Alexander Gretchaninov
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2 Belorussian Elegies, Op.832 Choruses2 Lada's Songs, Op.692 Mélodies, Op.152 Pieces, Op.372 Sonatinas, Op.11025 Muslim Songs, Op.253 Folk Songs of Great Russia, Op.773 Pieces for Organ, Op.1593 Pieces, Op.1164 Fables after Ivan Krylov, Op.334 Mazurkas, Op.534 Mélodies, Op.204 Mélodies, Op.74 Songs, Op.55 Pastels, Op.35 Songs after Hafiz, Op.765 Songs, Op.16 Children's Songs, Op.317 Mélodies, Op.937 Poèmes dramatiques, Op.51A
Ad Astra, Op.54Album d'Andrucha, Op.133Album de Nina, Op.141Aquarelles, Op.146Arabesques, Op.150As Angel of SerenityAt First I was SufferingAt the Crossroads, Op.21B
Bagatelles, Op.112BirdC
Choruses, Op.16Clarinet Sonata No.2, Op.172D
Dew Drops, Op.127aDobrynya NikitichDreams, Op.17F
Fantasia for Cello and OrchestraFeuilles d'album, Op.139G
Glass Beads, Op.123Grandfather's Album, Op.119H
Historiettes, Op.118I
In Aller Frühe, Op.126In modo antico, Op.81In the Village, Op.45L
Les Fleurs du Mal, Op.48Liturgia domestica, Op.79Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom No.1, Op.13Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom No.2, Op.29Livre d'enfants, Op.98M
Missa Sancti Spiritus, Op.169Moments lyriques, Op.78O
Oh, If Thou Shalt, Baby, My WifeOn the Green Meadow, Op.99On Yellow FieldsP
Passion Week, Op.58Pastelle No.2, Op.61Pensées fugitives, Op.115Pervenches, Op.158Piano Sonata No.1, Op.129Piano Sonata No.2, Op.174Piano Trio No.1, Op.38R
Russian Folk Dances, Op.130S
Sister Beatrice, Op.50Snowflakes, Op.47String Quartet No.1, Op.2String Quartet No.2, Op.70Suite for Cello and Orchestra, Op.86Suite miniature, Op.145Symphony No.1, Op.6Symphony No.2, Op.27T
The Bee, Op.66The Day of the Child, Op.109The Hymn of Free RussiaThe Pink Glow of SunsetThe Seasons, Op.46The Winds are Blowing, Op.41V
Violin Sonata, Op.87W
Wish, Op.9WikipediaAlexander Tikhonovich Gretchaninov (Russian: Алекса́ндр Ти́хонович Гречани́нов, IPA: [ɐlʲɪˈksandr ɡrʲɪtɕɐˈnʲinəf]; 25 October [O.S. 13 October] 1864, Kaluga – 3 January 1956, New York City) was a Russian Romantic composer.
Gretchaninov started his musical studies rather late, because his father, a businessman, had expected the boy to take over the family firm. Gretchaninov himself related that he did not see a piano until he was 14 and began his studies at the Moscow Conservatory in 1881 against his father's wishes and without his knowledge. His main teachers there were
Sergei Taneyev and
Anton Arensky. In the late 1880s, after a quarrel with Arensky, he moved to St. Petersburg where he studied composition and orchestration with
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov until 1893. Rimsky-Korsakov immediately recognized Gretchaninov's extraordinary musical imagination and talent and gave him much extra time as well as considerable financial help. This allowed the young man, whose parents were not supporting him, to survive. Out of this came an important friendship, which only ended in 1908 with Rimsky's death. As such, it is not surprising that Rimsky's influence can be heard in Gretchaninov's early works, such as his String Quartet No.1, a prize-winning composition.
Around 1896, Gretchaninov returned to Moscow and was involved with writing for the theatre, the opera and the Russian Orthodox Church. His works, especially those for voice, achieved considerable success within Russia, while his instrumental works enjoyed even wider acclaim. By 1910, he was considered a composer of such distinction that the Tsar awarded him an annual pension.
Though Gretchaninov remained in Russia for several years after the Revolution, he ultimately chose to emigrate, first to France in 1925, and then, at the age of 75, to the United States in 1939. He remained in the U.S. the rest of his life and eventually became an American citizen. He died in New York at the age of 91 and is buried outside the church at Rova Farms, a Russian enclave in Jackson Township, Ocean County, New Jersey.
Gretchaninov wrote five symphonies, the first premiered by Rimsky-Korsakov; four string quartets, the first two of which won important prizes, two piano trios, sonatas for violin, cello, clarinet, piano and balalaika, several operas, song cycle Les Fleurs du Mal, op. 48 (setting lyrics by Baudelaire) and much other music.
Like
Vladimir Rebikov's, his position in the history of Russian music was mainly transitional, his earlier music belonging firmly in that earlier Romantic tradition while his later work is influenced by some of the streams that also affected
Igor Stravinsky and
Sergei Prokofiev.
Sketches for an unfinished sixth symphony from the 1940s exist.
He also composed a number of small scale piano pieces.
Most of Gretchaninov's manuscripts reside in the Music Division of New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Some of the information on this page appears on the Alexander Gretchaninov page of the Edition Silvertrust website. Permission has been granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.