Outstanding composers of the 19th century. The most famous composers: everyone should know this

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 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 has early age exceptional abilities for music were revealed: 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 his full potential 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 beautiful girl named Constanze Weber, and even the disapproval of their parents 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 genius 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” have been on a par with others for several centuries brilliant works. 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 appeared 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. Its extensive and versatile 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.

Classical music is not nearly as popular now as it was in its “golden age” - from the 17th to the early 20th centuries, but it still impresses and serves as an inspiration to many. The famous musical composers who created these great works may have lived hundreds of years ago, but their masterpieces remain unsurpassed.

Famous German composers

Ludwig van Beethoven

Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the most important names in history classical music. He was an innovator of his era, expanding the scope of the symphony, sonata, concerto, quartet, and combining vocals and instruments in new ways, although he was not so interested in the vocal genre. The public did not immediately accept his innovative ideas, but fame did not take too long to arrive, so even during Beethoven’s lifetime his work was appreciated.

Beethoven's entire life was marked by a struggle for healthy hearing, but deafness still overtook him: some of the great composer's most important works were created during the last ten years of his life, when he was no longer able to hear. One of the most famous works Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" (No. 14), the play "Fur Elise", Symphony No. 9, Symphony No. 5.

Johann Sebastian Bach

Another world famous German composer is Johann Sebastian Bach, a brilliant author whose works in the 19th century aroused interest even among those who were not interested in serious, classical music. He wrote and organ music, and vocal-instrumental, and music for other instruments and instrumental ensembles, although opera genre he still managed to get around. Most often he was engaged in writing cantatas, fugues, preludes and oratorios, as well as chorale arrangements. It was Bach, together with George Frideric Handel - latest composers Baroque era.

Throughout his life he created more than a thousand musical works. Bach's most famous works: Toccata and Fugue in D minor BWV 565, Pastoral BWV 590, Brandenburg Concertos, Peasant and Coffee Cantatas, Mass of the St. Matthew Passion.

Richard Wagner

Wagner was not only one of the most influential composers in the whole world, but also one of the most controversial - due to his anti-Semitic worldview. He was a proponent of a new form of opera, which he called “musical drama” - in which all musical and dramatic elements merged together. To this end, he developed a compositional style in which the orchestra plays the same strong dramatic role, as well as singer-performers.

Wagner himself wrote his librettos, which he called “poems.” Most of Wagner's subjects were based on European myths and legends. He is best known for his eighteen-hour cycle of epic operas in four parts called The Ring of the Nibelung, the opera Tristan and Isolde, and the musical drama Parsifal.

Famous Russian composers

Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka

Glinka is usually spoken of as the founder of Russian national tradition in music, however, his Russian operas offered a synthesis of Western music with Russian melodies. Glinka’s first opera was “A Life for the Tsar,” which was well received when it was first staged in 1836, but the second opera, “Ruslan and Lyudmila,” with a libretto written by Pushkin, was not so popular. However, she showed herself new type dramaturgy - heroic-historical opera, or epic.

Glinka became the first Russian composer to achieve worldwide recognition. The most famous works Mikhail Ivanovich: opera “Ivan Susanin”, waltz-fantasy for symphony orchestra and overture-symphony on a circular Russian theme.

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky is one of the most popular and famous composers in the whole world. For many, he is also the most beloved Russian composer. Tchaikovsky's work, however, is much more Western than the works written by other composers of his contemporaries, as he used both Russian folk melodies and was guided by the heritage of German and Austrian composers. Tchaikovsky himself was not only a composer, but also a conductor, music teacher and critic.

No others famous composers Russia is perhaps not famous for creating ballet productions in the same way that Tchaikovsky is famous for it. The most famous ballets Tchaikovsky's works are: "The Nutcracker", "Swan Lake" and "Sleeping Beauty". He also wrote operas; the most famous - " Queen of Spades", "Eugene Onegin".

Sergei Vasilyevich Rahmaninov

Sergei Vasilyevich’s work absorbed the traditions of post-romanticism and took shape in a style unique in the musical culture of the 20th century, unlike any other in the world. He always gravitated towards big ones musical forms. Basically, his works are full of angst, drama, power and rebellion; they often depicted images of folk epics.

Rachmaninov was known not only as a composer, but also as a pianist, so a significant place in his work is occupied by piano works. He began learning piano notes at the age of four. Rachmaninov's defining genre was the piano concerto. Rachmaninov's most famous works are the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and four concertos for piano and orchestra.

Famous composers of the world

Giuseppe Francesco Verdi

It is difficult to imagine the 19th century without the music of Giuseppe Verdi, one of the classics of Italian musical culture. Most of all, Verdi sought to bring musical realism to opera productions; he always worked directly with singers and librettists, interfered in the work of conductors, and did not tolerate false performances. He said that he liked everything that was beautiful in art.

Like many composers, Verdi gained his greatest popularity through the creation of operas. The most famous among them are the operas “Othello”, “Aida”, “Rigoletto”.

Frederic Chopin

The most famous Polish composer Frederic Chopin always highlighted the beauty of his native land and believed in its greatness in the future. His name is the pride of the Polish people. Chopin stands out in the field of classical music in that he wrote works only for performance on the piano, rather than others famous composers with their variety of symphonies and operas; Now Chopin's works have become the basis for the work of today's pianists.

