Anatoly Nikolaevich Alexandrov |

Anatoly Alexandrov

My soul is quiet. In tight strings Sounds one impulse, healthy and beautiful, And my voice flows thoughtfully and passionately. A. Blok

An outstanding Soviet composer, pianist, teacher, critic and publicist, editor of a number of works of Russian musical classics, An. Aleksandrov wrote a bright page in the history of Russian and Soviet music. Coming from a musical family – his mother was a talented pianist, a student of K. Klindworth (piano) and P. Tchaikovsky (harmony), – he graduated in 1916 with a gold medal from the Moscow Conservatory in piano (K. Igumnov) and composition (S. Vasilenko).

Alexandrov’s creative activity impresses with its temporal scope (over 70 years) and high productivity (over 100 opuses). He won recognition even in the pre-revolutionary years as the author of the bright and life-affirming “Alexandrian Songs” (Art. M. Kuzmin), the opera “Two Worlds” (the diploma work, awarded a gold medal), a number of symphonic and piano works.

In the 20s. Alexandrov among the pioneers of Soviet music are a galaxy of talented young Soviet composers, such as Y. Shaporin, V. Shebalin, A. Davidenko, B. Shekhter, L. Knipper, D. Shostakovich. Mental youth accompanied Alexandrov throughout his life. Alexandrov’s artistic image is multifaceted, it is difficult to name genres that would not have been embodied in his work: 5 operas – The Shadow of Phyllida (libre by M. Kuzmin, not finished), Two Worlds (after A. Maikov), Forty the first ”(according to B. Lavrenev, not finished), “Bela” (according to M. Lermontov), ​​“Wild Bar” (libre. B. Nemtsova), “Lefty” (according to N. Leskov); 2 symphonies, 6 suites; a number of vocal and symphonic works (“Ariana and the Bluebeard” according to M. Maeterlinck, “Memory of the Heart” according to K. Paustovsky, etc.); Concerto for piano and orchestra; 14 piano sonatas; works of vocal lyrics (cycles of romances on poems by A. Pushkin, “Three Cups” on the article by N. Tikhonov, “Twelve Poems of Soviet Poets”, etc.); 4 string quartets; a series of software piano miniatures; music for drama theater and cinema; numerous compositions for children (Aleksandrov was one of the first composers who wrote music for the performances of the Moscow Children’s Theater, founded by N. Sats in 1921).

Alexandrov’s talent manifested itself most clearly in vocal and chamber-instrumental music. His romances are characterized by subtle enlightened lyricism, grace and sophistication of melody, harmony and form. The same features are found in piano works and in quartets included in the concert repertoire of many performers in our country and abroad. Lively “sociability” and depth of content are characteristic of the Second Quartet, the cycles of piano miniatures (“Four Narratives”, “Romantic Episodes”, “Pages from a Diary”, etc.) are remarkable in their subtle imagery; deep and poetic are the piano sonatas that develop the traditions of pianism by S. Rachmaninov, A. Scriabin and N. Medtner.

Alexandrov is also known as a wonderful teacher; as a professor at the Moscow Conservatory (since 1923), he educated more than one generation of Soviet musicians (V. Bunin, G. Egiazaryan, L. Mazel, R. Ledenev, K. Molchanov, Yu. Slonov, etc.).

A significant place in Alexandrov’s creative heritage is occupied by his musical-critical activity, covering the most diverse phenomena of Russian and Soviet musical art. These are talentedly written memoirs and articles about S. Taneyev, Scriabin, Medtner, Rachmaninoff; artist and composer V. Polenov; about the works of Shostakovich, Vasilenko, N. Myaskovsky, Molchanov and others. An. Alexandrov became a kind of link between the Russian classics of the XIX century. and young Soviet musical culture. Remaining true to the traditions of Tchaikovsky, beloved by him, Alexandrov was an artist in constant creative search.

ABOUT. Tompakova