The tireless hard worker is Alfred Schnittke. The music he created is large-scale and great in its heritage. Everything was subject to the composer: operas and ballets, orchestral compositions, film music, chamber and choral works. She speaks to us in a modern language, maintaining a constant connection with what is considered classic.
Family and childhood
The family in which Alfred Garrievich Schnittke was born (1934 - 1998) was completely non-standard. Father is a German Jew from Liepaja, mother is German. For both, the native language was German, which they used when talking at home among themselves. Polilingism was characteristic of all members of this family. And for little Alfred, and his brother, and sister, and grandmother, who was engaged in research and translations from German into Russian and vice versa. During the Patriotic War, his father, Harry Viktorovich, served in parts of the Soviet army. And after the war he was sent by correspondent to Vienna for two years.
The capital of Austria has always been one of the musical centers of the world. In an atmosphere filled with music, the future composer Alfred Garrievich Schnittke began his musical education.
Return to the USSR
When work abroad was over, my parents settled in the suburbs and both began to work in a German-language newspaper called New Life. While parents translated Soviet literature into German, Alfred managed to graduate from school, and the Moscow Conservatory, and graduate school. In 1960, Alfred Garrievich Schnittke was admitted to the Union of Composers. After that, he begins to teach at the conservatory in which he studied. then, feeling that this is not enough, he begins to compose motion picture music. It is especially worth highlighting his work with the wonderful director Larisa Shepitko, who shot the truthful and scary film about the Ascent war (1976). The eternal theme of betrayal and sacrifice was also reflected in the music created by Alfred Garrievich Schnittke, was filled with tragedy and mysticism and combined with them deep psychology, as well as biblical motifs. This allowed the director and actors to more fully reveal the drama of Vasil Bykov. In general, he wrote music for more than sixty films and several performances. In 1989, Alfred Garrievich Schnittke will receive the Nika Award for the music for the film Commissar. He worked only with our best directors, whose films with Alfred Schnittke’s music became events: Andrei Mitta - “Crew”, Andrei Smirnov - “Autumn”, Elem Klimov - “Agony”. Quotes and themes from film music are used by the composer to create concert works.
Matrimony
The first marriage to Galina Koltsina was short-lived (1956 - 1958). But the second marriage was happy and full of harmony. Future spouses met as a teacher and student. And, as usual, the teacher fell in love.
After some uncertainty, Irina Kataeva in 1961, the marriage was registered. The pianist and composer united their fates. By this time, the composer's unique style began to take shape.
Originality of music
The composer masterfully mastered all existing contemporary genres. A powerful talent and enormous industriousness made it possible to create a huge number of works: operas and ballets for the stage, orchestral works. Including in his work there are a classical direction, avant-garde, chorales, waltzes, polka, jazz. He boldly combined diverse techniques in one work, as well as stylistic trends. This seemed incomparable, but it simply shocked the audience, as happened with the First Symphony. Later, it will combine more harmoniously in the "Requiem" and the Piano Quintet.
For the mature Schnittke, and most of the compositions were written in the last 13 years, when the composer was ill (suffered a stroke), the use of baroque motifs, echoes of household music, and associations with German classical music are characteristic. But all this is not an end in itself, but natural, like breathing, contact with music from different eras. Since 1977, after touring abroad, the whole world has talked about Schnittke, paying tribute to his talent.
“Audit Tale” - “Gogol Suite”
For the performance of the Taganka Theater, the composer composed a suite in which N.V. became the main character Gogol. It consists of eight parts. It reveals Chichikov’s childhood through the means of music , the drama of an artist who feels a loss of talent and wants to destroy all his masterpieces. The overcoat, like an unattainable dream, suddenly turns into a dearly beloved, not a thing, but a girlfriend. To her and only to her does the hero give his passionate love. Officials are an impersonal mass creaking with feathers in public places, it is a living anthill that lives the same way. They do not even have any attempts to turn into a person, because they do not know what it is. In the ball scene, which turns into a coven, the Artist sees all his creepy characters. And completes the whole appearance of three beautiful graces. Without them, life is a desert. And music, having made a breakthrough, detaches the listener from earthly concerns, plunging into his pure world. This is how the Gogol Suite sounds.
Hamburg
In 1990, Alfred Schnittke, whose biography makes a turn at the very time of crisis, was invited to Germany to teach the composition.
He did not emigrate, he still had an apartment in Moscow, but for health reasons he needed treatment abroad. In recent years, he has been disturbed by vascular disorders, but the composer still works a lot. He can no longer write with his right hand. Conductor
G. Rozhdestvensky visiting him decrypts his fuzzy notes. At 63, the
great composer passed away. He was buried at the
Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.