Blaramberg cannot be omitted from a history of Russian opera. The son of
a distinguished General of French extraction, he was born in Orenburg,
September 14/26, 1841. His first impulsion towards a musical career
originated in his acquaintance with Balakirev's circle; but his
relations with the nationalist school must have been fleeting, as some
time during the 'sixties he went abroad for a long stay, and on his
return to Russia, in 1870, he settled in Moscow, where he divided his
time between writing for the _Moscow Viedomosty_ and teaching theory in
the Philharmonic School. Later on he went to live on an estate belonging
to him in the Crimea.
Blaramberg has written five operas in all. _Skomorokhi_ (_The Mummers_),
a comic opera in three acts, based on one of Ostrovsky's comedies, was
composed in 1881, and was partly produced by the pupils of the opera
class of the Moscow Philharmonic Society, in the Little Theatre, in
1887. The opera is a curious blend, some portions of it being in the
declamatory manner of Dargomijsky, without his expressive realism, and
others in the conventional style of _opera buffa_, degenerating at times
into mere farcical patter-singing. It contains, however, a few
successful numbers in the folk-style, especially the love-duet in 5-4
measure, and shows the influence of the national school. The music of
_The Roussalka-Maiden_ is more cohesive, and written with a clearer
sense of form. There are fresh and pleasant pages in this work, in which
local colour is used with unaffected simplicity. Blaramberg's third
opera, _Mary of Burgundy_, is a more pretentious work, obviously
inspired by Meyerbeer. The subject is borrowed from Victor Hugo's drama
"Marie Tudor." It was produced at the Imperial Opera House, Moscow, in
1888. In his fourth opera, Blaramberg has not been fortunate in his
choice of a libretto, which is based upon one of Ostrovsky's "Dramatic
Chronicles," _Toushino_--rather a dull historical play dating from 1606,
the period of Boris Godounov's regency. Strong, direct, elementary
treatment, such as it might have received at the hands of Moussorgsky,
could alone have invested the subject with dramatic interest; whereas
Blaramberg has clothed it in music of rather conventional and insipid
character. In common with _Skomorokhi_, however, the work contains some
admirable touches of national colour, the composer imitating the style
of the folk-singing with considerable success. Blaramberg's fifth
operatic work, entitled _The Wave_ (_Volna_), is described as "an Idyll
in two acts," the subject borrowed from Byron's "Don Juan": namely, the
episode of Haidée's love for Don Juan, who is cast at her feet
"half-senseless from the sea." Of this work Cheshikin says: "It consists
of a series of duets and trios, with a set of Eastern dances and a
ballad for bass, thrown in for variety's sake, but having no real
connection with the plot. The music is reminiscent of Gounod; the melody
is of the popular order, but not altogether commonplace, and embellished
by Oriental _fiorituri_." An atmosphere of Eastern languor pervades the
whole opera, which may be attributed to the composer's long sojourn in
the Crimea.
A name more distinguished in the annals of Russian music is that of
Anton Stepanovich Arensky, born in Old Novgorod, in 1861. The son of a
medical man, he received his musical education at the St. Petersburg
Conservatoire, where he studied under Rimsky-Korsakov. On leaving this
institution, in 1882, he was appointed to a professorship at the Moscow
Conservatoire. He was also a member of the Council of the Synodal School
of Church Music at Moscow, and conducted the concerts of the Russian
choral society for a period of over seven years. In 1894, Balakirev
recommended Arensky for the Directorship of the Imperial Chapel at St.
Petersburg, a post which he held until 1901. Arensky's first opera _A
Dream on the Volga_ was produced at the Imperial Opera House, Moscow, in
December 1892. The work was not given in St. Petersburg until 1903, when
it was performed at the People's Palace. The subject is identical with
Ostrovsky's comedy "The Voyevode," which the dramatist himself arranged
for Tchaikovsky's use in 1867. Tchaikovsky, as we have seen, destroyed
the greater part of the opera which he wrote to this libretto, but the
manuscript of the book remained, and in 1882, at Arensky's request, he
handed it over to him "with his benediction." Arensky approached the
subject in a different spirit to Tchaikovsky, giving to his music
greater dramatic force and veracity, and making more of the Russian
element contained in the play. The scene entitled "The Voyevode's
Dream," in the fourth act, in which the startled, nightmare cries of the
guilty old Voyevode are heard in strange contrast to the lullaby sung by
the old woman as she rocks the child in the cradle, is highly
effective. In his use of the folk-tunes Arensky follows Melgounov's
system of the "natural minor," and his handling of national themes is
always appropriate and interesting. His harmonisation and elaboration by
means of variations of the familiar tune "Down by Mother Volga" is an
excellent example of his skill in this respect. Arensky's melody has not
the sweeping lines and sustained power of Tchaikovsky's, but his
tendency is lyrical and romantic rather than realistic and declamatory,
and his use of arioso is marked by breadth and clearness of outline.
Arensky's second opera _Raphael_ was composed for the first Congress of
Russian Artists held in Moscow; the occasion probably gives us the clue
to his choice of subject. The first production of the opera took place
in April 1894, and in the autumn of the following year it was given at
the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg. The part of Raphael, which is
written for a female voice, was sung by Slavina, La Fornarina being
represented by Mravina. The work consists of a series of small
delicately wrought musical cameos. By its tenderness and sweet romantic
fancy the music often recalls Tchaikovsky's _Eugene Oniegin_; but it is
more closely united with the text, and greater attention is paid to the
natural accentuation of the words. Between _Raphael_ and his last
opera, _Nal and Damyanti_, Arensky wrote music to Poushkin's poem "The
Fountain of Bakhchisarai," for the commemoration of the centenary of the
poet's birth. The analysis of this work does not come within the scope
of my subject, but I mention it because it was a great advance on any of
his previous vocal works and led up to the increased maturity shown in
_Nal and Damyanti_.
The libretto of this opera was prepared by Modeste Tchaikovsky from
Joukovsky's free translation of Rückert's poem. _Nal and Damyanti_ was
first performed at the Moscow Opera House in January 1904. Some external
influences are still apparent in the work, but they now proceed from
Wagner rather than from Tchaikovsky. The orchestral introduction, an
excellent piece of work, is occasionally heard in the concert room; it
depicts the strife between the spirits of light and darkness which forms
the basis of this Oriental poem. This opera is the most suitable for
stage performance of any of Arensky's works; the libretto is well
written, the plot holds our attention and the scenic effects follow in
swift succession. Here Arensky has thrown off the tendency to miniature
painting which is more or less perceptible in his earlier dramatic
works, and has produced an opera altogether on broader and stronger
lines. It is unfortunate, however, that he still shows a lack of
complete musical independence; as Cheshikin remarks: "from Tchaikovsky
to Wagner is rather an abrupt modulation!"
Perhaps the nearest approach to a recognised "school" now extant in
Russia is to be found in Moscow, where the influence of Tchaikovsky
lingers among a few of his direct disciples, such as Rachmaninov,
Grechyaninov, and Ippolitov-Ivanov.
Sergius Vassilievich Rachmaninov (b. 1873), so well known to us in
England as a pianist and composer of instrumental music, was a pupil of
the Moscow Conservatoire, where he studied under Taneiev and Arensky.
Dramatic music does not seem to exercise much attraction for this
composer. His one-act opera _Aleko_, the subject borrowed from
Poushkin's poem "The Gipsies," was originally written as a diploma work
for his final examination at the Conservatoire in 1872, and had the
honour of being produced at the Imperial Opera House, Moscow, in the
following season. _Aleko_ was given in St. Petersburg, at the Taurida
Palace, during the celebration of the Poushkin centenary in 1899, when
Shaliapin took part in the performance. It is a blend of the declamatory
and lyrical styles, and the music, though not strikingly original, runs
a pleasing, sympathetic, and somewhat uneventful course.
