The new Russian music school is a mighty bunch. "Mighty bunch

The creative community of Russian composers, which arose at the turn of the 1950s and 1960s. XIX century, during the period of social and democratic upsurge in Russia and the heyday of Russian culture. It is also known as the Balakirev Circle, or the New Russian Musical School. The name "Mighty Handful" was given to the mug by V.V. Stasov. The circle took shape over several years (1856-1862) around M. A. Balakirev with the active participation of Stasov.

"Mighty bunch. Balakirev circle. Painting by A. V. Mikhailov. 1950 (detail).

Earlier than others (1856), a military engineer by profession, composer and music critic Ts. A. Cui became close friends with Balakirev. In the winter of 1857, an officer of the Preobrazhensky Regiment M. P. Mussorgsky joined them, and in November 1861, a 17-year-old graduate of the Naval Officer Corps N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. In the late autumn of 1862, in the house of Professor S.P. Botkin, Balakirev met the young adjunct professor of the Medical and Surgical Academy A.P. Borodin. From the autumn of 1865, after the return of Rimsky-Korsakov from circumnavigation meetings of the circle began to be held in full force.

Balakirev became the generally recognized head of the "Mighty Handful". It gave him the right huge talent, creative courage, inner strength and conviction in defending the national-original ways of development of Russian music. He, according to Stasov, came to St. Petersburg "a whole young professor ... of Russian national music." At meetings of the "Mighty Handful" much attention was paid to the study the best works classical heritage and contemporary music. They played works by R. Schumann, F. Liszt and G. Berlioz, but more often by F. Chopin and M. I. Glinka. The "Kuchkist" composers highly valued the work of L. Beethoven, whom they considered the founder of all new music.

The Balakirev circle was not only a school of professional skill for young musicians. Here their socio-aesthetic views took shape. At the meetings, the works of the world classical literature discussed political, historical events, studied articles by V. G. Belinsky, N. G. Chernyshevsky, N. A. Dobrolyubov, A. I. Herzen. The ideologist of the circle was Stasov, his influence on the worldview of the "Kuchkists" was enormous. Often he suggested to the Balakirevites the ideas of future works: he suggested that Borodin write an opera based on The Tale of Igor's Campaign, he gave Mussorgsky the idea of Khovanshchina. Stasov devoted a number of articles to the leaders of the "Mighty Handful", created monographs on Mussorgsky, Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov, Cui; in the works "Our music for the last 25 years", " Art XIX century" great attention devoted to the activities of the "Mighty Handful".

The "Mighty Handful" was not a vicious circle, its connections with artistic life have always been versatile. Among like-minded people and friends of the Balakirevites are A. S. Dargomyzhsky, Glinka's sister L. I. Shestakova, sisters A. N. and N. N. Purgold. With the participation of the sisters, a performance of " stone guest"Dargomyzhsky, "Boris Godunov" by Mussorgsky, "Pskovite" by Rimsky-Korsakov.

Since the second half of the 60s. The activities of the "Mighty Handful" assumed a wide social scope. This was facilitated by the growing scale of Balakirev's activities. In 1862, together with G. Ya. Lomakin, he organized the Free Music School, conducted symphony concerts Russian musical society, in which the music of his comrades in the circle was performed (see Russian music of the 18th - early 20th centuries). At this time, the connections of the "Mighty Handful" with Moscow musicians - P. I. Tchaikovsky, N. G. Rubinstein and others - were growing stronger. The relations that connected the Balakirevites with figures of musical culture were sometimes very complex. For example, they underestimated positive role created in 1862 conservatory, seeing in it a hotbed of "academicism" and "German influence". Over time, the contradictions were smoothed out, but even at first they were not insurmountable, since they were generated not by personal enmity, but by the desire for progress. national culture and the sincere conviction of the Balakirevites that given way- the only true one.

All members of the "Mighty Handful" were united by the desire to continue Glinka's work for the glory and prosperity of Russian music. Like Glinka, the life of the people became the main theme of their work, the object of constant observation and study. They recreated it through the events of history and through the images of poetic fairy tales and epics; through philosophical reflections on the fate of the Motherland and vivid pictures of everyday life, through the images of Russian people of all classes and times. According to Stasov, the Balakirevites unfolded in front of the audience "an ocean of Russian people, life, characters, relationships."

Balakirevtsy admired the beauty of Russian folk songs. 40 Russian folk songs were collected and processed by Balakirev, 100 by Rimsky-Korsakov. The love for Russian song was also reflected in the style of the works of the composers themselves, which are distinguished by a clear national color. The "Kuchkists" were keenly interested in the songs of other peoples of Russia, especially the melodies of the Caucasus and Central Asia.

The democratic orientation of the work of the composers of the "Mighty Handful" was expressed in the desire to create music that is bright, accessible and understandable. a wide range listeners. This was one of the reasons for turning to vocal genres(romance, opera), the creation of software instrumental works that brought music closer to literature and painting.

The educational activities of the "Mighty Handful" and the work of the Free Music School ran into the hostile attitude of the reactionary aristocratic circles of the nobility. Balakirev was unable to resist them and retired from musical and social activities for a long time. During this time, his students and comrades have already become mature artists. Each of them went his own way, and the circle fell apart. However, no one betrayed the ideals of the "Mighty Handful" and did not renounce their comrades. The ideas of the Balakirevites were developed in the creative and educational activities of the composers of the new generation. Their creativity and cutting-edge ideas have big influence and on the development of foreign (in particular, French) music.

