Dmitri Shostakovich was a Russian composer, who was known as the best composer in the Soviet Era and stands alone in artistic achievement of the Bolshevik Revolution. Shostakovich is renowned for his long body of works, including operas, 15 symphonies, and several chamber works and concerti. It is said that he was the most brilliantly inventive of all Soviet composers and is also the most debated. Dmitri was an extremely modest person and did not comment on his own music, being quite nervous due to past terrors. His works highlighted the challenging issues that were beyond music; telling of the role of the artist and the dilemma of humanity in the state of war and being oppressed during the most unfair century. Later, Shostakovich was shunned, …show more content…
He was later attacked by the Soviet press, and even stopped his already rehearsed Fourth Symphony from fear. Later, his Fifth Symphony was subtitled “A Soviet Artist’s Reply to Just Criticism” and it was more ingenious than most critics comprehended. He made music that would give him hollow triumphs, but were controlled so that Stalin would stay at bay with his anger. The restrictions that were placed helped make Shostakovich disillusioned, which would prove to show in some of his pieces. His future looked bright because he was hailed as the new hero of Russian music by how he managed to keep his own voice during this troubling time in …show more content…
While being buried, Dmitri was given full state of honors, being referred to as a loyal communist and ‘hero of the people’. The official eulogistic notice, without a hint of irony, praised him for “finding his inspiration in the reality of Soviet life, reasserting and developing in his creative imagination the arts of socialist realism, and in so doing, contributing to the universal progressive musical culture.” Unlike other Soviet composers, Shostakovich is still an international phenomenon whose music is played constantly. His music still reigns on, revealing his sufferings and the pain of the people around him. His commitment to inspiring all of his listeners holds true, even with all of the hardships throughout his
Leo Tolstoy as one of Russia’s great writers, wrote marvelous pieces looking at societal questions and playing with the minds of his readers. The Death of Ivan Ilych is one of Tolstoy’s best written short stories and a popular story for the world on the topic of death and the process of dying. This story is about a man confronting death and in a way bringing life to him during the process of his death. Ivan Ilych fell onto the inevitable trail of death and had realized the true meaning of living along the way. The concept of writing about death is not in any way a new concept nor was it obscure to read in Tolstoy’s era; what makes this short story special is the way that Tolstoy illustrates his character. Ivan Ilych goes through a journey of discovery while he is dying. This story attempts to tackle the questions that cannot be answered; what makes a man happy in life, what makes life worth living?
Russian composers of Prokofiev’s time were generally restrained and classical in their approach. (In class) Prokofiev on the other hand was known for his romantic tendencies for which he was scorned. However, his Symphony no.1 is known as his “classical” symphony as it is extremely classical in form and was written according to classical design attempting to emulate the style of Haydn. Similarities between Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony no.1 and Haydn include its orchestrion size and use of the sonata allegro form, of which is classical. Although Prokofiev's symphony is classical in many aspects, elements of Prokofiev's unique voice are clearly heard. (Ferris)
Born on May 7, 1833, Johannes Brahms is regarded as the foremost romantic composer of instrumental music in classical forms. He composed virtually every variety of music except opera. Although his music was the object of attacks by followers of Richard Wagner, and Franz Liszt, his popularity grew over time as a great composer of unique individuality (Weinstock 456). His life, influences on him and his music, and his outstanding musical works all take a part in the history of this famous composer.
It was a freezing January day in the city of Archangelsk, Russia. A man by the name of Dmitri Shostakovich picked up the newest issue of Pravda from the newsstands, which were unusually busy today. “Wow, this is really harsh!” “Are Pravda’s expectations THAT high?” people whispered to one another. After reading it briefly, Shostakovich flew into a fit of frustration and rage. This paper called his music “degenerate and decadent” (Stevens)! There is no way that Pravda would trash his music as badly as this. In fact, the article was written under orders by an upset Josef Stalin. These two Russian titans impacted Russia’s culture between 1930 and 1950. They absolutely hated each other! The tension between the two radiated throughout Shostakovich’s music and Stalin’s iron-fisted attitude towards his symphonies. Stalin manipulated composers to the point of suicide for defying his wishes, and he was not afraid to do that to Shostakovich. Somehow, Shostakovich dared to resist Stalin’s evil ways and went on to become a “brilliant and internationally famous composer.
Dmitri Shostakovich, born on September 25, 1905, started taking piano lessons from his mother at the age of nine after he showed interest in a string quartet that practiced next door. He entered the Petrograd (formerly St. Petersburg, later Leningrad) Conservatory in 1919, where he studied the piano with Leonid Nikolayev until 1923 and composition until 1925 with Aleksandr Glazunov and Maksimilian Steinberg. He participated in the Chopin International Competition for Pianists in Warsaw in 1927 and received an honorable mention, after which he decided to limit his public performances to his own works to separate himself from the virtuoso pianists.