Chopin was engaged in writing piano pieces, nocturnes, mazurkas, etudes, waltzes, polonaises and other forms, and the most famous among them are the “Autumn Waltz”, Nocturne in C sharp minor, Spring Rhapsody, Fantasia-impromptu in C sharp minor.

Edvard Grieg

The famous Norwegian composer and musical figure Edvard Grieg specialized in chamber vocal and piano music. Grieg's work was significantly influenced by the legacy of German romanticism. Grieg's bright and recognizable style can be characterized by such a movement as musical impressionism.

When creating his works, Grieg was often inspired by folk tales, melodies, and legends. His work had a huge influence on the development of Norwegian musical culture and art in general. The composer’s most famous works are the overture “In Autumn”, a concert for piano and orchestra of 1868, music for the play “Peer Gynt”, and the suite “From the Times of Holberg”.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

And, of course, the most famous composers of all time cannot do without this name, which is known even to people far from classical music. An Austrian composer and virtuoso performer, Mozart created a number of operas, concertos, sonatas and symphonies that had a huge influence on classical music and, in fact, shaped it.

He grew up as a child prodigy: he learned to play the piano at the age of three, and at five he was already creating small pieces of music. He wrote his first symphony at the age of eight, and his first opera at the age of twelve. Mozart had a phenomenal ear for music and an amazing ability to play many musical instruments and improvisation.

During his life, Mozart created more than six hundred musical works, some of the most famous of which are the opera “The Marriage of Figaro”, symphony No. 41 “Jupiter”, 3rd movement of sonata No. 11 “ Turkish march", concert for flute and harp with orchestra and "Requiem" in D minor, K.626.

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1.Mikhail Ivanovich GLINKA (1804—1857)

Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka is the founder of Russian classical music and the first Russian classical composer to achieve world fame. His works, based on the centuries-old traditions of Russian folk music, were a new word in the musical art of our country.
Born in the Smolensk province, he received his education in St. Petersburg. The formation of the worldview and the main idea of Mikhail Glinka’s work was facilitated by direct communication with such personalities as A.S. Pushkin, V.A. Zhukovsky, A.S. Griboyedov, A.A. Delvig. The creative impetus for his work was added by a many-year trip to Europe in the early 1830s and meetings with the leading composers of the time - V. Bellini, G. Donizetti, F. Mendelssohn and later with G. Berlioz, J. Meyerbeer. Success came to M.I. Glinka after the production of the opera “Ivan Susanin” (“Life for the Tsar”) (1836), which was enthusiastically received by everyone; for the first time in world music, Russian choral art and European symphonic and operatic practice were organically combined, as well as a hero like Susanin appeared, whose image summarizes the best features of the national character. V.F. Odoevsky described the opera as “a new element in Art, and a new period begins in its history - the period of Russian music.”
The second opera is the epic “Ruslan and Lyudmila” (1842), work on which was carried out against the backdrop of Pushkin’s death and in the difficult living conditions of the composer, due to the deeply innovative nature of the work, it was received ambiguously by the audience and the authorities and brought difficult experiences to M.I. Glinka . After that, he traveled a lot, alternately living in Russia and abroad, without stopping composing. His legacy includes romances, symphonic and chamber works. In the 1990s, Mikhail Glinka's "Patriotic Song" was the official anthem of the Russian Federation.

Quote from M.I. Glinka: “To create beauty, you yourself must be pure in soul.”

Quote about M.I. Glinka: “The entire Russian symphonic school, like an entire oak tree in an acorn, is contained in the symphonic fantasy “Kamarinskaya”. P.I.Tchaikovsky

Interesting fact: Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka was not in good health, despite this he was very easy-going and knew geography very well, perhaps if he had not become a composer, he would have become a traveler. He knew six foreign languages, including Persian.

2. Alexander Porfirievich BORODIN (1833—1887)

Alexander Porfirievich Borodin, one of the leading Russian composers of the second half of the 19th century, in addition to his talent as a composer, was a chemist, doctor, teacher, critic and had literary talent.
Born in St. Petersburg, from childhood everyone around him noted his unusual activity, passion and abilities in various fields, primarily in music and chemistry. A.P. Borodin is a Russian composer-nugget, he had no professional music teachers, all his achievements in music were due to independent work on mastering the technique of composition. The formation of A.P. Borodin was influenced by the work of M.I. Glinka (as indeed all Russian composers of the 19th century), and the impetus for intensive study of composition in the early 1860s was given by two events - firstly, his acquaintance and marriage with the talented pianist E.S. Protopopova, and secondly, a meeting with M.A. Balakirev and joining the creative community of Russian composers, known as the “Mighty Handful”. In the late 1870s and 1880s, A.P. Borodin traveled and toured a lot in Europe and America, met with leading composers of his time, his fame grew, he became one of the most famous and popular Russian composers in Europe at the end of the 19th century. th century.
The central place in the work of A.P. Borodin is occupied by the opera “Prince Igor” (1869-1890), which is an example of a national heroic epic in music and which he himself did not have time to complete (it was completed by his friends A.A. Glazunov and N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov). In "Prince Igor", against the backdrop of majestic paintings historical events, reflected the main idea throughout the composer's work - courage, calm greatness, spiritual nobility of the best Russian people and the mighty strength of the entire Russian people, manifested in the defense of their homeland. Despite the fact that A.P. Borodin left a relatively small number of works, his work is very diverse and he is considered one of the fathers of Russian symphonic music, who influenced many generations of Russian and foreign composers.