Alexander Tikhonovich Grechyaninov, born October 13/25 1864, in Moscow,
entered the Conservatoire of his native city where he made the
pianoforte his chief study under the guidance of Vassily Safonov. In
1893 he joined the St. Petersburg Conservatoire in order to learn
composition from Rimsky-Korsakov. The following year a quartet by him
won the prize at the competition organised by the St. Petersburg Chamber
Music Society. He wrote incidental music to Ostrovsky's "Snow Maiden"
and to Count Alexis Tolstoy's historical dramas "Tsar Feodor" and "Ivan
the Terrible" before attempting to compose the opera _Dobrynia Nikitich_
on the subject of one of the ancient _Byliny_ or national legends. The
introduction and third act of this work was first given in public in
February 1903, at one of Count Sheremetiev's popular concerts, and in
the following spring it was performed in its entirety at the Imperial
Opera House, with Shaliapin in the title rôle. It is a picturesque,
wholly lyrical work. Kashkin describes the music as agreeable and
flowing, even in those scenes where the nature of the subject demands a
more robust and vigorous musical treatment. _Dobrynia Nikitich_
obviously owes much to Glinka's _Russlan_ and _Liudmilla_ and Borodin's
_Prince Igor_.
[Illustration: SHALIAPIN IN BOÏTO'S "MEFISTOFELE"]
Another musician who is clearly influenced by Tchaikovsky is Michael
Ippolitov-Ivanov (b. 1859), a distinguished pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov
at the St. Petersburg Conservatoire. He was afterwards appointed
Director of the School of Music, and of the Opera, at Tiflis in the
Caucasus, where his first opera _Ruth_ was produced in 1887. In 1893 he
accepted a professorship at the Moscow Conservatoire, and became
conductor of the Private Opera Company. Ippolitov-Ivanov is a great
connoisseur of the music of the Caucasian races, and also of the old
Hebrew melodies. He makes good use of the latter in _Ruth_, a graceful,
idyllic opera, the libretto of which does not keep very strictly to
Biblical traditions. In 1900 Ippolitov-Ivanov's second opera
_Assya_--the libretto borrowed from Tourgeniev's tale which bears the
same title--was produced in Moscow by the Private Opera Company. The
tender melancholy sentiment of the music reflects the influence of
Tchaikovsky's _Eugene Oniegin_; but by way of contrast there are some
lively scenes from German student life.
With the foregoing composers we may link the name of Vassily Sergeivich
Kalinnikov (1866-1900), who is known in this country by his Symphonies
in G minor and A major. He composed incidental music to Count Alexis
Tolstoy's play "Tsar Boris" (Little Theatre, Moscow, 1897) and the
Prologue to an opera entitled _The Year 1812_, which was never finished
in consequence of the musician's failing health and untimely death.
Kalinnikov hardly had time to outgrow his early phase of Tchaikovsky
worship.
Another Muscovite composer of widely different temperament to
Ippolitov-Ivanov, or Kalinnikov, is Sergius Ivanovich Taneiev,[51] born
November 13/25, 1856, in the Government of Vladimir. He studied under
Nicholas Rubinstein and Tchaikovsky at the Moscow Conservatoire and made
his début as a pianist at one of the concerts of the I.R.M.S. in 1875.
He remained Tchaikovsky's friend long after he had ceased to be his
pupil, and among the many letters they exchanged in after years there is
one published in Tchaikovsky's "Life and Letters," dated January 14/26,
1891, which appears to be a reply to Taneiev's question: "How should
Opera be written?" At this time Taneiev was engaged upon his _Orestes_,
the only work of the kind he has ever composed. The libretto, based upon
the Aeschylean tragedy, is the work of Benkstern and has considerable
literary merit. _Orestes_, although described by Taneiev as a Trilogy,
is, in fact, an opera in three acts entitled respectively: (1)
Agamemnon, (2) Choephoroe, (3) Eumenides. Neither in his choice of
subject, nor in his treatment of it, has Taneiev followed the advice
given him by Tchaikovsky in the letter mentioned above. Perhaps it was
not in his nature to write opera "just as it came to him," or to show
much emotional expansiveness. Neither does he attempt to write music
which is archaic in style; on the contrary, _Orestes_ is in many
respects a purely Wagnerian opera. _Leitmotifs_ are used freely, though
less systematically than in the later Wagnerian music-dramas. The opera,
though somewhat cold and laboured, is not wanting in dignity, and is
obviously the work of a highly educated musician. The representative
themes, if they are rather short-winded, are often very expressive; this
is the case with the _leitmotif_ of the ordeal of Orestes, which stands
out prominently in the first part of the work, and also forms the motive
of the short introduction to the Trilogy.
Towards the close of last century the new tendencies which are labelled
respectively "impressionism," "decadence," and "symbolism," according to
the point of view from which they are being discussed, began to make
themselves felt in Russian art, resulting in a partial reaction from the
vigorous realism of the 'sixties and 'seventies, and also from the
academic romanticism which was the prevalent note of the cosmopolitan
Russian school. What Debussy had derived from his study of Moussorgsky
and other Russian composers, the Slavs now began to take back with
interest from the members of the younger French school. The flattering
tribute of imitation hitherto offered to Glinka, Tchaikovsky, and Wagner
was now to be transferred to Gabriel Fauré, Debussy, and Ravel. In two
composers this new current of thought is clearly observed.
Vladimir Ivanovich Rebikov (b. 1866) received most of his musical
education in Berlin and Vienna. On his return to Russia he settled for a
time at Odessa, where his first opera _In the Storm_ was produced in
1894. A few years later he organised a new branch of the I.R.M.S. at
Kishiniev, but in 1901 he took up his abode permanently in Moscow.
Rebikov has expressed his own musical creed in the following words:
"Music is the language of the emotions. Our emotions have neither
starting point, definite form, nor ending: when we transmit them through
music it should be in conformity with this point of view."[52] Acting
upon this theory, Rebikov's music, though it contains a good deal that
is original, leaves an impression of vagueness and formlessness on the
average mind; not, of course, as compared with the very latest examples
of modernism, but in comparison with what immediately precedes it in
Russian music. In his early opera _In the Storm_, based on Korolenko's
legend "The Forest is Murmuring" (_Liess Shoumit_), the influence of
Tchaikovsky is still apparent. His second work, _The Christmas Tree_,
was produced at the Aquarium Theatre, Moscow, in 1903. Cheshikin says
that the libretto is a combination of one of Dostoievsky's tales with
Hans Andersen's "The Little Match-Girl" and Hauptmann's "Hannele." The
contrast between the sad reality of life and the bright visions of
Christmastide lend themselves to scenic effects. The music is
interesting by reason of its extreme modern tendencies. The opera
contains several orchestral numbers which seem to have escaped the
attention of enterprising conductors--a Valse, a March of Gnomes, a
Dance of Mummers, and a Dance of Chinese Dolls.
The second composer to whom I referred as showing signs of French
impressionist influence is Serge Vassilenko (b. 1872, Moscow). He first
came before the public in 1902 with a Cantata, _The Legend of the City
of Kitezh_. Like Rachmaninov's _Aleko_, this was also a diploma work.
The following year it was given in operatic form by the Private Opera
Company in Moscow. Some account of the beautiful mystical legend of the
city that was miraculously saved from the Tatars by the fervent prayers
of its inhabitants has already been given in the chapter dealing with
Rimsky-Korsakov. It remains to be said that Vassilenko's treatment of
the subject is in many ways strong and original. He is remarkably
successful in reviving the remote, fantastic, rather austere atmosphere
of Old Russia, and uses Slavonic and Tatar melodies in effective
contrast. The work, which does not appear to have become a repertory
opera, is worth the study of those who are interested in folk-music.
