An Introduction to Tchaikovsky's Operas

An Introduction to Tchaikovsky's Operas PDF Author: Henry Zajaczkowski
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313068135
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
Known primarily as the composer of The Nutcracker Suite and other legendary pieces, Tchaikovsky was also a noted musical dramatist. Here, in the first book devoted to the subject, his operas are explored in depth: from his two most famous, Eugene Oneginand The Queen of Spades, to such lesser-known works as The Maid of Orléans. The social and psychological complexity of these operas, not to mention their musical brilliance, confirm Tchaikovsky's reputation as his country's greatest opera composer. He displayed great versatility in the range of genres in which he worked, from the tragic to the fantastical, the allegorical to the comic, and he employed a rich variety of musical styles, creating operas that are still performed widely today. In this thorough and engaging examination, author Henry Zajaczkowski both assesses and re-appraises these works. He provides an overview of Tchaikovsky's opera career, complete with synopses, musical and dramatic analysis, and historical context that places the composer in the pantheon of great masters of the form.

An Introduction to Tchaikovsky's Operas

An Introduction to Tchaikovsky's Operas PDF Author: Henry Zajaczkowski
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313068135
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
Known primarily as the composer of The Nutcracker Suite and other legendary pieces, Tchaikovsky was also a noted musical dramatist. Here, in the first book devoted to the subject, his operas are explored in depth: from his two most famous, Eugene Oneginand The Queen of Spades, to such lesser-known works as The Maid of Orléans. The social and psychological complexity of these operas, not to mention their musical brilliance, confirm Tchaikovsky's reputation as his country's greatest opera composer. He displayed great versatility in the range of genres in which he worked, from the tragic to the fantastical, the allegorical to the comic, and he employed a rich variety of musical styles, creating operas that are still performed widely today. In this thorough and engaging examination, author Henry Zajaczkowski both assesses and re-appraises these works. He provides an overview of Tchaikovsky's opera career, complete with synopses, musical and dramatic analysis, and historical context that places the composer in the pantheon of great masters of the form.

Pëtr Il’ich Tchaikovsky

Pëtr Il’ich Tchaikovsky PDF Author: Gerald R. Seaman
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317303091
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 495

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Book Description
Pëtr Il’ich Tchaikovsky: A Research and Information Guide is an annotated bibliography of substantial, relevant published resources relating to the Russian composer. Generally regarded as one of the most remarkable composers of the second half of the nineteenth century, Tchaikovsky is unique in that he was the first outstanding Russian composer to receive a professional musical education, being one of the first students to graduate from the newly opened St. Petersburg Conservatory. Composer of six symphonies, concertos, orchestral works, eight major operas, three ballets, and many chamber, keyboard and vocal works, he also composed important sacred music, which is currently being reassessed by contemporary Russian musicologists who are able to examine materials previously restricted or inaccessible during the Soviet period. Like his colleagues in St. Petersburg, Tchaikovsky was deeply interested in Russian folk song, which plays an important part in his works. This volume evaluates the major studies written about the composer, incorporating new information that has appeared in literary publications, articles and reviews.

Historical Dictionary of Opera

Historical Dictionary of Opera PDF Author: Scott L. Balthazar
Publisher: Scarecrow Press
ISBN: 0810879433
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 564

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Book Description
Opera has been around ever since the late 16th century, and it is still going strong in the sense that operas are performed around the world at present, and known by infinitely more persons than just those who attend performances. On the other hand, it has enjoyed periods in the past when more operas were produced to greater acclaim. Those periods inevitably have pride of place in this Historical Dictionary of Opera, as do exceptional singers, and others who combine to fashion the opera, whether or not they appear on stage. But this volume looks even further afield, considering the cities which were and still are opera centers, literary works which were turned into librettos, and types of pieces and genres. While some of the former can be found on the web or in other sources, most of the latter cannot and it is impossible to have the whole picture without them. Indeed, this book has an amazingly broad scope. The dictionary section, with about 340 entries, covers the topics mentioned above but obviously focuses most on composers, not just the likes of Mozart, Verdi and Wagner, but others who are scarcely remembered but made notable contributions. Of course, there are the divas, but others singers as well, and some of the most familiar operas, Don Giovanni, Tosca and more. Technical terms also abound, and reference to different genres, from antimasque to zarzuela. Since opera has been around so long, the chronology is rather lengthy, since it has a lot of ground to cover, and the introduction sets the scene for the rest. This book should not be an end but rather a beginning, so it has a substantial bibliography for readers seeking more specific or specialized works. It is an excellent access point for readers interested in opera.

Not Russian Enough?

Not Russian Enough? PDF Author: Rutger Helmers
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
ISBN: 1580465005
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
Offers fresh perspectives on the function of nationalist thought in the cosmopolitan opera world, with particular emphasis on the idea of "Russianness" in four nineteenth-century operas by Glinka, Serov, Tchaikovsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov. In the nineteenth century, Russian composers and critics were encouraged to cultivate a national style to distinguish their music from the dominant Italian, French, and German traditions. Not Russian Enough? explores this aspiration for a nationalist musical tradition as it was carried out in the cosmopolitan world of opera. Rutger Helmers analyzes the cultural context, music, and reception of four important operas: Glinka's A Life for the Tsar (1836), Serov's Judith (1863), Tchaikovsky's The Maid of Orléans (1881), and Rimsky-Korsakov's The Tsar's Bride (1899). He discusses such issues as the influence of Italian and French opera, the use of foreign subjects, the application of local color, and the adherence to the classics, and considers how these related to a sense of "Russianness." Besides yielding new insights for each of these works, this study offers a fresh perspective on the function of nationalist thought in the nineteenth-century Russian opera world.. Rutger Helmers is Assistant Professor in Historical Musicology at the University of Amsterdam and lectures in literary and cultural studies at Radboud University Nijmegen.

Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky PDF Author: Roland John Wiley
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199709211
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 585

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Book Description
A giant in the pantheon of 19th century composers, Tchaikovsky continues to enthrall audiences today. From the Nutcracker--arguably the most popular ballet currently on the boards--Swan Lake, and Sleeping Beauty, to Eugene Onegin and Pique Dame, to the Symphony Pathetique and the always rousing, canon-blasting 1812 Overture--this prolific and beloved composer's works are perennial favorites. Now, John Wiley, a renowned Tchaikovsky scholar, provides a fresh biography aimed in classic Master Musicians style at the student and music lover. Wiley deftly draws on documents from imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet era sources, providing a more balanced look at recent controversies surrounding the marriage, death, and sexuality of the composer. The author dovetails the biographical material with separate chapters that treat the music thoroughly and fully, work-by-work, with more substantial explorations of Tchaikovsky's most familiar compositions. These analyses present new, even iconoclastic perspectives on the music and the composer's intent and expression. Several informative appendices, in the Master Musicians format, include an exhaustive list of works and bibliography.

The Life and Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky

The Life and Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky PDF Author: Modest Chaĭkovskiĭ
Publisher: London ; New York : J. Lane
ISBN:
Category : Composers
Languages : en
Pages : 854

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Book Description


Tchaikovsky and His World

Tchaikovsky and His World PDF Author: Leslie Kearney
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400864887
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 383

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Book Description
Tchaikovsky has long intrigued music-lovers as a figure who straddles many borders--between East and West, nationalism and cosmopolitanism, tradition and innovation, tenderness and bombast, masculine and feminine. In this book, through consideration of his music and biography, scholars from several disciplines explore the many sides of Tchaikovsky. The volume presents for the first time in English some of Tchaikovsky's own writings about music, as well as three influential articles, previously available only in German, from the 1993 Tübingen conference commemorating the centennial of Tchaikovsky's death. Tchaikovsky's distinguished biographer, Alexander Poznansky, reveals new findings from his most recent archival explorations in Kiln, Tchaikovsky's home. Poznansky makes accessible for the first time the full text of perviously censored letters, clarifying issues about the composer's life that until now have remained mere conjecture. Leon Botstein examines the world of realist art that was so influential in Tchaikovsky's day, while Janet Kennedy describes how interpretations of Tchaikovsky's ballet Sleeping Beauty act as a barometer of the aesthetic and even political climate of several generations. Natalia Minibayeva elucidates the First Orchestral Suite as a workshop for Tchaikovsky's composition of large-scale works, including symphony, opera, and ballet, while Susanne Dammann discusses the problematic Fourth Symphony as a work perfectly poised between East and West. Arkadii Klimovitsky considers Tchaikovsky's role as a link between Russia's Golden and Silver Ages. The extensive interaction between music and literature in this period forms the basis for Rosamund Bartlett's essay on creative parallels between Tchaikovsky and Chekhov. Richard Wortman describes the political climate at the end of Tchaikovsky's life, including Alexander III's mania for re-creating seventeenth-century Russian culture. Caryl Emerson, Kadja Grönke, and Leslie Kearney examine a number of issues raised by Tchaikovsky's operas. Marina Kostalevsky translates Nikolai Kashkin's 1899 review of Tchaikovsky's controversial opera Orleanskaia Deva (The Maid of Orleans). The book concludes with examples of theoretical writing by Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov, authors of Russia's first two systematic books on music theory. Lyle Neff translates and provides commentary on compositional issues that Tchaikovsky discusses in personal correspondence, as well as Rimsky-Korsakov's analysis of his own opera Snegurochka (The Snow Maiden). Tchaikovsky and His World will change how we understand the life, works, and intellectual milieu of one of the most important and beloved composers of the nineteenth century. Originally published in 1998. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Ballet and Opera in the Age of Giselle

Ballet and Opera in the Age of Giselle PDF Author: Marian Smith
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691146497
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 329

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Book Description
Marian Smith recaptures a rich period in French musical theater when ballet and opera were intimately connected. Focusing on the age of Giselle at the Paris Opéra (from the 1830s through the 1840s), Smith offers an unprecedented look at the structural and thematic relationship between the two genres. She argues that a deeper understanding of both ballet and opera--and of nineteenth-century theater-going culture in general--may be gained by examining them within the same framework instead of following the usual practice of telling their histories separately. This handsomely illustrated book ultimately provides a new portrait of the Opéra during a period long celebrated for its box-office successes in both genres. Smith begins by showing how gestures were encoded in the musical language that composers used in ballet and in opera. She moves on to a wide range of topics, including the relationship between the gestures of the singers and the movements of the dancers, and the distinction between dance that represents dancing (entertainment staged within the story of the opera) and dance that represents action. Smith maintains that ballet-pantomime and opera continued to rely on each other well into the nineteenth century, even as they thrived independently. The "divorce" between the two arts occurred little by little, and may be traced through unlikely sources: controversies in the press about the changing nature of ballet-pantomime music, shifting ideas about originality, complaints about the ridiculousness of pantomime, and a little-known rehearsal score for Giselle. ?

Tchaikovsky

Tchaikovsky PDF Author: Edwin Evans
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 246

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Book Description


Eugene Onegin Libretto

Eugene Onegin Libretto PDF Author: Konstantin Shilovsky
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781540361943
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 50

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Book Description
This edition includes a line by line English translation together with the native Russian (written in Cyrillic) for the opera goer.