Quote about A.P. Borodin: “Borodin’s talent is equally powerful and amazing in symphony, opera and romance. His main qualities are gigantic strength and breadth, colossal scope, swiftness and impetuosity, combined with amazing passion, tenderness and beauty." V.V. Stasov

Interesting fact: named after Borodin chemical reaction silver salts of carboxylic acids with halogens, resulting in halogenated hydrocarbons, which he first investigated in 1861.

3. Modest Petrovich MUSORGSKY (1839—1881)

Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky is one of the most brilliant Russian composers of the 19th century, a member of the " Mighty bunch". Mussorgsky's innovative creativity was far ahead of its time.
Born in the Pskov province. Like many talented people, from childhood showed ability in music, studied in St. Petersburg, was, according to family tradition, a military man. The decisive event that determined that Mussorgsky was not born for military service, and for music, it was his meeting with M.A. Balakirev and joining the “Mighty Handful”. Mussorgsky is great because in his grandiose works - the operas "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina" - he captured dramatic milestones in music Russian history with a radical novelty that Russian music had not known before him, showing in them a combination of mass folk scenes and a diverse wealth of types, the unique character of the Russian people. These operas, in numerous editions, both by the author and by other composers, are among the most popular Russian operas in the world. One more outstanding work Mussorgsky's cycle of piano pieces "Pictures at an Exhibition" features colorful and inventive miniatures permeated with a Russian theme-refrain and Orthodox faith.

Mussorgsky's life had everything - both greatness and tragedy, but he was always distinguished by genuine spiritual purity and selflessness. His last years were difficult - unsettled life, lack of recognition of creativity, loneliness, addiction to alcohol, all this determined him early death at 42, he left relatively few works, some of which were completed by other composers. The specific melody and innovative harmony of Mussorgsky anticipated some features of the musical development of the 20th century and played important role in the formation of the styles of many world composers.

Quote from M.P. Mussorgsky: “The sounds of human speech, as outward manifestations of thought and feeling, must, without exaggeration and violence, become music that is truthful, accurate, but artistic, highly artistic.”

Quote about M.P. Mussorgsky: “The original Russian sounds in everything that Mussorgsky created” N.K.Roerich

Interesting fact: at the end of his life, Mussorgsky, under pressure from his “friends” Stasov and Rimsky-Korsakov, renounced the copyright to his works and donated them to Tertius Filippov

4. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840—1893)

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, perhaps the greatest Russian composer of the 19th century, raised Russian musical art to unprecedented heights. He is one of the most important composers of world classical music.
A native of the Vyatka province, although his paternal roots are in Ukraine, Tchaikovsky showed musical abilities from childhood, but his first education and work was in the field of jurisprudence. Tchaikovsky was one of the first Russian “professional” composers; he studied music theory and composition at the new St. Petersburg Conservatory. Tchaikovsky was considered a "Western" composer, in contrast to the folk figures of the "Mighty Handful", with whom he had good creative and friendly relations, however, his work is no less permeated with the Russian spirit; he managed to uniquely combine the Western symphonic heritage of Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann with Russian traditions inherited from Mikhail Glinka.
The composer led an active life - he was a teacher, conductor, critic, public figure, worked in two capitals, toured Europe and America. Tchaikovsky was a rather emotionally unstable person; enthusiasm, despondency, apathy, hot temper, violent anger - all these moods changed in him quite often; being a very sociable person, he always strived for loneliness.
Selecting something best from Tchaikovsky’s work is a difficult task; he has several works of equal magnitude in almost all of them. musical genres- opera, ballet, symphony, chamber music. The content of Tchaikovsky's music is universal: with inimitable melodicism it embraces images of life and death, love, nature, childhood, it reveals works of Russian and world literature in a new way, and reflects the deep processes of spiritual life.

Composer quote:
“I am an artist who can and should bring honor to my Motherland. I feel great artistic strength in myself, I have not yet done even a tenth of what I can do. And I want to do this with all the strength of my soul.”
“Life has beauty only when it consists of alternation of joys and sorrows, of the struggle between good and evil, of light and shadow, in a word - of diversity in unity.”
"Great talent requires great hard work."

Quote about the composer: “I am ready to stand as a guard of honor day and night at the porch of the house where Pyotr Ilyich lives - that is how much I respect him.” A.P.Chekhov

Interesting fact: Cambridge University awarded Tchaikovsky the title of Doctor of Music in absentia and without defending a dissertation, as did the Paris Academy Fine Arts elected him a corresponding member.