); N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov (in the form of a crab) with the Purgold sisters (in the form of pet dogs); M. P. Mussorgsky (in the form of a rooster); A. P. Borodin is depicted behind Rimsky-Korsakov; at the top right, angry thunderbolts are tossing from the clouds.

"Mighty bunch"(and Balakirev circle, New Russian Music School or, sometimes, Russian Five) is a creative community of Russian composers that developed in St. Petersburg in the late 1850s and early 1860s. It included: Mily Alekseevich Balakirev (1837-1910), Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (1839-1881), Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin (1833-1887), Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908) and Caesar Antonovich Cui (1835-1918) . The ideological inspirer and main non-musical consultant of the circle was art critic, writer and archivist Vladimir Vasilyevich Stasov (1824-1906).

The name "Mighty Handful" is first found in Stasov's article "Slavonic Concert of Mr. Balakirev" (): "How much poetry, feelings, talent and skill a small but already mighty handful of Russian musicians have." The name "New Russian Musical School" was put forward by the members of the circle themselves, who considered themselves the heirs of the traditions of M. I. Glinka and saw their goal in the embodiment of the Russian national idea in music. The search for national roots and a craving for their native culture turned artists to folk themes.

In the implementation of the national aesthetic principles proclaimed by the ideologists of the Commonwealth Stasov and Balakirev, M. P. Mussorgsky was the most consistent, less than others - Ts. A. Cui. Members of the "Mighty Handful" systematically recorded and studied samples of Russian musical folklore and Russian church singing. They embodied the results of their research in one form or another in the works of the chamber and major genres, especially in operas, including The Tsar's Bride, The Snow Maiden, Khovanshchina, Boris Godunov, and Prince Igor. The intense search for national identity in The Mighty Handful was not limited to arrangements of folklore and liturgical singing, but also extended to dramaturgy, genre (and form), down to individual categories. musical language(harmony, rhythm, texture, etc.).

Initially, the circle included Balakirev and Stasov, who were keen on reading Belinsky, Dobrolyubov, Herzen, Chernyshevsky. With their ideas they inspired the young composer Cui, and later they were joined by Mussorgsky, who left the rank of officer in the Preobrazhensky Regiment in order to study music. In 1862, N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov and A. P. Borodin joined the Balakirev circle. If Rimsky-Korsakov was a very young member of the circle, whose views and musical talent were just beginning to be determined, then Borodin by this time was already a mature person, an outstanding chemist, friendly with such giants of Russian science and art as Mendeleev, Sechenov , Kovalevsky , Botkin , Vasnetsov .

Meetings of the Balakirev circle always proceeded in a very lively creative atmosphere. Members of this circle often met with writers A. V. Grigorovich, A. F. Pisemsky, I. S. Turgenev, artist I. E. Repin, sculptor M. M. Antokolsky. Close, although far from always smooth, ties were with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

In the 70s, the "Mighty Handful" ceased to exist as a close-knit group. The activities of the "Mighty Handful" became an era in the development of Russian and world musical art.

Sequel to "The Mighty Bunch"[ | ]

With the cessation of regular meetings of five Russian composers, the increment, development and living history The Mighty Handful is far from over. The center of Kuchkist activity and ideology, mainly due to pedagogical activity Rimsky-Korsakov moved to the classes of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, and also, starting from the mid-1880s, to the “Belyaev circle”, where Rimsky-Korsakov was the recognized head and leader for almost 20 years, and then, with the beginning of the 20th century, shared his leadership in as part of the "triumvirate" with A. K. Lyadov, A. K. Glazunov and a little later (from May 1907) N. V. Artsybushev. Thus, minus Balakirev's radicalism, the Belyaev circle became a natural continuation of The Mighty Handful.

Rimsky-Korsakov himself recalled this in a very definite way:

“Can the Belyaev circle be considered a continuation of the Balakirev circle, was there a certain amount of similarity between the one and the other, and what was the difference, besides the change in its personnel over time? The similarity, indicating that the Belyaev circle is a continuation of the Balakirev one, except for the connecting links in the person of me and Lyadov, consisted in the common advancement and progressiveness to both of them; but the circle of Balakirev corresponded to the period of storm and onslaught in the development of Russian music, and the circle of Belyaev - to the period of a calm march forward; Balakirevskiy was revolutionary, while Belyaevskiy was progressive…”

- (N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, "Chronicle of my musical life»)

Among the members Belyaev circle Rimsky-Korsakov names separately himself (as the new head of the circle instead of Balakirev), Borodin (in the short time that remained before his death) and Lyadov as "connecting links". Since the second half of the 80s, such musicians of different talent and specialty as Glazunov, brothers F. M. Blumenfeld and S. M. Blumenfeld, conductor O. I. Dyutsh and pianist have appeared in Belyaev's "Mighty Handful". A little later, as the conservatory ended, the number of Belyaevites included such composers as N. A. Sokolov, Ya. Vitol and so on, including big number later graduates of Rimsky-Korsakov in the composition class. In addition, the "venerable Stasov" always maintained good and close relations with the Belyaev circle, although his influence was "far from the same" as in Balakirev's circle. New composition the circle (and its more moderate head) also determined the new face of the “post-Kuchkists”: much more academically oriented and open to the multitude influences previously considered unacceptable within the Mighty Handful. The Belyaevites experienced a lot of “alien” influences and had wide sympathies, starting from Wagner and Tchaikovsky, and ending “even” with Ravel and Debussy. In addition, it should be especially noted that, being the successor to the "Mighty Handful" and generally continuing its direction, the Belyaev circle did not represent a single aesthetic whole, guided by a single ideology or program.

