Rodion Shchedrin

Rodion Konstantinovich Shchedrin ( _ru. Родион Константинович Щедрин, Scientific transliteration: "Rodion Konstantinovič Ščedrin"; born December 16, 1932) is a Russian composer. He was one оf the leading Soviet composers, and was the chairman of the Union of Russian Composers from 1973 until 1990 when he was dismissed. An important reason behind his dismissal was that he had composed an oratorio to commemorate Lenin.

Life and Works

He was born in Moscow into a musical family—his father was a composer and teacher of music theory. He studied at the Moscow Choral School and Moscow Conservatory (graduating in 1955) under Yuri Shaporin and Nikolai Myaskovsky. Since 1958, he has been married to the great ballerina Maya Plisetskaya, who is 7 years his senior.

Shchedrin's early music is tonal, colourfully orchestrated and often includes snatches of folk music, while some later pieces use aleatoric and serial techniques. In the west the music of Shchedrin has won popularity mainly through the work of Mstislav Rostropovich who has made several successful recordings.

Among his works are the ballets "The Little Hump-backed Horse" (1955), "Carmen Suite" (1967), based on the opera "Carmen" by Georges Bizet (the project had been turned down by both Shostakovich and Khachaturian), "Anna Karenina" (1971, on the novel by Leo Tolstoy), and "Lady with a Lapdog" (1985); the operas "Not Only Love" (1961), and "Dead Souls" (1976, after Nikolai Gogol's novel); piano concertos, symphonies, chamber and piano music and other works. He composed 24 Preludes and Fugues after he heard those of Shostakovich. Also remarkable is his "Polyphonic Notebook".

He has written three concertos for orchestra: the first, variously translated as "Naughty Limericks" or "Mischevious Folk Ditties" (neither of which completely get the gist of the Russian which refers to a chastushka (часту́шка), an irreverent, satirical kind of folk song) is by far the best known, and was the work which first established him on the international stage. [http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/?fuseaction=composition&composition_id=2480]

As well as a distinguished compositional career (for which he was made a member of the Berlin Academy of Arts in 1989 and received the Russian State Prize from President Boris Yeltsin in 1992), Shchedrin is himself a virtuoso pianist and organist, taking the piano part in person for the premieres of the first three of his six piano concertos. Following the collapse of the Soviet regime, Shchedrin has taken advantage of the new opportunities for international travel and musical collaboration, and now largely divides his time between Munich and Moscow.

In June 11-14, 2008 Shchedrin days took place in Armenia with the participation of Shchedrin and Maya Plisetskaya as honorary guest.

Works

Operas

* Not love only (Не только любовь)
* Boyarinya Morozova (Боярыня Морозова)
* Charming Stranger (Очарованный странник)
* Lolita (Лолита)
* Dead souls (Мервые души)
* Lenin oratory (Оратория Ленина)

Ballets

* Humpbacked Horse, 1955
* Carmen, 1967
* Anna Karenina, 1968
* Seagull, 1979
* Lady with a Lapdog, 1985

Orchestral works

* Symphony No. 1, 1958
* Not Love Alone (symphonic suite from the opera), 1964
* Symphony No. 2, "Twenty-five Preludes for Orchestra," 1965
* Solemn Overture, 1982
* Seagull Suite, 1984
* Stihira, "Hymn for the Millenary of the Christianisation of Russia," 1987

Concertos and concertante works

* Piano Concerto No. 1, 1954
* Concerto for Orchestra No. 1, "Naughty Limericks," 1963
* Piano Concerto No. 2, 1966
* Concerto for Orchestra No. 2, "The Chimes," 1968
* Piano Concerto No. 3, 1973
* Piano Concerto No. 4
* Concerto for Orchestra No. 3, "Old Russian Circus Music," 1988
* Piano Concerto No. 5, 1999
* Cello Concerto, "sotto voce concerto," 1994
* "Concerto Dolce" for viola, string orchestra and harp, 1997
* Concerto cantabile for violin and orchestra, 1998
* Piano Concerto No. 6, 2003

Liturgical works

* The Sealed Angel (choral music after Nikolai Leskov), 1988

Chamber ensemble

*Muzïkal'noye prinosheniye (A Musical Offering), 3 flutes, 3 bassoons, 3 trombones, and organ, 1983

olo piano

* Piano Pieces (1952-1961)
** Poem;
** Four Pieces from the ballet "The Humpbacked Horse";
** Humoresque;
** Imitating Albeniz;
** Troika;
** Two Polyphonic Pieces (Two Part Invention and Basso Ostinato)
* Piano Sonata, 1962
* Twenty-Four Preludes and Fugues 1964-1970
* Polyphonic Notebook, twenty-five preludes, 1972
* Piano Sonata No. 2, 1997
* Diary, seven pieces, 2002
* Sonatine Concertante, 2005
* A la Pizzicato, 2005

olo Violin

* Echo Sonata, Op.69 1984

External links

* [http://home.wanadoo.nl/ovar/shched.htm Rodion Shchedrin]
* [http://home.wanadoo.nl/ovar/sovrev/shchfan.htm 'David Fanning on Rodion Shchedrin and his Second Symphony and Rodion Shchedrin on David Fanning's publication']
* [http://www.kcstudio.com/shchedrin3.html Rodion Shchedrin interview] by Bruce Duffie

References