5. Nikolai Andreevich RIMSKY-KORSAKOV (1844—1908)

Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov is a talented Russian composer, one of the most important figures in the creation of an invaluable Russian musical heritage. His unique world and worship of the eternal all-encompassing beauty of the universe, admiration for the miracle of existence, unity with nature have no analogues in the history of music.
Was born in Novgorod province, according to family tradition, became a naval officer, and visited many countries in Europe and the two Americas on a warship. He received his musical education first from his mother, then taking private lessons from pianist F. Canille. And again, thanks to M.A. Balakirev, the organizer of the “Mighty Handful,” who introduced Rimsky-Korsakov into the musical community and influenced his work, the world has not lost a talented composer.
The central place in Rimsky-Korsakov’s legacy is made up of operas - 15 works demonstrating the diversity of genre, stylistic, dramatic, compositional solutions composer, nevertheless having a special style - with all the richness of the orchestral component, the main ones are melodic vocal lines. Two main directions distinguish the composer’s work: the first is Russian history, the second is the world of fairy tales and epics, for which he received the nickname “storyteller.”
In addition to direct independent creative activity N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov is known as a publicist, compiler of collections of folk songs, in which he showed great interest, and also as a completer of the works of his friends - Dargomyzhsky, Mussorgsky and Borodin. Rimsky-Korsakov was the creator of a school of composition; as a teacher and director of the St. Petersburg Conservatory, he trained about two hundred composers, conductors, and musicologists, among them Prokofiev and Stravinsky.

Quote about the composer: “Rimsky-Korsakov was a very Russian man and a very Russian composer. I believe that this primordially Russian essence of his, his deep folk-Russian basis should be especially appreciated today.” Mstislav Rostropovich

The work of Russian composers of the late 19th - first half of the 20th century is a holistic continuation of the traditions of the Russian school. At the same time, the concept of an approach to the “national” affiliation of this or that music was named; there is practically no direct quotation of folk melodies, but the intonation Russian basis, the Russian soul, remains.

6. Alexander Nikolaevich SKRYABIN (1872 - 1915)

Alexander Nikolaevich Scriabin - Russian composer and pianist, one of brightest personalities Russian and world musical culture. Scriabin's original and deeply poetic creativity stood out as innovative even against the backdrop of the birth of many new trends in art associated with changes in public life at the turn of the 20th century.
Born in Moscow, his mother died early, his father could not pay attention to his son, as he served as ambassador to Persia. Scriabin was raised by his aunt and grandfather, and showed musical talent from childhood. At first he studied in the cadet corps, took private piano lessons, and after graduating from the corps he entered the Moscow Conservatory, his classmate was S.V. Rachmaninov. After graduating from the conservatory, Scriabin devoted himself entirely to music - as a concert pianist-composer he toured in Europe and Russia, spending most of his time abroad.
The peak of Scriabin's compositional creativity was the years 1903-1908, when the Third Symphony (" Divine Poem"), symphonic "Poem of Ecstasy", "Tragic" and "Satanic" piano poems, 4th and 5th sonatas and other works. "Poem of Ecstasy", consisting of several theme-images, concentrated Sryabin's creative ideas and is his brilliant masterpiece. It harmoniously combined the composer's love for the power of a large orchestra and the lyrical, airy sound of solo instruments.The colossal vital energy, fiery passion, and strong-willed power embodied in the “Poem of Ecstasy” makes an irresistible impression on the listener and retains the power of its impact to this day.
Another masterpiece of Scriabin is “Prometheus” (“Poem of Fire”), in which the author completely updated his harmonic language, departing from the traditional tonal system, and for the first time in history this work was supposed to be accompanied by color music, but the premiere, for technical reasons, was held without lighting effects.
The last unfinished “Mystery” was the plan of Scriabin, a dreamer, romantic, philosopher, to appeal to all of humanity and inspire it to create a new fantastic world order, the union of the Universal Spirit with Matter.

Quote from A.N. Scriabin: “I’m going to tell them (people) - so that they... do not expect anything from life except what they can create for themselves... I’m going to tell them that there is nothing to grieve about, that there is no loss "So that they are not afraid of despair, which alone can give rise to real triumph. Strong and powerful is the one who has experienced despair and defeated it."

Quote about A.N. Scriabin: “Scriabin’s work was his time, expressed in sounds. But when the temporary, transient finds its expression in the work of a great artist, it acquires permanent meaning and becomes enduring.” G. V. Plekhanov

7. Sergei Vasilyevich Rahmaninov (1873 - 1943)

Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninov is the world's largest composer of the early 20th century, a talented pianist and conductor. Creative image Rachmaninov the composer is often defined by the epithet “the most Russian composer,” emphasizing in this brief formulation his merits in uniting the musical traditions of the Moscow and St. Petersburg schools of composition and in creating his own unique style, which stands out in the world musical culture.
Born in the Novgorod province, at the age of four he began studying music under the guidance of his mother. He studied at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, after 3 years of study he transferred to the Moscow Conservatory and graduated with a large gold medal. He quickly became known as a conductor and pianist, and composed music. The disastrous premiere of the innovative First Symphony (1897) in St. Petersburg caused a creative composer's crisis, from which Rachmaninov emerged in the early 1900s with a mature style that united Russian church song, outgoing European romanticism, modern impressionism and neoclassicism, all full of complex symbolism. In that creative period his best works are born, including the 2nd and 3rd piano concertos, the Second Symphony and his most favorite piece- poem "Bells" for choir, soloists and orchestra.
In 1917, Rachmaninov and his family were forced to leave our country and settle in the USA. For almost ten years after leaving, he wrote nothing, but toured a lot in America and Europe and was recognized as one of greatest pianists era and the greatest conductor. For all his hectic activity, Rachmaninov remained vulnerable and an insecure person those seeking solitude and even loneliness, avoiding the annoying attention of the public. He sincerely loved and missed his homeland, wondering if he had made a mistake by leaving it. He was constantly interested in all the events taking place in Russia, read books, newspapers and magazines, and helped financially. His last works - Symphony No. 3 (1937) and "Symphonic Dances" (1940) were the result creative path, incorporating all the best of his unique style and a mournful feeling of irreparable loss and longing for his homeland.