In turn, Balakirev did not lose his activity and continued to spread his influence, releasing more and more new students during his tenure as head of the court chapel. The most famous of his later students (who later also graduated from the class of Rimsky-Korsakov) is the composer V. A. Zolotarev.

It wasn't just about direct teaching and classrooms. free composition. The ever more frequent performance on the stages of the imperial theaters of new operas by Rimsky-Korsakov and his orchestral works, the production of Borodino’s “Prince Igor” and the second edition of Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, many critical articles and the growing personal influence of Stasov - all this gradually multiplied the ranks of the nationally oriented Russian music school. Many of the students of Rimsky-Korsakov and Balakirev, in terms of the style of their writings, fit perfectly into the continuation of the general line of the “Mighty Handful” and could be called, if not its belated members, then in any case, faithful followers. And sometimes it even happened that the followers turned out to be much more “true” (and more orthodox) than their teachers. Despite some anachronism and old-fashionedness, even in the times of Scriabin, Stravinsky and Prokofiev, until the middle of the 20th century, the aesthetics and predilections of many of these composers remained quite "Kuchkist" and most often - not subject to fundamental stylistic changes. However, over time, more and more often in their work, the followers and students of Rimsky-Korsakov discovered a certain “fusion” of the Moscow and St. Petersburg schools, to one degree or another combining the influence of Tchaikovsky with the “Kuchkist” principles. Perhaps the most extreme and distant figure in this series is A. S. Arensky, who, until the end of his days, maintaining an emphasized personal (student) loyalty to his teacher (Rimsky-Korsakov), nevertheless, in his work was much closer to traditions Tchaikovsky. In addition, he led an extremely riotous and even "immoral" lifestyle. It is precisely this that primarily explains the highly critical and unsympathetic attitude toward him in the Belyaev circle. No less indicative is the example of Alexander Grechaninov, also a faithful student of Rimsky-Korsakov, most while living in Moscow. However, the teacher speaks much more sympathetically about his work and, as a compliment, calls him "partly a Petersburger." After 1890 and the frequent visits of Tchaikovsky to St. Petersburg, an eclectic taste and an increasingly cool attitude towards the orthodox traditions of the Mighty Handful are growing in the Belyaev circle. Gradually, Glazunov, Lyadov and Rimsky-Korsakov also personally approach Tchaikovsky, thereby putting an end to the previously irreconcilable (Balakirev's) tradition of "enmity of schools". By the beginning of the 20th century, most of the new Russian music was all in more reveals a synthesis of two directions and schools: mainly through

The so-called "Mighty Handful" (whose composition was very small) is a union of Russian composers, which took shape in the late 50s and early 60s of the 19th century. It was also called the "New Russian Music School" or the Balakirev Circle. The name itself took root with the light hand of the critic Stasov V.V. and took root instantly, turning into a common name for the union. Abroad, he was called the "five".

Members of the "Mighty Handful"

Who was in the Mighty Bunch? Balakirev M.A., Mussorgsky M.P., Cui Ts.A. and Rimsky-Korsakov N.A. These talented composers sought to find new forms in which they could embody images from Russian modernity and native history, as well as ways to make their music closer and more understandable to the general public. Borodin's operas Prince Igor, Rimsky-Korsakov's The Maid of Pskov, Mussorgsky's Khovanshchina and Boris Godunov embodied this approach. It is folk tales, epic, national history And folk life became for symphonic and vocal works composers.

Community History

So, "The Mighty Handful", its composition and history of creation. In 1855, a young man came to the capital from Kazan and performed with great success as a pianist; promoter of their works). A year later, Balakirev meets Caesar Antonovich Cui. He studied at the Military Engineering Academy, but was madly in love with music, and therefore was so carried away by the bold views and suggestions of a new acquaintance that he wrote the opera " Prisoner of the Caucasus”, “Son of the Mandarin” and a scherzo for piano.

A little later, the "Mighty Handful" (composition: Balakirev, Stasov, Cui) was replenished by the addition of Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, a guards officer who realized that his vocation was music. He retires, is engaged in music, literature, philosophy, history, is fond of the views of new friends. In the early 60s, the “Mighty Handful” (the composition at that time: Balakirev, Cui, Stasov, Mussorgsky), which Dargomyzhsky also sympathized with, was enriched with the arrival of Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin and Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov. Borodin was self-taught in music, but he was versatile and very diligent. Even while studying at the Medical-Surgical Academy, he played the cello in various amateur ensembles, wrote several chamber compositions. Balakirev very quickly understood and appreciated his erudition and bright talent. Well, Rimsky-Korsakov was already an established figure in music, a genius whose works the public loved very much.

