Saber dance - who is the author? Analysis of musical works

The history of creation and life on stage, perhaps, the most famous work A. Khachaturian’s ballet “Gayane” is unique.

It began in 1939, when the composer created his first ballet “Happiness” for the Decade of Armenian Art in Moscow. This was an attempt to show happy life Soviet Armenia.

The premiere of the ballet was not without success, but solely due to the music. The libretto required serious revision. The dramaturgy of the ballet was called somewhat “naive”.

Three years later, Khachaturian, in collaboration with another playwright, wrote new script, remade musical dramaturgy and finished the music. A heavily revised “Happiness” was shown in Perm by the Leningrad Opera and Ballet Theater named after Kirov, evacuated there, under the now known name “Gayane”.

The heroes of the ballet are collective farmers and soldiers of the Red Army. Their happiness, according to the creators’ plan, is inseparable from the well-being of the entire people.

For the ballet “Gayane” the composer was awarded the USSR State Prize in 1943, which he contributed to the fund of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union.

The music from “Gayane” immediately won people's love. The duet of Nunne and Karen, Lullaby, the duet of Armen and Aisha, “Shalaho” and, of course, the famous “Sabre Dance” were constantly heard in concerts and radio broadcasts.

However, the public was again dissatisfied with the dramaturgy of the ballet.

A third, and then a fourth and fifth scenario appeared. The authors tried to deepen and intensify the dramatic conflict, then resorted to stage effects (for example, in the fourth version, an enemy paratrooper descended directly onto the front stage), then shifted the emphasis to social issues. It's no wonder that every new premiere already famous ballet all over the world, was heatedly discussed on the pages of newspapers.

During these years, the Soviet choreographic theater tried with all its might to make ballet more modern, strived for significant life stories, realism, trying to abandon the beauty of the ballet fairy tales of the past. However, as can be seen in the example of “Gayane”, due to the specifics of ballet art, such attempts did not provide either full-fledged realism or full-fledged choreography.

And while the playwrights were once again rewriting the libretto, Khachaturian’s music won hearts, both on the symphonic stage and in arrangements for various ensembles, for solo instruments accompanied by piano, etc.

As for the fiery “Sabre Dance” from the “unlucky” ballet “Gayane”, it truly became business card composer.

There were many rumors surrounding this work. Thus, they said that “The Saber Dance” made Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin himself stomp to the beat, and that this is why it was performed almost every day on the radio. Rumor also said that this dance, somewhere in the 50s or 60s, was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the most popular and most frequently performed (except for national anthems) piece of music.

Thanks to “Saber Dance,” its author gained the nickname “Mr. Saber Dance” in many countries around the world.

And at this time, Khachaturian himself called his most famous play “a disobedient and noisy child.” He composed it not of his own free will, but at the urgent request of the ballet director (moreover, he composed it literally in one evening). When Aram Ilyich gave the notes to the choreographer, he wrote on them: “Damn it, for the sake of the ballet!”

In 1951, two giants of world culture met in Spain - the Soviet composer Aram Khachaturian and the Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dali. This meeting became so scandalous that among informed artists it is still not customary to mention it at the official level for reasons of delicacy. But, as they say, you can’t hide a bag, and from time to time hints of this amazing and not entirely decent story resurface in the works of various authors.

Let's take for example paintings by a contemporary artist Vera Donskoy-Khilko, who specializes in depicting celebrities.

Vera Donskaya-Khilko,"The Ferryman", 2011

Vera Donskaya-Khilko,"Wrestling", 2011

Vera Donskaya-Khilko, "Gala Concert", 2008

"Atomic Leda", 1949

Gala in the paintings of Salvador Dali:
"A dream inspired by the flight of a bee around a pomegranate, a second before awakening" 1944

However, let's go back to 1951.

By that time, the fame of the eccentric surrealist Dali had already thundered throughout the world. Exhibitions of his paintings triumphantly took place in the most famous exhibition halls Europe and America. All the celebrities in the world wanted to meet him and publicly admired his work. Without exaggeration it can be said that in fine arts he was already considered a “star of the first magnitude.”