There is little satisfaction in presenting my readers with a mere list
of names, but space does not permit me to do much more in the case of
the following composers:
G. A. Kazachenko (b. 1858), of Malo-Russian origin, has written two
operas: _Prince Serebryany_ (1892) and _Pan Sotnik_ (1902),[53] which
have met with some success. A. N. Korestchenko, the composer of
_Belshazzar's Feast_ (1892), _The Angel of Death_ (Lermontov), and _The
Ice Palace_ (1900). N. R. Kochetov, whose _Terrible Revenge_ (Gogol) was
produced in St. Petersburg in 1897; and Lissenko, sometimes called "the
Malo-Russian Glinka," the composer of a whole series of operas that
enjoy some popularity in the southern provinces of Russia.
This list is by no means exhaustive, for the proportion of Russian
composers who have produced operatic works is a striking fact in the
artistic history of the country--a phenomenon which can only be
attributed to the encouragement held out to musicians by the great and
increasing number of theatres scattered over the vast surface of the
Empire.
As we have seen, all the leading representatives of Russian music,
whether they belonged to the nationalist movement or not, occupied
themselves with opera. There are, however, two distinguished exceptions.
Anatol Constantinovich Liadov (b. 1855) and Alexander Constantinovich
Glazounov (b. 1865) were both members, at any rate for a certain period
of their lives, of the circles of Balakirev and Belaiev, but neither of
them have shared the common attraction to dramatic music. Glazounov, it
is true, has written some remarkably successful ballets--"Raymonda" and
"The Seasons"--but shows no inclination to deal with the problems of
operatic style.
The "opera-ballet," which is not--what at the present moment it is
frequently being called--a new form of operatic art, but merely the
revival of an old one,[54] is engaging the attention of the followers of
Rimsky-Korsakov. At the same time it should be observed that the
application of this term to _A Night in May_ and _The Golden Cock_ is
not sanctioned by what the composer himself has inscribed upon the title
pages.
At the present time the musical world is eagerly expecting the
production of Igor Stravinsky's first opera _The Nightingale_. This
composer, by his ballets _The Bird of Fire_, _Petrouchka_, and _The
Sacrifice to Spring_, has worked us up through a steady _crescendo_ of
interest to a climax of curiosity as to what he will produce next. So
far, we know him only as the composer of highly original and often
brilliant instrumental works. It is difficult to prophesy what his
treatment of the vocal element in music may prove to be. The work is in
three acts, based upon Hans Andersen's story of the Emperor of China and
the Nightingale. The opera was begun several years ago, and we are
therefore prepared to find in it some inequality of style; but the
greater part of it, so we are told, bears the stamp of Stravinsky's
"advanced" manner, and the fundamental independence and novelty of the
score of _The Sacrifice to Spring_ leads us to expect in _The
Nightingale_ a work of no ordinary power.
Russia, from the earliest institution of her opera houses, has always
been well served as regards foreign artists. All the great European
stars have been attracted there by the princely terms offered for their
services. Russian opera, however, had to be contented for a long period
with second-rate singers. Gradually the natural talent of the race was
cultivated, and native singers appeared upon the scene who were equal in
every respect to those imported from abroad. The country has always been
rich in bass and baritone voices. One of the most remarkable singers of
the last century, O. A. Petrov (1807-1878), was a bass-baritone of a
beautiful quality, with a compass extending from B to G sharp. He made
his début at the Imperial Opera, St. Petersburg, in 1830, as Zoroaster
in "The Magic Flute." Stassov often spoke to me of this great artist,
the operatic favourite of his young days. There were few operatic stars,
at least at that period, who did not--so Stassov declared--make
themselves ridiculous at times. Petrov was the exception. He was a great
actor; his facial play was varied and expressive, without the least
exaggeration; he was picturesque, forcible, graceful, and, above all,
absolutely free from conventional pose. His interpretation of the parts
of Ivan Sousanin in _A Life for the Tsar_, the Miller in _The
Roussalka_, of Leporello in _The Stone Guest_, and, even in his last
days, of Varlaam in _Boris Godounov_, were inimitable for their depth of
feeling, historic truth, intellectual grasp, and sincerity. Artistically
speaking, Petrov begat Shaliapin.
To Petrov succeeded Melnikov, a self-taught singer, who was particularly
fine in the parts of Russlan, the Miller, and Boris Godounov. Among true
basses Karyakin possessed a phenomenal voice, but not much culture. A
critic once aptly compared his notes for power, depth, and roundness to
a row of mighty oaken barrels.
Cui, in his "Recollections of the Opera," speaks of the following
artists, stars of the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, between 1872
and 1885: Menshikova, who possessed a powerful soprano voice of rare
beauty; Raab, who was musically gifted; Levitskaya, distinguished for
her sympathetic qualities, and Pavlovskaya, a remarkably intelligent and
"clever" artist. But his brightest memories of this period centre around
Platonova. Her voice was not of exceptional beauty, but she was so
naturally gifted, and her impersonation so expressive, that she never
failed to make a profound impression. "How she loved Russian art," says
Cui, "and with what devotion she was prepared to serve it in comparison
with most of the favourite singers of the day! None of us native
composers, old or young, could have dispensed with her. The entire
Russian repertory rested on her, and she bore the burden courageously
and triumphantly." Her best parts were Antonida in _A Life for the
Tsar_, Natasha in _The Roussalka_, Marina in _Boris Godounov_, and
Donna Anna in _The Stone Guest_.
Among contraltos, after Leonova's day, Lavrovskaya and Kroutikova were
the most popular. The tenors Nikolsky, Orlov, and Vassiliev all had fine
voices. Orlov was good as Michael Toucha in _The Maid of Pskov_; while
Vassiliev's best part was the King of Berendei in Rimsky-Korsakov's
_Snow Maiden_. Another tenor, whose reputation however was chiefly made
abroad, was Andreiev.
Later on, during the 'eighties and 'nineties, Kamenskaya, a fine
soprano, was inimitable in the part of Rogneda (Serov), and in
Tchaikovsky's _Maid of Orleans_. Dolina, a rich and resonant
mezzo-soprano, excelled as Ratmir in Glinka's _Russlan_. Slavina, whose
greatest success was in Bizet's "Carmen," and Mravina, a high
_coloratura_ soprano, were both favourites at this time. To this period
also belong the triumphs of the Figners--husband and wife. Medea Figner
was perhaps at her best as Carmen, and her husband was an admirable Don
José, but it is as the creator of Lensky in _Eugene Oniegin_, and of
Herman in _The Queen of Spades_ that he will live in the affections of
the Russian public.
[Illustration: SHALIAPIN AS DON QUIXOTE]
In Feodor Ivanovich Shaliapin, Russia probably possesses the greatest
living operatic artist. Born February 1/13, 1873, in the picturesque
old city of Kazan, he is of peasant descent. He had practically no
education in childhood, and as regards both his intellectual and musical
culture he is, to all intents and purposes, an autodidact. For a time he
is said to have worked with a shoe-maker in the same street where Maxim
Gorky was toiling in the baker's underground shop, so graphically
described in his tale "Twenty-six and One." For a short period Shaliapin
sang in the Archbishop's choir, but at seventeen he joined a local
operetta company which was almost on the verge of bankruptcy. When no
pay was forthcoming, he earned a precarious livelihood by frequenting
the railway station and doing the work of an outporter. He was often
perilously near starvation. Later on, he went with a travelling company
of Malo-Russians to the region of the Caspian and the Caucasus. On this
tour he sang--and danced, when occasion demanded. In 1892 he found
himself in Tiflis, where his voice and talents attracted the attention
of a well-known singer Oussatov, who gave him some lessons and got him
engaged at the opera in that town. He made his début at Tiflis in _A
Life for the Tsar_. In 1894 he sang in St. Petersburg, at the Summer
Theatre in the Aquarium, and also at the Panaevsky Theatre. The
following year he was engaged at the Maryinsky Theatre, but the
authorities seem to have been blind to the fact that in Shaliapin
they had acquired a second Petrov. His appearances there were not very
frequent. It was not until 1896, when the lawyer-millionaire Mamantov
paid the fine which released him from the service of the Imperial Opera
House, and invited him to join the Private Opera Company at Moscow, that
Shaliapin got his great chance in life. He became at once the idol of
the Muscovites, and admirers journeyed from St. Petersburg and the
provinces to hear him. When I visited St. Petersburg in 1897, I found
Vladimir Stassov full of enthusiasm for the genius of Shaliapin.