The main ideas of the "bunch"

It was the life, aspirations and interests of the Russian people that became the main theme in the work of the members of Balakirev's circle. A “mighty handful” of composers (their composition was not limited to five, because many eminent writers of that time were familiar or friendly with the “Kuchkists”) recorded, studied samples of folk art and folklore, wove folk songs and legends into “serious” symphonic music and operas. Examples of such masterpieces are "The Snow Maiden", "Khovanshchina", "The Tsar's Bride", "Boris Godunov". The oriental element was also important, melodies of other peoples - Ukrainians, Georgians, Tatars, Spaniards, Czechs and many others. These are "Islamey", "Tamara", "Prince Igor", "Golden Cockerel", "Scheherazade".

Music section publications

10 facts from the history of the "Mighty Handful"

"New Russian Musical School" or Balakirev's circle. The community of Russian composers, formed in the middle of the nineteenth century. The name was fixed with the light hand of the famous music critic Vladimir Stasov - this is in Russia. In Europe, the community of musicians was simply called the "Group of Five". Interesting Facts collected from the history of the musical community by Natalia Letnikova.

Mily Balakirev.

Caesar Cui.

Modest Mussorgsky.

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.

Alexander Borodin.

1. The first step towards the emergence of the “Mighty Handful” was the arrival in 1855 of the gifted 18-year-old musician Mily Balakirev in St. Petersburg. Brilliant performances the pianist attracted the attention of not only a sophisticated audience, but also the most famous music critic of that time - Vladimir Stasov, who became the ideological inspirer of the composers' association.

2. A year later, Balakirev met the military engineer Caesar Cui. In 1857 - with a graduate of a military school Modest Mussorgsky, in 1862 - with a naval officer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, at the same time, common musical views were revealed with chemistry professor Alexander Borodin. This is how the music group was formed.

3. Balakirev introduced beginner musicians to the theory of composition, orchestration, and harmony. Together, like-minded people read Belinsky and Chernyshevsky, together opposed the academic routine, looked for new forms - under common idea nationality as the main direction in the development of music.

4. Vladimir Stasov dubbed the "Mighty Handful" the musical union. In one of the articles, the critic noted: “How much poetry, feeling, talent and skill a small but already mighty bunch of Russian musicians have”. The phrase became winged - and members of the musical community began to be referred to only as "Kuchkists".

5. The composers of the "Mighty Handful" considered themselves the heirs of the recently deceased Mikhail Glinka and dreamed of ideas for the development of Russian national music. The spirit of democracy was in the air, and the Russian intelligentsia thought about cultural revolution, without violence and bloodshed - exclusively by the power of art.

6. Folk song as the basis for the classics. The Kuchkists collected folklore and studied Russian church singing. Organized entire musical expeditions. So, Balakirev from a trip along the Volga with the poet Nikolai Shcherbina in 1860 brought material that became the basis of a whole collection - “40 Russian Folk Songs”.

7. From the song genre to large forms. The folklore of the Balakirevians inscribed in operatic works: “Prince Igor” by Borodin, “The Maid of Pskov” by Rimsky-Korsakov, “Khovanshchina” and “Boris Godunov” by Mussorgsky. The epic and folk tales became a source of inspiration for the symphonic and vocal works of the composers of the Mighty Handful.

8. Colleagues and friends. The Balakirevtsy were bound by close friendship. The musicians discussed new compositions and spent evenings at the intersection of different art forms. Kuchkists met with writers -

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Introduction

1. The history of the creation of the "Mighty Handful"

1.1 General concept of the "Mighty Handful"

1.2 Activities of the Mighty Handful

1.3 The formation and development of the views of the "Kuchkists"

2. Russian people in the work of composers

2.1 Development of creativity

2.2 The public and the Mighty Bunch

2.3 Breakup of the Five

2.4 Sequel to The Mighty Bunch

Conclusion

Bibliographic list

Introduction

The era of the 60s is usually calculated from 1855 - the date of the inglorious end Crimean War. Military defeat tsarist Russia was last straw that overflowed the cup of people's patience. A wave of peasant uprisings swept through the country, which could no longer be pacified either by exhortations or guns. It was a significant time in the social and cultural life of Russia. New trends penetrated everywhere; the new made its way in science, literature, painting, music and theatre. Carried out by the tsarist government as a response and preventive measure against the growing wave of the revolutionary democratic movement, the reform of 1861 actually worsened the situation of the peasants. The best minds Russia were preoccupied with the fate of their native people, "humanity and concern for improving human life”, according to N.G. Chernyshevsky, determined the direction in the development of advanced Russian science, literature and art. There was not a single area of culture that would have remained aloof from the people's liberation ideas. Russians revolutionary democrats Chernyshevsky and Dobrolyubov, developing the ideas of Belinsky and Herzen, powerfully advanced materialist philosophy. The development of materialistic propositions has enriched various fields of science with discoveries of world significance. Suffice it to recall that at that time mathematicians P.A. Chebyshev and S.V. Kovalevskaya, physicist A.G. Stoletov, chemists D.I. Mendeleev and A.M. Butlerov, physiologist I.M. Sechenov, biologist I.I. Mechnikov.

The heyday comes in Russian literature and art. This era gave mankind the unsurpassed singer of peasant life N.A. Nekrasov; subtle master of the word, who created poetic paintings Russian nature, wonderful images of Russian people, Turgenev; a deep psychologist who sought to know the most intimate in human soul, Dostoevsky; powerful writer thinker Leo Tolstoy.

