Alfred S. Schnittke: Biography, Creativity

Alfred Schnittke, whose biography and creativity 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, as his creations are still alive.

Childhood

Alfred S. Schnittke is a Soviet and Russian composer . His biography is studied in all musical educational institutions of the world. He was born in 1934 in the city of Engels in the family of Volga Germans. He also had Jewish roots. The composer's father was born in Frankfurt am Main. At the age of 13, the boy moved with his parents to Moscow. At the age of 16 he changed his place of residence again and moved to Pokrovsk, where he began to work as a journalist. His parents stayed in the capital.

The mother of the composer, 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 their grandfather and grandmother. The mother and father of the musician talked to each other in German. The children first learned it. And later began to talk with his mother in German, and with his father in Russian. Alfred Schnittke started music at the age of 11.

The further destiny

After the war, the future composer and 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 conservatoire in composition class, and soon graduate school. In 1961 he began to teach. In the 1970s, his main earnings were writing music for films.

In 1990, Alfred Garryevich with his wife and son went to live in Germany. Until the end of his days, the composer did not abandon his creative activity, despite the fact that he suffered three strokes. He taught, wrote music. Alfred Schnittke died in Hamburg on August 3, 1998. He was buried in Moscow. The composer was awarded prizes and the title "Honored Artist of the RSFSR". About him was filmed several documentaries. The music of A. Schnittke is characterized by expressiveness, scale, complexity.

A family

The great composer A. Schnittke would not have a full biography if there was no story of his relatives. Alfred Garriyevich was married twice. His first wife was Galina Koltsova. With her, the composer did not live long. The second wife of A. Schnittke was the pianist Irina Kataeva. In the marriage with her, the son Andrei was born. The acquaintance of future spouses took place when Irina was a student of Alfred Garryevich. Their marriage was happy. With Irina K. Schnittke lived until the end of his days.

The most famous works

Composer Schnittke AG wrote a huge number of works, among which there are symphonic, chamber, stage, choral, vocal and instrumental.

List of the most ambitious works:

• Opera "Life with an Idiot".
• Ballet "Per Gynt".
• The 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:

• Symphony.
• Pianissimo.
• Gogol-suite.
• "Ritual".
• Sonata for violin and chamber orchestra.
• Suite in the old style.
• "Voices of Nature" (work for women's voices and a vibraphone).
• Three madrigals.
• Oratorio "Nagasaki".
• "The Book of Sorrow" (concert for the choir).
• Solemn edging.
• Three pieces for harpsichord.

Also the composer created not one concert. Schnittke wrote them for different 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 Film

Music Schnittke AG sounds in many Soviet films shot in the 60-90s of the 20th century.

Among them are paintings:

• "Belarusian Railway Station".
• "Calling fire on yourself."
• "The Glass Harmonics".
• "Hot Snow".
• "The ballerina on the ship."
• "Autumn".
• "Ricky-Tikki-Tavi".
• "A tale about how Tsar Peter therap married women."
• "Crew".
• "A fairy tale of wanderings."
• "The favorite of the public."
• "Chamber number six."
• "The Master and Margarita".

And many others.

The Legend of the Symphony

In the musical world, there is a superstition about the curse of the ninth symphony. It began with LV Beethoven. The sign is that all the composers die shortly after they write a symphony number nine. This prejudice is attributed to G. Mahler. It is believed that he was the first to notice such a sign. For example, L. Beethoven died when he was working on writing his ninth symphony. Other composers who were affected by this curse: A. Bruckner, A. Dvorak, F. Schubert, M. Arnold, A. Glazunov, Kurt Atterberg, Egon Welles and others.

Yes, Beethoven himself really died while working on Symphony No. 9. But it is impossible, according to many researchers, to believe that A. Bruckner suffered the same fate. Because that symphony, which he has listed as number nine, is actually the tenth. This composer still has a symphony, which is usually called the zero symphony. A. Bruckner did not number it, because he considered it only a student's experience and did not rank among the others, but its existence can not be ignored.

Gustav Mahler did not agree with this and saw in this something mystical and more secluded. While working on the ninth symphony, he decided to bypass 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 similar 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 during the work on the tenth he died.

Franz Schubert really wrote only nine symphonies. But two of them were incomplete. A. Dvorak also wrote 9 symphonies. But the very first of the written by him during his life was not executed, since it was considered lost. A. Schnittke did not leave this pattern. He composed exactly nine symphonies. And the last wrote already before his death. At the request of the composer's widow, Nikolai Korndorf was engaged in its re-creation. During this work, he passed away. It was completed by Alexander Raskatov.

But until now it has not been proven that such a phenomenon should really be treated as a curse, and not as a coincidence. Quite a few composers who have written 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 saying that in the symphonic genre he said everything he wanted. But many argued that he was afraid of the curse. Although after composing the eighth symphony, the composer stopped writing songs.