Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pyotr Tchaikovsky (1840-93) seemed to find the middle ground, embracing Russi-
an folklore and music as well as the disciplines of the Western European composers.
In 1890 Tchaikovsky's
Queen of Spades
premiered at the Mariinsky. His adaptation of
the famous Pushkin tale surprised and invigorated the artistic community, especially
as his deviations from the original text - infusing it with more cynicism and a brood-
ing sense of doom - tied the piece to contemporary St Petersburg.
Tchaikovsky is widely regarded as the doyen of Russian
national composers and his output, including the magnifi-
cent
1812 Overture,
his concertos and symphonies, ballets (
Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty
and
The Nutcracker
), and op-
era
(Yevgeny Onegin)
are among the world's most popular
classical works.
Five Classic
Petersburg Al-
bums:
Kino -
Gruppa Krovi
Following in Tchaikovsky's romantic footsteps was the
innovative Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971). He fled Russia
after the revolution, but his memoirs credit his childhood in
St Petersburg as having a major effect on his music.
The
Rite of Spring
(which created a furore at its first perform-
ance in Paris),
Petrouchka
and
The Firebird
were all influ-
enced by Russian folk music. The official Soviet line was
that Stravinsky was a 'political and ideological renegade';
but he was rehabilitated after he visited the USSR and was
formally received by Khrushchev himself.
Leningrad -
Piraty XXI Veka
Akvarium -
Peski Peterburga
DDT -
Chorny Pyos Peter-
burg
Dva Samolyota -
Ubitsy Sredi Nas
Similarly, the ideological beliefs and experimental style
of Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-75) led to him being altern-
ately praised and condemned by the Soviet government. As
a student at the Petrograd conservatory, Shostakovich failed his exams in Marxist
methodology, but still managed to write his First Symphony before he graduated in
1926. He wrote brooding, bizarrely dissonant works, as well as accessible traditional
classical music. After official condemnation by Stalin, his Seventh Symphony (Lenin-
grad Symphony) brought him honour and international standing when it was per-
formed during WWII. The authorities changed their mind and banned his anti-Soviet
music in 1948, then 'rehabilitated' him after Stalin's death. These days he is held in
high esteem as the namesake of the acclaimed Shostakovich Philharmonia (
CLICK
HERE
).