In the field of music, the 60s were also an era of unusually bright flowering. Major changes are observed in the very way of musical life. If until the middle of the 19th century the musical life of Russia was closed, accessible only to a privileged aristocratic public, now its centers are acquiring a much wider, democratic character. A number of organizations of a musical and educational nature arose, a whole galaxy of major figures in musical art was put forward: P.I. Tchaikovsky, the Rubinstein brothers, A.N.

1. Storycreation"Mightyheaps"

1.1 GeneralconceptO"Mightyheaps"

Accidentally used by Stasov in 1867, the expression " mighty bunch” firmly entered life and began to serve as the generally accepted name for a group of composers, which included: Mily Alekseevich Balakirev (1837-1910), Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (1839-1881), Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin (1833-1887), Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844 -1908) and Caesar Antonovich Cui(1835-1918). Often the “Mighty Handful” is called the “New Russian Musical School”, as well as the “Balakirev Circle”, after its leader M.A. Balakirev. Abroad, this group of musicians was called the "Five" according to the number of main representatives. The composers of the "Mighty Handful" entered the creative arena during the period of a huge public upsurge of the 60s of the 19th century.

The history of the creation of the Balakirev circle is as follows: in 1855, M.A. Balakirev arrived in St. Petersburg from Kazan. The eighteen-year-old youth was extremely gifted in musically. At the beginning of 1856, he performed with great success at concert stage as a pianist and draws the attention of the public. Especially great importance for Balakirev, his acquaintance with V.V. Stasov acquires.

Vladimir Vasilyevich Stasov is the most interesting figure in the history of Russian art. Critic, art critic, historian and archaeologist, Stasov, acting as a music critic, was a close friend of all Russian composers. He was connected by the closest friendship with literally all major Russian artists, appeared in the press with the propaganda of their the best pictures and was also their best adviser and helper.

Son outstanding architect VP Stasova Vladimir Vasilyevich was born in St. Petersburg, educated at the School of Law. Stasov's service throughout his life was associated with such a wonderful institution as public library. He happened to personally know Herzen, Chernyshevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Repin, Antokolsky, Vereshchagin, Glinka.

Stasov heard Glinka's review of Balakirev: "In ... Balakirev, I found views that came so close to mine." And, although Stasov was older young musician for almost twelve years, became close friends with him for life. They constantly spend time reading books by Belinsky, Dobrolyubov, Herzen, Chernyshevsky, and Stasov, undoubtedly more mature, developed and educated, brilliantly knowing classical and modern art, ideologically guides Balakirev and directs him.

In 1856, at one of the university concerts, Balakirev met with Caesar Antonovich Cui, who at that time studied at the Military Engineering Academy and specialized in the construction of military fortifications. Cui was very fond of music. In his early youth, he even studied with the Polish composer Moniuszko.

With his new and bold views on music, Balakirev captivates Cui, arouses in him a serious interest in art. Under the guidance of Balakirev, Cui wrote in 1857 a scherzo for piano four hands, the opera Prisoner of the Caucasus, and in 1859 a one-act comic opera The Son of a Mandarin.

The next composer to join the Balakirev - Stasov - Cui group was Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky. By the time he joined the Balakirev circle, he was a guards officer. He began to compose very early and very soon realized that he should devote his life to music. Without thinking twice, he, being already an officer of the Preobrazhensky Regiment, decided to retire. Despite his youth (18 years old), Mussorgsky showed great versatility of interests: he studied music, history, literature, philosophy. His acquaintance with Balakirev happened in 1857 with A.S. Dargomyzhsky. Everything struck Mussorgsky in Balakirev: his appearance, his bright original game, and his bold thoughts. From now on, Mussorgsky becomes a frequent visitor to Balakirev. As Mussorgsky himself said, “a new world, unknown to him until now, opened up before him.”

In 1862, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov and A.P. Borodin joined the Balakirev circle. If Rimsky-Korsakov was a very young member of the circle, whose views and musical talent were just beginning to be determined, then Borodin by this time was already a mature person, an outstanding chemist, friendly with such giants of Russian science as Mendeleev, Sechenov, Kovalevsky , Botkin.

In music, Borodin was self-taught. He owed his comparatively great knowledge of music theory mainly to his serious acquaintance with the literature of chamber music. While still a student at the Medical and Surgical Academy, Borodin, playing the cello, often participated in ensembles of music lovers. According to his testimony, he replayed the entire literature of bow quartets, quintets, as well as duets and trios. Before meeting with Balakirev, Borodin himself wrote several chamber compositions. Balakirev quickly appreciated not only Borodin's bright musical talent, but his versatile erudition.

Thus, by the beginning of 1863, one can speak of a formed Balakirev circle.

1. 2 Activity"Mightyheaps"

The name "Mighty Handful" is first found in Stasov's article "Slavonic Concert of Mr. Balakirev" (1867): "How much poetry, feelings, talent and skill a small but already mighty handful of Russian musicians have." The name "New Russian Music School" was put forward by the members of the circle themselves, who considered themselves the heirs of M.I. Glinka and saw their goal in the embodiment of the Russian national idea in music.