Unluckily for me, the season of the Private Opera Company had just come
to an end, but I learnt at secondhand to know and appreciate Shaliapin
in all his great impersonations. By 1899 the Imperial Opera of Moscow
had engaged him at a salary of 60,000 roubles a year. His fame soon
spread abroad and he was in request at Monte Carlo, Buenos Aires, and
Milan; in the last named city he married, and installed himself in a
house there for a time. Visits to New York and Paris followed early in
this century, and finally, through the enterprise of Sir Joseph Beecham,
London had an opportunity of hearing this great artist during the season
of 1913. Speaking to me of his London experiences, Shaliapin was
evidently deeply moved by, and not a little astonished at, the
enthusiastic welcome accorded to him and to his compatriots. He had, of
course, been told that we were a cold and phlegmatic race, but he found
in our midst such heart-felt warmth and sincerity as he had never before
experienced outside Russia.
Shaliapin's romantic history has proved a congenial soil for the growth
of all manner of sensational tales and legends around his life and
personality. They make amusing material for newspaper and magazine
articles; but as I am here concerned with history rather than with
fiction, I will forbear to repeat more than one anecdote connected with
his career. The incident was related to me by a famous Russian musician.
I will not, however, vouch for its veracity, but only for its highly
picturesque and dramatic qualities. A few years ago the chorus of the
Imperial Opera House desired to present a petition to the Emperor. It
was arranged that after one of the earlier scenes in _Boris Godounov_
the curtain should be rung up again, and the chorus should be discovered
kneeling in an attitude of supplication, their faces turned towards the
Imperial box, while their chosen representative should offer the
petition to the "exalted personage" who was attending the opera that
night. When the curtain went up for the second time it disclosed an
unrehearsed effect. Shaliapin, who was not aware of the presentation of
the petition by the chorus, had not left the stage in time. There, among
the crowd of humble petitioners, stood Tsar Boris; dignified, colossal,
the very personification of kingly authority, in his superb robes of
cloth of gold, with the crown of Monomakh upon his head. For one
thrilling, sensational moment Tsar Boris stood face to face with Tsar
Nicholas II.; then some swift impulse, born of custom, of good taste, or
of the innate spirit of loyalty that lurks in every Russian heart,
brought the dramatic situation to an end. Tsar Boris dropped on one
knee, mingling with the supplicating crowd, and etiquette triumphed, to
the inward mortification of a contingent of hot-headed young
revolutionists who had hoped to see him defy convention to the last.
In Russia, where some kind of political _leitmotif_ is bound to
accompany a great personality through life, however much he may wish to
disassociate himself from it, attempts have been made to identify
Shaliapin with the extreme radical party. It is sufficient, and much
nearer the truth, to say that he is a patriot, with all that the word
implies of love for one's country as it is, and hope for what its
destinies may yet be. Shaliapin could not be otherwise than patriotic,
seeing that he is Russian through and through. When we are in his
society the two qualities which immediately rivet our attention are his
Herculean virility and his _Russian-ness_. He is Russian in his
sincerity and candour, in his broad human sympathies, and in a certain
child-like simplicity which is particularly engaging in this
much-worshipped popular favourite. He is Russian, too, in his extremes
of mood, which are reflected so clearly in his facial expression. Silent
and in repose, he has the look of almost tragic sadness and patient
endurance common in the peasant types of Great Russia. But suddenly his
whole face is lit up with a smile which is full of drollery, and his
humour is frank and infectious.
As an actor his greatest quality appears to me to be his extraordinary
gift of identification with the character he is representing. Shaliapin
does not merely throw himself into the part, to use a phrase commonly
applied to the histrionic art. He seems to disappear, to empty himself
of all personality, that Boris Godounov or Ivan the Terrible may be
re-incarnated for us. It might pass for some occult process; but it is
only consummate art. While working out his own conception of a part,
unmoved by convention or opinion, Shaliapin neglects no accessory study
that can heighten the realism of his interpretation. It is impossible to
see him as Ivan the Terrible, or Boris, without realising that he is
steeped in the history of those periods, which live again at his
will.[55] In the same way he has studied the masterpieces of Russian art
to good purpose, as all must agree who have compared the scene of Ivan's
frenzied grief over the corpse of Olga, in the last scene of
Rimsky-Korsakov's opera, with Repin's terrible picture of the Tsar,
clasping in his arms the body of the son whom he has just killed in a
fit of insane anger. The agonising remorse and piteous senile grief have
been transferred from Repin's canvas to Shaliapin's living picture,
without the revolting suggestion of the shambles which mars the
painter's work. Sometimes, too, Shaliapin will take a hint from the
living model. His dignified make-up as the Old Believer Dositheus, in
Moussorgsky's _Khovanstchina_, owes not a little to the personality of
Vladimir Stassov.
Here is an appreciation of Shaliapin which will be of special interest
to the vocalist:
"One of the most striking features of his technique is the remarkable
fidelity of word utterance which removes all sense of artificiality, so
frequently associated with operatic singing. His diction floats on a
beautiful cantilena, particularly in his _mezzo-voce_ singing,
which--though one would hardly expect it from a singer endowed with such
a noble bass voice--is one of the most telling features of his
performance. There is never any striving after vocal effects, and his
voice is always subservient to the words. This style of singing is
surely that which Wagner so continually demanded from his interpreters;
but it is the antithesis of that staccato 'Bayreuth bark' which a few
years ago so woefully misrepresented the master's ideal of fine lyric
diction. The atmosphere and tone-colour which Shaliapin imparts to his
singing are of such remarkable quality that one feels his interpretation
of Schubert's 'Doppelgänger' must of necessity be a thing of genius,
unapproachable by other contemporary singers. The range of his voice is
extensive, for though of considerable weight in the lower parts, his
upper register is remarkable in its conformity to his demands. The
sustained upper E natural with which he finishes that great song 'When
the king went forth to war,' is uttered with a delicate _pianissimo_
that would do credit to any lyric tenor or soprano. Yet his technique is
of that high order that never obtrudes itself upon the hearer. It is
always his servant, never his master. His readings are also his own, and
it is his absence of all conventionality that makes his singing of the
'Calunnia' aria from 'Il Barbiere' a thing of delight, so full of humour
is its interpretation, and so satisfying to the demands of the most
exacting '_bel cantist_.' The reason is not far to seek, for his method
is based upon a thoroughly sound breath control, which produces such
splendid _cantabile_ results. Every student should listen to this great
singer and profit by his art."[56]
A few concluding words as to the present conditions of opera in Russia.
They have greatly changed during the last thirty years. In St.
Petersburg the Maryinsky Theatre, erected in 1860, renovated in 1894,
and more or less reorganised in 1900, was for a long time the only
theatre available for Russian opera in the capital. In 1900 the People's
Palace, with a theatre that accommodates 1,200 spectators, was opened
with a performance of _A Life for the Tsar_; here the masterpieces of
national opera are now given from time to time at popular prices. Opera
is also given in the great hall of the Conservatoire, formerly the
"Great Theatre"; and occasionally in the "Little Theatre." In Moscow the
"Great Theatre" or Opera House is the official home of music-drama. It
now has as rivals, the Zimin Opera (under the management of S. I. Zimin)
and the National Opera. In 1897 the Moscow Private Opera Company was
started with the object of producing novelties by Russian composers,
and encouraging native opera in general. It was located at first in the
Solodovnikov Theatre, under the management of Vinter, and the
conductorship of Zeleny. It soon blossomed into a fine organisation when
S. Mamantov, a wealthy patron of art, came to its support. Through its
palmy days (1897-1900), Ippolitov-Ivanov was the conductor, and a whole
series of national operas by Cui, Rimsky-Korsakov, and others were
superbly staged. Shaliapin first made his mark at this time.