Aram Ilyich Khachaturian by this time was one of the few Soviet composers, who achieved world fame, although not so loud. He was a laureate of the State and Lenin Prizes, a Hero Socialist Labor, People's Artist of the USSR, has already traveled all over the world, met with Romain Rolland, Hemingway, Chaplin, Stravinsky. Khachaturian was joyfully received by the greats of this world - Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, Pope John XXIII, Catholicos Vazgen.
Khachaturian’s greatest fame came from a small suite for the ballet “Gayane” - the famous “Sabre Dance” - which he wrote in 1942 in just one evening. This suite quickly gained popularity, and many symphony orchestras the world included it in their repertoires, and the composer acquired the unofficial nickname “Mr. Saber Dance.”

Suite "Sabre Dance" from the ballet "Gayane"

During a creative trip to Spain, Khachaturian, of course, really wanted to meet personally with the “great and terrible” Salvador Dali. However, there was one “but”. The leadership of the USSR did not really favor Dali; surrealism was generally considered a “purely bourgeois”, “class-alien” movement in art, and Soviet censorship was very reluctant to allow reproductions of Dali’s paintings into large-circulation media.
Dali did not remain in debt. Once, when asked about the solidarity of the entire world proletariat, he arrogantly replied: “I don’t know anyone with the name Proletariat.” And in another interview, Dali said: “I want to paint Lenin with a three-meter-long buttock, which will be supported by a crutch.” And then he wrote.

Therefore, there was no question of Khachaturian’s official visit to the master of the bourgeois avant-garde.
But Aram Ilyich still could not resist and asked his Spanish colleagues to arrange for him a secret meeting, as unofficial as possible. Unexpectedly for everyone, the great Dali, without any delay, easily agreed to host Khachaturian one-on-one in his luxurious mansion, and even sent him a personal invitation.

So, on the appointed day, Aram Khachaturian drove up in a limousine to Dali’s house at about two o’clock in the afternoon. The servants led him into the spacious dining room. As soon as the ancient clock on the wall struck two, the door opened and the master of ceremonies appeared on the threshold in ceremonial livery and a wig. Hitting the floor with his staff, he solemnly announced the opening of the audience and left no less solemnly.
When the clock struck a quarter past three, Khachaturian was still alone in the hall, except for a peacock spreading a magnificent rainbow tail in a gilded cage. After another quarter of an hour, Khachaturian began to show signs of anxiety - something clearly went wrong. Is this typical Spanish unpunctuality or arrogant disdain?
The dinner table was set with fruits, wines and other drinks. To relieve irritation, Khachaturian drank cognac, ate grapes, and filled a glass with pomegranate wine from a crystal jug.
The clock struck three, then half past four, but no one appeared. Khachaturian felt stuffy from excitement, he tore off his tie and put it in his pocket. Anger continued to be quenched with cognac, and thirst with wine. This is an obvious mockery! After all, it's time for him to go to the toilet!
Khachaturian went to the door - it was closed. I checked the other doors - they were closed. In bewilderment, he stood in the middle of the hall and looked at the peacock chirping in a golden cage. What's going on here?!
Knocking and breaking on doors turned out to be useless. Khachaturian examined two large ceramic vases standing on the parquet floor by the fireplace and made a decision - he would wait until four o’clock, and not a second more!

Drawing by Evgeny Morozov, 1989

Maybe there were some personal motives here? Some researchers believe that the main initiator of this joke was the Russian-born Gala - the wife, model and “Muse” of Salvador Dali. This option, in particular, is hinted at by the title of Vera Donskaya-Khilko’s painting “Gala Concert.” Soviet authority forced Gala’s parents to flee Russia from the “Red Terror”; she herself was raised in European traditions the priority of complete spiritual freedom (which is why Dali saw a kindred spirit in her), and perhaps she had a deep inner dislike for everything connected with the USSR, even in art.
But most researchers still believe that Dali was the main initiator, screenwriter, director and director of this enchanting scene. Such psychological installations were always fully consistent with his internal mental organization. It was not enough for him to feel the beauty of the absurd somewhere deep inside himself, and his whole life was an attempt to bring this beauty to the surface, to introduce it directly into the life around him. In the installation with Khachaturian, such an attempt was undoubtedly crowned complete success, and Dali himself considered it one of the best surreal experiences of his life.

Paris, 1933.
Young and not yet famous El Salvador Dali surrounded by surrealist artists.