The Mighty Handful group arose against the backdrop of revolutionary ferment that had by that time engulfed the minds of the Russian intelligentsia. Riots and uprisings of peasants became the main social events of that time, returning artists to folk theme. In the implementation of the national aesthetic principles proclaimed by the ideologists of the Commonwealth Stasov and Balakirev, M.P. Mussorgsky was the most consistent, less than others - C.A. Cui. Members of the "Mighty Handful" systematically recorded and studied samples of Russian musical folklore and Russian church singing. They embodied the results of their research in one form or another in compositions of the chamber and major genres, especially in operas, including The Tsar's Bride, The Snow Maiden, Khovanshchina, Boris Godunov, and Prince Igor. The intensive search for national identity in The Mighty Handful was not limited to arrangements of folklore and liturgical singing, but also extended to dramaturgy, genre (and form), up to individual categories of musical language (harmony, rhythm, texture, etc.).

Initially, the circle included Balakirev and Stasov, who were keen on reading Belinsky, Dobrolyubov, Herzen, Chernyshevsky. They also inspired the young composer Cui with their ideas, and later they were joined by Mussorgsky, who left the rank of officer in the Preobrazhensky Regiment in order to study music. In 1862, N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov and A. P. Borodin joined the Balakirev circle. If Rimsky-Korsakov was a very young member of the circle, whose views and musical talent were just beginning to be determined, then Borodin by this time was already a mature person, an outstanding chemist, friendly with such giants of Russian science as Mendeleev, Sechenov, Kovalevsky , Botkin.

In the 70s, the "Mighty Handful" ceased to exist as a close-knit group. The activities of the "Mighty Handful" became an era in the development of Russian and world musical art.

1. 3 Formationand the development of the views of the "Kuchkists"

A great merit in the upbringing and development of its participants at that time belonged to M.A. Balakirev. He was their leader, organizer and teacher. “He needed Cui and Mussorgsky as friends, like-minded people, followers, fellow students; but without them he could have acted. On the contrary, they needed him as an adviser and teacher, as a censor and editor, without whom they could not even take a step. Musical practice and life made it possible for Balakirev's bright talent to develop rapidly. The development of others began later, proceeded more slowly and required a leader. This leader was Balakirev, who achieved everything with his amazing versatile musical talent and practice...” (Rimsky-Korsakov). Enormous will, exceptionally versatile musical education, temperament - these are the personal qualities that determined his influence on all members of the circle. Balakirev's teaching methods with his students were peculiar. He directly asked to compose symphonies, overtures, scherzos, opera excerpts, etc., and then he examined and strictly analyzed what was done. Balakirev managed to inspire his comrades in the circle and the need for broad self-education. kuchkist composer Balakirev circle

In addition to Balakirev, V.V. Stasov also played a huge role in the leadership of young composers. Stasov's participation in the activities of the handful was diverse. It manifested itself primarily in promoting the general artistic education of composers, in influencing the ideological orientation of their work. Often, Stasov suggested plots for works and helped in their development and in a comprehensive discussion of already created works. He presented the composers with a variety of historical materials that were in his charge, and spared no effort to promote their work.

Stasov was the first to appear in print and drew public attention to the works of the composers of The Mighty Handful. Stasov was a conductor of the ideas of Russian democratic aesthetics among the "Kuchkists".

So in everyday communication with Balakirev and Stasov, in statements and disputes about art, in reading advanced literature, the views and skills of the circle's composers gradually grew and strengthened. By this time, each of them had created many large independent works. So, Mussorgsky wrote a symphonic picture "Night on Bald Mountain" and the first edition of "Boris Godunov". Rimsky-Korsakov - symphonic works"Antar", "Sadko" and the opera "Pskovityanka"; Balakirev composed his main works: the symphonic poem "In the Czech Republic", the overture "1000 years". Brilliant piano fantasy "Islamey", "Overture on three Russian themes", music for Shakespeare's tragedy "King Lear"; Borodin created the first symphony; Cui graduated from the opera Ratcliffe. It was during this period that Stasov called the Balakirev circle "a small, but already powerful bunch of Russian musicians."

Each of the composers who were part of the "Mighty Handful" is a bright creative individuality and deserves self-study. However historical originality The "Mighty Handful" was that it was a group of not just friendly musicians located towards each other. In this respect, The Mighty Handful was a typical phenomenon of its time. Similar creative communities, circles, partnerships were created in various fields of art. In painting, it was the "Art Artel", which then laid the foundation for "wandering", in literature - a group of participants in the journal "Contemporary". The organization of student "communes" also belongs to the same period.

The composers of the "Mighty Handful" acted as direct successors of the advanced trends of Russian culture of the previous era. They considered themselves followers of Glinka and Dargomyzhsky, called to continue and develop their work.

2 . RussianpeopleVcreativitycomposers

2.1 Developmentmore creativestva

The leading line in the theme of the works of the "Kuchkists" is occupied by the life and interests of the Russian people. Most of the Mighty Bunch's composers systematically recorded, studied, and developed patterns folklore. Composers boldly used folk song in both symphonies and operatic works("The Tsar's Bride", "The Snow Maiden", "Khovanshchina", "Boris Godunov").

The national aspirations of the "Mighty Handful" were, however, devoid of any tinge of national narrow-mindedness. The composers were very sympathetic to the musical cultures of other peoples, which is confirmed by numerous examples of the use of Ukrainian, Georgian, Tatar, Spanish, Czech and other national plots and melodies in their works. A particularly large place in the work of the "Kuchkists" is occupied by the eastern element ("Tamara", "Islamei" by Balakirev; "Prince Igor" by Borodin; "Scheherazade", "Antara", "The Golden Cockerel" by Rimsky-Korsakov; "Khovanshchina" by Mussorgsky).

