The Life of Musorgsky

ISBN-13: 9780521485074 / Angielski / Miękka / 1999 / 218 str.

Caryl Emerson

Opis

This is a brief biography of Russia's greatest musical dramatist, Modest Musorgsky (1839-1881), known the world over for his opera Boris Godunov, for his innovative realistic art songs, and for his pianistic work "Pictures at an Exhibition." Yet during his life Musorgsky had no institutional connections, no "degree," no family of his own, not even a permanent address. This book emphasizes the psychological and economic factors that contributed to the composer's remarkable autodidactic rise and tragic, premature end.

Recenzje

'Emerson manages to flesh out the man's character and to offer plausible theories as to the reasons for Musorgsky's decline.' The Musical Times

Spis treści

Preface; 1. Childhood and youth (1839–56); 2. Apprenticeship in Petersburg, 1850–60s: composers' evenings and the commune; 3. Conservatories, 'circles', and Musorgsky at the musical edge; 4. 1868–74: Musorgsky and Russian history; 5. The 1870s: Musorgsky and death; 6. Beyond tragedy: the final years; Epilogue: the Musorgsky problem, then and now; Musical appendix: what to look for in Musorgsky's style.