Quote from S.V. Rachmaninov:
“I feel like a ghost wandering alone in a world that is alien to me.”
"The most high quality All art is its sincerity."
"Great composers have always and first of all paid attention to melody as leading start in music. Melody is music, the main basis of all music... Melodic ingenuity, in in the highest sense this word is the main life goal composer.... For this reason, the great composers of the past showed so much interest in the folk melodies of their countries."

Quote about S.V. Rachmaninov:
“Rachmaninov was created from steel and gold: Steel is in his hands, gold is in his heart. I can’t think about him without tears. I not only admired the great artist, But I loved the person in him.” I. Hoffman
"Rachmaninov's music is the Ocean. Its waves - musical - begin so far beyond the horizon, and lift you so high and lower you so slowly... that you feel this Power and Breath." A. Konchalovsky

Interesting fact: during the Great Patriotic War Rachmaninov gave several charity concerts, the proceeds from which he sent to the Red Army Fund to fight the Nazi occupiers.

8. Igor Fedorovich STRAVINSKY (1882-1971)

Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky is one of the most influential world composers of the 20th century, a leader of neoclassicism. Stravinsky became a “mirror” of the musical era; his work reflects a multiplicity of styles, constantly intersecting and difficult to classify. He freely combines genres, forms, styles, choosing them from centuries musical history and subject to your own rules.
Born near St. Petersburg, he studied at the Faculty of Law of St. Petersburg University, independently studied musical disciplines, took private lessons from N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, this was Stravinsky’s only composer school, thanks to which he mastered compositional technique to perfection. He began composing professionally relatively late, but his rise was rapid - a series of three ballets: “The Firebird” (1910), “Petrushka” (1911) and “The Rite of Spring” (1913) immediately brought him to the ranks of composers of the first magnitude.
In 1914 he left Russia, as it turned out, almost forever (in 1962 there were tours in the USSR). Stravinsky is a cosmopolitan, having been forced to change several countries - Russia, Switzerland, France, and eventually stayed to live in the USA. His work is divided into three periods - “Russian”, “neoclassical”, American “mass production”, the periods are divided not by the time of his life in different countries, but according to the author's "handwriting".
Stravinsky was a very highly educated, sociable person, with a wonderful sense of humor. His circle of acquaintances and correspondents included musicians, poets, artists, scientists, businessmen, and statesmen.
Stravinsky's last highest achievement - "Requiem" (Funeral Hymns) (1966) absorbed and combined the previous artistic experience composer, becoming the true apotheosis of the master’s creativity.
One unique feature stands out in Stavinsky’s work - “uniqueness”, it was not for nothing that he was called “the composer of a thousand and one styles”, constant change of genre, style, plot direction - each of his works is unique, but he constantly returned to designs in which one can see Russian origin, Russian roots are heard.

Quote from I.F. Stravinsky: “I have been speaking Russian all my life, I have a Russian syllable. Maybe this is not immediately visible in my music, but it is inherent in it, it is in its hidden nature.”

Quote about I.F. Stravinsky: “Stravinsky is a truly Russian composer... The Russian spirit is indestructible in the heart of this truly great, multifaceted talent, born of the Russian land and closely connected with it...” D. Shostakovich

Interesting fact (fable):
Once in New York, Stravinsky took a taxi and was surprised to read his last name on the sign.
-Are you a relative of the composer? - he asked the driver.
- Is there a composer with such a surname? - the driver was surprised. - Hear it for the first time. However, Stravinsky is the name of the taxi owner. I have nothing to do with music - my last name is Rossini...

9. Sergei Sergeevich PROKOFIEV (1891—1953)

Sergei Sergeevich Prokofiev is one of the largest Russian composers of the 20th century, pianist, and conductor.
Born in the Donetsk region, he became involved in music from childhood. Prokofiev can be considered one of the few (if not the only) Russian musical “prodigies”, from the age of 5 he was engaged in composing, at the age of 9 he wrote two operas (of course, these works are still immature, but they show a desire to create), at the age of 13 he passed the exams at St. Petersburg Conservatory, among his teachers was N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov. Start professional career caused a storm of criticism and misunderstanding of his individual, fundamentally anti-romantic and extremely modernist style, the paradox is that, while destroying academic canons, the structure of his compositions remained faithful to classical principles and subsequently became a restraining force of modernist all-denying skepticism. From the very beginning of his career, Prokofiev performed and toured a lot. In 1918, he went on an international tour, including visiting the USSR, and finally returned to his homeland in 1936.
The country has changed and Prokofiev’s “free” creativity was forced to give in to the realities of new demands. Prokofiev's talent blossomed with new strength- he writes operas, ballets, music for films - sharp, strong-willed, extremely precise music with new images and ideas, laid the foundation for Soviet classical music and opera. In 1948, three tragic events occurred almost simultaneously: his first Spanish wife was arrested on suspicion of espionage and exiled to camps; a Resolution of the Poliburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks was issued, in which Prokofiev, Shostakovich and others were attacked and accused of “formalism” and the harm of their music; There was a sharp deterioration in the composer's health; he retired to his dacha and practically never left it, but continued to compose.
Some of the most striking works of the Soviet period were the operas “War and Peace” and “The Tale of a Real Man”; the ballets “Romeo and Juliet” and “Cinderella”, which have become a new standard of world ballet music; oratorio "Guardian of Peace"; music for the films "Alexander Nevsky" and "Ivan the Terrible"; symphonies No. 5,6,7; piano works.
Prokofiev’s work amazes with its versatility and breadth of themes; the originality of his musical thinking, freshness and originality constituted an entire era in the world musical culture of the 20th century and influenced powerful impact on many Soviet and foreign composers.

