Italian composers of the 16th - 18th centuries. Great Composers of the World
The World's Greatest Composers of All Time: Lists in Chronological and Alphabetical Order, Reference Books and Works
100 Great Composers of the World
List of composers in chronological order
1. Josquin Despres (1450 –1521)
2. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525 –1594)
3. Claudio Monteverdi (1567 –1643)
4. Heinrich Schütz (1585 –1672)
5. Jean Baptiste Lully (1632 –1687)
6. Henry Purcell (1658 –1695)
7. Arcangelo Corelli (1653 –1713)
8. Antonio Vivaldi (1678 –1741)
9. Jean Philippe Rameau (1683 –1764)
10. George Handel (1685 –1759)
11. Domenico Scarlatti (1685 –1757)
12. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 –1750)
13. Christoph Willibald Gluck (1713 –1787)
14. Joseph Haydn (1732 –1809)
15. Antonio Salieri (1750 –1825)
16. Dmitry Stepanovich Bortnyansky (1751 –1825)
17. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 –1791)
18. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 –1826)
19. Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778 –1837)
20. Nicollo Paganini (1782 –1840)
21. Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791 –1864)
22. Carl Maria von Weber (1786 –1826)
23. Gioachino Rossini (1792 –1868)
24. Franz Schubert (1797 –1828)
25. Gaetano Donizetti (1797 –1848)
26. Vincenzo Bellini (1801 –1835)
27. Hector Berlioz (1803 –1869)
28. Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (1804 –1857)
29. Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809 –1847)
30. Fryderyk Chopin (1810 –1849)
31. Robert Schumann (1810 –1856)
32. Alexander Sergeevich Dargomyzhsky (1813 –1869)
33. Franz Liszt (1811 –1886)
34. Richard Wagner (1813 –1883)
35. Giuseppe Verdi (1813 –1901)
36. Charles Gounod (1818 –1893)
37. Stanislav Moniuszko (1819 –1872)
38. Jacques Offenbach (1819 –1880)
39. Alexander Nikolaevich Serov (1820 –1871)
40. Cesar Frank (1822 –1890)
41. Bedřich Smetana (1824 –1884)
42. Anton Bruckner (1824 –1896)
43. Johann Strauss (1825 –1899)
44. Anton Grigorievich Rubinstein (1829 –1894)
45. Johannes Brahms (1833 –1897)
46. Alexander Porfirievich Borodin (1833 –1887)
47. Camille Saint-Saens (1835 –1921)
48. Leo Delibes (1836 –1891)
49. Mily Alekseevich Balakirev (1837 –1910)
50. Georges Bizet (1838 –1875)
51. Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (1839 –1881)
52. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 –1893)
53. Antonin Dvorak (1841 –1904)
54. Jules Massenet (1842 –1912)
55. Edvard Grieg (1843 –1907)
56. Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844 –1908)
57. Gabriel Fauré (1845 –1924)
58. Leos Janacek (1854 –1928)
59. Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov (1855 –1914)
60. Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev (1856 –1915)
61. Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857 –1919)
62. Giacomo Puccini (1858 –1924)
63. Hugo Wolf (1860 –1903)
64. Gustav Mahler (1860 –1911)
65. Claude Debussy (1862 –1918)
66. Richard Strauss (1864 –1949)
67. Alexander Tikhonovich Grechaninov (1864 –1956)
68. Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (1865 –1936)
69. Jean Sibelius (1865 –1957)
70. Franz Lehár (1870 –1945)
71. Alexander Nikolaevich Scriabin (1872 –1915)
72. Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninov (1873 –1943)
73. Arnold Schoenberg (1874 –1951)
74. Maurice Ravel (1875 –1937)
75. Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (1880 –1951)
76. Bela Bartok (1881 –1945)
77. Nikolai Yakovlevich Myaskovsky (1881 –1950)
78. Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky (1882 –1971)
79. Anton Webern (1883 –1945)
80. Imre Kalman (1882 –1953)
81. Alban Berg (1885 –1935)
82. Sergei Sergeevich Prokofiev (1891 –1953)
83. Arthur Honegger (1892 –1955)
84. Darius Milhaud (1892 –1974)
85. Carl Orff (1895 –1982)
86. Paul Hindemith (1895 –1963)
87. George Gershwin (1898 –1937)
88. Isaac Osipovich Dunaevsky (1900 –1955)
89. Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (1903 –1978)
90. Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich (1906 –1975)
91. Tikhon Nikolaevich Khrennikov (born in 1913)
92. Benjamin Britten (1913 –1976)
93. Georgy Vasilievich Sviridov (1915 –1998)
94. Leonard Bernstein (1918 –1990)
95. Rodion Konstantinovich Shchedrin (born in 1932)
96. Krzysztof Penderecki (born 1933)
97. Alfred Garievich Schnittke (1934 –1998)
98. Bob Dylan (b. 1941)
99. John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (b. 1942)
100. Sting (born 1951)
MASTERPIECES OF CLASSICAL MUSIC
The most famous composers in the world
List of composers in alphabetical order
| N | Composer | Nationality | Direction | Year |
| 1 | Albinoni Tomaso | Italian | Baroque | 1671-1751 |
| 2 | Arensky Anton (Antony) Stepanovich | Russian | Romanticism | 1861-1906 |
| 3 | Baini Giuseppe | Italian | Church music - Renaissance | 1775-1844 |
| 4 | Balakirev Miliy Alekseevich | Russian | "Mighty Handful" - nationally oriented Russian music school | 1836/37-1910 |
| 5 | Bach Johann Sebastian | German | Baroque | 1685-1750 |
| 6 | Bellini Vincenzo | Italian | Romanticism | 1801-1835 |
| 7 | Berezovsky Maxim Sozontovich | Russian-Ukrainian | Classicism | 1745-1777 |
| 8 | Beethoven Ludwig van | German | between classicism and romanticism | 1770-1827 |
| 9 | Bizet (Bizet) Georges | French | Romanticism | 1838-1875 |
| 10 | Boito Arrigo | Italian | Romanticism | 1842-1918 |
| 11 | Boccherini Luigi | Italian | Classicism | 1743-1805 |
| 12 | Borodin Alexander Porfirievich | Russian | Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful” | 1833-1887 |
| 13 | Bortnyansky Dmitry Stepanovich | Russian-Ukrainian | Classicism - Church music | 1751-1825 |
| 14 | Brahms Johannes | German | Romanticism | 1833-1897 |
| 15 | Wagner Wilhelm Richard | German | Romanticism | 1813-1883 |
| 16 | Varlamov Alexander Egorovich | Russian | Russian folk music | 1801-1848 |
| 17 | Weber Carl Maria von | German | Romanticism | 1786-1826 |
| 18 | Verdi Giuseppe Fortunio Francesco | Italian | Romanticism | 1813-1901 |
| 19 | Verstovsky Alexey Nikolaevich | Russian | Romanticism | 1799-1862 |
| 20 | Vivaldi Antonio | Italian | Baroque | 1678-1741 |
| 21 | Villa-Lobos Heitor | Brazilian | Neoclassicism | 1887-1959 |
| 22 | Wolf-Ferrari Ermanno | Italian | Romanticism | 1876-1948 |
| 23 | Haydn Franz Joseph | Austrian | Classicism | 1732-1809 |
| 24 | Handel George Frideric | German | Baroque | 1685-1759 |
| 25 | Gershwin George | American | - | 1898-1937 |
| 26 | Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich | Russian | Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful” | 1865-1936 |
| 27 | Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich | Russian | Classicism | 1804-1857 |
| 28 | Glier Reingold Moritsevich | Russian and Soviet | - | 1874/75-1956 |
| 29 | Gluk (Gluk) Christoph Willibald | German | Classicism | 1714-1787 |
| 30 | Granados, Granados y Campina Enrique | Spanish | Romanticism | 1867-1916 |
| 31 | Grechaninov Alexander Tikhonovich | Russian | Romanticism | 1864-1956 |
| 32 | Grieg Edward Haberup | Norwegian | Romanticism | 1843-1907 |
| 33 | Hummel, Hummel (Hummel) Johann (Jan) Nepomuk | Austrian - Czech nationality | Classicism-Romanticism | 1778-1837 |
| 34 | Gounod Charles Francois | French | Romanticism | 1818-1893 |
| 35 | Gurilev Alexander Lvovich | Russian | - | 1803-1858 |
| 36 | Dargomyzhsky Alexander Sergeevich | Russian | Romanticism | 1813-1869 |
| 37 | Dvorjak Antonin | Czech | Romanticism | 1841-1904 |
| 38 | Debussy Claude Achille | French | Romanticism | 1862-1918 |
| 39 | Delibes Clément Philibert Leo | French | Romanticism | 1836-1891 |
| 40 | Destouches Andre Cardinal | French | Baroque | 1672-1749 |
| 41 | Degtyarev Stepan Anikievich | Russian | Church music | 1776-1813 |
| 42 | Giuliani Mauro | Italian | Classicism-Romanticism | 1781-1829 |
| 43 | Dinicu Grigorash | Romanian | 1889-1949 | |