...dard of Soviet art. He revealed feelings of those suffering around him through his music. His legacy and musical styles have persevered, and Shostakovich is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential composers on twenty-first century music.
Now in time there are many great composer that have outlived their dying age by making an impact and leaving a permanent seal on this planet with the great symphonies they have composed, which in turn has inspired many composers throughout the preceding centuries.
Stalin is a very interesting man who always changed how he thought of everybody (he also called himself Stalin because “stalin” means steel) (Montefiore 30 “Young Stalin“).He had a huge effect on Russia; in a bad way. When Stalin used to work with Lenin and Trotsky, it wasn’t a competition of who was the best and who should control the country of Russia, but then it all changed. After that, he got people to turn against them and got rid of t...
Dmitri Shostakovich was one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century. He achieved fame, but with much hardship along the way. He was censored and threatened with not only his life but that of his wife and children by playing the role of a public figure in Soviet Russia. The question is was he a committed communist or a victim? The events in his life, good or bad, shaped the music that he created and led to one of the greatest symphonies of the 20th century, his Fifth Symphony.
Joseph Stalin is a polarizing figure. Decades after his death his legacy still continues to create debate about his tumultuous years as the leader of the Soviet Union. This is evident throughout the four documents while some praise Stalin as impeccable others criticize his policies and lack of political, economic, and social progress during his regime. Even though Stalin was behind various violations of human rights he was able to maintain the Soviet Union during a time of turmoil both domestically and internationally as a result he has earned notoriety as a great leader and advocate for Marxist ideology.
Walsh, Stephen. "Stravinsky, Igor, §11: Posthumous Reputation and Legacy." Grove Music Online. Oxford UP. Web. 10 Nov. 2011.
Schumann remarked, “Chopin’s works are guns buried in flowers” (Walker, 1967, p. 258). He was a revolutionary composer. His works are delicate yet harmonically powerful. Chopin expressed the idea of nationalism in his music by creating new forms of harmonies and using distinctive and colorful rhythmical features.
During the hard and cruel era of Stalinism, Shostakovich had the courage to express the desolation of his people by method of remarkable dramatic feeling; hence, his music became a moral support for all who were persecuted. Sofia Gubaidulina reflected, "The circumstances he lived under were unbearably cruel, more than anyone should have to endure." With Stravinsky and Prokofiev, Shostakovich embodies the culmination of 20th Century Russian music, but unlike his contemporaries, he is unique in having composed his entire opus within the framework of Soviet aesthetics. When forced onto the defensive, he did not dispute; but instead overcame the limitations of socialist realism and infused throughout his works his belief in the final victory of justice, which transformed his music into a powerful stimulus to the spirit of resistance and freedom.
Tchaikovsky is one of the most popular of all composers. The reasons are several and understandable. His music is extremely tuneful, opulently and colourfully scored, and filled with emotional passion. Undoubtedly the emotional temperature of the music reflected the composer's nature. He was afflicted by both repressed homosexuality and by the tendency to extreme fluctuations between ecstasy and depression. Tchaikovsky was neurotic and deeply sensitive, and his life was often painful, but through the agony shone a genius that created some of the most beautiful of all romantic melodies. With his rich gifts for melody and special flair for writing memorable dance tunes, with his ready response to the atmosphere of a theatrical situation and his masterly orchestration, Tchaikovsky was ideally equipped as a ballet composer. His delightful fairy-tale ballets, Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker are performed more than any other ballets. Swan Lake, Tchaikovsky's first ballet, was commissioned by the Imperial Theatres in Moscow in 1875. He used some music from a little domestic ballet of the same title, composed for his sister Alexandra's children in 1871.
... influence of all this sunshine he partially forgot, or put aside, his shyness, and took up the baton again, at first with many qualms, but gradually with so much assurance that in 1888 he made an international conducting tour, appearing in Leipzig, Hamburg, Prague, Paris, and London. Three years later he even ventured to come across the Atlantic and conduct his own works in New York at the ceremonies of the opening Carnegie Hall, as may be read in his letters in amusing details of his triumph and homesickness. And for the summers there were a series of modest but comfortable country houses in Russia where he could compose in peace, from Maidanova, with which he began to Klin, near Moscow. Only at the end of 1890, three years before his death, came the inevitable rupture with Madame von Meck, and by that time he was financially independent, so the break affected his spirits more than his music. In 1893 he wrote at Klin his most famous work, the "Pathetic" Symphony, and conducted it at St. Petersburg on Oct. 28. It was coolly received, and he did not live to witness its success. Only a few days later he drank a glass of unfiltered water, and died of cholera, Nov. 6, 1893.