Around this period, Salvador Dalí sent a letter to his father in Spain. Having opened the envelope, the father found in it a small bag with some sticky muddy liquid and a short note: “I don’t owe you anything else.”

May 1 marks 41 years since the death of the classic of Soviet and world music Aram Khachaturian.

Big violin virtuoso

Until the age of 18, the future composer lived in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. At home, little Aram spoke Armenian, on the street with friends - in Georgian, at school - in Russian. Then it was normal and natural and there was no talk of any national enmity. Throughout his life, Khachaturian retained his love for his people and respectful attitude to others.

His mother loved to sing Armenian folk songs, and these tunes were deeply imprinted in the child’s soul. Under their impression, the boy climbed into the attic of the house and spent hours tapping out his favorite rhythms on a copper basin. "This is my original" musical activity“,” said Khachaturian, “it gave me indescribable pleasure, but it drove my parents into despair...”

The family's financial situation was so cramped that Aram could not even dream of a musical education. Therefore, the appearance in the house of an inferior piano, purchased for pennies, became a big event for the boy. He picked out melodies by ear folk songs and dancing. “Soon I became completely bolder,” Khachaturian recalled, “and began to vary familiar motifs and invent new ones. I remember the joy these—albeit naive, funny, clumsy, but still my first attempts at composition—gave me.”

18-year-old Aram came to Moscow thanks to his older brother, a theater director, who helped the young man get musical education, introduced him to the artistic circles of Moscow. It was his brother who instilled in the aspiring composer a love of theater. Subsequently, Khachaturian, who wrote music for more than 20 performances, said: “My passion for theater is such that if music had not filled my thoughts at one time, I probably would have become an actor.”

Passing exams at Moscow music college, Aram noticed a cello standing in the corner and declared that he would like to study “on this big violin”! It is unlikely that Khachaturian, who did not even have basic training, would have been enrolled in a music college if Elena Fabianovna and Mikhail Fabianovich Gnessin had not recognized the natural talent in the young man.

“Energetic, impetuous, enthusiastic, not very organized, but endlessly devoted to his favorite art” - this is how Aram Khachaturian was remembered by his friends and contemporaries of those years.

Novelty for the sake of novelty

Laureate of State and Lenin Prizes, Hero of Socialist Labor, National artist USSR Aram Ilyich Khachaturian lived a happy life. He traveled all over the world, met with Romain Rolland, Hemingway, Chaplin, Sibelius, Stravinsky, Karajan, Barber... Khachaturian was joyfully received by the greats of this world - Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, Pope John XXIII, Catholicos Vazgen. His works were played by stars of the performing arts - violinists Jascha Heifetz, George Enescu, David Oistrakh, pianists Arthur Rubinstein, Emil Gilels, cellist Mstislav Rostropovich... He was covered in fame, loved by listeners, respected by the authorities... However, few people knew (except perhaps a few of his closest ) that at the end of his life Khachaturian experienced a difficult internal drama. At 70, after a long illness, he complained: “I’m trying to compose again. I'm looking for something new, I don't want to miss out on the old - emotionality, melodic richness. And this is so difficult! This makes me nervous, I have Bad mood, everything annoys me. Today, for example, I had a lesson at the conservatory. There is a pursuit of novelty for the sake of novelty. Students compete to see who is sharper and who is more abstract. But expressiveness and inspiration are just empty concepts.”

***

He was buried in Armenia with incredible solemnity. The coffin was brought from Moscow. There was terrible rain. At the airfield there were choirs on the steps, as is the case in Greek tragedies, and sang in the wild rain. An absolutely incredible sight. And the next day, after the funeral, the whole road from opera house to the cemetery was strewn with roses.

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Once, while in Spain on a tour that was a huge success, Aram Khachaturian met with Salvador Dali. This is how the writer Mikhail Weller described this meeting in his story “Sabre Dance”.

“...The master of ceremonies invites him to a luxurious reception hall - white stucco, inlaid parquet and mirrors - invites him to sit down and announces in Spanish that Monsignor Dali will now come out of this door. At this very moment, the ancient clock on the wall strikes two times, the master of ceremonies bows and disappears, closing the doors behind him.

And Khachaturian remains alone in the hall.