| 44 | Donizetti Gaetano | Italian | Classicism-Romanticism | 1797-1848 |
| 45 | Ippolitov-Ivanov Mikhail Mikhailovich | Russian-Soviet composer | 20th-century classical composers | 1859-1935 |
| 46 | Kabalevsky Dmitry Borisovich | Russian-Soviet composer | 20th-century classical composers | 1904-1987 |
| 47 | Kalinnikov Vasily Sergeevich | Russian | Russian musical classics | 1866-1900/01 |
| 48 | Kalman Imre (Emmerich) | Hungarian | 20th-century classical composers | 1882-1953 |
| 49 | Cui Caesar Antonovich | Russian | Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful” | 1835-1918 |
| 50 | Leoncovallo Ruggiero | Italian | Romanticism | 1857-1919 |
| 51 | Liszt (Liszt) Ferenc (Franz) | Hungarian | Romanticism | 1811-1886 |
| 52 | Lyadov Anatoly Konstantinovich | Russian | 20th-century classical composers | 1855-1914 |
| 53 | Lyapunov Sergey Mikhailovich | Russian | Romanticism | 1850-1924 |
| 54 | Mahler Gustav | Austrian | Romanticism | 1860-1911 |
| 55 | Mascagni Pietro | Italian | Romanticism | 1863-1945 |
| 56 | Massenet Jules Emile Frederic | French | Romanticism | 1842-1912 |
| 57 | Marcello Benedetto | Italian | Baroque | 1686-1739 |
| 58 | Meyerbeer Giacomo | French | Classicism-Romanticism | 1791-1864 |
| 59 | Mendelssohn, Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Jacob Ludwig Felix | German | Romanticism | 1809-1847 |
| 60 | Mignone to Francis | Brazilian | 20th-century classical composers | 1897 |
| 61 | Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio | Italian | Renaissance-Baroque | 1567-1643 |
| 62 | Moniuszko Stanislav | Polish | Romanticism | 1819-1872 |
| 63 | Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus | Austrian | Classicism | 1756-1791 |
| 64 | Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich | Russian | Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful” | 1839-1881 |
| 65 | Napravnik Eduard Frantsevich | Russian - Czech nationality | Romanticism? | 1839-1916 |
| 66 | Oginski Michal Kleofas | Polish | - | 1765-1833 |
| 67 | Offenbach Jacques (Jacob) | French | Romanticism | 1819-1880 |
| 68 | Paganini Nicolo | Italian | Classicism-Romanticism | 1782-1840 |
| 69 | Pachelbel Johann | German | Baroque | 1653-1706 |
| 70 | Planquette, Planquette (Planquette) Jean Robert Julien | French | - | 1848-1903 |
| 71 | Ponce Cuellar Manuel Maria | Mexican | 20th-century classical composers | 1882-1948 |
| 72 | Prokofiev Sergey Sergeevich | Russian-Soviet composer | Neoclassicism | 1891-1953 |
| 73 | Francis Poulenc | French | Neoclassicism | 1899-1963 |
| 74 | Puccini Giacomo | Italian | Romanticism | 1858-1924 |
| 75 | Ravel Maurice Joseph | French | Neoclassicism-Impressionism | 1875-1937 |
| 76 | Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilievich | Russian | Romanticism | 1873-1943 |
| 77 | Rimsky - Korsakov Nikolai Andreevich | Russian | Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful” | 1844-1908 |
| 78 | Rossini Gioachino Antonio | Italian | Classicism-Romanticism | 1792-1868 |
| 79 | Rota Nino | Italian | 20th-century classical composers | 1911-1979 |
| 80 | Rubinstein Anton Grigorievich | Russian | Romanticism | 1829-1894 |
| 81 | Sarasate, Sarasate y Navascuez (Sarasate y Navascuez) Pablo de | Spanish | Romanticism | 1844-1908 |
| 82 | Sviridov Georgy Vasilievich (Yuri) | Russian-Soviet composer | NeoRomanticism | 1915-1998 |
| 83 | Saint-Saëns Charles Camille | French | Romanticism | 1835-1921 |
| 84 | Sibelius Jan (Johan) | Finnish | Romanticism | 1865-1957 |
| 85 | Scarlatti by Giuseppe Domenico | Italian | Baroque-Classicism | 1685-1757 |
| 86 | Skryabin Alexander Nikolaevich | Russian | Romanticism | 1871/72-1915 |
| 87 | Smetana Bridzhikh | Czech | Romanticism | 1824-1884 |
| 88 | Stravinsky Igor Fedorovich | Russian | Neo-Romanticism-Neo-Baroque-Serialism | 1882-1971 |
| 89 | Taneyev Sergey Ivanovich | Russian | Romanticism | 1856-1915 |
| 90 | Telemann Georg Philipp | German | Baroque | 1681-1767 |
| 91 | Torelli Giuseppe | Italian | Baroque | 1658-1709 |
| 92 | Tosti Francesco Paolo | Italian | - | 1846-1916 |
| 93 | Fibich Zdenek | Czech | Romanticism | 1850-1900 |
| 94 | Flotow Friedrich von | German | Romanticism | 1812-1883 |
| 95 | Khachaturyan Aram | Armenian-Soviet composer | 20th-century classical composers | 1903-1978 |
| 96 | Holst Gustav | English | - | 1874-1934 |
| 97 | Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich | Russian | Romanticism | 1840-1893 |
| 98 | Chesnokov Pavel Grigorievich | Russian-Soviet composer | - | 1877-1944 |
| 99 | Cilea Francesco | Italian | - | 1866-1950 |
| 100 | Cimarosa Domenico | Italian | Classicism | 1749-1801 |
| 101 | Schnittke Alfred Garrievich | Soviet composer | polystylistics | 1934-1998 |
| 102 | Chopin Fryderyk | Polish | Romanticism | 1810-1849 |
| 103 | Shostakovich Dmitry Dmitrievich | Russian-Soviet composer | Neoclassicism-NeoRomanticism | 1906-1975 |
| 104 | Strauss Johann (father) | Austrian | Romanticism | 1804-1849 |
| 105 | Strauss Johann (son) | Austrian | Romanticism | 1825-1899 |
| 106 | Strauss Richard | German | Romanticism | 1864-1949 |
| 107 | Schubert Franz | Austrian | Romanticism-Classicism | 1797-1828 |
| 108 | Schumann Robert | German | Romanticism | 1810-1 |
The most famous names of this period I.S. Bach, G.F. Handel. Their works can be assessed differently: the assessment depends on tastes and trends. But each in his own field they fulfilled their mission with equal perfection. The power of their creativity concentrated around itself everything significant that had been achieved until then by European music.
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750) is one of the greatest composers in the history of music. During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. His work represents all the significant genres of that time, except opera; he summarized all the achievements of musical art of this period.
The musical culture of German Protestantism played an important role in the formation of Bach's personality and creativity. It is no coincidence that most of the composer’s heritage is sacred music. He did not turn to the most popular genre of the 18th century, opera.
Bach never left Germany; moreover, he lived mainly not in capital cities, but in provincial cities. However, he was familiar with all the significant developments in music of the time. The composer managed to combine in his work the traditions of the Protestant chorale with the traditions of European music schools. Bach's works are distinguished by their philosophical depth, concentration of thought, and lack of vanity. The most important feature of his music is his amazing sense of form. Everything here is extremely precise, balanced and at the same time emotional. Various elements of musical language work to create a single image, resulting in harmony of the whole.
The work of Bach, a universal musician, summarized the achievements of musical art of several centuries on the verge of Baroque and Classicism. A distinctly national artist, Bach combined the traditions of the Protestant chorale with the traditions of the Austrian, Italian, and French musical schools.
Bach, an unsurpassed master of polyphony, is characterized by the unity of polyphonic and homophonic, vocal and instrumental thinking, which explains the deep interpenetration of various genres and styles in his work.
The leading genre in Bach's vocal and instrumental work is the spiritual cantata. Bach created 5 annual cycles of cantatas, which differ in their belonging to the church calendar, in text sources (psalms, choral stanzas, “free” poetry), in the role of the chorale, etc.
Of the secular cantatas, the most famous are “Peasant” and “Coffee”. The principles developed in cantated dramaturgy were implemented in the masses and the “Passion”. The “High” Mass in h-minor, “St. John’s Passion,” and “Matthew Passion” became the culmination of the centuries-long history of these genres.
