Walentyn Sylwestrow

Valentyn Sylvestrov

Walentyn Wassylowytsch Sylwestrow ( Ukrainian Валентин Васильович Сильвестров , scientific transliteration Valentyn Vasyl'ovyč Syl'vestrov ; born September 30, 1937 in Kiev , Ukrainian SSR ) is a Ukrainian composer.

Life

The early years (1937–1970)

Walentyn Sylwestrow was born on September 30, 1937 in Kiev in what was then the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic . There are no more precise sources about his close family environment, such as his father's occupation. Compared to other composers, he found his way to music relatively late: at the age of 15 he took instrumental lessons for the first time, while teaching himself a lot on the side. From 1955 he attended the Kiev Evening Music School for three years, where he took piano lessons. During this time he began studying at the Kiev Institute of Engineering and Construction, which he later dropped out.

At the age of 21, he decided entirely for music and began studying at the Kiev Conservatory . He attended the composition class of Borys Lyatoschynskyj and took lessons from Levko Rewucki in counterpoint and harmony. He turned more and more to the avant-garde and began in the early 1960s in a small group of composers and conductors from Kiev, among them Igor Blaschkow and Leonid Hrabowsky, to learn dodecaphony based on Hanns Jelinek's instructions for twelve-tone composition in self-study. With this background he composed his 1st symphony in 1963, which he played in composition for the state examination in the same year.

He met with rejection because the conservatory expected works in the style of socialist realism . Therefore, he did not receive a diploma, but only a certificate that he had graduated.

While still a student, Sylwestrow began teaching in 1963 as a music teacher at various music schools. During these six years he wrote works that were particularly disliked by the Central Committee for Music in the Soviet Union. As early as 1961, at a meeting of young composers, he was heavily criticized for his piano quintet. His music was not played in Ukraine and in the late 1960s he was banned from the USSR Composers' Union.

But he was able to assert himself outside the Soviet Union: in 1967 the renowned American Koussevitzky Foundation commissioned him to compose the 3rd symphony ( eschatophony ). Another award came in 1970 at the Gaudeamus International Composition Competition in the Netherlands.

New directions (1970–1991)

At the age of 33, Sylwestrow took a new direction both in his compositional work and in his professional career. He was now looking to live as a freelance composer. He turned to a kind of "neo-romanticism". He had fewer problems with this in the Soviet regime, as his style was now seen as less subversive. Although he still did not allow himself to be integrated into the aesthetics prescribed by the state, his status as a composer improved so much until the collapse of the Soviet Union that he was named "People's Artist" of the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic in 1989.

At the end of the 1980s, the number of performances increased significantly. Sylwestrov was now known not only in Ukraine and Russia, but also in Western Europe. He achieved particular fame in America. To this day he has received invitations to concerts from there, which he usually does not attend.

From 1974 to 1984 Sylwestrow experienced his most productive phase as a composer.

After the end of the Soviet Union (from 1991)

Further awards followed after the end of the Soviet Union: In 1995 he received the Shevchenko State Prize, the most prestigious art prize in Ukraine, and two years later the Ukrainian Order of Merit, 3rd class. In October 2011, the National University of Kiev-Mohyla Academy (NaUKMA) awarded Sylwestrow an honorary doctorate.

In 1996 his wife Larissa, who had accompanied him from the beginning of his artistic career, died.

17 years after the transition to democracy and a more open society, Sylwestrow, looking at the past, sees the significance and effect of the Soviet regime for himself as follows:

“[...] Under the Soviet regime it was then that a wrong chord was enough and one was persecuted. With that one had a certain meaning, even if it was in the negative sense. [...] Today you can choose the right or the wrong chord and nobody takes any notice of it. "

Sylwestrow's compositional style

To understand Sylwestrow's compositions, one must know his understanding of music. One of his most important convictions is best approached with a quote from the composer Sofia Gubaidulina . Here it becomes clear what a big role religion plays for Sylwestrow:

