), the area in front of the monastery was significantly expanded and, accordingly, the line of the Tikhvin cemetery was moved. At the same time, the Soviet government moved only the tombstones to the new location; the graves were covered with asphalt, including the grave of M.P. Mussorgsky. At the burial site of Modest Petrovich there is now a bus stop (the great-niece of M.P. Mussorgsky was the first to point out this fact, as Evgeniy Evgenievich Nesterenko spoke about on TV; see The Mystery of Mussorgsky and The Moment of Truth).

National features of M. Mussorgsky's creativity

In the musical work of M.P. Mussorgsky found an original and vivid expression of Russian national traits. This defining feature of his style manifested itself in a variety of ways: in his ability to handle folk songs, in the melodic, harmonic and rhythmic features of the music, and finally, in the choice of subjects, mainly from Russian life. M.P. Mussorgsky is a hater of routine; for him there were no authorities in music. He paid little attention to the rules of musical “grammar”, seeing in them not the principles of science, but only a collection of compositional techniques from previous eras. Hence the constant desire of M.P. Mussorgsky the composer to novelty in everything.

The most ambitious creative achievements of M.P. Mussorgsky are concentrated in the field of opera, his own version of which he called (including so that his creations in this genre would not cause an association with the concert-romantic operatic aesthetics that dominated in Russia) “musical drama.” “Boris Godunov,” written based on Pushkin’s drama of the same name (and also under the great influence of Karamzin’s interpretation of this plot), is one of the best works of world musical theater. The musical language and dramaturgy of “Boris” meant a complete break with the routine of the then opera house; the action of the “musical drama” was henceforth performed by specifically musical means.

The skeptical attitude of colleagues and contemporaries affected M.P.’s next opera to an even greater extent. Mussorgsky (its genre is designated by the author himself as “folk musical drama”) “Khovanshchina” - on the theme of historical events in Russia at the end of the 17th century.

Compared to “Boris Godunov,” “Khovanshchina” is not just a drama of one historical person (through which the theme of power, crime, conscience and retribution is revealed), but already a kind of “impersonal” historiosophical drama, in which, in the absence of a clearly defined “central ” of the character (characteristic of the standard operatic dramaturgy of that time), entire layers of people's life are revealed and the theme of the spiritual tragedy of the entire people that occurs with the destruction of its traditional historical and life way is raised.

M.P. Mussorgsky left only a few works for orchestra, of which the symphonic painting “Night on Bald Mountain” stands out. This is a colorful picture of the “Sabbath of the spirits of darkness” and the “greatness of Chernobog.” Noteworthy is the Intermezzo (composed for piano in 2010), built on a theme reminiscent of 18th-century music.

An outstanding work by M.P. Mussorgsky - a cycle of piano pieces “Pictures at an Exhibition”, written in the year as musical illustrations-episodes for watercolors by V.A. Hartmann. The contrasting impression plays are permeated with a Russian theme-refrain, reflecting the change of mood when moving from one picture to another. The Russian theme opens the composition and it also ends it (“Bogatyr Gate”), now transforming into the anthem of Russia and its Orthodox faith.

Reception

In the 19th century, the works of M.P. Mussorgsky were published by the company V. Bessel and Co. in St. Petersburg; much was published in Leipzig by the company of Mitrofan Petrovich Belyaev. In the 20th century, editions of M.P.’s works began to appear. Mussorgsky in original versions, based on a careful study of primary sources. The pioneer of such activity was the Russian musicologist P. A. Lamm, who published the scores of “Boris Godunov”, “Khovanshchina”, as well as the composer’s vocal and piano works - all in the author’s edition.

Both musical dramas by M.P. Mussorgsky won worldwide recognition after the composer's death, and to this day throughout the world they are among the most frequently performed works of 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.

From orchestral works by M.P. Mussorgsky's symphonic painting “Night on Bald Mountain” gained worldwide fame. Nowadays it is practiced to perform this work in the edition of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, less often in the author’s edition.

Works by M.P. Mussorgsky had a tremendous influence on all subsequent generations of composers. The specific melody, which the composer viewed as an expressive extension of human speech, and innovative harmony, anticipated many features of the harmony of the 20th century. Dramaturgy of musical and theatrical works by M.P. Mussorgsky greatly influenced the work of Leos Janacek, Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky, Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich, Alban Berg (the dramaturgy of his opera “Wozzeck” according to the “scene-fragment” principle is very close to “Boris Godunov”), Olivier Messiaen and many others.

List of essays

Opera "Boris Godunov" (2nd edition 1874);
Opera “Khovanshchina” (-, not finished; edition: N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, ; D. D. Shostakovich, 1958);
Opera “Marriage” (, not finished; edition: M. M. Ippolitova-Ivanova, ; G. N. Rozhdestvensky, 1985);
Opera “Sorochinskaya Fair” (-, not finished; editors: Ts. A. Cui, ; V. Ya. Shebalina,);
Opera "Salambo" (unfinished; edition by Zoltan Pesko, 1979);
“Pictures at an Exhibition”, a cycle of pieces for piano (); orchestrations by various composers, including Maurice Ravel, Sergei Gorchakov (), Lawrence Leonard, Keith Emerson, etc.
“Songs and Dances of Death”, vocal cycle (); orchestrations: E. V. Denisov, N. S. Korndorf, D. D. Shostakovich.;
“Night on Bald Mountain” (). Full author's title: “Midsummer's Night on Bald Mountain” - a symphonic painting;
“Children’s”, vocal cycle ();
“Without the Sun”, vocal cycle ();
Romances and songs, including “Where are you, little star?”, “Kalistrat”, “Eryomushka’s Lullaby”, “Orphan”, “Seminarist”, “Svetik Savishna”, Song of Mephistopheles in Auerbach’s cellar (“Flea”), “Rayok” ";
Intermezzo (originally for piano, later orchestrated by the author under the title "Intermezzo in modo classico").

Memory

On November 27, a monument was erected at the composer’s grave. Authors - architect I.S. Bogomolov and sculptor I.Ya. Ginzburg - worked on the project and models for free. Funds for the production of the monument were collected through public subscription, in which Repin, Rimsky-Korsakov, Lyadov, Glazunov and many others took part.
In 1972, in the village of Naumovo (Kuninsky district, Pskov region) in the Chirikov estate (maternal line of M.P. Mussorgsky), the M.P. Mussorgsky Museum-Reserve was opened. The Mussorgsky estate in the village of Karevo (located nearby) has not survived.

Objects bearing (bearing) the name M.P. Mussorgsky

Ural State Conservatory in Yekaterinburg since the year;
Mikhailovsky Theater in

	Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky in Wikiquote
	in Wikisource
	Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky on Wikimedia Commons