Organ music occupies a central place in Bach's instrumental work. Synthesizing the experience of organ improvisation inherited from his predecessors (D. Buxtehude, J. Pachelbel, G. Böhm, I.A. Reincken), various variational and polyphonic composition techniques and contemporary principles of concertoing, Bach rethought and updated the traditional genres of organ music - toccata, fantasy, passacaglia, chorale prelude.
A virtuoso performer and one of the greatest experts on keyboard instruments of his time, Bach created an extensive literature for the clavier. Among the keyboard works, the most important place is occupied by “The Well-Tempered Clavier” - the first experience in the history of music of artistic application developed at the turn of the 17th-18th centuries. tempered system.
The greatest polyphonist, Bach created unsurpassed examples in fugues, a kind of school of contrapuntal mastery, which was continued and completed in “The Art of Fugue,” which Bach worked on over the last 10 years of his life. Bach is the author of one of the first keyboard concertos - the Italian Concerto (without orchestra), which fully established the independent significance of the clavier as a concert instrument.
Bach's music for violin, cello, flute, oboe, instrumental ensemble, orchestra - sonatas, suites, partitas, concertos - marks a significant expansion of the expressive and technical capabilities of instruments, reveals a deep knowledge of instruments and universalism in their interpretation.
Among Bach's works for other instruments, the main place belongs to the violin sonatas, partitas and concertos. Being an excellent violinist from a young age, Bach the composer perfectly comprehended the capabilities of the instrument, its “style,” just as he mastered the “style” of the organ and clavier. The new type of violin music at that time served as a model for him when creating not only violin works, which was already noted in the example of concerts. At the same time, Bach sought to transfer the developed polyphony developed in the forms of organ and clavier music to violin sonatas, placing extremely high demands on this instrument. “In essence, all his works were created for an ideal instrument, borrowing from the keyboard the possibilities of polyphonic playing, and from the strings - all the advantages in producing sound,” Albert Schweitzer rightly concludes 6 Brandenburg Concertos for various instrumental compositions, which implemented the genre and compositional principles of the concerto grosso , were an important step on the path to the classical symphony.
During Bach's lifetime, a small part of his works was published. Bach's work is so deep and multifaceted that his contemporaries were unable to appreciate it at its true worth. The true scale of Bach's genius, which had a strong influence on the subsequent development of European musical culture, began to be realized only after his death. A whole century had to pass before Bach received recognition as a great composer.
The name of George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) is associated with the development of opera and oratorio. Already at the age of twelve, Handel wrote church cantatas and organ pieces. In 1702, he took the post of organist of the Protestant cathedral in his hometown of Halle, but soon realized that church music was not his calling. The composer was much more attracted to opera.
Handel made his mark as an opera composer in Italy. The production of Agrippina (1709) in Venice brought him fame, and the opera Rinaldo (1711), staged in London, made Handel the largest opera composer in Europe. He participated in opera enterprises (so-called academies), staged his own operas, as well as works of other composers; Particularly successful for Handel was his work at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Handel composed several operas a year. In the 1730s. the composer is looking for new ways in musical theater - strengthening the role of the choir and ballet in operas ("Ariodante", "Alcina", both - 1735).
Handel's operatic work was influenced by the musical dramaturgy of R. Kaiser. An artist of the Enlightenment, Handel summarized the achievements of the musical Baroque and paved the way for musical classicism. Without completely breaking with the canons of opera seria, through a contrasting comparison of dramatic layers, Handel achieved intense development of the action.
He also worked in the genre of Italian opera seria. The music of extraordinary beauty made a huge impression on the listeners. In total, the master created more than forty works of this genre. However, not everyone accepted the opera seria in England. It is no coincidence that The Beggar's Opera (1728; music by Johann Christoph Pepusch, libretto by John Gay), which parodied Italian operas, which, as some believed, interfered with the development of the national theater, was a huge success.
He brought the Italian opera seria to the threshold of reform. Gluck will begin to implement it only more than twenty years later, when the necessary historical conditions have developed. Handel himself will continue his quest in the oratorio genre.
Handel's works are characterized by a monumental-heroic style, an optimistic, life-affirming principle that combines heroism, epic, lyricism, tragedy, and pastoralism into a single harmonious whole. Having absorbed and creatively rethought the influence of Italian, French, and English music, Handel remained a German musician in the origins of his creativity and way of thinking.
In the 40s, after the failure of the opera “Deidamia” (1741), Handel no longer turned to this type of musical art and devoted all his time to the oratorio - the highest creative achievement of G.F. Handel.
The composer's new works were warmly received by the public. Handel created thirty-two oratorios. In the oratorio, not bound by strict genre restrictions, Handel continued his search in the field of musical drama, in plot and composition.
This turn will not remain without consequences in the composer’s future path. Creating truly heroic oratorios, he will turn to themes and images associated with the idea of sacrifice, sacrifice in the fate of a person, the irresistible doom of a hero or heroine. And everything that Handel achieved over many years in the art of opera, all the best that he found here, will not pass by the oratorio. Among Handel's most popular works are the oratorios “Israel in Egypt” (1739) and “Messiah” (1742), which, after a successful premiere in Dublin, met with sharp criticism from the clergy. The success of later oratorios, incl. Judas Maccabee (1747), contributed to Handel's participation in the struggle against the attempted restoration of the Stuart dynasty. Using the material of biblical tales and their refraction in English poetry, Handel revealed pictures of national disasters and suffering, the greatness of the people’s struggle against the oppression of enslavers. Handel was the creator of a new type of vocal and instrumental works that combine scale (powerful choirs) and strict architectonics. Handel's oratorios amaze with the power of the choir's sound, the virtuoso use of polyphony, and the soft and flexible, expressive melodies of the arias. The chorus is intended to emphasize the monumentality of the event, its enormous significance for humanity, and the arias are intended to emphasize the strength of the hero’s feelings.
In the oratorio genre, like no other, Handel could freely dispose of the choral masses, involving the chorus in an epic narrative or dramatic action. He did not even think of imitating Italian models of oratorio, which in his time gravitated towards operatic forms much more than towards choral monumentality. Like Bach, Handel apparently always had a deep creative interest in large polyphonic forms.
Throughout his career, Handel also worked in instrumental genres; His concerti grossi are of greatest importance. The motivic development, especially in orchestral works, and the homophonic-harmonic style prevail in Handel over the polyphonic development of the material; the melody is distinguished by its length, intonation and rhythmic energy, and clarity of pattern. Only in comparison with Handel's operas and oratorios can his instrumental music seem less significant. But in itself it is very indicative of him, tightly connected with the main areas of his work and full of artistic interest. Although on the composer's thorny path instrumental works were more of a rest than an extreme effort, he managed to write a lot of them: more than 50 concertos, more than 40 sonatas and about 200 pieces for clavier, clavier or organ, as well as various instrumental compositions. So, if Handel had created nothing but oratorios, his creative legacy would still be considered grandiose. But he also owns more than forty operas, including countless pages of beautiful music. Despite all the significant genre differences, with a different relationship between music and text, Handel’s Italian operas in the actual musical sense prepared a lot for the range of images in his oratorios. In turn, the continuous evolution of his oratorio creativity and multifaceted research in this area were of invaluable importance both for the history of oratorio and for the further history of opera. His works had a significant influence on artists of subsequent generations, especially on representatives of the Viennese classical school. Handel's work had a significant influence on J. Haydn, V.A. Mozart, L. Beethoven, M.I. Glinka.
At the end of the 17th and 18th centuries. New musical canons are beginning to emerge, which composers and musicians will follow for a long time. This century gave the world music that made an invaluable contribution to the world's cultural heritage. Composers of the 18th century are famous for such personalities as:
This is one of the greatest German composers, interest in whose personality and work does not fade over time, but, on the contrary, is increasing. But, unfortunately, he did not receive recognition during his lifetime. Johann had no choice of career other than music, because his ancestors were famous for their musicality.
The future genius was born in 1685 in the town of Eisenach. He owes his first steps in music to his father, who taught him to play the violin. Bach had a beautiful voice and sang in the city school choir. Those around him had no doubt that the boy would become an excellent musician.
Having become an orphan early, at the age of 15, Johann began an independent life. Despite the fact that the young composer lived in cramped circumstances and frequently moved, Bach’s interest in music never waned; he constantly expanded his knowledge of music through self-education.
Unlike his fellow composers, who tried to imitate foreign musicians in everything, Bach actively used German folk songs and dances in his works. But Johann was not only a talented composer, but also an excellent performer on the organ and harpsichord. If he was not known as a composer, then everyone recognized his mastery of playing these instruments.
But court society did not like the composer’s music: it was considered too bright, emotional, and human. But despite the public’s lack of recognition of his works, he never adjusted to their tastes. Bach wrote his best musical works in Leipzig, where he moved with his family and remained until the end of his life. There he created most of the cantatas, "The St. John Passion", "The St. Matthew Passion", and the Mass in B minor.
