English music. England and the opera stage

12.04.2019

The World's Greatest Composers of All Time: Lists in Chronological and Alphabetical Order, Reference Books and Works

100 Great Composers of the World

List of composers in chronological order

1. Josquin Despres (1450 –1521)
2. Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525 –1594)
3. Claudio Monteverdi (1567 –1643)
4. Heinrich Schütz (1585 –1672)
5. Jean Baptiste Lully (1632 –1687)
6. Henry Purcell (1658 –1695)
7. Arcangelo Corelli (1653 –1713)
8. Antonio Vivaldi (1678 –1741)
9. Jean Philippe Rameau (1683 –1764)
10. George Handel (1685 –1759)
11. Domenico Scarlatti (1685 –1757)
12. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 –1750)
13. Christoph Willibald Gluck (1713 –1787)
14. Joseph Haydn (1732 –1809)
15. Antonio Salieri (1750 –1825)
16. Dmitry Stepanovich Bortnyansky (1751 –1825)
17. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 –1791)
18. Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770 –1826)
19. Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778 –1837)
20. Nicollo Paganini (1782 –1840)
21. Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791 –1864)
22. Carl Maria von Weber (1786 –1826)
23. Gioachino Rossini (1792 –1868)
24. Franz Schubert (1797 –1828)
25. Gaetano Donizetti (1797 –1848)
26. Vincenzo Bellini (1801 –1835)
27. Hector Berlioz (1803 –1869)
28. Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka (1804 –1857)
29. Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809 –1847)
30. Fryderyk Chopin (1810 –1849)
31. Robert Schumann (1810 –1856)
32. Alexander Sergeevich Dargomyzhsky (1813 –1869)
33. Franz Liszt (1811 –1886)
34. Richard Wagner (1813 –1883)
35. Giuseppe Verdi (1813 –1901)
36. Charles Gounod (1818 –1893)
37. Stanislav Moniuszko (1819 –1872)
38. Jacques Offenbach (1819 –1880)
39. Alexander Nikolaevich Serov (1820 –1871)
40. Cesar Frank (1822 –1890)
41. Bedřich Smetana (1824 –1884)
42. Anton Bruckner (1824 –1896)
43. Johann Strauss (1825 –1899)
44. Anton Grigorievich Rubinstein (1829 –1894)
45. Johannes Brahms (1833 –1897)
46. Alexander Porfirievich Borodin (1833 –1887)
47. Camille Saint-Saens (1835 –1921)
48. Leo Delibes (1836 –1891)
49. Mily Alekseevich Balakirev (1837 –1910)
50. Georges Bizet (1838 –1875)
51. Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (1839 –1881)
52. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 –1893)
53. Antonin Dvorak (1841 –1904)
54. Jules Massenet (1842 –1912)
55. Edvard Grieg (1843 –1907)
56. Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov (1844 –1908)
57. Gabriel Fauré (1845 –1924)
58. Leos Janacek (1854 –1928)
59. Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov (1855 –1914)
60. Sergei Ivanovich Taneyev (1856 –1915)
61. Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857 –1919)
62. Giacomo Puccini (1858 –1924)
63. Hugo Wolf (1860 –1903)
64. Gustav Mahler (1860 –1911)
65. Claude Debussy (1862 –1918)
66. Richard Strauss (1864 –1949)
67. Alexander Tikhonovich Grechaninov (1864 –1956)
68. Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (1865 –1936)
69. Jean Sibelius (1865 –1957)
70. Franz Lehár (1870 –1945)
71. Alexander Nikolaevich Scriabin (1872 –1915)
72. Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninov (1873 –1943)
73. Arnold Schoenberg (1874 –1951)
74. Maurice Ravel (1875 –1937)
75. Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (1880 –1951)
76. Bela Bartok (1881 –1945)
77. Nikolai Yakovlevich Myaskovsky (1881 –1950)
78. Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky (1882 –1971)
79. Anton Webern (1883 –1945)
80. Imre Kalman (1882 –1953)
81. Alban Berg (1885 –1935)
82. Sergei Sergeevich Prokofiev (1891 –1953)
83. Arthur Honegger (1892 –1955)
84. Darius Milhaud (1892 –1974)
85. Carl Orff (1895 –1982)
86. Paul Hindemith (1895 –1963)
87. George Gershwin (1898 –1937)
88. Isaac Osipovich Dunaevsky (1900 –1955)
89. Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (1903 –1978)
90. Dmitry Dmitrievich Shostakovich (1906 –1975)
91. Tikhon Nikolaevich Khrennikov (born in 1913)
92. Benjamin Britten (1913 –1976)
93. Georgy Vasilievich Sviridov (1915 –1998)
94. Leonard Bernstein (1918 –1990)
95. Rodion Konstantinovich Shchedrin (born in 1932)
96. Krzysztof Penderecki (born 1933)
97. Alfred Garievich Schnittke (1934 –1998)
98. Bob Dylan (b. 1941)
99. John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (b. 1942)
100. Sting (born 1951)

