Presentation

Shostakovich & Other Russians
Session Six
Bob Fabian
LIFEcourses.ca/Shostakovich
Plan for session
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Successors
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Weinberg peers
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Students
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Galina Ivanovna Ustvolskaya 1919
Boris Alexandrovich Tchaikovsky 1925
Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina 1931
Rodion Konstantinovich Shchedrin 1932
Boris Ivanovich Tishchenko 1939
Shostakovich Keyboard Works
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24 preludes & fugues
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Piano Concerto No. 2
Galina Ustvolskaya 1919-2006
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“I am convinced that the music
of G. I. Ustvolskaya will achieve
worldwide renown, to be valued
by all who perceive truth in
music to be of paramount
importance.” Shostakovich
Pupil of Shostakovich 1939 –
1947
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But she claimed he had no impact
on her mature music
Ustvolskaya Symphony No. 5
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Symphony No. 5 - Amen (1989/90), for voice, oboe,
trumpet, tuba, violin and percussion (wooden cube)
Text: The Lord's Prayer (in Russian)
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo3u4Zz-DZU
Boris Tchaikovsky 1925 - 1996
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Studied at Moscow Conservatory
with Dmitry Shostakovich and
Nikolai Miaskovsky
"I consider him to be a genius ... I
do think that one day people will
come to know that two great
Russian composers bore the
same name" M. Rostropovich
http://www.boris-tchaikovsky.com/
Piano Trio (1953)
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In three movements: Toccata, Aria, Variations
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Festival Wissembourg August 28th 2014
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhgQ2Pu8X3E
Sofia Gubaidulina 1931 ●
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As a student, her music was
deemed "irresponsible", but she
was supported by Shostakovich
In 1979, she was blacklisted as
one of the "Khrennikov's
Seven".
In the 1980s, Gidon Kremer
championed her violin concerto
Since 1992, Gubaidulina has
lived in Hamburg
The Canticle of the Sun of St Francis of Assisi
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Ivan Monighetti - cello
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Ryszard Haba, Tomasz Sobaniec - percussion instruments
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Polish Radio Choir, Jerzy Swoboda - conductor
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TN4yafIorPM (part I)
Rodion Shchedrin 1932 ●
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1955 graduated Moscow
Conservatory
His early music is tonal,
colourfully orchestrated and often
includes snatches of folk music
Wide range of music: piano,
ballet, opera, symphony, solo
Divides his time between Munich
and Moscow
Piano Concerto No. 1
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Rodion Shchedrin playing his own concerto
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State Academic SO under Yevgeny Svetlanov
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Live in Moscow in 1975
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2H1oexDzHs
Boris Tishchenko 1939 - 2010
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Studied with Shostakovich 19621965
Very much influenced by music of
his teachers Dmitri Shostakovich
and Galina Ustvolskaya
Shostakovich orchestrated his
First Cello Concerto
Wide range of compositions
Concerto for flute, piano & string orchestra
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Elena Oshchepkova (flute), Irina Timofeeva (piano)
St Petersburg Conservatory Chamber Orchestra, Alim
Shakhmametyev
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34qcr_tPFs0
Shostakovich the pianist
Shostakovich & the piano
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Helped to support his family by playing in silent movie
house
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Regularly appeared as a concert pianist
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Works for piano
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2 piano concertos
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2 piano trios, piano quintet
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Sonatas for string instruments and piano
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Multiple solo piano pieces
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Including 24 preludes & fugues
24 preludes & fugues
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Total of 24 major and minor keys
Since J.S.Bach's time, composers have written a
“full” suite of preludes & fugues
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J.S.Bach did it twice
Shostakovich's 24 preludes & fugues considered
one of the finest examples and one of his finest
compositions
Composed (early 1950s) in a time of “trouble” for
serious music in the Soviet Union
Tatiana Nikolayeva on Shostakovich
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Her performance of Bach “48” inspired his “24”
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She was the first pianist to perform them
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjNmBPBO1gA
th
Comparison of the 4 prelude & fugue
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Tatiana Nikolayeva
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https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=Iw6PzoKiomk
Dmitri Shostakovich
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https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=_jFT9BCq8x4
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The 2 Piano Concerto
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1957: Composed for his son's 19 th birthday; he
played it as his graduation piece
Lasts about 20 minutes; 3 movements; 3 rd
follows the 2nd without a break
Often dismissed as “light weight”
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By Shostakovich himself, but he regularly performed it
and he recorded it
It may be “light”, but it's also popular
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2 Piano Concerto, 1 movement
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Disney saw the potential - Fantasia 2000
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFanayBhyeA
Concert performance
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Piano Concerto No 2 in F major, Op 102
1 Allegro; 2 Andante; 3 Allegro
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Denis Matsuev, piano
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Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra,Valery Gergiev
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8trqW4_lwSk
We covered (skimmed)
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Not quite random selection of Russian classical
music from the 19th century to post-WW II
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Shostakovich appeared regularly, but we sampled a number
of other fine Russian composers
Limited availability of good YouTube examples of too many
other fine Russian composers
Appealing, great modern classical music is possible
Even for those of us in our 3rd Age, it makes sense
to be open to new music
Thank You
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Putting together the six sessions taught me a
great deal about the music
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Without you, I would never have gone as far
Winter term: The String Quartet
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Some of our best, some of our most intimate music was
written for the string quartet
Only some high points during the six sessions, but what
high points!
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3 Hour
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LIFE music courses
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This music course
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What should LIFE be offering?
What should be the mix of talk & performance?
How to make LIFE music courses enlightening, engaging
& entertaining?
What feature(s) is most in need of change?
What feature(s) should be preserved?
Any final comments?