He is sitting on some luxurious gold-woven sofa, no less from the suite of Louis XV, in front of him is a mosaic table, and on this table are elegantly arranged Armenian cognacs, Spanish wines, fruits and cigars. And in the other corner of the hall there is a large golden cage, and a peacock walks there and spreads its rainbow tail.

A minute passes, and then another. Knowing that punctuality is not accepted at any level in Spain, Khachaturian looks around animatedly, smoothes his hair and straightens his tie. Obviously, Dali's wife Gala will also be there, since a translator is not required. He prepares opening phrases and perfects subtle compliments.

At ten minutes past three, he believes that, in general, Dali will come in any second, and listens to the steps.

At a quarter past three he sits down comfortably and selects a cigar from the box. He blows out smoke and crosses his legs.

At twenty minutes past three he begins to get a little irritated - what the hell, really... he himself scheduled it for two o’clock! - pours himself a glass of cognac and drinks.

At half past three he pours another glass of cognac and washes it down with a glass of wine. Grapes are plucking!..

There is still a violation of etiquette. Rudeness, sir! What is he, a boy? He gets up, unbuttons his jacket, undoes his tie, puts his hands in his pockets and begins to walk around the room. He exchanges glances with the peacock. The bad bird screams like a donkey!

And the clock regularly rings quarterly, and at three quarters past two Khachaturian finally stops liking this meeting. He touches the handle of the door from which Dali is supposed to come out - maybe the master of ceremonies of the hall mixed up? - but the door is locked. And Khachaturian decides: he waits until three and goes to hell. What kind of disgrace is this... this is already humiliation!

At exactly three he nervously spits on the cigar butt, slams a glass of Akhtamar on his shoulder and firmly steps towards the door.

But it turns out that this door through which he entered also does not want to open. Khachaturian is surprised, turns the handle, and shrugs. He tries all the doors in this palace chamber in turn - and they are all locked!

In confusion and anger, he pulls and pushes - they closed it! Then, to improve his mental activity, he drinks some more cognac, swears out loud, spits on the peacock’s tail, rips off his tie and stuffs it in his pocket...

He is looking for a call or a phone - to call the valet or whatever. No sign of alarm.

Maybe something happened to Dali? Maybe he didn't arrive? But they invited me, they assured me... Crazy!

And by the way, it’s already a hunt to eat! He’s a big-hearted man, he loves these pleasures of eating, and it’s lunchtime: he specifically didn’t eat in advance in order to leave room for lunch with Dali - after all, there should be lunch, no?

He sits back down at the table, chooses a riper pear, buries an orange on his shirt, takes a sip of cognac, and goes wild—getting into an aggressive mood!

And at half past four he begins to feel some need. Wine, you know, cognac, fruit... Aram Ilyich needs to go to the toilet. And the doors are locked!!!

No etiquette or rules good manners are no longer inappropriate, he knocks on all the doors, at first shyly, and then simply rattles his feet: no answer. Then he tries to open the windows - or shout, or even... that... But the lancet castle windows have solid frames and do not open in any way.

Khachaturian begins to run around the hall on his short legs and swear with increasing intensity. And by four o'clock all his patience runs out, and he decides for himself - at EXACTLY four, and then come what may! yes they all failed!

And on the podium between the windows there is some kind of collectible vase, Moorish antiquity. Beautiful shape and a fair amount of capacity, however. And this vase increasingly takes over his thoughts.

And at four, he, bouncing up and down and puffing, pees in this vase with vengeful relief and thinks that life is not so bad: a castle, wine, a peacock... and the vase is a comfortable height.

And the clock strikes four times, and with the last strike, “Sabre Dance” plays from hidden speakers with a deafening ringing! The door swings open with thunder - and a completely naked Dali flies in riding on a mop, waving a saber above his head!

He prances naked on a mop across the hall, waving his saber, to the opposite doors - they let him in, and slam shut!

And the music stops.

The master of ceremonies enters and announces that the audience has been granted.

And invites you to leave.

The dumbfounded Khachaturian frantically puts himself in order... On the porch he is respectfully handed a luxurious, Dutch print, gold-edged Dali album with a touching inscription from the owner about this unforgettable meeting.

They put you in a car and take you to the hotel.

On the way, Khachaturian came to his senses and wanted to throw this filthy album to hell, but he thought about it and didn’t throw it away.

And there they are waiting for him and vying with each other to ask how the meeting of the two giants went. And he tells them something about talking about art, trying to be laconic and not lie.