MASTERPIECES OF CLASSICAL MUSIC

The most famous composers in the world

List of composers in alphabetical order

N	Composer	Nationality	Direction	Year
1	Albinoni Tomaso	Italian	Baroque	1671-1751
2	Arensky Anton (Antony) Stepanovich	Russian	Romanticism	1861-1906
3	Baini Giuseppe	Italian	Church music - Renaissance	1775-1844
4	Balakirev Miliy Alekseevich	Russian	"Mighty Handful" - nationally oriented Russian music school	1836/37-1910
5	Bach Johann Sebastian	German	Baroque	1685-1750
6	Bellini Vincenzo	Italian	Romanticism	1801-1835
7	Berezovsky Maxim Sozontovich	Russian-Ukrainian	Classicism	1745-1777
8	Beethoven Ludwig van	German	between classicism and romanticism	1770-1827
9	Bizet (Bizet) Georges	French	Romanticism	1838-1875
10	Boito Arrigo	Italian	Romanticism	1842-1918
11	Boccherini Luigi	Italian	Classicism	1743-1805
12	Borodin Alexander Porfirievich	Russian	Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful”	1833-1887
13	Bortnyansky Dmitry Stepanovich	Russian-Ukrainian	Classicism - Church music	1751-1825
14	Brahms Johannes	German	Romanticism	1833-1897
15	Wagner Wilhelm Richard	German	Romanticism	1813-1883
16	Varlamov Alexander Egorovich	Russian	Russian folk music	1801-1848
17	Weber Carl Maria von	German	Romanticism	1786-1826
18	Verdi Giuseppe Fortunio Francesco	Italian	Romanticism	1813-1901
19	Verstovsky Alexey Nikolaevich	Russian	Romanticism	1799-1862
20	Vivaldi Antonio	Italian	Baroque	1678-1741
21	Villa-Lobos Heitor	Brazilian	Neoclassicism	1887-1959
22	Wolf-Ferrari Ermanno	Italian	Romanticism	1876-1948
23	Haydn Franz Joseph	Austrian	Classicism	1732-1809
24	Handel George Frideric	German	Baroque	1685-1759
25	Gershwin George	American	-	1898-1937
26	Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich	Russian	Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful”	1865-1936
27	Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich	Russian	Classicism	1804-1857
28	Glier Reingold Moritsevich	Russian and Soviet	-	1874/75-1956
29	Gluk (Gluk) Christoph Willibald	German	Classicism	1714-1787
30	Granados, Granados y Campina Enrique	Spanish	Romanticism	1867-1916
31	Grechaninov Alexander Tikhonovich	Russian	Romanticism	1864-1956
32	Grieg Edward Haberup	Norwegian	Romanticism	1843-1907
33	Hummel, Hummel (Hummel) Johann (Jan) Nepomuk	Austrian - Czech nationality	Classicism-Romanticism	1778-1837
34	Gounod Charles Francois	French	Romanticism	1818-1893
35	Gurilev Alexander Lvovich	Russian	-	1803-1858
36	Dargomyzhsky Alexander Sergeevich	Russian	Romanticism	1813-1869
37	Dvorjak Antonin	Czech	Romanticism	1841-1904
38	Debussy Claude Achille	French	Romanticism	1862-1918
39	Delibes Clément Philibert Leo	French	Romanticism	1836-1891
40	Destouches Andre Cardinal	French	Baroque	1672-1749
41	Degtyarev Stepan Anikievich	Russian	Church music	1776-1813
42	Giuliani Mauro	Italian	Classicism-Romanticism	1781-1829
43	Dinicu Grigorash	Romanian		1889-1949
44	Donizetti Gaetano	Italian	Classicism-Romanticism	1797-1848
45	Ippolitov-Ivanov Mikhail Mikhailovich	Russian-Soviet composer	20th-century classical composers	1859-1935
46	Kabalevsky Dmitry Borisovich	Russian-Soviet composer	20th-century classical composers	1904-1987
47	Kalinnikov Vasily Sergeevich	Russian	Russian musical classics	1866-1900/01
48	Kalman Imre (Emmerich)	Hungarian	20th-century classical composers	1882-1953
49	Cui Caesar Antonovich	Russian	Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful”	1835-1918
50	Leoncovallo Ruggiero	Italian	Romanticism	1857-1919
51	Liszt (Liszt) Ferenc (Franz)	Hungarian	Romanticism	1811-1886
52	Lyadov Anatoly Konstantinovich	Russian	20th-century classical composers	1855-1914
53	Lyapunov Sergey Mikhailovich	Russian	Romanticism	1850-1924
54	Mahler Gustav	Austrian	Romanticism	1860-1911
55	Mascagni Pietro	Italian	Romanticism	1863-1945
56	Massenet Jules Emile Frederic	French	Romanticism	1842-1912
57	Marcello Benedetto	Italian	Baroque	1686-1739
58	Meyerbeer Giacomo	French	Classicism-Romanticism	1791-1864
59	Mendelssohn, Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Jacob Ludwig Felix	German	Romanticism	1809-1847