The composer's greatest joy, support and support was his family. The sons also became gifted musicians and gained fame during Bach's lifetime. His second wife and eldest daughter had a very beautiful voice. Therefore, Johann continued to write musical works for his family.
In the last years of his life, Bach began to have serious vision problems, and after an unsuccessful operation he became blind. But despite this, he did not abandon his creativity and continued to create compositions, dictating them for recording. His death went virtually unnoticed in the musical community, and he was soon forgotten. Interest in his music appeared only 100 years later, when, under the leadership of Mendelssohn, one of his most beautiful creations, “St. Matthew Passion,” was performed, and at the same time a collection of his musical compositions was released.
This genius of music was not appreciated by his contemporaries, who could not understand the full strength and depth of his talent, did not like him for his strong and independent character, but centuries later they are interested in his work and admire his talent. Wolfgang was born on January 27, 1756. His father was a court musician and, having early noticed musical abilities in Mozart’s sister, began to teach her music.
This marked the beginning of Wolfgang's work. The boy showed exceptional abilities for music at an early age: at the age of 5-6 years, he had already created his first musical works, while possessing a unique ear for music and an amazing memory. The father, seeing that his son has rare musical talents, decides to start a concert tour so that Wolfgang gains fame and does not become a court musician.
But despite the fact that everyone admired the boy and at the age of 12 his works became famous, society could not fully appreciate the full potential of the young musician. Therefore, after returning from the tour, Wolfgang became a court musician and suffered greatly from the situation in which he found himself. But not wanting to put up with being disrespected and treated inappropriately, he left Salzburg for Vienna.
It was during his stay in Vienna that his talent flourished. Soon he married a beautiful girl named Constanze Weber, and even his parents' disapproval could not prevent their happiness. The years he spent in Vienna cannot be called easy; rather, on the contrary. Being in need, Mozart had to work very hard, which affected his health. Despite the fact that his operas “The Marriage of Figaro” and “Don Giovanni” are a success, society is still unable to understand the full genius of Wolfgang.
Shortly before his death, Mozart wrote his greatest work, the opera The Magic Flute. At the same time, he creates "Requiem", but does not have time to complete it. On the night of December 4-5, 1791, the brilliant composer died. The circumstances of his death still remain unknown, which gives rise to many disputes among experts. Only after his death did the musical society and the whole world recognize the genius of Mozart, and his works are still considered masterpieces in music.
His “Seasons” has been on a par with other works of genius for several centuries. A virtuoso violinist who received recognition during his lifetime, who traveled a lot, an excellent teacher - all this is about the famous Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi.
Antonio was born on March 4, 1678 and became the only child in the family to choose a musical career. His musical talent manifested itself very early, and his first teacher was Giovanni Batista, who by that time had gained fame as a virtuoso. Studying his performance style suggests that the boy took lessons from other famous musicians.
Young Antonio decides to choose a career as a priest and on December 18, 1693 receives the lowest church rank. Later, he received three more “lower” and two “higher” church titles necessary to receive the priesthood. But despite his spiritual career, Vivaldi continued to play music very successfully.
And his intensive studies brought results: Antonio was appointed teacher at one of the best “conservatories” in Venice. His extensive and varied musical activity made the “conservatory” one of the most prominent in the city. At the beginning of his work, the composer paid great attention to the instrumental direction, which can be explained by the fact that the northern part of Italy and Venice were considered the center of the best instrumentalists.
Antonio Vivaldi gained fame outside of Italy, his works were successful, and studying with him was considered a high honor. In Mantua, the composer meets Anna Giraud and her sister Paolina. Soon both girls became permanent residents of the Vivaldi house, which caused discontent among the church leadership, who already did not like the fact that Antonio was on frequent travel.
On November 16, 1737, on behalf of the cardinal, the composer was prohibited from entering Ferrara, which in those days was considered a disgrace. This meant that now Vivaldi's entire spiritual career was destroyed and caused quite significant material damage. His relationship with the leadership of the “conservatory” deteriorated more and more. And it wasn’t just his frequent travels - Vivaldi’s music had already begun to be considered old-fashioned.
At the end of 1740, Antonio parted with the “conservatory”, which owed him many years of fame. Getting ready for a long trip and experiencing financial difficulties, Vivaldi arranges a sale of his concerts at a low price. At the age of 62, the composer decides to leave Italy and find happiness in other countries. But, despite the fact that he was once accepted by everyone and his works were admired, at the end of his life Antonio Vivaldi was forgotten and abandoned by everyone. The famous Italian virtuoso died on July 28, 1741 in Vienna. He is one of the most prominent representatives of composers of that time, and his instrumental compositions occupy a worthy place in the world musical heritage.
Composers of the 18th century had a huge influence on the future development of music, although they did not always receive recognition and fame during their lifetime. It’s just that the society of that era could not appreciate the full power of their talent, their beauty and depth. The framework imposed on them was too narrow for their talent; for them, music was the meaning of life. But their descendants were able to appreciate their work, and their brilliant works continue to be performed at all concerts to this day.
Russian music is widely celebrated throughout the world. The names of Glinka, Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, Mussorgsky are known to all cultural humanity, like the names of great Russian writers or artists.
The operas “Ivan Susanin”, “Eugene Onegin”, “The Queen of Spades”, “The Snow Maiden”, “Boris Godunov”, “Prince Igor” and others have firmly entered the golden fund of world art and have become precious examples of world artistic culture. Tchaikovsky's symphonies have no equal among contemporary symphonic works by Western European composers.
The greatest musicians of the West learned a lot from examples of Russian music of the 19th century, and they highly appreciated the Russian school of music. Back in 1881, the famous pianist and composer Franz Liszt said to Borodin, who visited him in Magdeburg: “No, we need you Russians; I need you, I can’t live without you. You have a living stream of life, but here all around is mostly carrion.”
Even during the composer's lifetime, Tchaikovsky's music met with lively sympathy and sincere love in America, where he performed as a conductor of his own compositions. Famous French innovative musicians of the 20th century - Debussy, Ravel and others carefully studied the scores of Mussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov. Our homeland can rightfully be proud of the glorious names of its composers, just as it is proud of the names of Pushkin, Gogol, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekhov.
Classical Russian music has always been distinguished by the depth of life content, the strength of ideas and feelings, the brightness of images, the height of skill and the perfection of form. The broad, melodious melodies of Russian operas and symphonies touch the heart and are etched in the memory of everyone who hears them. These beautiful melodies, like all Russian music, are close to folk origins, deeply related to Russian folk song. The best Russian composers passionately and devotedly loved their homeland, knew the life of their people very well, studied their past, their ancient tales, their rituals, their songs. Thus, we have the right to say that classical Russian music, which we know from the works of Glinka, Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, Mussorgsky, has its own glorious tradition, that is, great and long preparation, strong ties with the past, deep and rich soil . For this reason alone, it is important and interesting for us to know how Russian music developed, what path it took, how its history developed.
MUSIC OF KIEVAN RUS. MUSIC OF ANCIENT Rus'. RUSSIAN MUSIC OF THE IX-XVII CENTURIES
Fresco of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv depicting musicians and buffoons
The history of Russian music goes back to ancient times.
The first Russian classical composer and musician of world importance was Glinka, a contemporary of Pushkin. Glinka's predecessors had already written Russian operas, romances and instrumental plays. Many centuries before this, Russian church music took shape. Even earlier, probably since people lived on our land, folk art existed. Samples of Old Slavic The arts turned out to be extremely vital and served as an important nutritional source for all Russian music. These were the oldest, still pagan, ritual songs of the Eastern and partly Western Slavs, songs of lament for the dead, wedding, military, lyrical, labor songs, closely connected with the whole of everyday life, with all the events of human life and the nature that surrounded man. Many of these ancient songs have not been forgotten to this day. Their echoes are heard in folk songs sung today. Some of them were processed by Russian composers and included in their operas, symphonies and chamber works.
Exactly Slavic tribes, who inhabited our land long before the formation of the Kyiv state, were distinguished by their special musicality. They went on military campaigns with singing, and performed numerous pagan rituals with singing. Very early they had musical instruments - horns, trumpets, all kinds of pipes, beats, etc. By the time a large and strong Kievan state emerged, uniting the Slavs over a vast territory, that is, by the 9th century, a fairly high culture had already matured ancient Russia.