On the same day, a full account of the event appears in the evening newspapers, with Dali speaking in forgiving tones about the habit of a guest from wild Russia using collectible vases worth one hundred thousand dollars and six hundred years old as chamber pots.

Mikhail Weller lied. This did not happen in Spain. In general, Weller came up with a lot of things.

The painting about the meeting between A. Khachatryan and Salvador Dali is shown in the Erotica Museum in the center of Moscow. It was painted by a Spanish artist in 2011. Maybe this is a figment of her imagination or written by her after a past meeting of the greats, I don’t know for sure. How to find out more precisely: was there a meeting at all?

On February 24 in Yaroslavl, in a frost of -23 degrees, the film company Mars Media began filming full-length film“Sabre Dance” (dir. Yusup Razykov). This was reported by general producer film by Ruben Dishdishyan.

The painting will tell the story of creation famous masterpiece, “a disobedient and noisy child,” as Aram Ilyich Khachaturian called him, “Sabre Dance.”

Cold autumn of 1942. Second year of the war. Leningradsky was evacuated to the city of Molotov - renamed Perm just before the war academic theater Opera and Ballet named after Kirov. The world of the theater in evacuation is ghostly, hungry, cold. Life in the rear with all the signs of wartime. Half-starved ballerinas and corps de ballet, transforming on stage into marvelous " pink girls" Performances, performances in hospitals, defense factories and rehearsals, rehearsals.

The final efforts to create the performance “Gayane” coincide with the writing of the first bars of Symphony No. 2. Before the last rehearsal, Khachaturian unexpectedly receives an order from the management to create another dance for the final part of the already completed ballet. In 8 hours, the composer will write his most performed work.

On the first day of shooting, to the applause of the film crew, director Yusup Razykov, following a long-standing cinematic tradition, broke a plate for luck and began filming the film. On this day, the scene of Aram Ilyich’s meeting with Dmitry Shostakovich and David Oistrakh at the fair was filmed.

“I have had an interest in the work of Aram Ilyich since childhood. - said Yusup Razykov - His works always felt enormous power, strength, greatness. Khachaturian was not very fond of Saber Dance. He believed that it obscured everything about him significant works. Our film is a story about the conditions under which the dance for the ballet “Gayane” was written, which later became Khachaturian’s calling card and one of the most performed works of the 20th century. And of course, about the war, where even in the rear there are serious battles.”

Creation musical masterpiece It was a nervous process, on the one hand there was a war on the other, a conflict between the composer and the choreographer. The score of the ballet is connected with the choreography, with the choreographer’s intention. And choreographer Nina Anisina, a student of the magnificent Agrippina Vaganova, often did everything in her own way, sometimes, for some unknown reason, shortening scenes. Because of this, the libretto suffered, and Khachaturian constantly had to add and rewrite something. A week before the premiere in December 1942, Anisina did not like a girl in the corps de ballet - and she was removed. Hangs in the air for a whole beat. A directive comes from above to urgently write music for another dance. “Sabre Dance” became this music.”

“The film is being filmed under the patronage of the First Lady of Armenia Rita Sargsyan, as well as with the support of the Ministries of Culture of Russia and Armenia,” film producer Tigran Manasyan told Interlocutor of Armenia. - The role of Aram Ilyich Khachaturian will be played by the talented Russian actor from “Pyotr Fomenko’s Workshop” Ambartsum Kabanyan. The first block of filming will take place in Yaroslavl, the second - at the end of April in Yerevan, where the main filming location will be Yerevan State Theater Opera and Ballet named after Spendiarov. There is a difficult filming period ahead, but we believe that the film will turn out worthy and will be loved by the audience.”

SABER DANCE

GENRE: Drama / History / Biography

Cameraman Yuri Mikhailyshyn

Production designer Nazik Kasparova

Costume designer Ekaterina Gmyrya

Producers: Karen Kazaryan, Tigran Manasyan

General Producer Ruben Dishdishyan

Executive producers: Arsen Melikyan, Zara Yangulbieva

Cast: Abartsum Kabanyan, Alexander Kuznetsov, Sergei Yushkevich, Veronika Kuznetsova, Inna Stepanova, Ivan Ryzhkov, Vadim Skvirsky