60	Mignone to Francis	Brazilian	20th-century classical composers	1897
61	Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio	Italian	Renaissance-Baroque	1567-1643
62	Moniuszko Stanislav	Polish	Romanticism	1819-1872
63	Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus	Austrian	Classicism	1756-1791
64	Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich	Russian	Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful”	1839-1881
65	Napravnik Eduard Frantsevich	Russian - Czech nationality	Romanticism?	1839-1916
66	Oginski Michal Kleofas	Polish	-	1765-1833
67	Offenbach Jacques (Jacob)	French	Romanticism	1819-1880
68	Paganini Nicolo	Italian	Classicism-Romanticism	1782-1840
69	Pachelbel Johann	German	Baroque	1653-1706
70	Planquette, Planquette (Planquette) Jean Robert Julien	French	-	1848-1903
71	Ponce Cuellar Manuel Maria	Mexican	20th-century classical composers	1882-1948
72	Prokofiev Sergey Sergeevich	Russian-Soviet composer	Neoclassicism	1891-1953
73	Francis Poulenc	French	Neoclassicism	1899-1963
74	Puccini Giacomo	Italian	Romanticism	1858-1924
75	Ravel Maurice Joseph	French	Neoclassicism-Impressionism	1875-1937
76	Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilievich	Russian	Romanticism	1873-1943
77	Rimsky - Korsakov Nikolai Andreevich	Russian	Romanticism - “The Mighty Handful”	1844-1908
78	Rossini Gioachino Antonio	Italian	Classicism-Romanticism	1792-1868
79	Rota Nino	Italian	20th-century classical composers	1911-1979
80	Rubinstein Anton Grigorievich	Russian	Romanticism	1829-1894
81	Sarasate, Sarasate y Navascuez (Sarasate y Navascuez) Pablo de	Spanish	Romanticism	1844-1908
82	Sviridov Georgy Vasilievich (Yuri)	Russian-Soviet composer	NeoRomanticism	1915-1998
83	Saint-Saëns Charles Camille	French	Romanticism	1835-1921
84	Sibelius Jan (Johan)	Finnish	Romanticism	1865-1957
85	Scarlatti by Giuseppe Domenico	Italian	Baroque-Classicism	1685-1757
86	Skryabin Alexander Nikolaevich	Russian	Romanticism	1871/72-1915
87	Smetana Bridzhikh	Czech	Romanticism	1824-1884
88	Stravinsky Igor Fedorovich	Russian	Neo-Romanticism-Neo-Baroque-Serialism	1882-1971
89	Taneyev Sergey Ivanovich	Russian	Romanticism	1856-1915
90	Telemann Georg Philipp	German	Baroque	1681-1767
91	Torelli Giuseppe	Italian	Baroque	1658-1709
92	Tosti Francesco Paolo	Italian	-	1846-1916
93	Fibich Zdenek	Czech	Romanticism	1850-1900
94	Flotow Friedrich von	German	Romanticism	1812-1883
95	Khachaturyan Aram	Armenian-Soviet composer	20th-century classical composers	1903-1978
96	Holst Gustav	English	-	1874-1934
97	Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich	Russian	Romanticism	1840-1893
98	Chesnokov Pavel Grigorievich	Russian-Soviet composer	-	1877-1944
99	Cilea Francesco	Italian	-	1866-1950
100	Cimarosa Domenico	Italian	Classicism	1749-1801
101	Schnittke Alfred Garrievich	Soviet composer	polystylistics	1934-1998
102	Chopin Fryderyk	Polish	Romanticism	1810-1849
103	Shostakovich Dmitry Dmitrievich	Russian-Soviet composer	Neoclassicism-NeoRomanticism	1906-1975
104	Strauss Johann (father)	Austrian	Romanticism	1804-1849
105	Strauss Johann (son)	Austrian	Romanticism	1825-1899
106	Strauss Richard	German	Romanticism	1864-1949
107	Schubert Franz	Austrian	Romanticism-Classicism	1797-1828
108	Schumann Robert	German	Romanticism	1810-1

Introduction

The fate of English music turned out to be complex and paradoxical. From the 15th century until the end of the 17th century, at the time of the formation and flourishing of the English classical musical tradition, its development was continuous. This process proceeded intensively thanks to the reliance on folklore, which was determined earlier than in other schools of composition, as well as due to the formation and preservation of unique, nationally distinctive genres (anthem, mask, semi-opera). Ancient English music gave important impulses to European art, including polyphony, variational-figurative principles of development, and the orchestral suite. At the same time, she refracted stimuli coming from outside in an original way.

