Alfred Schnittke, whose biography and work will be described in this article, was not only a great composer, but also a musicologist and teacher. This great man left a big mark in history, since his creations are still alive.
Childhood
Soviet and Russian composer is Alfred Garrievich Schnittke. His biography is studied in all musical educational institutions of the world. He was born in 1934 in the city of Engels in a family of Volga Germans. He also had Jewish roots. The father of the composer was born in Frankfurt. At the age of 13, the boy moved with his parents to Moscow. At 16, he again changed his place of residence and moved to Pokrovsk, where he began working as a journalist. His parents remained in the capital.
The composer's mother, Maria Iosifovna Vogel, was born in the village of Kamenka. Her parents were colonists, immigrants from Germany. During the war, the father of the future composer was called to the front. Alfred and his younger brother were sent to Moscow to grandfather and grandmother. The mother and father of the musician spoke to each other in German. The children first learned it. And later they began to talk with their mother in German, and with their father in Russian. Alfred Schnittke began to study music at the age of 11.
Further fate
After the war, the future composer with his family moved to Vienna. His father was sent there on duty. It was there that in 1946 Alfred Schnittke began his musical education. Two years later, the family returned to Russia. They settled in the suburbs. In 1958, Schnittke graduated from the conservatory in composition, and soon graduate school. In 1961, he began to teach. In the 70s, his main income was writing music for films.
In 1990, Alfred Garrievich with his wife and son went to live in Germany. Until the end of his days, the composer did not give up creative activity, despite the fact that he suffered three strokes. He taught, wrote music. Alfred Schnittke died in Hamburg on August 3, 1998. Buried in Moscow. The composer was awarded prizes and the title "Honored Artist of the RSFSR". Several documentaries were shot about him. The music of A. Schnittke is characterized by expressiveness, scale, complexity.
A family
The great composer A. Schnittke's biography would not be complete if there were no story about his relatives. Alfred Garrievich was married twice. His first wife was Galina Koltsova. With her, the composer did not live long. The second wife of A. Schnittke was pianist Irina Kataeva. In marriage with her, the composer had a son, Andrei. The acquaintance of the future spouses took place when Irina was a student of Alfred Garrievich. Their marriage was happy. With Irina K. Schnittke lived until the end of his days.
The most famous works
Composer A. Schnittke wrote a huge number of works, among which there are symphonic, chamber, stage, choral, vocal and instrumental.
List of the largest works:
- Opera "Life with an idiot."
- Ballet "Peer Gynt".
- Opera "Gesualdo".
- Stage composition "Yellow Sound".
- Choreographic fantasy "Sketches".
- Opera "The Eleventh Commandment".
- Ballet "Labyrinths".
Other masterpieces
Alfred Schnittke, whose biography is presented in this article, is the author of the following works:
- Symphonies.
- Pianissimo.
- Gogol Suite.
- "Ritual".
- Sonata for violin and chamber orchestra.
- Suite in the old style.
- "Voices of nature" (work for female voices and vibraphone).
- Three madrigals.
- Oratorio "Nagasaki".
- "Book of sorrow" (concert for the choir).
- Solemn edging.
- Three Pieces for Harpsichord.
Also, the composer created more than one concert. Schnittke wrote them for various instruments and orchestras.
Concerts of the composer:
- For piano and orchestra.
- For oboe, harp and strings.
- For violin and orchestra.
- Concerto Grosso: No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 6.
- For viola and orchestra.
And many other works.
Music and cinema
The music of A. Schnittke is heard in many Soviet films shot in the 60-90s of the 20th century.
Among them are paintings:
- "Belorussky railway station".
- "Calling fire on ourselves."
- "Glass harmonica".
- "Hot Snow".
- "Ballerina on the ship."
- "Autumn".
- "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi".
- "The Tale of How King Peter the Arapa Married."
- "Crew".
- "Tale of wanderings."
- "Favorite of the public."
- "Chamber number six."
- "Master and Margarita".
And many others.
Legend of the symphony
In the music world, there is superstition about the curse of the ninth symphony. It began with L.V. Beethoven. It is a sign that all composers die soon after they write the symphony at number nine. This prejudice is attributed to G. Maler. It is believed that he was the first to notice such an omen. For example, L. Beethoven died when he worked on writing his ninth symphony. Other composers who suffered this curse: A. Bruckner, A. Dvořák, F. Schubert, M. Arnold, A. Glazunov, Kurt Atterberg, Egon Welles and others.
Yes, L.V. Beethoven himself really died while working on symphony No. 9. But it is impossible, according to many researchers, to consider that A. Bruckner suffered the same fate. Since the symphony that he has under number nine is actually the tenth. This composer also has a symphony, which is usually called zero. A. Bruckner himself did not number it, since he considered it to be only student experience and did not rank it among the others, but its existence cannot be ignored.
Gustav Mahler did not agree with this and saw in it something mystical and otherworldly. While working on the ninth symphony, he decided to circumvent this curse. By that time, he had written the song “Song of the Earth” and called it a symphony. Thus, it turned out that nine such works have already been written, and he is already working on the tenth. The composer decided to deceive fate. He managed to finish his symphony No. 9. But while working on the tenth, he died.
Franz Schubert really wrote just nine symphonies. But two of them were incomplete. A. Dvořák also wrote 9 symphonies. But the very first of what he wrote during his lifetime was not executed, as it was considered lost. A.G. Schnittke did not escape this pattern. He composed exactly nine symphonies. And the last one was written just before his death. At the request of the widow of the composer, Nikolai Korndorf was engaged in its reconstruction. During this work, he died. It was completed by Alexander Raskatov.
But so far it has not been proved that such a phenomenon should really be treated as a curse, and not as a coincidence. There are many such composers who wrote more than nine symphonies (10, 12, 17, 27 and even 67). Among them: A. Pettersson, E. Tubin, N. Myaskovsky, D. Diamond, G. Cowell, E. Rabbra, A. Hovaness, M. Weinberg, etc. Nikita Bogoslovsky wrote 8 symphonies. The eighth, he gave the name "Last". And he did not write more works of this form. The composer himself motivated this by the fact that in the symphonic genre he said everything he wanted. But many claimed that he was afraid of a curse. Although, after writing the eighth symphony, the composer stopped writing songs.