Quote from S.S. Prokofiev:
“Can an artist stand aside from life?.. I adhere to the conviction that a composer, like a poet, sculptor, painter, is called upon to serve man and the people... He, first of all, is obliged to be a citizen in his art, to sing human life and lead a person to a bright future..."
"I am a manifestation of life, which gives me the strength to resist everything unspiritual"

Quote about S.S. Prokofiev: "... all facets of his music are beautiful. But there is one completely unusual thing here. Apparently, we all have some failures, doubts, just Bad mood. And in such moments, even if I don’t play or listen to Prokofiev, but just think about him, I receive an incredible charge of energy, I feel a great desire to live and act.” E. Kissin

Interesting fact: Prokofiev loved chess very much, and enriched the game with his ideas and achievements, including the “nine” chess he invented - a 24x24 board with nine sets of pieces placed on it.

10. Dmitry Dmitrievich SHOSTAKOVICH (1906 - 1975)

Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich is one of the most important and performed composers in the world, his influence on modern classical music is immeasurable. His creations are true expressions of the inner human drama and chronicle of the difficult events of the 20th century, where the deeply personal is intertwined with the tragedy of man and humanity, with the fate of his native country.
Born in St. Petersburg, the first music lessons received from his mother, he graduated from the St. Petersburg Conservatory, upon entering which its rector Alexander Glazunov compared him to Mozart - so he amazed everyone with his excellent musical memory, keen ear and gift for composition. Already in the early 20s, by the end of the conservatory, Shostakovich had a baggage of his own works and became one of the best composers in the country. World fame came to Shostakovich after winning the 1st International competition Chopin in 1927.
Until a certain period, namely before the production of the opera "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk", Shostakovich worked as a free artist - an "avant-garde", experimenting with styles and genres. The severe demolition of this opera, organized in 1936, and the repressions of 1937 marked the beginning of Shostakovich’s subsequent constant internal struggle to express his views through his own means in the conditions of state imposition of trends in art. In his life, politics and creativity are very closely intertwined, he was praised by the authorities and persecuted by them, held high positions and was removed from them, he and his relatives were awarded and were on the verge of arrest.
A gentle, intelligent, delicate person, he found his form of expressing creative principles in symphonies, where he could speak the truth about time as openly as possible. Of all Shostakovich’s extensive creativity in all genres, it is the symphonies (15 works) that occupy the central place; the most dramatically intense are the 5, 7, 8, 10, 15 symphonies, which became the pinnacle of Soviet symphonic music. A completely different Shostakovich reveals himself in chamber music.
Despite the fact that Shostakovich himself was a “home” composer and practically never traveled abroad, his music, humanistic in essence and truly artistic in form, quickly and widely spread throughout the world and was performed by the best conductors. The magnitude of Shostakovich's talent is so immense that full comprehension of this unique phenomenon of world art is still ahead.

Quote from D.D. Shostakovich: “True music is capable of expressing only humane feelings, only advanced humane ideas.”

The 20th century is considered to be a time of great inventions that made people's lives much better and in some respects easier. However, there is an opinion that nothing new was created in the world of music at that time, but only used the works of previous generations. This list is intended to refute such an unfair conclusion and to honor the many musical works created after 1900, as well as their authors.

Edgar Varèse - Ionization (1933)

Varese - French composer electronic music, who used in his work new sounds created on the basis of the popularization of electricity. He explored timbres, rhythms and dynamics, often using rather rough percussive sounds. No composition can so fully form an idea of Varèse’s work as “Ionization,” created for 13 percussion. The instruments include the usual orchestral bass drums, snare drums, and in this piece you can also hear the roar of a lion and the howl of a siren.

Karlheinz Stockhausen - Zyklus (1959)

Stockhausen, like Varèse, sometimes created extreme works. For example, Zyklus is a piece written for drums. Translated it means “Circle”. This composition received this name not by chance. It can be read from anywhere in any direction, and even upside down.

George Gershwin – Rhapsody in Blue (1924)

George Gershwin is a truly American composer. He often uses blues and jazz scales in his compositions, rather than the diatonic scales typically used by most musicians in the classical Western tradition. Gershwin's work "Rhapsody" in the blues style, his greatest work, the one thanks to which you will definitely remember him forever. Often it serves as a reminder of the 1920s, the Jazz Age, a time of wealth and luxurious living. This is a longing for a wonderful time gone by.