Numerous private opera companies sprang up in Russia about the close of
last century. Cheshikin gives a list of over sixty, mounting opera in
the provinces between 1896 and 1903; indeed the whole country from
Archangel to Astrakhan and from Vilna to Vladivostok seems to have been
covered by these enterprising managers; and the number has doubtless
increased in the last ten years. When, in addition to these, we reckon
the many centres which boast a state-supported opera house, it would
appear that Russians have not much to complain of as regards this form
of entertainment. But the surface of the country is vast, and there are
still districts where cultivated music, good or bad, is an unknown
enjoyment. Nor must we imagine that the standard of these provincial
private companies is always an exalted one, or that national operas, if
presented at all, are mounted as we are accustomed to see them in
Western Europe. We may hope that the case cited by a critic, of a Moscow
manager who produced Donizetti's "La Fille du Régiment" under the title
of "A Daughter of the Regiment of La Grande Armée," in a Russian version
said to have been the work of an English nursery governess, with a
picture of the Battle of Marengo as a set background, was altogether
exceptional. But indifferent performances do occur, even in a country so
highly educated in operatic matters as Russia may fairly claim to be.
As I write the last pages of this book, the comprehensiveness of its
title fills me with dismay. "An Introduction to the Study of Russian
Opera" would have been more modest and appropriate, since no complete
and well-balanced survey of the subject could possibly be contained in a
volume of this size. Much that is interesting has been passed over
without comment; and many questions demanded much fuller treatment. One
fact, however, I have endeavoured to set forth in these pages in the
clearest and most emphatic terms: Russian opera is beyond all question a
genuine growth of the Russian soil; it includes the aroma and flavour of
its native land "as the wine must taste of its own grapes." Its roots
lie deep in the folk-music, where they have spread and flourished
naturally and without effort. So profoundly embedded and so full of
vitality are its fibres, that nothing has been able to check their
growth and expansion. Discouraged by the Church, its germs still lived
on in the music of the people; neglected by the professional element, it
found shelter in the hearts of amateurs; refused by the Imperial Opera
Houses, it flourished in the drawing-rooms of a handful of enthusiasts.
It has always existed in some embryonic form as an inherent part of the
national life; and when at last it received official recognition, it
quickly absorbed all that was given to it in the way of support and
attention, but persisted in throwing out its vigorous branches in
whatever direction it pleased. Persecution could not kill it, nor
patronage spoil it; because it is one with the soul of the people. May
it long retain its lofty idealism and sane vigour!
INDEX OF OPERAS
Abizare, 35
Acts of Artaxerxes, The, 16, 17
Act of Joseph, The, 32
Adam and Eve, 18
Alcide, 53
Aleko, 373
Alexander and Darius, 25
Americans, The, 41, 43
Amore per Regnante, 34
Angel of Death, The, 380
Angelo, 272, 273, 274
Aniouta, 40, 41, 42, 96
Armida, 50
Askold's Tomb, 64
Assya, 375
Belshazzar's Feast, 380
Berenice, 34
Bird of Fire, The, 59, 382
Boeslavich, The Novgorodian Hero, 40, 41
Boris Godounov, 225, 228-240, 250, 388
Boundary Hills, The, 64
Boyarinya Vera Sheloga, 291, 308
Caprice d'Oxane, Le (_see_ Cherevichek), 304
Captain's Daughter, The, 280
Captive in the Caucasus, The, 269, 274
Cephalus and Procius, 36
Charodeika (_see_ The Enchantress)
Chaste Joseph, The, 18
Cherevichek, 342, 343, 358, 359
Chlorida and Milon, 41
Christmas Eve Revels, 304, 305, 306, 341
Christmas Festivals of Old, 67
Christmas Tree, The, 379
Christus, 166
Citizens of Nijny-Novgorod, The, 364, 365
Clemenza di Tito, La, 36
Cosa Rara, La, 49
Cossack Poet, The, 59
Credulity, 67
Cruelty of Nero, The, 25
Daphnis Pursued, 28
Deborah, 66
Demofonti, 53
Demon, The, 165, 172-177
Dianino, 49
Dido Forsaken, 35
Didone, 52
Dmitri Donskoi, 163, 168-172
Dobrynia Nikitich, 59, 374
Doubrovsky, 366
Dream on the Volga, A, 370, 371
Early Reign of Oleg, The, 47, 50
Enchantress, The, 353, 354, 358
Epic of the Army of Igor, The, 2
Esmeralda, 119, 124, 171
Esther, 66
Eudocia Crowned, or Theodosia II, 35
Eugene Oniegin, 344-347, 350, 353, 355, 357, 358, 359, 363, 371, 375
Fair at Sorochinsi, The, 228
Fall of Sophonisba, The, 27
Faucon, Le, 54
Feast in Time of Plague, A, 277
Fedoul and Her Children, 47, 49
Feramors, 165, 181
Feveï, Tsarevich, 46, 47
Fils Rival, Le, 54
Fingal, 66
Flibustier, Le, 275, 276
Forced Marriage, The, 67
Forza dell'Amore e dell'Odio, La, 34
Francesca da Rimini, 366, 367
Golden Calf, The, 22
Golden Cock, The, 325-331, 382
Good Luke, or Here's my Day, 49
Good Maiden, The, 40
Goriousha, 166
Gostinny Dvor of St. Petersburg, The, 45
Gromoboi, 65
Hadji-Abrek, 164, 171
Harold, 365, 366
Homesickness, 64
Ice Palace, The, 380
Ilya the Hero, 59, 60
In the Storm, 378
Invisible Prince, The, 59
Iolanthe, 357, 358
Iphigenia in Aulis, 49
Iphigenia in Taurida, 52
Ivan Sousanin, 59, 60, 62, 90, 91, 92
Ivan the Terrible (_see_ The Maid of Pskov)
Judith, 150-154, 191
Judith cut off the head of Holofernes, How, 18, 19, 20
Kastchei the Immortal, 318, 319, 320
Khovanstchina, 241-248, 293
Kinder der Heide, 165
Kitezh, the Invisible City of, 321-325, 329
---- The legend of the City of, 379, 380
Legend of Tsar Saltan, The, 315, 316
Life for the Tsar, A, 62, 86, 93-104, 145, 171, 291, 292, 363, 393
Love Brings Trouble, 46
Maccabees, The, 165
Mahomet and Zulima, 25
Maid of Orleans, The, 349, 350, 358
Maid of Pskov, The, 171, 283, 289-295, 308, 340
Mam'selle Fifi, 276
Mandarin's Son, The, 269