From the 9th century onwards, our information about the music of Rus' has expanded and been enriched. We know about the existence not only of folk songs and dances in ancient Kiev, but also about military, military music of princely squads, about singing with the harp at princely feasts, about the chanting of epics that sang the exploits of Russian heroes - Ilya Muromets, Dobrynya Nikitich and others. We also know about musical instruments, both created by the people themselves and brought to rich, lively Kyiv from the West and East. The most favorite instrument of Kievan Rus was the gusli, constantly mentioned in epics and depicted by icon painters. When Kievan Rus adopted Christianity (9th century), wonderful cathedrals were erected in Kyiv - wonderful examples of ancient Russian architecture, and choral church music sounded in them. Gradually, a cadre of professional church singers who were proficient in ancient musical notation was created and grew, because church music was already written in special signs. The oldest written monuments of musical culture in Rus' date back to the 11th-14th centuries and are associated specifically with church music. Thus, Kievan Rus left us not only information about music, but also examples of ancient musical writing.
After Kyiv Other centers of Russian musical culture also emerged, of which the following received special significance: in the north-west - Novgorod the Great, in northeastern Rus' - cities of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality. Folk art developed and grew everywhere. All events of Russian history and the experiences of the people associated with them - from the heavy oppression of the Tatar-Mongol yoke to the victorious annexation of new cities to Russia - were reflected in folk songs. New heroes, new images entered the Russian epic. So, for example, in Novgorod, the favorite hero was the guslar and trading guest - the successful and smart Sadko. In those days in Russia, the original guardians and performers of folk art, as well as its authors-improvisers, were buffoons, traveling actors, singers, dancers, amuse-bouches, who performed at princely feasts and village weddings. Skomorokhs were well known back in ancient Kyiv. In the commercial and noisy free Novgorod there were especially many of them. In Novgorod and Vladimir, as well as in other Russian cities, from the 12th-13th centuries, wonderful Russian church singers, master chants, created new church chants and trained new singers.
Church music in Rus' has long been purely choral. Her strict, smooth, wide melodies were performed in one voice - by a male choir. The culture of a capella choral singing, that is, choral singing without the accompaniment of instruments, which has the special charm of a strict and pure art, was thus very ancient in our country and was associated with both folk and church customs.
Everything that was created in Russian music before the 15th-16th centuries was inherited by Moscow, which gradually became the largest center for the unification of Russian lands. Under Tsar Ivan the Terrible, who did so much to strengthen the Russian state, entire families of buffoons from Novgorod flocked to Moscow; The best Novgorod singers and singing books were sent to Moscow. In Moscow, a little earlier, the best choir was established - the so-called choir of sovereign singing clerks, which performed in the court church and at solemn court festivities. The importance of the Russian state in Europe grew, its borders expanded, and the international importance of the Moscow court grew, with which European rulers took into account, increasingly sending their representatives to it for political and trade negotiations. In connection with this, the pomp of court life increased, and the role of music increased - church, solemn, first choral, and then instrumental music. Cultural ties with foreign countries grew stronger, from where the Moscow court began to order complex musical instruments - the organ, and later, under Tsar Fyodor - the harpsichord (the ancestor of our piano).
ON THE EVE OF PETER I'S REFORM
A significant turning point in the history of musical culture occurred in our country towards the end of the 17th century, on the eve of the grandiose reforms of Peter I.
The cultural needs of a huge state, which had entered a new period of its development, affected not only in the field of education, science, literature, but also in the field of music. First appeared at the Moscow court theatrical performances. In the “khoromina” specially built for this purpose by Tsar Alexei in the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow, spiritual and secular content was staged, where a considerable amount of music was performed - songs, choirs and even instrumental numbers. Performers on various instruments also appeared, first from abroad, and then Russians, who quickly learned a new skill. Church music, which had long followed ancient customs, was updated with new, modern forms and techniques. Wonderful Russian composers have come forward, authors of polyphonic choral concerts for the church - Vasily Titov, Nikolay Kalachnikov, Nikolay Bavykin and many others. New forms of everyday singing also emerged, the so-called edgings, - first spiritual and then secular songs for 3-4 voices. The Kants were the original ancestors of Russian romance.
But Russian romance and other types of musical art now known to us - opera, sonata, symphony - trace their history in Russia to the 18th century. It was in the 18th century that our country mastered and developed those musical forms that were free from church customs and themes, that is, forms of purely secular art. At the same time, opera, sonata and symphony, although they were based on folk melodics, on samples of folk musical creativity, could no longer be performed by means of ordinary folk music-making, but required special conditions, special professional personnel, that is, qualified opera singers, violinists and others instrumentalists.
RUSSIAN MUSIC OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 18TH CENTURY
Russian writer, poet, translator and statesman Grigory Nikolaevich Teplov (1717-1779)
Why exactly did the 18th century become in our country the century of a new musical culture, new types and areas of Russian musical art? Because it was precisely in this century that new forms of social life took shape, a new theater audience matured, and new circles of serf intelligentsia grew up. The state reforms and cultural transformations of Peter I, carried out from the beginning of the 18th century, gradually opened the way for the growth of secular national art, for the promotion of new cadres of artists, architects, musicians and simply literate figures, often coming from a serf environment. New connections were made with Western culture. Russian travelers, sent abroad by Peter I to study, became acquainted with the then brilliant Italian opera, French and English music. Under Peter, the first concerts began in St. Petersburg, in which new works by famous European composers were performed. The beginning of a concert court orchestra was laid. Peter himself took great care of regimental music. All major public celebrations, for example, the celebration of the victory over the Swedes, were celebrated with solemn performances with music, singing of cants in the open air during ceremonial processions, to the sound of trumpets and timpani, as well as the performance of powerful, loud, multi-choir church concerts. At the assemblies that Peter I introduced and where society gathered to dance, talk, and play chess, fashionable dances of that time were performed - minuet, polonaise, anglaise. All this was new, just as the social life taking shape in the new Russian capital was new.
At first, when Russia did not yet have its own artists and its own composers of secular music, large and famous foreign masters worked in St. Petersburg, striving for the rich royal court. In 1736, in St. Petersburg, at the court of Empress Anna Ioannovna, the opera was staged for the first time. It was composed and staged by an Italian composer Araya, specially ordered from Naples for this purpose along with Italian singers. This is where the magnificent productions of Italian operas at the St. Petersburg court originated. This is exactly how it was then almost everywhere in wealthy European courts. But very soon Italian opera ceased to satisfy the Russian audience, and Russian operas began to emerge, in which at first only the verbal text was Russian, and then the music, created by Russian composers. At the same time, simultaneously with the first opera performances, instrumental plays (for violin and other instruments) began to appear and became widespread, in which foreign musicians who settled in Russian capitals, meeting the demands of Russian music lovers, sometimes tried to arrange folk melodies. Finally, along with the numerous cants that filled handwritten collections and albums, the first collections of Russian romance songs with harpsichord accompaniment appeared. The earliest of such collections was compiled and released in 1759 by the enlightened music lover G. N. Teplov based on the words of Russian poets and was called “Between things, idleness or a collection of different songs”. Teplov's songs imitated minuets and other dances that were fashionable at that time and were very simple in composition. But so far the spread of this entire new musical culture was limited to relatively narrow circles of the capital's nobility. Only in the last quarter of the 18th century did a real Russian school of composition of a secular direction emerge. This school immediately established its national and broad social significance.
THE EMERGENCE OF RUSSIAN OPERA
Among the Russian composers who emerged mainly from the 70s of the 18th century and became the predecessors of the great Glinka, it is necessary to name the names M. S. Berezovsky (1745-1777), D. S. Bortnyansky (1751-1825), M. Matinsky (1750-182?), E. I. Fomina (1761-1800), I. E. Khandoshkina (174?-1804), I. A. Kozlovsky(1757-1831). Through their efforts, the first Russian operas, new, free forms of church music, the first romances, the first sonatas, quartets, and symphonies were created.
The first opera based on Russian text appeared back in 1755 at the St. Petersburg court. It was an opera by Araya, already known to us, on an ancient mythological plot - "Cephalus and Procris". But its text was written by one of the greatest Russian poets of the 18th century, A.P. Sumarokov, and it was performed in Russian, by very young Russian singers-actors. Operas by Russian composers on Russian everyday subjects, in the popular, publicly accessible form of comedy with music, arose not at court, but in connection with the growth of a different theatrical environment, when a wider theatrical audience had matured in the Russian capitals, filling private, “free” theaters . This audience had new tastes and made new demands on art.
RUSSIAN MUSIC OF THE SECOND HALF OF THE 18TH CENTURY
Artist N. I. Argunov (1771-1829). Portrait of P. I. Kovaleva-Zhemchugova (1768-1803)
In the second half of the 18th century, new cadres of Russian musicians gradually matured, mostly from among the serfs. The singers became especially famous Zhemchugova(in the home, serf theater of Sheremetev), Sandunova, brilliantly gifted violinist Khandoshkin, pianist Kashin and others. In St. Petersburg and Moscow, and then in Kharkov, Kazan and other large cities, public concert life arose, even musical societies and music magazines arose. Musical culture penetrated into rich noble estates, where they formed their own home opera troupes and serf orchestras. At the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg there were music classes in which, for example, the talented Russian composer E. I. Fomin studied, who later completed his education in Italy. Berezovsky, Bortnyansky, and Matinsky spent their youth abroad (mostly in Italy), mastering the basics of their compositional skills here in order to then develop it on their native soil.