Philip Glass - Einstein on the Beach (1976)

Philip Glass - contemporary composer, he continues to create in abundance today. The composer's style is considered to be minimalism, gradually developing ostinato in his music.
The most famous opera Glass "Einstein on the Beach" lasted 5 hours without intermission. It was so long that spectators came and went as they pleased. It is interesting because it has absolutely no plot, but only shows various scenes describing Einstein’s theories and, in general, his life.

Krzysztof Penderecki - Polish Requiem (1984)

Penderecki is a composer who was interested in expanding methods and unique styles playing conventional instruments. He is perhaps better known for his other work, “Lament for the Victims of Hiroshima,” but this list includes his largest, “Polish Requiem,” which combines one of the oldest forms of musical work (the author of the very first Requiem was Ockeghem, who lived during the Renaissance ) and unconventional performance style. Here Penderecki uses screams, short sharp cries of the choir and voice, and the addition of Polish text at the end completes the image of a truly unique musical art.

Alban Berg - Wozzeck (1922)

Berg is the composer who brought serialism to popular culture. His opera Wozzeck, based on a surprisingly unheroic plot, became the first opera in the characteristically bold style of the 20th century, and thereby marked the beginning of the development of the avant-garde in opera stage.

Aaron Copland - Fanfare for the Common Man (1942)

Copland composed music in a style different from that of his American colleague George Gershwin. While many of Gershwin's works are suitable for cities and clubs, Copland uses rural motifs, including truly American themes such as the cowboy theme.
The most famous work Copland's "Fanfare for common man" When asked who exactly it was dedicated to, Aaron replied that it was to an ordinary person, since it was ordinary people significantly influenced the victory of the United States in World War II.

John Cage - 4’33″ (1952)

Cage was a revolutionary - he pioneered the use of non-traditional instruments in music, such as keys and paper. His most striking innovation was modifying the piano by inserting washers and nails into the instrument, resulting in dry percussive sounds.
4’33″ is essentially 4 minutes and 33 seconds of music. However, the music you hear is not played by the artist. You hear random sounds in the concert hall, the noise of air conditioning or the hum of cars outside. What was considered silence is not silence - this is what the Zen school teaches, which became Cage's source of inspiration.

Witold Lutoslawski - Concerto for orchestra (1954)

Lutoslawski is one of Poland's greatest composers, specializing in aleatoric music. He became the first musician to receive Poland's highest state award - the Order of the White Eagle.
"Concerto for Orchestra" is the result of the composer's inspiration from the work "Concerto for Orchestra" by Bel Bartok. It includes an imitation of the baroque genre of Concerto Grosso, intertwined with Polish melodies. The most striking thing is that this work is atonal, it does not correspond to a major or minor key.

Igor Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring (1913)

Stravinsky is one of the greatest composers who ever lived. He seems to have taken a little bit from a large number of composers. He composed in the styles of serialism, neoclassicism and neo-baroque.
Stravinsky's most famous composition is “The Rite of Spring,” which was a scandalous success. At the premiere, Camille Saint-Saëns ran out of the hall at the very beginning, cursing the excessively high register of the bassoon; in his opinion, the instrument was used incorrectly. The audience booed the performance, indignant at the primitive rhythms and vulgar costumes. The crowd literally attacked the performers. True, the ballet soon gained popularity and won the love of the audience, becoming one of the most influential works of the great composer.

Russia is rich in talent. In almost all types of art you can find the names of our compatriots, who are known throughout. The first Russian composers of classical music began to create in the 19th century, and Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka became the founder among them. This is where we will begin our review.

Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich (20.05 (01.06) 1804 – 03 (15.02.1857)

Mikhail Glinka was a descendant of Polish nobles. His great-grandfather Victorin Vladislav Glinka, after the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth lost the city of Smolensk (in 1654), converted to Orthodoxy and came under Russian citizenship, while retaining his lands and all noble privileges. The composer's father was retired captain Ivan Nikolaevich Glinka, and his mother was Evgenia Andreevna Glinka-Zemelka. His grandmother, Fekla Andreevna (father’s mother), who took upon herself to raise the boy until he was 6 years old, had a great influence on the future composer. When Mikhail was 10 years old, teacher V.F. was invited to him from the capital. Klammer, who began to teach him to play the violin and piano. At the age of 13, Glinka began studying at the capital's Noble boarding school, where he continued to take private music lessons from teachers such as Karl Zeiner and John Field.

After finishing his studies at the boarding school, Glinka continued to study music. At the same time he composed his first works. The most famous romances of this period are “Don’t tempt me unnecessarily”, “Don’t sing, beauty, in front of me”, etc. The trip to the Caucasus in 1823 left its mark on the composer’s work - “Persian Chorus”, written for the opera “Ruslan” and Lyudmila”, was created on the basis of one of the Azerbaijani folk songs. A further trip to Italy (in particular, the center of musical culture Milan) and acquaintance with such famous composers as V. Bellini and G. Donizetti led to the creation of musical works in the Italian style. First for real big success came to Mikhail Glinka in 1836, when on the stage of the capital Bolshoi Theater The opera “A Life for the Tsar” was staged, describing the feat of Ivan Susanin. She was appreciated not only by the public, but also by the emperor himself. Follow-up creative life the composer's work was very intense. He created symphonies, overtures, romances, and sonatas. M.I. died Glinka in 1857 in Berlin. The contribution of this composer to the development of Russian classical music is difficult to overestimate. According to V. Stasov, Glinka created a new Russian language in music, like Pushkin in poetry.