Mary of Burgundy, 368
Match-Maker, The, 226, 227
Mazeppa, 350-353, 358, 359
Médecin malgré lui, Le, 25
Merchant Kalashnikov, The, 166, 177-180
Miller, The Wizard-, 40, 42, 44, 56, 96
Minerva Triumphant, 39
Miroslava, or the Funeral Pyre, 60
Miser, The, 48
Mithriadates, 35
Mlada, 303, 304
Moonlight Night, or The Domovoi, A, 68
Moses, 166
Mountains of Piedmont, The, 60
Mozart and Salieri, 307, 317
Mummers, The, 367
Nal and Damyanti, 372
Nativity, 22
Nebuchadnezzar, 21
Nero, 165, 171
Night in May, A, 295-299, 382
Nightingale, The, 382
OEdipus, 224, 225
OEdipus in Athens, 66
OEdipus Rex, 66
Oprichnik, The, 337-341, 350, 358, 359, 363
Orestes, 376, 377
Orpheus, 41
Orpheus and Eurydice, 18
Pan Sotnik, 380
Pan Tvardovsky, 64
Pan Voyevode, 320, 321
Papagei, Der, 166
Paradise Lost, 165
Peasants, The, or The Unexpected Meeting, 59
Petrouchka, 322, 382
Pique-Dame (_see_ The Queen of Spades)
Power of Evil, The, 157, 158, 159
Prince Igor, 171, 182, 192, 206, 256-266, 296, 374
Prince Kholmsky, 104
Prince Serebryany, 380
Prisoner in the Caucasus, The, 68, 188
Prodigal Son, The, 22
Queen of Spades, The, 354-357, 358, 359, 363
Quinto Fabio, 53
Raphael, 371
Regeneration, 40
Ré Pastore, Il, 52
Rogneda, 154, 155, 156
Roussalka, The, 121-130
Roussalka of the Dnieper, The, 59
Roussalka-Maiden, The, 368
Ruins of Babylon, The, 59
Russlan and Liudmilla, 77, 83, 105-114, 145, 261, 291, 292, 374
Ruth, 375
Sadko, The Rich Merchant, 1
Sadko, a legendary opera, 251, 288, 309-312
Saint Alexis, 21
Salammbô, 225
Saracen, The, 274, 275
Scipio Africanus, 27
Seleucus, 35
Servilia, 317, 318
Shulamite, The, 166, 180
Sibirskie Okhotniki (The Siberian Hunters), 164
Sinner's Repentance, The, 38
Skomorokhi (_see_ The Mummers)
Snow-Maiden, The, 295, 299-303
Stone Guest, The, 123, 130-136, 187, 218, 251, 261, 290
Svietlana, 60
Tale of the Invisible City of Kitezh, The, (_see_ Kitezh)
Taniousha, or the Fortunate Meeting, 39, 42
Terrible Revenge, 380
Three Hunchback Brothers, The, 59
Tobias, 18
Tom the Fool (Thomouska-Dourachok), 163
Toushino, 368
Tower of Babel, The, 165, 171, 180
Tradimento per l'honore, Il, 27
Triumph of Bacchus, The, 120, 122
Tsar's Bride, The, 312-315
Tutor-Professor, The, 41
Two Antons, The, 48
Undine, 337
Vadim, or The Twenty Sleeping Maidens, 64
Vakoula the Smith (_see_ Le Caprice d'Oxane), 304, 342
Veillée des Paysans, La, 67
Village Festival, a, 49
Voyevode, The, 336-338
Wave, The, 369
William Ratcliff, 269-272
Wizard, The Fortune-Teller and the Match-maker, The, 41
Year 1812, The, 375
Youth of John III, The, 60
INDEX OF NAMES
Ablessimov, 40
Aivazovsky, 112
Aksakov, 64
Alabiev, 66, 67, 68, 88
Alekseievna, Tsarevna Natalia, 30
Alexander I., 46, 57
---- II, 89
---- III, 294
Andreiev, 385
Anne, Empress (Duchess of Courland), 30, 32, 55
Antonolini, 59
Araja, Francesco, 34, 35, 36, 37
Arensky, Anton Stepanovich, 281, 369, 373
Arnold, Youry, 61, 164, 171
Asanchievsky, 284
Bakhtourin, 105
Bakounin, 146
Balakirev, Mily Alexeich, 122, 145, 149,
183-197, 198-207, 217, 223, 254, 267, 280, 282, 334, 335, 367, 381
Baratinsky, 115
Basili, 85
Bayan, the Skald, 6, 108
Belaiev, Mitrofane Petrovich, 205-209, 381
Bellaigue, M. Camille, 102, 103, 236, 302
Berezovsky, M. S., 44, 52, 53
---- V. V., 3
Bielsky, V., 325, 329
Biron, Duke of Courland, 33, 38
Blaramberg, Paul Ivanovich, 367-369
Borodin, Alexander, 186, 190, 192, 199, 204, 206, 216, 253-266, 270, 303
Bortniansky, Dmitri Stepanovich, 53, 54, 365
Bourenin, 250
Bruneau, Alfred, 97
Canobbio, 47
Carlisle, Lord, 13
Catherine I, Empress, 31
---- II, 36, 39, 40, 45, 49-52, 56
Cavos, Catterino, 58-63, 69, 92
Cheshikin, 19, 28, 35, 54, 63, 99, 143, 168,
175, 262, 294, 304, 317, 319, 352, 357, 365, 369, 373, 379, 394
Cimarosa, 37, 44
Constantine, the Grand Duke, 286, 357
Cui, César, 186, 188, 192, 194,
217, 223, 264, 266-280, 291, 303, 335, 340, 384
Dargomijsky, Alexander Sergeivich, 117-136, 137,
138, 156, 168, 171, 186, 195, 216, 218, 223, 228, 270, 307, 368
Davidov, 309
Dehn, Siegfried, 87, 88, 115, 119, 163
Dimitri of Rostov (Daniel Touptalo), 21, 22, 38
Dmitrievsky, Ivan, 38, 39
Dolina, 385
Dostoievsky, 379
Dütsh, 208
Elizabeth, Empress, 35, 38, 56
Esposito, 307
Famitzin, Professor, 196
Feodorovna, Tsaritsa Prascovya, 30
---- Empress Alexandra, 164
Field, John, 63, 79, 86
Figner, Nicholas and Medea, 366, 385
Fletcher, Giles, 10, 11
Fomin, E. Platovich, 39-45, 55, 96
Fürst, Otto, 29, 30
Galuppi, Baldassare, 44, 52, 53
Gedeonov, 92, 105, 128, 134, 303
Glazounov, Alexander C., 206, 267, 381
Glinka, Michael Ivanovich, 4, 62, 63, 68-88,
118, 119, 120, 137, 145, 153, 156, 185, 202,
216, 218, 253, 262, 270, 281, 290, 294, 334, 365
---- his Operas, 88-116
Godounov, Boris, 12, 368
Gogol, 88, 129, 270, 295, 341
Golenishtiev-Koutouzov, Count, 231
Golovin, Boyard, 24
Goncharov, 262
Gorbounov, 35, 39
Goussakovsky, A., 211
Gregory, Yagan Gottfried, 15, 16, 17, 21
Gretchyaninov, Alexander Tikhonovich, 281, 373
Gutovsky, Simon, 17
Herke, 195
Holstein, Duke of, 8, 31
Hunke, 146
Ilyinski, Dimitri, 29
Inglis, Peter, 16
Ippolitov-Ivanov, Michael, 281, 374, 394
Ivan the Terrible, 12
Joseph, the Patriarch, 12
Joukovsky, 60, 64, 65, 86, 89, 115, 221, 348, 372
Jurgenson, J. B., 36, 42
Kalashinkev, 159
Kalashnikov, N., 364
Kalinnikov, Vassily Sergeivich, 375
Kamenskaya, 385
Kanillé, 282
Kapnist, 41
Karamzin, 57, 221, 233
Karatagyn, 42, 44
Karmalina, the sisters, 128, 131, 194, 204
Karyakin, 384
Kashkin, 276, 374
Kazachenko, G. A., 380
Kistner, Baron, 291
Kobyakov, 49
Kochetov, N. R., 380
Koltsov, 221
Kondratiev, 230
Korestchenko, A. N., 380
Korf, Baron, 212
Korolenko, 379
Koslov, 86
Koukolnik, 104
Koulikov, 177
Kozlovsky, Joseph Antonovich, 65, 66
Kroutitsky, 42
Kroutikova, 385
Krylov, 57, 59, 115
Kunst, Johann Christian, 24, 25, 26, 29
Lajechnikov, 337
Laroche, 195
Lavrov, 208
Lavrovsky, Madame, 344, 385
Lefort, General Franz, 25
Lenz, 147, 218
Leonova, Mme., 232, 269, 289, 385