By creating works of art for the people, speaking in a language understandable and close to them, composers made their music accessible to the widest strata of listeners. This democratic aspiration explains the great inclination of the "new Russian school" towards programming. It is customary to call "program" such instrumental works in which ideas, images, plots are explained by the composer himself. The author's explanation can be given either in the explanatory text attached to the work or in its title. Many other works by the composers of The Mighty Handful are also programmatic: Antar and The Tale by Rimsky-Korsakov, Islamey and King Lear by Balakirev, Night on Bald Mountain and Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky.

Developing the creative principles of their great predecessors Glinka and Dragomyzhsky, the members of the Mighty Handful were at the same time bold innovators. They were not satisfied with what they had achieved, but called their contemporaries to the “new shores”, strove for a direct lively response to the demands and demands of modernity, inquisitively searched for new plots, new types of people, new means of musical embodiment.

The “Kuchkists” had to pave these new roads of their own in a stubborn and uncompromising struggle against everything reactionary and conservative, in sharp clashes with the dominance of foreign music, which had long and stubbornly been propagated by Russian rulers and aristocracy. The ruling classes could not really please revolutionary processes that took place in literature and art. domestic art lacked sympathy and support. Moreover, everything that was advanced, progressive was persecuted. Chernyshevsky was sent into exile, his writings bearing the stamp of a censorship ban. Herzen lived outside of Russia. Artists who defiantly left the Academy of Arts were considered "suspicious" and were taken into account by the tsarist secret police. The influence of Western European theaters in Russia was ensured by all state privileges: Italian troupes owned monopoly opera stage, foreign entrepreneurs enjoyed the widest benefits inaccessible to domestic art.

Overcoming the obstacles to the promotion of "national" music, attacks from critics, the composers of the "Mighty Handful" stubbornly continued their work of developing their native art and, as Stasov later wrote, "Balakirev's partnership defeated both the public and the musicians. It sowed a new fertile seed, which soon gave a luxurious and fruitful harvest.

The Balakirev circle usually gathered in several familiar and close houses: at L.I. Shestakova (M.I. Glinka’s sister), at Ts.A. Cui, at F.P. Mussorgsky (composer's brother), V.V. Stasov. Meetings of the Balakirev circle always proceeded in a very lively creative atmosphere.

Members of the Balakirev circle often met with writers A.V. Grigorovich, A.F. Pisemsky, I.S. Turgenev, artist I.E. Repin, sculptor M.A. Antokolsky. There were close ties with Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

2.2 PublicAnd"Mightybunch"

The composers of The Mighty Handful did a great deal of social and educational work. The first public manifestation of the activities of the Balakirev circle was the opening in 1862 of the Free Music School. The main organizer was M.I.Balakirev and the choirmaster G.Ya.Lomakin. The free music school's main task was to distribute musical knowledge among the general population.

In an effort to widely disseminate their ideological and artistic principles, to strengthen creative influence on the surrounding public environment, members of the "Mighty Handful" not only used the concert platform, but also spoke on the pages of the press. The speeches were of an acutely polemical nature, judgments sometimes had a sharp, categorical form, which was due to the attacks and negative assessments that the Mighty Handful was subjected to by reactionary criticism.

Along with Stasov, C.A. Cui acted as a spokesman for the views and assessments of the new Russian school. Since 1864, he was a permanent music reviewer for the newspaper St. Petersburg Vedomosti. Besides Cui, critical articles Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov spoke in the press. Although the criticism was not theirs main activity, in their musical articles and reviews they gave examples of apt and correct assessments of art and made a significant contribution to Russian classical musicology.

The influence of the ideas of the "Mighty Handful" penetrates the walls of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Here in 1871 Rimsky-Korsakov was invited to the post of professor in the classes of instrumentation and composition. Since that time, Rimsky-Korsakov's activity has been inextricably linked with the conservatory. He becomes the figure that concentrates young creative forces around him. The combination of the advanced traditions of the "Mighty Handful" with a solid and solid academic foundation made up salient feature"school of Rimsky-Korsakov", which was the dominant direction in the St. Petersburg Conservatory from the late 70s of the last century until the beginning of the 20th century.

By the end of the 70s and the beginning of the 80s, the work of the composers of the Mighty Handful was gaining wide popularity and recognition not only at home, but also abroad. An ardent admirer and friend of the "new Russian school" was Franz Liszt. Liszt energetically contributed to the dissemination of the works of Borodin, Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov in Western Europe. Mussorgsky's ardent admirers were the French composers Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy, the Czech composer Janacek.

2.3 Decay"Fives"

"Mighty bunch" as a single creative team lasted until the mid 70s. By this time, in the letters and memoirs of its participants and close friends, one can increasingly find arguments and statements about the reasons for its gradual disintegration. Closest to the truth is Borodin. In a letter to the singer L.I. Karmalina in 1876, he wrote: “... As activity develops, individuality begins to take precedence over the school, over what a person has inherited from others. ...Finally, in one and the same, in various eras development, at different times, views and tastes in particular change. It's all very natural."

Gradually, the role of the leader of the advanced musical forces passes to Rimsky-Korsakov. He educates the younger generation at the conservatory, since 1877 he became the conductor of the Free Music School and the inspector musical choirs maritime department. Since 1883, he has been teaching at the Court Singing Chapel.