The fate of many Russian musicians of the 18th century was difficult. Matinsky, Khandoshkin, Kashin, having become educated, famous musical figures, experienced the painful hardships of serfdom. They could be sold, just as any serf masters were sold back then. The very area of musical activity, despite the gradual expansion, was still bound by the framework of the courtyard, church, and noble estate. Until the end of the century, the St. Petersburg courtyard was very important as a kind of musical center, supporting many musicians and giving them work. The musical life of Catherine's court was especially brilliant and lush. The nobles - the Naryshkins, Razumovskys, Potemkins, Sheremetevs - also lined the courtyard. Along with productions of Italian, French, and then Russian operas, table symphonies and Russian songs were performed at court. Especially for the rich court festivities, grandiose works by the famous Italian composer Sarti were created for choir and orchestra with fireworks and even cannon shots, heroic, spectacular polonaises by Kozlovsky for choir and orchestra.
RUSSIAN MUSIC OF THE END OF THE 18TH CENTURY. FOMINA'S CREATIVITY
Russian composer Evstigney Ipatovich Fomin (1761-1800)
In the work of Russian composers, opera immediately occupied the main place, and only then - Russian romance and instrumental music. Folk song received great importance in the development of all these forms as the main basis of the melody, as a source for the creation of national art.
For early Russian opera, a very important date is 1779, when three bright, comedy-everyday operas arose and were staged: "Miller-sorcerer, deceiver and matchmaker"(text by Ablesimov, music by Sokolovsky, in the second edition - by Fomin) - in Moscow: “St. Petersburg Gostiny Dvor” (text and music by Matinsky) and “Misfortune from the Carriage” (text by Knyazhnin, music by Pashkevich) - in St. Petersburg. All three works were a great success among the general public and quickly became popular. By their type, these are dialogical operas, in which spoken dialogues without music are interspersed with songs, couplets, and choruses. In terms of plots, these are simple, widely accessible comedies from Russian life: peasant - in "Melnik", merchant, satirically shown - in "Gostiny Dvor", noble - also not without satirical lighting - in "Misfortune from the Coach". While working on the text of “The Sorcerer Miller,” Ablesimov himself pointed out those melodies of folk songs that should be used as the basis for the musical numbers of this play. The violinist of the Moscow Theater Sokolovsky selected and very simply processed these melodies. And only later Fomin, already as a professional composer, reworked the music of the opera and wrote an overture for it. In Fomin’s version, “The Miller the Sorcerer” was popular even at the beginning of the 19th century, and the famous Russian critic Belinsky recalls that his father also performed one of the parts of this opera in an amateur performance. Thus, the music of the first significant Russian opera was, first of all, an arrangement of song melodies. Subsequently, composers used the material of Russian songs more independently, freely melting it into their music. The beginning of this was laid by the same Fomin, undoubtedly the largest of the Russian composers of the 18th century.
In addition to the adaptation of "The Miller the Sorcerer", Fomin owns operas "Novgorod hero Boleslavovich" (1786), "Coachmen on the stand" (1787), "The Americans"(1800, text by Krylov and Klushin), melodrama "Orpheus and Eurydice" and others.
In “The Miller the Sorcerer” by Sokolovsky-Fomin, there are such persons as a crafty and intelligent miller (“rural sorcerer”), an old stubborn peasant and a grumpy noblewoman - his wife, a young girl - their daughter Anyuta and her fiancé, fellow nobleman Filimon. The literary language of the opera, which deliberately imitated the folk dialect, caused indignation on the part of the aristocratic public. The opera's song music was also striking in its novelty, which immediately ensured its popularity far beyond the narrow circle of enlightened amateurs. In “The Miller the Sorcerer” we encounter folk melodies of various types, as well as imitation of folk songs in individual arias and choruses: here is the drawn-out, wide, sing-song song of the miller himself (“Like evening with us since midnight”), and the daring, lively, like a ditty, a song of a young guy (“I’ll sing this song: a good fellow went to Presnya”), and a pitiful, touching song of a girl (“If only I were young, I was sure”), and perky, patter-twistered couplets with balalaika accompaniment of the cunning miller (“ Just like the old man and the old woman were walking from the forest." The opera was performed not by professional singers, but by dramatic actors who could sing, who simultaneously performed comedies or dramas without singing that same evening. The staging of such a performance was simple, not rich and not cunning.
Very early, from the very first steps of Russian opera, Russian customs and rituals were reproduced in it with particular eagerness. In Fomin's "The Miller the Sorcerer" the girls' wedding choirs are very good; in Matinsky’s “St. Petersburg Gostiny Dvor”, almost the entire action is occupied by scenes of a bachelorette party with its rituals and songs, among which women’s choirs of a truly folk character stand out - “In the garden, the zegzelushka was clicking” and “My harps, my harps.”
DEVELOPMENT OF RUSSIAN OPERA IN THE 18TH CENTURY
The path outlined by the comedic and everyday works of Fomin and Matinsky was continued in the further development of Russian opera of the 18th century. The texts of the operas were created by famous writers and poets: Maykov, Kheraskov, Knyazhnin, Levshin, Krylov. The music was written not only by Russian composers, but also by foreigners who tried to master the popular genre of Russian everyday opera (the Spaniard Martin y Soler, the German Raupach, the Frenchman Bulan). Its content was usually a light, simple-minded, cheerful comedy. However, she did not shy away from socio-satirical features; it ridiculed the extravagance and parasitism of Russian nobles, the bribery of clerks; in some cases she idealized “rural simplicity”, in others she tried to expose the serf-owner landowner in her couplets, remaining, however, quite harmless in her satirical tendencies.
Quite early, along with the comedy-everyday variety of Russian opera, fairy-tale opera, in which magical and moralizing motifs predominated, also became widespread. The texts of many operas of this kind were composed according to the direct instructions of Catherine II. That's how operas are "Fevey" Pashkevich (1786), "Vityaz Akhrideich" Vanzhurs (1787), "Woe-hero Kosometovich" Martin y Solera (1789).
Composers of the 18th century laid only the very initial foundations in the development of Russian opera. It is important, however, to note their desire to make their art widely accessible, to consciously contrast it with foreign court opera, as art that is primarily realistic and national, based on the use of folk songs. This appeal to folk song as a powerful source of musical creativity, together with an interest in conveying national characteristics, everyday life, rituals, and the way of life of the Russian people, remained characteristic and significant for all Russian musical classics - from Glinka to Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov.
DEVELOPMENT OF OTHER MUSICAL GENRES
Ivan Evstafievich Khandoshkin (1747-1804). Six old Russian songs with variations. Title page
In the development of other musical genres, that is, romance songs and instrumental music, Russian folk songs were also of great importance. At first, the romance songs of Russian composers, which were included in numerous handwritten and printed songbooks and albums of that time, differed so little from folk songs that the names of the authors of the music were usually not even indicated. Only towards the end of the century did romance acquire independent significance as a special type of vocal lyric; works begin to bear the name of the author and reflect his special individual traits. Names stand out here Dubyansky, Kozlovsky, Zilina, Zhuchkovsky. In their small romance songs there is a lot of heartfelt sensitivity, lyrical complaints, similar in nature to Russian lyric poetry of that time. Dubyansky’s very sensitive romance song became especially popular in its time. "The Gray Dove Moans".
Russian instrumental music of the 18th century is predominantly of an everyday nature: the most widespread are fashionable dances and variations on song melodies, performed not only by violin and piano, but also by ensembles and a powerful horn orchestra. Many plays of this kind are first distributed through various albums and collections of home repertoire; they are performed at balls, in salons, and in the open air; they are played by amateurs on the piano at home, etc. Only later did major authors perform with instrumental music and a more complex repertoire develop, that is, sonatas, concerts, and chamber ensembles appear. They occupy an exceptional place among their contemporaries in this area Khandoshkin And Bortnyansky.
A brilliant violin virtuoso, a genius who amazed European connoisseurs with his playing, Khandoshkin He was one of the first to create violin sonatas and piano pieces in our country, in which he combined a broad virtuoso concert style and an independent, original development of genuine song melodies. Bortnyansky owns a very large number of chamber instrumental pieces in the then new forms of classical piano sonata, quartet, and small, modest-sounding symphony.
All this art, harmonious, melodic, soft in sound and clear in thought, arose in the form of a peculiar contrast to the loud musical festivals of Catherine’s court and became widespread primarily in the home circle, in the capital’s living room, in the growing circle of enlightened amateurs who subscribed for the borders of the sonatas of the Viennese classics Haydn and Mozart and the sensitive French operas performed at home.