“In his opinion everything is already there - everything has already been written. To understand this one has to remember the Almighty. Everything has already been created once, you don't have to do anything more than listen carefully to what is already there and call it up again. Then something starts swinging again. It was actually there the whole time, but now we can also feel the vibrations and perceive it as music. "

Furthermore, in Sylwestrow's view, the composer does not play an important role, since he only grasps the vibrations and transforms them into music, as the following quote shows:

“When creating music, the composer is basically nothing more than a mute on the piano. One is called Beethoven, another Mozart or x or y. Depending on its predisposition, a damper filters out this or that. He takes something out of the barely perceptible throes of music and transforms it into something unique. One should not see any personal merit of the author in this. "

The Kiev avant-garde (1960–1970)

If you talk about the avant-garde, you first have to clarify the term. Avant-garde is taken from the vocabulary of the French military and actually describes the vanguard, i.e. the part of the troop that advanced first and thus had the first contact with the enemy. Here the term functions in the figurative sense that the Kiev avant-garde turned away from the Soviet government and turned towards progress and thus also towards the West. The prescribed way in which music should be composed and how music should sound was prescribed by the government at the time and was called "Socialist Realism". A style that was also specified for other art movements such as painting and literature at the time.

Contrary to state regulations, the Kiev avant-garde almost exclusively used means from twelve-tone technique that they had taught themselves with Hanns Jelinek's instructions for twelve-tone composition . This group was therefore a big thorn in the side of the government. The means that Sylwestrow used in his compositions at this time are typical of the twelve-tone technique and not extraordinarily new. Nevertheless, he can already stand out a little from the other composers. His friend Igor Blaschkow recalls one of the meeting of the Kiev avant-garde at the time: "Sylwestrow really amazed everyone at the time because he showed that the twelve-tone system is something very natural for him and not a Procrustal bed into which one had to squeeze."

The transition (1970–1974)

The change that Sylwestrow is making is no exception, because both in the West and in the East one is changing towards a stylistic pluralism. The composers now no longer adhere to a given form of composing in a modern way, such as the twelve-tone technique. On the one hand, the preference for quotations, collages and mixed styles come to the fore, and on the other hand, the focus on religious topics. Furthermore, technical terms from the West are taken over into the USSR, which try to paraphrase the currents: " New Simplicity ", "Neo-Romanticism", "Minimalism" and also "Meditative Music".

Andrei Volkonsky, one of the composers of the Kiev avant-garde, remembers this change:

"Without consulting us, we realized that this path (meaning the avant-garde; author's note) is not the right one and has something destructive about it."

The Kiev avant-garde dissolves completely, and Sylwestrow's work changes fundamentally: in the years 1970–1973 he made a transition from dodecaphony, via a free tonal, to a neo-romantic tonal language. This change can best be described with a quote from Sylwestrow himself:

“The avant-garde gives you nothing but salt. Try eating a pile of salt. On the other hand, the salt of the avant-garde is still there - barely noticeable. "

According to the musicologist Tatjana Frumkis, Sylwestrow still describes himself as an avant-garde. In his opinion, “the avant-garde also includes the ability to break away from it”. This style is evident, for example, in the three-movement work Drama (1970/1971) for violin, cello and piano or in meditation with the subtitle “Symphony for Chamber Orchestra” (1972). Both works are equally interesting for listeners and viewers, as Sylwestrow also includes scenic means. At the climax of the meditation, the lights in the concert hall go out, the orchestra falls silent, and the musicians light matches, which they then put out again. Only then does the music continue.

Sylwestrow's music is "broader, more anecdotal, and contains allusions to older styles" during and after his transition.

The new style (from 1974)

Walentyn Sylwestrow's new style of composing is a very individual one and can only be classified into fixed currents with difficulty. This development from the avant-garde to an individual style was very common at the time. Since 1973 he has been consolidating his new style, returning to traditional values ​​such as melodiousness and sonorous beauty. He now uses idioms of modal and tonal music. The style that Sylwestrow is now closest to is the aforementioned "Neo-Romantic". Composers of this style usually have a deep admiration for the music of the 19th century. Looking at Sylwestrow notation, it is noticeable that he notes every fermata, every agogic fluctuation and every lingering lingering over the specified note length with the greatest care.