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich (04/25 (05/07) 1840 – 10/25 (11/06) 1893)

Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s love for music did not appear by chance. His father in early years I was fond of playing the flute, and my mother knew how to play the harp, piano, and, moreover, sang quite well. When Peter was 5 years old, he was taught to play the piano, and at the age of 12 the boy entered the School of Law. He was a diligent student and graduated in 1859 with excellent grades in most subjects. During his years of study, Peter additionally studied piano - in 1855-1858. his teacher was Rudolf Künditer. The year he graduated from college, Tchaikovsky began serving in the Department of Justice, but did not work there for very long.

In 1861, he began studying at the Music Class of the Russian Musical Society, and already in 1863 he left service in the Department in order to devote himself entirely to his studies and musical career. His father supported him in this decision, for which Tchaikovsky was very grateful to him. After completing his studies, Tchaikovsky traveled a lot and worked on his works. He composed music in different genres - operas, ballets, symphonies, piano miniatures, etc. The works of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, which made him famous throughout the world:

Swan Lake ballet";
ballet "Sleeping Beauty";
opera "Eugene Onegin";
opera "The Nutcracker";
opera "The Queen of Spades".

Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreevich (06 (18).03.1844 – 08 (21).06.1908)

Rimsky-Korsakov began to show musical abilities very early. At the age of six he began to learn to play the piano, and at the age of 11 he began composing his first works. But despite his penchant for music, at the age of ten Nikolai was sent to study in the Naval Corps, which he graduated with honors in 1862. During his studies, the boy continued to study music, and by May 1862 the first part of his First Symphony was almost completed. Further service, which took place on the clipper "Almaz" (1862-1865), did not allow Rimsky-Korsakov to seriously study music. But this three-year voyage with visits to a number of countries filled him with impressions, which were later embodied in some of his works. Having left naval service, Nikolai establishes interrupted contact with the circle of the famous composer M.A. Balakirev, meets P.I. Tchaikovsky and A.P. Borodin.

In subsequent years, while continuing to work on the First Symphony, he wrote such works as “Overture on Russian Themes”, “Serbian Fantasy”, Second Symphony and many romances. Rimsky-Korsakov's talent was so obvious that, despite the lack of special education, he was invited to the St. Petersburg Conservatory as a professor, and in 1874 Nikolai Andreevich became the head of the Free music school. In addition to teaching and writing music, he performed as a conductor symphony concerts and opera performances. Rimsky-Korsakov created whole line works dedicated to fairy tales. These are the operas “The Snow Maiden”, “The Night Before Christmas”, “Sadko”. His last opera, The Golden Cockerel, was banned from showing and was staged only a year after the composer’s death.

Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilievich (20.03 (01.04) 1873 – 28.03.1943)

Rachmaninov showed an interest in music from early childhood. Already at the age of 4, he began learning to play the piano (his first teacher was the composer’s mother). At the age of 9, the boy entered the capital's conservatory (junior department), but three years later his parents decided to transfer him to the Moscow boarding school. At the same time, Rachmaninov entered the Moscow Conservatory, immediately into the 3rd year of the junior department. Here the training turned out to be very effective and fruitful. During these years, Rachmaninov gained fame not only as a pianist, but also as a composer. Graduate work Rachmaninov (opera “Aleko”) earned high praise from P.I. Tchaikovsky. In subsequent years, the composer worked as a teacher, conductor and simultaneously wrote music. Not everything was smooth in the composer's life. In 1897 he had his first serious failure, after the premiere of the First Symphony. This work was not understood by the public and received the lowest ratings from music critics.

In the first decade of the 20th century, Rachmaninov worked on the Second and Third Piano Concertos, traveled extensively throughout Europe, toured America and Canada, performing before local audiences as a pianist and conductor. Unfortunately, due to revolutionary movement, which actively unfolded in Russia, Rachmaninov had to leave his homeland. He made money by performing at concerts. Almost until 1926 he did not write any serious works. Protracted creative crisis, apparently, was associated with a strong longing for his country, which he had to leave. And only years later the Fourth Concerto and Symphonic Dances appeared in the collection of works.

Shostakovich Dmitry Dmitrievich (12 (25).11.1906 – 09.08.1975)

This Soviet-era composer was familiar with music from childhood. His mother became his first piano teacher. The boy had serious intentions to devote himself to a musical career after watching the opera “The Tale of Tsar Saltan” by the famous composer N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov. In 1919, Shostakovich began studying at the Petrograd Conservatory, where he graduated in 1923 as a pianist, and in 1925 as a composer.

Shostakovich's creative path cannot be called smooth. From time to time he faced misunderstanding and sometimes even persecution from the authorities. But, despite this, he was awarded many titles and awards, which other Russian composers of classical music cannot boast of. This is the Hero Socialist Labor, People's Artist of the RSFSR, Order of Lenin, October Revolution, Red Banner of Labor and many others.

We talked about the most outstanding Russian classical composers music of the XIX and XX centuries, which left behind the greatest cultural heritage.