RUSSIAN FOLK SONG IN THE 18TH CENTURY
Russian architect, poet, musician Nikolai Alexandrovich Lvov (1753-1804). Portrait by D. G. Levitsky
For the history of Russian folk song itself, the 18th century, which owes so much to it, opened a new era, laying the foundation for recordings and adaptations of song melodies, until then known only in oral transmission. Around the middle of the century, song melodies appear in numerous handwritten collections of cants. Since 1776, the court guslist and performer of folk songs V. F. Trutovsky began publishing printed "Collection of Russian simple songs with notes". This includes many book and album romance songs and peasant and city songs, presented, however, in the form in which they were sung in the urban environment and performed in operas, that is, already in a well-known arrangement, with the accompaniment assigned to them.
The greatest importance and best known of the early collections was "Collection of Russian folk songs with their voices" I. Pracha, first published in 1790. Prač was a cultured Czech musician who worked for a long time in Russia and was very close to the home of the enlightened lover and patron of music N. A. Lvov. Many musical figures of the last quarter of the 18th century visited Lvov’s house. Lvov himself, who highly valued Russian antiquity, apparently collected folk tunes, and Prach recorded and processed them. Pracha's collection includes almost all popular song melodies of the 18th century, including those used in operas. Prach recorded the following songs: “And we sowed millet”, “There was a birch tree in the field”, “Ay, in the field there is a lime tree” and many other songs, later processed and developed by major composers - Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky and others, in their famous works .
Thus, it was in the 18th century, when the first Russian operas and instrumental plays based on folk melodies arose, that the first collections of folk songs themselves appeared. Since then, Russian musicians have never lost their keen interest in folk art, and many of the major composers themselves collected and recorded folk songs.
It can be argued that the 18th century not only laid the foundation for new types of Russian music, but also outlined the progressive direction along which it developed in the future. True, the work of Russian composers of the 18th century was not particularly extensive quantitatively, but all the main musical genres that existed then were already represented in our country. And in all these genres, Russian musicians strived to create a national art, distinguished by bright Russian features, advanced art, widely accessible, understandable, and vital.
It is very significant that just in those years when Fonvizin wrote the wonderful Russian comedies “The Brigadier” and “The Minor”, the Russian comedy opera “The Miller the Sorcerer” arose, and when the lyrical, song poetry of Sumarokov gained popularity, the Russian romance was born. The connections between Russian poetry and literature and music in the 18th century were very close. Texts for operas were written, for example, by such outstanding poets as Sumarokov, Derzhavin, and the fabulist Krylov. Poems by Trediakovsky, Lomonosov, Sumarokov were constantly set to music and became cants. Derzhavin wrote a very interesting article about opera, expressing his views on this area of art. This connection between Russian poetry and music, Russian poets and musicians, so fruitful for both sides, deepened even more in the 19th century, from the time of Pushkin.
RUSSIAN MUSIC AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 19TH CENTURY
The beginning of the 19th century, at first glance, was not marked by anything particularly new in Russian music. The small comedy opera with spoken dialogue continued to be popular. The romance song became more and more widespread. This kind of opera and song, along with dance music, were the main, most widely used forms of musical culture. At the same time, a lot of things in this culture changed imperceptibly, gradually preparing the ground for the appearance of Glinka with his brilliant operas, wonderful romances and instrumental compositions. The development of all areas of spiritual life began to be affected by the impact of social and national changes of the 19th century.
The Patriotic War of 1812, which roused the entire Russian people to fight the Napoleonic invasion, caused a huge surge of patriotism, which could not help but be reflected in Russian art. The Decembrist uprising of 1825 testified to the preparation of a new era in the development of Russian society, to the growing social contradictions within the serfdom state.
In the development of Russian art, the first decades of the 19th century are characterized by an energetic movement in breadth, a decisive move beyond the previous relatively narrow boundaries of the courtyard, noble house and estate, and a general democratization of simple forms of art. This is a time of great national upsurge of art, which led to the strengthening and enrichment of its national, Russian characteristics. At this time, there is also a gradual complication and development of the means and techniques of art, and the creative assimilation of new and progressive world achievements.
The spread of musical culture is expressed in an increase in the number of theaters, opera productions, and in the growth of theater audiences. Home music lessons reach wider urban and local circles. Opera verses, songs, playing the guitar, and fashionable dancing are becoming favorite entertainment in many Russian homes. The most significant thing was that Russian music found new themes and new artistic techniques.
RUSSIAN ROMANTISM
In Russian poetry, painting and music, the features of that movement, which was called romanticism, emerged. In operas and romances, new romantic traits reveal themselves in a keen interest in the mysterious, poetic and colorful native antiquity, in a fairy tale, in a person’s personal lyrical experiences, in the special colorfulness in the rendering of pictures of nature and human life, in general - in everything characteristic, special, bright.
The most important and significant theme is the theme of heroic deed. Along with fairy-tale, magical, comedic operas and cheerful, light vaudevilles that captivated the theater audience of that time, a new type of opera was emerging, which would later be substituted by such great works as Glinka’s Ivan Susanin.
Back in 1811, under the direct influence of national upsurge, the heroic oratorio of Stepan Degtyarev arose - "Minin and Pozharsky" or “Liberation of Moscow”, and a few years later, in 1815, after the victorious war with the French, an opera by the Russified Italian composer Catarino Cavos was staged in St. Petersburg - "Ivan Susanin". The story about the heroic deed of the Russian peasant patriot is conveyed here differently than in Glinka. The opera was still written in the simple form of dialogic (with conversations) opera-comedy, like the operas of the 18th century. The very skill of Kavos - an experienced opera conductor - of course, cannot be compared with the great skill of Glinka. But his opera “Susanin” undoubtedly had its positive significance in the development of Russian musical theater. In comparison with the operatic experiences that preceded it, the role of music in it has increased and become more complex, and in some places the Russian song is very successfully handled. The most important thing is that a large and socially significant theme has come to Russian opera.
COMPOSERS OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 19TH CENTURY
Kavos was one of those foreign musicians who still continued to live and work in Russia at the beginning of the 19th century. But gradually their role in the musical life of the country diminished, giving way to the growing activity of Russian composers. In the first decades of the 19th century, major Russian composers, who began it in the 18th century, continued their creative activity: Bortnyansky(choral concerts for the church), Kozlovsky (romances, polonaises, music for dramas) and others. Then many Russian composers appeared from among the enlightened music lovers, as they are usually called, “dilettantes”: family members Titov, count M. Yu. Vielgorsky and many others. The main area of creativity of these authors was song, music for comedies and vaudevilles, adaptation of dances, etc. From the circle of Russian amateurs, very soon, however, very significant, talented, bright composers emerged, who, in essence, ceased to be amateurs and achieved very great skill. Of these, first of all should be named A. N. Verstovsky(1799-1862), mainly a theater composer, and famous authors of songs and romances: A. A. Alyabyev (1787-1851), A. L. Gurilev(1802-1856) and A. E. Varlamov (1801-1848).
The life and work of all these composers were closely connected with Moscow, its way of life, way of life and home music-making, its theatrical environment, literature, gypsy choirs, etc. Verstovsky served for a long time in Moscow, in the office of the imperial theaters. Alyabyev, although he visited abroad, in Siberia, in the Caucasus, but never changed his affection for Moscow, where he was brought up. Varlamov, a native of Moscow, despite serving in the court singing choir in St. Petersburg, was strongly connected with Moscow with all his work, where he gave singing lessons in many private homes and performed his songs with a guitar or piano. Gurilev came from the family of a Moscow serf musician and with his entire life and tastes grew closer to Moscow. All of these composers, in particular Alyabyev and Verstovsky, were well aware of the achievements of the contemporary world romantic art and used them in their work, while remaining native Russian musicians with a constant and unchanging attraction to Russian life, Russian song, Russian nature, Russian poetry. The creativity of each of them acquired wide and long-lasting popularity in their country and became part of its everyday life. And some songs, such as “Don’t sew me, mother, a red sundress” by Varlamov or “Mother Dove” by Gurilev, became famous far beyond its borders, where they were perceived as examples of Russian folk art. The most famous of Alyabyev’s songs, “The Nightingale,” was brilliantly arranged for piano by the famous pianist and composer Franz Liszt.