In other words: "This romantic music went through the procedures of the 20th century." ( Dorothea Redepenning ).

Sylwestrow's work can best be compared in the context of "neo-romanticism" with that of a restorer who wants to restore the old to its original splendor. He composes almost exclusively tonally - so the melodious sound of the piece should be in the foreground. The melody also plays a very special role, since it should only be enveloped by the accompanying instrument or the orchestra, whether played or sung by the respective solo instrument. An example of this is the song cycle Stille Lieder : This work for voice and piano is comparable to classically romantic song cycles such as Schubert's Winterreise . Sylwestrow's art songs are based on texts by well-known Russian poets.

The composer himself describes the music he has been composing since 1974 as "metaphorical music". This designation is based on the fact that - as already mentioned - he quotes musical stylistic devices from composers of bygone eras, transforms them and thus uses them as metaphors. Sylwestrow puts the music in a new contemporary context. Kitsch music for piano (1977) is one of the best-known works of this period . Here he makes a reference to romantic artists such as Chopin or Schumann, without, however, directly quoting them in this work.

However, one should not limit the consideration of his work to this style, as it is not only characterized by the avant-garde in the notation, but also in the melody and harmony. Therefore, even after the developments between 1970 and 1974, there are works that are partly dodecaphonic or free-tonal, such as the Postludium (1984) or the Metamusik (1992).

The death of his wife Larissa

The death of his wife Larissa in 1996 represented a major turning point in his compositional work. She always supported his artistic path with numerous advice on almost every one of his works.

"For Larissa there was always only a yes or a no when judging my pieces"

She has always shaped a large part of Sylwestrow's work, but it was only after her death that he dedicated several pieces to her. One of them is the orchestral work Der Bote (1996), which can be described as "neo-classical". It is characterized by a deep sadness and a longing for Larissa. Another work is the Requiem for Larissa (1999), in which the dismay at Larissa's death is clearly palpable - also because it sounds very atonal . As in the Viennese Classic , he includes Latin texts from a funeral mass in his Requiem. However, from time to time he only hints at it briefly, stretches or shortens it - and thus creates space for the listener's own emotions.

Compositions

• Piano Sonatina (1960, rev. 1965)
• Quartetto Piccolo for string quartet (1961)
• Symphony No. 1 (1963, rev. 1974)
• Mysterium for alto flute and six percussion groups (1964)
• Spectra for chamber orchestra (1965)
• Monodia for piano and orchestra (1965)
• Symphony No. 2 for flute, timpani, piano and string orchestra (1965)
• Symphony No. 3 "Eschatophonie" (1966)
• Poem to the Memory of Borys Lyatoshynsky for orchestra (1968)
• Drama for violin, cello and piano (1970–1971)
• Meditation for cello and piano (1972)
• String Quartet No. 1 (1974)
• Thirteen Estrades Songs (1973–1975)
• Silent songs after Pushkin, Lermontov, Keats, Yesenin, Shevchenko, among others for baritone and piano (1974–1977)
• Symphony No. 4 for brass and strings (1976)
• Kitsch music , cycle of 5 pieces for piano (1977)
• Postlude for violin solo (1981)
• Postlude for cello and piano (1982)
• Symphony No. 5 (1980–1982)
• Ode to the Nightingale , cantata with a text by John Keats for soprano and small orchestra (1983)
• Postlude for piano and orchestra (1984)
• String Quartet No. 2 (1988)
• Dedication (Dedication), Symphony for Violin and Orchestra (1990-1991)
• Metamusic , symphonic poem for piano and orchestra (1992)
• Symphony No. 6 (1994-1995)
• Der Bote for synthesizer or piano and string orchestra (1996–1997)
• Requiem for Larissa for choir and orchestra (1997–1999)
• Epitaph for piano and string orchestra (1999)
• Epitaph LB for viola (or cello) and piano (1999)
• Autumn Serenade for Chamber Orchestra (2000)
• Requiem (2000)
• Hymn 2001 (2001)
• Symphony No. 7 (2002-2003)
• Lacrimosa for viola (or cello) solo (2004)
• Symphony No. 8 (2013)