Lermontov, 165, 172, 177, 211, 267, 334, 380
Levitskaya, 384
Liadov, Anatol C., 167, 206, 211, 281, 363, 381
Liapounov, 203
Likhatchiev, 13
Lissenko, 380
Lobanov, D., 152
Locatelli, 56
Lodyjensky, Nicholas, 186, 211
Lomakin, 190
Maikov, V., 49, 172
Maleziomova, Mme., 167
Mamantov, 266, 387, 394
Mann, 31
Martin, Vincente, 48, 49
Martini, Padre, 44
Matinsky, Michael, 40, 45
Matveiev, Boyard, 13, 16, 17, 23
Maupassant, Guy de, 276
Maurer, Ludwig, 63, 66
Meck, Nadejda von, 285, 348, 360
Medoks, 56
Melgounov, 371
Melnikov, 176, 266, 272, 289, 365, 384
Menshikova, 384
Mey, 291
Meyer, Carl, 79
Mikhaïlovich, Alexis Tsar, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 21, 22
Milioukhov, Professor, 5
Molas, Mme. (_see_ Pourgold), 194
Moniuszko, 268
Morfill, R. W. Professor, 256
Moussorgsky, Modeste, 70, 140,
147, 186, 188, 192, 196, 216,
217-252, 253, 264, 289, 291, 303, 365
Mravina, 371, 385
Muscovy, Grand Duke of, 8
Myassedov, 188
Napravnik, Edward Franzovich, 269, 289, 309, 363-367
Naryshkin, Natalia, 13
Nekrassov, 129, 221
Nicholas I, the Emperor, 92
---- II, 268
Nikitin, 129, 221
Nikolaiev, 41
Nikolsky, Professor, 228
Nikolsky (Singer), 385
Nossov, 39
Obmana, 79
Odoevsky, Prince, 89, 121
Oginsky, Prince Gregory, 27
Olearius, Adam, 8
Orlov, 289, 385
Oserov, 66
Ostrovsky, 157, 158, 270, 295, 336, 368, 370
Oulibishev, 147, 183
Ouroussov, Prince, 56
Oussatov, 386
Paesiello, Giovanni, 37, 44, 51
Paskievich, Vassily, 45, 46, 47, 48, 55
Patouillet, 8, 21, 22
Paul I, the Emperor, 49
---- Petrovich, Tsarevich, 54, 57
Pavlovna, Grand Duchess Helena, 142, 151, 163, 164, 341
Pavlovskaya, 365, 384
Peter the Great, 23, 24, 26, 31
Petrov, Ossip, 64, 93, 128, 176, 289, 383
Petrovsky, 318
Platonova, 289, 384
Plestcheiev, 67, 270
Procopius, 2
Prokovich, Bishop Theofane, 32
Polonsky, 341, 342, 359
Polotsky, Simeon, 19, 21, 22
Ponomariev, E., 366
Popov, M. V., 40, 41
Potemkin, 14, 44, 51
Pourgold, Alexandra N. (_see_ Molas), 194, 228
---- Nadejda N. (_see_ Rimsky-Korsakov), 195
Poushkin, 57, 89, 105, 121, 123, 129, 131, 221,
233, 234, 262, 269, 277, 280, 307, 325, 344, 350, 355, 366, 373
---- Count Moussin-, 256
Raab, 384
Rachmaninov, Sergius Vassilievich, 321, 373
Raphael, 371
Razoumovsky, Count, 37, 45
Rebikov, Vladimir Ivanovich, 378
Richepin, Jean, 276
Rimsky-Korsakov, 70, 123, 167, 186,
187, 188, 189, 192, 196, 199, 205,
206, 216, 219, 226, 231, 248-252, 281-333, 369, 365
---- Mme. (_see_ Pourgold), 195
Rodislavsky, 39
Rosenburg, 165
Rozen, Baron, 90
Rubinstein, Anton, 139, 142, 143, 149, 162-182, 196, 201, 215, 294
---- Nicholas, 165, 376
Salieri, 44
Sarti, Giuseppe, 37, 44, 47, 50, 51
Savinov, the Protopope, 17
Sekar-Rojansky, 309
Serov, Alexander, 19,
54, 65, 98, 106, 128, 133,
143-160, 170, 191, 195, 271, 294, 335, 341
---- his operas, 150-160
Shakovsky, Prince, 60, 66
Shaliapin, Feodor I., 64, 128, 266, 291,
293, 307, 373, 374, 383, 385-393, 394
Sheremetiev, Count, 374
Shestakov, Liudmilla Ivanovna, 194, 290
Shkafer, 307
Slavina, 365, 371, 385
Smirnov, Simeon, 28
Sollogoub, Count, 163
Soloviev, 94, 159
Soumarakov, 36
Splavsky, 24, 25
Stassov, Vladimir, 77, 78, 84, 88,
106, 123, 132, 135, 139, 144, 150,
159, 173, 186, 195, 199, 212-217, 223,
225, 226, 231, 248, 255, 290, 343, 383, 391
Steibelt, 63
Steiner, 63
Stravinsky, Igor, 281, 322, 382
Stravinsky (Singer), 365
Taneiev, Sergius Ivanovich, 373, 376
Tarquini, 63
Tchaikovsky, P. T., 48, 51, 70, 114,
155, 195, 196, 254, 266, 271, 281,
285, 294, 333, 334, 361, 365, 370, 373, 376, 379
---- Modeste, 354, 366, 372
Tcherepnin, 210, 281
Tikhonraviev, 15
Titov, 56
---- Alexis, Nicholas, and Sergius, 66, 67
Todi, 51
Tolstoy, Count Alexis, 109, 367
---- Theophil, 195
Tourgeniev, 109, 214
Trediakovsky, Vassily Cyrillovich, 32, 33, 34
Tseibikha, 118
Usipov, Prince, 119
Vassilenko, Serge, 379
Vassiliev, 385
Vassilievich, 365
Vaznietsov, 261, 309
Verstovsky, Alexis Nicholaevich, 63-67
Villoins, A., 162
Vinter, 394
Vistakov, Professor, 172
Vladimir, "The Red Sun", 3
Volkov, F. G., 36, 38, 39
Von-Staden, Count, 14
Vyazemsky, Prince, 89
Wagner, 151, 160
Yagjinsky, Count, 45
Yagoujinsky, 31
Yastrebtsiev, V., 250
Youssipov, Prince, 91, 363
Zagoskin, 64
Zaremba, 195, 284
Zeleny, 394
Zeuner, 79
Zimin, 393
Zotov, Mme. S. I., 194
Zvantsiev, K. I., 151
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Letter from Borodin to Countess Mercy-Argenteau.
[2] The show refers to a legend of St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, the
saint held in most honour by the Russians.
[3] Gorbounov. "A Sketch for the History of Russian Opera" (in
Russian).
[4] Gorbounov. "A Sketch for the History of Russian Opera."
[5] Some authorities believe that the music, as well as the text of
this opera, was written by Matinsky.
[6] Karatagyn gives a list of twenty-six operas in the preface to
Jurgenson's edition of _The Miller_.
[7] A History of Russian Opera (_Istoriya Russ. Operî_), Jurgenson,
St. Petersburg, 1905.
[8] He must not be confounded with V. V. Berezovsky, whose "Russian
Music" (Rousskaya Muzyka: Kritiko-istorichesky Ocherk) appeared in
1898.
[9] The first performance of Glinka's _A Life for the Tsar_ took place
here in November of that year.
[10] Possibly Madox.
[11] Sometimes written Astaritta.
[12] In Grove's Dictionary of Music I give the date of Alabiev's birth
as August 30th, 1787, following most of the approved authorities of
the day. But more recent investigations have revealed the correct date
as August 4th.
[13] Soloveiv asserts that Sousanin did not save the Tsar from the
Poles but from the Russian Cossacks who had become demoralised during
the long interregnum.
[14] This fragment of a familiar melody drew down on Glinka the
criticism of an aristocratic amateur that the music of _A Life for the
Tsar_ was fit for coachmen and serfs, and provoked Glinka's sarcastic
retort: "What matter, since the servants are better than their
masters."