VERSTOVSKY'S WORK
Russian composer Alexey Nikolaevich Verstovsky (1799-1862)
In Verstovsky's work, the main place is occupied by his operas, written on the plots of the remarkable contemporary poet Zhukovsky and writer Zagoskin. Imbued with the spirit of Russian romanticism, they glorified the name of their author as the most talented opera composer of the pre-Glinka period. Verstovsky's best romantic opera has won particular fame. "Askold's grave", first staged in 1835 (a year before Glinka’s Ivan Susanin) and since then has become popular for a long time. A plot from distant Russian antiquity (Kievan Rus), the romantic image of the rebellious hero Neizvestny, the attractive figure of the entertainer who rescues everyone from trouble by the gudoshnik Toropka-Golovan, the touching and bright image of the young heroine Nadezhda, magical scenes of the sorceress Vakhrameevna’s spell, the secret prayers of persecuted Christians at night Askold's grave - all this was fascinating, unusual, above all romantic, all this was very much liked by the general theater public. Verstovsky's music was distinguished by great romantic brightness, significant diversity and seemed to combine in itself everything that was most powerful, prominent, everything characteristic of its time. The choirs of fishermen, Kievites and girls’ choirs in “Askold’s Grave” develop the elements of the Russian folk song style in different ways and, above all, give the opera its national appearance. The first song of Hope “Where are you, my beloved groom” close to sensitive Russian romance. The great aria of Nadezhda and especially the great aria of the Unknown represent a type of rather complex, extensive, upbeat romantic operatic aria, rather than a song. The most interesting part in the opera is Torop's part. Here we also encounter a ballad-story, characteristic of that time. “The sun is already in its late rays”, and dance “city” couplets “Charles were falling on the table”, and a “game” song “Close to the city of Slavyansk”, during which a lively game takes place on stage (the abduction of a girl from captivity just at the moment when the guards are distracted by Torop’s singing about another similar abduction). Verstovsky’s melodies, like all the methods of musical writing he discovered, were not only generally available, but were distinguished, so to speak, by a special infectious power, a special everyday “luck”, and accuracy. They were sung everywhere, penetrated deep into the provinces and remained in everyday life almost until our time.
ALYABYEV'S WORK
Russian composer Alexander Alexandrovich Alyabyev (1787-1851)
Among Alyabyev’s works, theater music also occupies a significant place. But its fame and significance are determined mainly by its romances. Alyabyev was a highly talented, original and versatile writer of songs and romances with pronounced romantic inclinations. Almost all of Alyabyev’s romances are written to the words of Russian poets, including Pushkin. In comparison with composers of the 18th century, Alyabyev widely expanded the scope of Russian romance, enriched its themes and content, and introduced many new artistic techniques, often very subtle, witty, and captivating. A large role in Alyabyev’s vocal lyrics is played by free imitation of folk songs, not only peasant, but also urban. The type of simple song decorated with coloraturas includes his famous "Nightingale". In addition to this composition, Alyabyev has several more songs dedicated to the nightingale (for example, “Farewell to the nightingale in the North”), as a characteristic image associated for him with the poetry of Russian nature.
Some of Alyabiev’s romances, who had to go into exile in Siberia due to an accidental quarrel, reflect the theme of exile, longing and longing for his homeland that is close to him. Such is the pathetic, elevated romance "Irtysh". Alyabyev’s “Caucasian” songs are remarkably good, reflecting his impressions not only of the nature and romance of the Caucasus, but also of his direct acquaintance with the authentic music of the Caucasian peoples. IN "Circassian song"(according to Lermontov), and also in "Georgian song" Alyabyev was the first Russian composer to find the characteristic turns of an “oriental” melody and convey the unique and colorful appearance of the East in music. Many of Alyabiev’s most original works are devoted to the romantic theme of disappointment, grief, deep and mysterious sadness, which he expresses with pathetic enthusiasm, inspiration and strength. One of the best romances of this kind, close to the mood of Zhukovsky’s poetry, is "Coffin"- written in a flexible, fairly free form, with transitions from one style of presentation, as if from one speech to another.
Many of Alyabyev’s romances, such as, for example, "Two Crows", "Beggar", "Winter road", "Evening call, evening Bell", give, as it were, a characteristic sketch of an external picture or image, while combining accurate, characteristic depiction with a great lyrical feeling, with a certain mood from this picture. Finally, a significant part of Alyabyev’s works represent love lyrics, and, in contrast to simple everyday songs, are more likely to approach a new kind of chamber romance, which already requires significant subtlety in execution and foreshadows the romance lyrics of Glinka and other later Russian composers. This includes "Mascot", "I'm afraid, I'm afraid, I'm not used to happiness" and some others.
VARLAMOV'S CREATIVITY
Varlamov’s work is more connected with a simple everyday song than Alyabyev’s work. Varlamov himself was an excellent singer, who successfully performed his songs with a guitar at home, in a friendly circle, in everyday life, where they were easily picked up and repeated. Everyday dance rhythms (waltz, bolero), guitar sounds (“jerks”), and simple, bright, easy-to-sing melodies acquire enormous significance in Varlamov’s romance songs. Some of Varlamov's songs (for example, "Oh don't kiss me") partly approach the character of gypsy singing, which was very popular at that time in Russian urban circles. Many of his songs, without mentioning his name, gained fame on a par with urban folk songs. Such are the lively, dancing “A blizzard is blowing along the street”, pathetic - “Don’t sew me, mother, a red sundress.” and others.
Particularly characteristic of Varlamov, along with the great lyrical sincerity of his melodies, is the fieryness of his music, its seething passion.
GURILEV'S CREATIVITY
Gurilev's songs have a different character. They always have a touching sensitivity in the foreground ( "Tiny House", "The swallow is flying" and others), soft lyrics - qualities that made his songs especially popular in the widest urban circles. Gurilev's melodies, like Varlamov's melodies, were for their time excellent examples of truly everyday art, meeting broad needs, easy to remember and at the same time mature, masterful, and integral.
Verstovsky, Alyabyev, Varlamov and Gurilev were not only Glinka’s historical predecessors; they were his older contemporaries, and Verstovsky even outlived Glinka. And yet their historical place is determined mainly by the preparation of Glinka’s work. This does not mean that their works are devoid of independent artistic significance. Many of Gurilev’s songs, for example, “The bell rattles monotonously,” have still retained their strength and popularity. Alyabyev, Verstovsky and others with their creativity significantly advanced Russian music far ahead along its great and progressive path. It was thanks to their glorious creative efforts, which completed the great pre-Glinka period of Russian music, that the appearance of the first Russian musical classic, Glinka, became possible. In 1836, “Ivan Susanin” was staged and a new - classical - period of Russian music began.
I. Teplov- one or two songs from the collection “Between Business and Idleness” (see the collection “Early Russian Romance” edited by T. Trofimova in A. Drozdov or “The History of Russian Music in Musical Samples” edited by S. L. Ginzburg) .
II. Fomin- excerpts from the opera “The Miller the Sorcerer, the Deceiver and the Matchmaker” (see the score): the Miller’s songs “How is the evening with us” and “How the old man and the old woman walked”, Philemon’s song “I’ll sing such a song”, Anyuta’s song “ If only I were young and confident."
III. Dubyansky- “The gray dove is moaning” (see “The History of Russian Music in Musical Samples”, edited by S. L. Ginzburg).
IV. Kozlovsky- “Cruel fate” (see Findeisen. Russian art song).
V. Khandoshkin- Sonata for solo violin (there is a separate edition).
VI. Bortnyansky- Sonata for clavier (piano; see Ginzburg).
VII. Verstovsky- excerpts from the opera “Askold’s Grave”: Torop’s ballad “The sun is already in its late rays”, Nadezhda’s romance “Where are you, my beloved groom”, Unknown’s aria “Soon, soon a clear month”, Torop’s couplets “Close to the city of Slavyansk”, “The glasses were setting” on the table."
VIII. Alyabyev- “Nightingale”, “Irtysh”, “Georgian song”, “Circassian song”, “Coffin”, “Evening ringing”, “Two crows”, “Beggar”, “Lullaby”, “I’m afraid, I’m afraid, I’m not used to fortunately”, “Talisman”, “Winter Evening”, “What is clouded is the clear dawn”.
IX. Varlamov- “Red Sundress”, “Along the Street”, “Oh, Don’t Kiss Me”, “Mountain Peaks”, “Don’t Wake Her at Dawn”, “The Lonely Sail Is White.”
X. Gurilev- “Little house”, “The bell rattles monotonously”, “The blue-winged swallow flutters”, “Shooting star”, “Separation”, “At the dawn of foggy youth”.
XI. Alyabyev-List- “The Nightingale” (piano).
Note: It is advisable to show a piano transcription of Liszt’s “The Nightingale” on a theme by Alyabyev, illustrating in the lecture the thesis about the popularity of pre-Glinka Russian music not only in Russia, but also in the West.
XII. Titov- “Solitary Pine”, “Sorry”, “Cunning Friend”, “Branch”.
XIII. Vielgorsky- “I loved”, “Talisman”.
Ludwig van Beethoven
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