We have entered the new year of 2012 – something I would like to congratulate you all with, yet again! And now its time for us to take a look at the memorable historical dates of the opening month of the year.
The first significant date is the 175th birth anniversary of Miliy Balakirev.
In Russian music history Miliy Balakirev occupies a very special place. An outstanding composer, public figure, he was a highly authoritative individual throughout an entire epoch, and brought up a brilliant pleiad of composers, who joined forced to create a unique artistic association. Russian critic Vladimir Stasov dubbed the latter “The Mighty Handful, or “The Mighty Five” as they were known in the west.
Miliy Balakirev was born January 2nd 1837 in Nizhny Novgorod in an impoverished gentry family. From an early age he displayed a profound interest in m music, and having gained access to the richest music library of one of his compatriots, started mastering the music scores of the classics at amazing speed. A photographic memory and phenomenal ear for music helped him soon become one of the best-educated musicians of Russia.
When the young, enthusiastic, impassioned Balakirev found himself in Petersburg, he immediately started drawing young musicians like a magnet. Thus, he formed a circle, members of which were warrant officer Modest Mussorgsky, scientist-chemist Alexander Borodin, Military Academy Professor Caesar Cui and naval officer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Balakirev, who took it upon himself to enlighten these amateur music enthusiasts, transformed them into brilliant professionals – each with their own distinctive flair.
Miliy Balakirev himself did not write all that many compositions, overtime finding himself in the shadows of his charges. But we must not forget that it was his aesthetics, his creative art that determined the original, typically national direction taken by Russian music art.
And another striking name – Alexander Scriabin. A rebel at heart, who possessed a vivid imagination and truly cosmic energy. A man who dreamt, in the manner of God, to mould his own Universe, following the orbit of the arts. A composer endowed with a colour hearing, and ample imagination, who conceived a grandiose Mysterium, uniting music and art, architecture and dance, plastic movement and scents and aromas. Alas, Scriabin did not have enough time to realize all his astounding projects – he was fated to die at just 43.
Alexander Scriabin wrote either for the orchestra, or for the piano. He was an excellent pianist himself and possessed a particularly delicate touch which left the audience in raptures. Crowds of devoted fans called his playing divine.
The recordings of Scriabin playing that have survived to our time unfortunately do not do justice to the magic he was able to wield, driving audiences to ecstasy.
Moscow Philharmonic Society is celebrating its 90th anniversary. Russia’s leading concert association regards January 29th, 1922 as its birthday. That night there was a wealth of congratulatory speeches, and afterwards – the music took over – Beethoven’s 9th symphony.
Today Moscow’s Philharmonic, most probably, is unrivalled in quality and quantity of concerts. It has to its credit over 100 monthly concerts in Moscow’s central concert venues and many hundreds of literature and music programmes for children and the youth.
The capital’s Philharmonic society gathers under its wing the best musicians of Russia and invited numerous foreign celebrities. Annual philharmonic season-tickets are sold out in mere days.
And now we are shifting over to a different genre – songs. And with good reason, too: the jubilee of our popular vocalist Tamara Gverdtsiteli.
When still a girl she became soloist of the greatly-loved all across the soviet country children’s ensemble from Georgia “Mziuri”. Growing up, Tamara swiftly soared to the big solo stage, her art an embodiment of indelible ties linking Georgia and Russia. Her striking talent, inherent musicality, artistic charm, easily recognizable voice made Tamara Gverdtsiteli a star that numerous acclaimed composers, the best orchestras and ensembles of Europe are eager to collaborate with. Her birthdays are traditionally a festive event, where beauty and harmony reign.
In our final theme for today we are recalling Valeri Obodzinsky, an iconic soviet singer of the 1960s, 70s and 80s. January 24th would have been his 70th birth anniversary. Just 70! Alas, the singer has long since died.
Valeri Obodzinsky possessed a remarkably beautiful voice. However, even in the most carefree songs he performed there was always a hint of sadness. His songs were shrouded in a sensuality that the “virtuous” soviet censorship waged such a relentless war against, and the vocalist was not always granted the “green light”. Besides, Obodzinsky never performed loud and blustering songs about the Motherland and the party, something that could not fail to alert the powers-that-be and render them suspicious in his regard.
The artists’ fate was by no means an easy and smooth one. At the end of the 1970s he left the stage and it required a huge effort from him to return 7 years later. However, he was fated to live no more than three years.
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