Mussorgsky was the first of the leaders of the "Mighty Handful" to die. He died in 1881. Last years Mussorgsky's life was very difficult. Shaky health, material insecurity - all this prevented the composer from concentrating on creative work, caused a pessimistic mood and alienation.

With the death of Borodin, the paths of the surviving composers of the Mighty Handful finally diverged. Balakirev, withdrawing into himself, completely departed from Rimsky-Korsakov, Cui had long lagged behind his brilliant contemporaries. Only Stasov remained in the same relationship with each of the three.

Balakirev and Cui lived the longest (Balakirev died in 1910, Cui - in 1918). Despite the fact that Balakirev returned to musical life in the late 70s (in the early 70s Balakirev stopped playing musical activity), he no longer had the energy and charm that characterized him at the time of the 60s. creative forces the composer died out before life.

Balakirev continued to lead the Free Music School and the Court Choir. The training procedures established by him and Rimsky-Korsakov in the chapel led to the fact that many of its pupils entered the real road, becoming outstanding musicians.

Creativity and the inner appearance of Cui also did not remind much of the former connection with the "Mighty Handful". He successfully advanced in his second specialty: in 1888 he became a professor at the Military Engineering Academy in the department of fortification and left many valuable printed scientific works in this area.

Rimsky-Korsakov also lived a long time (he died in 1908). Unlike Balakirev and Cui, his work went on an ascending line until the very end. He remained true to the principles of realism and nationalism, developed during the great democratic upsurge of the 60s in the Mighty Handful.

On the great traditions of the "Mighty Handful" Rimsky-Korsakov brought up a whole generation of musicians. Among them are outstanding artists like Glazunov, Lyadov, Arensky, Lysenko, Spendiarov, Ippolitov-Ivanov, Steinberg, Myaskovsky and many others. They brought these traditions alive and active to our time.

2.4 Continuation"Mightyheaps"

With the cessation of regular meetings between the five Russian composers, the expansion, development and living history of the Mighty Handful was by no means completed. The center of Kuchkist activity and ideology, mainly due to the pedagogical activity of Rimsky-Korsakov, moved to the classes of the St. and leader. With the beginning of the 20th century, he shared his leadership in the "triumvirate" with A.K. Lyadov, A.K. Glazunov and a little later (from May 1907) N.V. Artsybushev. Thus, minus Balakirev's radicalism, the Belyaev Circle became a natural continuation of the Mighty Handful. Rimsky-Korsakov himself recalled this in a very definite way: “Can the Belyaev circle be considered a continuation of the Balakirev one, was there a certain amount of similarity between the one and the other, and what was the difference, in addition to changing its personnel over time? The similarity, indicating that the Belyaev circle is a continuation of the Balakirev one, except for the connecting links in the person of me and Lyadov, consisted in the common advancement and progressiveness of both. But Balakirev's circle corresponded to a period of storm and onslaught in the development of Russian music, and Belyaev's circle to a period of calm march forward; Balakirev’s was revolutionary, Belyaev’s was progressive…”.

Among the members of the Belyaev circle, Rimsky-Korsakov names separately himself (as the new head of the circle instead of Balakirev), Borodin (in the short time that remained before his death) and Lyadov as "connecting links". Since the second half of the 1980s, musicians of such different talents and specialties as Glazunov, the brothers F. M. Blumenfeld and S. M. Blumenfeld, conductor O. I. Dyutsh and pianist N. S. Lavrov. A little later, as they graduated from the conservatory, the number of Belyaevites included such composers as N. A. Sokolov, K. A. Antipov, Ya. Vitol and so on, including a large number of later graduates of Rimsky-Korsakov in composition. In addition, the "venerable Stasov" always maintained good and close relations with the Belyaev circle, although his influence was "far from the same" as in Balakirev's circle. The new composition of the circle (and its more moderate head) also determined the new face of the “post-Kuchkists”: much more academically oriented and open to a variety of influences, previously considered unacceptable within the framework of the “Mighty Handful”. Belyaevites experienced a lot of "alien" influences and had wide sympathies, starting from Wagner and Tchaikovsky, and ending "even" with Ravel and Debussy. In addition, it should be especially noted that, being the successor to the "Mighty Handful" and generally continuing its direction, the Belyaev circle did not represent a single aesthetic whole, guided by a single ideology or program.

Conclusion

The mighty handful is an outstanding phenomenon of Russian art. She left a deep mark in many areas of the cultural life of Russia - and not only in Russia. In the next generations of musicians, up to our time, there are many direct heirs of Mussorgsky, Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov, Balakirev. Uniting their ideas, their progressive views were a model for advanced artists for many years.

It is noteworthy that the mighty handful was mainly composed of not professional musicians who have achieved success in their professions: Alexander Borodin - Professor of the Medico-Surgical Academy, Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov - a naval officer who became a professor at the St. Petersburg Conservatory without having special education, Caesar Cui - a prominent scientist in the field of fortification, one of the founders of Russian fortification. Each of the works created by the "Kuchkists" bears the imprint of the creative individuality of the author, and at the same time their music is marked by features of a single style, a single aesthetics. Extending to the world composer practice, "Kuchkism" gives the most magnificent shoots in truly innovative achievements of the 20th century, already with a different world of imagery and conceptual thinking, with a decisively updated system of musical and expressive means.

Bibliographiclist

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