Alexander Alexandrovich Aljabjew

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Alexander Alexandrovich Alyabyev ( Russian Александр Александрович Алябьев * 4 . Jul / 15. August  1787 greg. In Tobolsk , † February 22 jul. / 6. March  1851 greg. In Moscow ) was a Russian composer .

Alexander Alexandrovich Aljabjew

Life

Aljabjew was born in Tobolsk, where his father worked as governor , but moved several times in his childhood and eventually lived in Moscow. He first appeared as a composer around 1810, but his career was briefly interrupted by the fact that he volunteered in the war against Napoleon I in 1812 and rose to the position of hussar officer . After that, Aliyev settled in Saint Petersburg . Although from now on he was mainly active as a composer, he remained a member of the army until 1823. In 1823 he moved to Moscow. Two years later he took part in a card-playing fight that killed a person. He was then taken into custody for three years and finally found guilty, even though the charge (murder) could not be properly proven. Aljabjew was initially exiled to Tobolsk as a punishment, brought to Orenburg in 1833 and allowed back to the Moscow governorate a year later . In 1843 he was allowed to settle again in Moscow. However, from 1825 until the end of his life he was under constant police supervision. When he died in 1851, he hardly played a role as a composer.

The Aljabjew Glacier in Antarctica is named after him.

style

Aljabjew was one of the first Russian composers interested in the folk music of their homeland. Especially since his exile he has been a collector of folk songs. In his later works he also incorporated folk songs, albeit not as consistently as Michail Glinka . His earlier works show above all his admiration for Beethoven , but he also wrote a lot of salon music. Overall, his style is rather conservative and is often compared to early Schubert , not least because of his songwriting. However, most of his late work has been lost, which makes it difficult to evaluate his compositional work. Aljabjew composed for all musical genres, orchestras - such as chamber music and piano works ; The main focus of his work is vocal music, especially his songs. Aljabjev's compositional career was abruptly interrupted by his exile: initially he earned a good reputation as a composer, which culminated in the fact that he was allowed to compose the inaugural music for the famous Bolshoi Theater . From 1825, however, hardly any work by Aljabev was played; in addition, he was banned from performing until the end of his life. Only a few songs were still popular, especially the song “Die Nachtigall” ( Solowei ) , which was immensely known in the 19th century . In the Soviet Union , Aljabjew experienced a certain revitalization as one of the pioneers of Russian national music. Nevertheless, little more than his name is known today.

Works

  • Orchestral music
    • Symphony in G major (before 1820, fragment)
    • Symphony in E flat major (before 1820)
    • Symphony in E minor (1830)
    • Symphony (1850, lost)
    • Overtures
    • Marches
    • quite a few dances
    • Stage music
  • Vocal music
    • 5 operas, 4 of which have only survived in fragments, including "Ammalat-bek" (1842–47)
    • 23 vaudevilles
    • sacred choral works
    • numerous secular choral works, u. a. "The Triumph of the Muses" (1824, for the inauguration of the Bolshoi Theater, lost)
    • about 150 songs
    • Folk song arrangements
  • Chamber music
    • String Quartet No. 1 in E flat major (1815)
    • String Quartet No. 2 (around 1820, lost)
    • String Quartet No. 3 in G major (1825)
    • String Quartet in G minor (1842, fragment)
    • String Quartet (1846, fragment)
    • Piano trio in E flat major (around 1815)
    • Piano trio in A minor (after 1817)
    • Piano Quintet in E flat major (1818)
    • Violin Sonata in E minor (1834)
    • some piano works

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Aljabjew, Alexander Alexandrovich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Алябьев, Александр Александрович (Russian)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Russian composer
DATE OF BIRTH August 15, 1787
PLACE OF BIRTH Tobolsk
DATE OF DEATH March 6, 1851
Place of death Moscow