Discography

• 1994 Dedication / Post Scriptum , Gidon Kremer (violin), Munich Philharmonic, conductor: Roman Kofman, Teldec
• 1995 Symphony No. 5 / Postludium , Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, conductor: David Robertson, Sony
• 2002 leggiero, pesante , ECM Records
• 2003 Metamusik Postludium , ECM Records
• 2004 Silent Songs , Sergey Yakovenko (baritone), Ilja Scheps (piano)
• 2004 Requiem for Larissa , ECM Records
• 2007 Symphony No. 6 , SWR Radio Symphony Orchestra, conductor: Andrey Boreyko, ECM Records
• 2007 Bagatelles and Serenades , ECM Records
• 2008 Drama, Post Scriptum, Epitaphium , Jenny Lin (piano), Cornellius Dufallo (violin), Yves Dharamraj (violoncello), Koch Records
• 2008 Symphony No. 6 , Beethoven Orchester Bonn, conductor: Roman Kofman, MDG
• 2009 Sacred Works , Kiev Chamber Choir, conductor: Mykola Hobdytsch, ECM Records
• 2009 Symphonies 4 & 5 , Lahti Symphony Orchestra, conductor: Jukka-Pekka Saraste, BIS
• 2013 Naive Musik (1955/1993) etc. , Elisaveta Blumina; Grand Piano, Naxos GP639.
• 2015: To Thee we Sing - Sacred Choral Works , Latvian Radio Choir, ONDINE

lectures

• Dočekatysja muzyky. Lekciï-besidy. Duch I Litera, Kiev 2011.

literature

• Alla Wajsband / Kostjantyn Sigov (ed.), ΣΥΜΠΟΣΙΟΝ. Зустрічі з Валентином Силвестовим. Duch i Litera, Kiev, 2013.
• Tatjana Frumkis: Echoes . ECM records, 2003.
• Hans-Klaus Jungheinrich: Valentin Silvestrov's “Metamusik” and “Postludium” . ECM records, 2003.
• Dorothea Redepenning: History of Russian and Soviet Music . Volume II.2: The 20th Century . Laaber-Verlag, Laaber 2008, ISBN 978-3-89007-709-3 .
• Olena Mychajlova:  Sylvestrov, Valentyn. In: Ludwig Finscher (Hrsg.): The music in past and present . Second edition, personal section, volume 16 (Strata - Villoteau). Bärenreiter / Metzler, Kassel et al. 2006, ISBN 3-7618-1136-5  ( online edition , subscription required for full access)
• Hannelore Gerlach: Fifty Soviet Composers of the Present. Edition Peters, Leipzig / Dresden 1984, DNB 870816152 , pp. 421-426.
• Svetlana Savenko: Valentin Silvestrov's lyrical universe . In: Valeria Tsenova (Ed.): Underground Music from the Former USSR . Harwood Academic Publishers, Amsterdam 1997, ISBN 3-7186-5821-6 , pp. 66-83 .

Movie

• Dorian Supin: Dialogues The composer Valentin Silvestrov . A production by Minor Film in coproduction with ZDF in collaboration with arte, 2008.

Web links

• The antihero of the avant-garde: Valentin Silvestrov , a conversation with the Ukrainian composer about what the soul of his «meta-music» could be. December 21, 2016, Editor: Theresa Beyer, Radio SRF 2 Kultur .
• He composes music with no beginning or end , a portrait of Andreas Zurbriggen on his 75th birthday , published in the Tages-Anzeiger .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ According to Sylwestrow, at that time "some drunk appeared as a representative of the proletariat and began to talk about the party". Sylwestrow stood up and said: "Who actually paid you the vodka?" This statement resulted in the expulsion from the association.
2. ↑ List of commissions from the Koussevitzky Foundation