[15] The appearance of the Commandatore is accompanied by a sinister
progression as thrilling in its way as that strange and horrible chord
with which Richard Strauss leads up to Salome's sacrilegious kiss in
the closing scene of this opera.
[16] Balakirev, Cui, Moussorgsky, Borodin, and Rimsky-Korsakov.
[17] In _Vek_ (The Century). No. I.
[18] In _Severnoy Pchela_ (The Northern Bee).
[19] Reprinted in "Twenty-five Years of Russian Art." The collected
works (Sobranie Sochinenie) of Vladimir Stassov. Vol. I.
[20] "Accept life as it comes." (_Nie tak iivi kak khochetsya._)
[21] He also visited England, making his appearance at one of the
concerts of the Philharmonic Society, in May 1857.
[22] Henceforth alluded to as the I. R. M. S., or the Musical Society.
[23] "The Chronicle of my Musical Life" (Lietopis moi muzykalnoi
Jizn), 1844-1906. N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov (Edited by his widow). St.
Petersburg, 1909.
[24] Mme. Maleziomova, whom I met in St. Petersburg, was for many
years _dame de compagnie_, or chaperon, at Rubinstein's classes at
the Conservatoire. She was a devoted friend of the master's, and
few people knew more of his fascinating personality or spoke more
eloquently of his teaching.
[25] Eight Russian and eleven German operas. Six of the latter were
secular and five based on Biblical subject.
[26] "A History of Russian Opera" (Istoriya Russ. Opera). V.
Cheshikin. St. Petersburg, 1905. P. Jurgenson.
[27] _Dmitri Donskoi_ was produced in St. Petersburg in 1852;
_Esmeralda_, first staged in Moscow in 1847, was brought out in the
modern capital in 1853.
[28] For a fuller analysis of Lermontov's poem see "Poetry and
Progress in Russia," by Rosa Newmarch. John Lane, The Bodley Head,
London and New York.
[29] The Oprichniki, a band of hot-headed and dissolute young nobles
who formed the bodyguard of Ivan the Terrible and were always prepared
to carry out his orders. They carried a dog's head and a broom at
their saddle-bow, to show that they worried the enemies of the Tsar
and swept them from the face of the earth.
[30] Rimsky-Korsakov was the first of the Russian composers to write a
symphony.
[31] Free in the sense of offering gratuitous instruction.
[32] He was a warm advocate of the higher education of women, and one
of the founders of the School of Medicine for Women at St. Petersburg.
[33] She married a naval officer, the Admiral Molas who went down in
the flagship _Petropavlovsk_ at the entrance of the harbour of Port
Arthur during the Russo-Japanese war. With him perished the great war
painter, Vassily Verestchagin.
[34] Mme. Rimsky-Korsakov still takes an active interest in musical
questions. Articles over her initials often appear in the Russian
musical papers, and recently she has taken up her pen in defence of
her husband's editorial work for Moussorgsky's operas.
[35] These impressions are taken from an article of mine (in French)
published in the Sammelbände der Internationalen Musik Gesellschaft
(Jahrgang IV. Heft I.), Oktober-Dezember 1902. Leipzig, Breitkopf and
Härtel.
[36] In 1908 he was Russian consul at New York.
[37] The _Bogatyri_ were the heroes of ancient and legendary days.
[38] Collected Works (Sobranye Sochinenie, 4 Volumes). "Twenty-five
years of Russian Art" (musical section), Vol. I. "In the Tracks of
Russian Art" (musical section), Vol. I. "A. S. Dargomijsky." "A. N.
Serov." "Gabriel Lomakin." "Perov and Moussorgsky" (Vol. II.), are
among his chief contributions to musical literature. But there are a
number of critical articles on first performances, etc., which cannot
be enumerated here.
[39] My article on Moussorgsky in Grove's "Dictionary of Music."
[40] In the reign of Alexis the revision of the Bible carried out
by the Patriarch Nicon (1655) resulted in a great schism in the
Orthodox Church, a number of people clinging to the old version of the
Scriptures in spite of the errors it contained. Thus was formed the
sect of the Old Believers which still exists in Russia.
[41] Quoted from an article by me, "Moussorgsky's Operas," in the
"Musical Times," July 1st, 1913.
[42] Published by V. Yastrebtsiev in the Moscow weekly, "Musika." No.
135, June 22 (O.S.), 1913.
[43] He was appointed musical critic of the St. Petersburg
"Viedomosty" in 1864.
[44] Ponchielli has used the same subject for his opera "Gioconda";
while Mascagni, influenced possibly by the Russian realists, made a
literal setting of Heine's poem "William Ratcliff" in the style of
_The Stone Guest_ ("Guglielmo Ratcliff," Milan 1895.)
[45] The opera was produced in St. Petersburg in February, 1911, the
Emperor and Empress being present. It will be given shortly by the
Zimin Opera Company, in Moscow. Published by Jurgenson, Moscow.
[46] It will be remembered that Zaremba was satirized in Moussorgsky's
humorous Scena "The Musician's Peep-show" as that "denizen of
cloudland" who used to deliver to his bewildered classes inspired
dictums something in this style:
"Mark my words: the minor key
Is the source of man's first downfall;
But the major still can give
Salvation to your erring souls."
[47] This opera is now given abroad under the title of _Ivan the
Terrible_, which brings home to foreigners some realisation of its
period and of its gloomy central figure.
[48] _Impressions Musicales et Littéraires_, par Camille Bellaigue.
[49] There are no less than ten true folk-themes contained in the
opera of _Tsar Saltan_. The theme of the Elder Sisters, in the
Introduction, may be found in Rimsky-Korsakov's collection of National
Songs, No. 24, communicated by Balakirev. The theme of the Tale of
the Old Grand-father is a street cry ("Any fruit or greens"); a theme
used by the Prince Gvidon is taken from a child's song, No. 66, in
Korsakov's collection; others may be found in the same volume; also in
the collections of Stakhovich and Prach.
[50] _Citizens of the Lower-town_ would be a more literal translation
of the title, but would convey nothing to foreigners.
[51] This composer must not be confused with his nephew A. S. Taneiev,
the composer of a rather Frenchified opera entitled "Love's Revenge."
[52] Quoted in the article on this composer in the Russian edition of
Riemann's Musical Dictionary, 1904.
[53] Pan is the title of the Polish gentry, Sotnik, literally a
centurion, a military grade.
[54] For example, the Court ballets of the sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries were practically opera-ballets, since they included songs,
dances and spoken dialogue.
[55] "A singer's mind becomes subtler with every mental excursion into
history, sacred or profane."--D. Ffrangcon Davies. "The Singing of the
Future." John Lane, The Bodley Head.
[56] Communicated at my request by my friend, Mr. Herbert Heyner, who
has made a special study of Shaliapin's art both at the opera and from
gramophone records.
* * * * *
Typographical errors corrected by the etext transcriber:
Toushinets=> Toushino {pg xv}
than the officia=> than the official {pg 180}
I took a a share=> I took a share {pg 188}
oftens reminds us=> often reminds us {pg 196}
October-Dezember=> Oktober-Dezember {pg 203}
henceforward he he could rely=> henceforward he could rely {pg 286}
The caste was a remarkably good one=> The cast was a remarkably good one
{pg 289}
into the deception played upon by him Bomely=> into the deception played
upon him by Bomely {pg 315}
Presently the the spirit=> Presently the spirit {pg 324}
whch might well appeal=> which might well appeal {pg 337}
formerly musical crici of the=> formerly musical critic of the {pg 349}
Médecin malgre lui, Le, 25=> Médecin malgré lui, Le, 25 {pg 398}
Kunst, Johann Christain, 24, 25, 26, 29=> Kunst, Johann Christian, 24,
25, 26, 29 {pg 401}