In the 17th century, events took place that dealt powerful blows to English musical culture. This is, firstly, Puritanism, which was established during the revolution of 1640-1660, with its fanatical desire to abolish previous spiritual values and ancient types and forms. secular culture, and secondly, the restoration of the monarchy (1660), which dramatically changed the general cultural orientation of the country and increased external influence (from France).

Surprisingly, in parallel with the obvious symptoms of the crisis, phenomena arise that indicate a higher rise in the art of music. In difficult times English music time came Henry Purcell (1659-1695), whose works marked the flourishing of the national school of composers, although they did not have a direct impact on the work of subsequent generations. George Frideric Handel (1685-1759), working in England, with his oratorios established the primacy of the choral tradition in the spectrum of genres of English music, which directly influenced its further development. During the same period, “The Beggar's Opera” by Gay and Pepusch (1728), the parodic nature of which testified to the advent of an era of cultural turning point, became the ancestor of many examples of the so-called ballad opera.

She was one of the peaks theatrical arts England and at the same time evidence of the overthrow of musical art - more precisely, the movement of its “culture-creating energy” (A. Schweitzer) - from the professional to the amateur sphere.

A musical tradition consists of many factors - such as composing, performance, way of life musical life. Regulated by ideological, aesthetic, general artistic guidelines, these factors do not always act in a coordinated unity, often in certain historical conditions their interaction is disrupted. This can be confirmed by the hundred-year period from approximately the middle of the 18th century to mid-19th century century in England.

Music of England

The high level of performance, widespread and deep rootedness in everyday life of various forms of music-making - instrumental, vocal ensemble and choral - then created favorable soil for the bright, large-scale concert life of London, which attracted continental musicians to the capital of the empire: Chopin, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Glazunov... The fresh wind of modernity was carried with them by German musicians, whose road to the British Isles was wide open since the reign of the Hanoverian dynasty (from 1714 to 1901) - let us remember, for example, the weekly concerts of Bach - Abel and the concerts of Haydn - Zalomon . Thus, England participated in the intensive process of formation of the pre-classical and classical symphonies, but did not make a creative contribution to it. In general, during that period the branch national creativity in the genres of opera and symphony, which are relevant on the continent, it was undeveloped; in other genres (for example, in oratorio) the channel sometimes became shallow. It was this era that gave England the now unconvincing name of “the country without music.”

It is paradoxical that the “era of silence” occurred in the so-called Victorian era - the period of the reign of Queen Victoria (from 1837 to 1901). The state was at the zenith of its strength and glory. A powerful colonial power, the “workshop of the world,” gave its nation a confident sense of self and the conviction that “it is destined to occupy first place in the world until the end of its days” (J. Aldridge). The Victorian era was the heyday of all areas of English culture: its prose and poetry, drama and theater, painting and architecture, and finally aesthetics - and a time of noticeable decline in the field of composition.

At the same time, it was precisely from the middle of the 19th century, when the crisis of the national school of composition was already obvious, that impulses of upsurge began to accumulate, which became evident in the middle of the 19th century and clearly manifested itself at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

The choral movement, amateur and professional, expanded and grew. The choral tradition was perceived as truly national. English masters swore allegiance to her: Hubert Parry (1848-1918), Edward Elgar (1857-1934), Frederick Dilius (1862-1934), Gustav Holst (1874-1934), Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958).

A parallel folklore movement developed, the leading figure of which was Cecil J. Sharp (1859-1924). It included a scientific direction (field collection, theoretical understanding) and a practical one (introduction into school and everyday life). This was accompanied by a critical re-evaluation of the entertainment-salon assimilation of folk genres and the penetration of folk material into composers' creativity. All these sides of the folklore movement interacted - complementing each other, and sometimes conflictingly opposing one another.

Until the middle of the 19th century, strange as it may seem at first glance, in fact English songs rarely found their way into collections - much less often than songs from Scotland, Wales and, especially, Ireland. Not without irony, Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote in the introductory essay to the book of the country's largest folklorist Cecil Sharp, “English folk song": "From authoritative sources we still knew that folk music was "either bad or Irish"

The movement for the revival of ancient music - Purcell, Bach, English madrigalists and virginalists - contributed to the awakening of deep interest among performers, manufacturers musical instruments and scientists (such as A. Dolmetsch and his family), as well as composers

"golden age" of the English professional school. The heritage of the XV-XVII centuries, enlivened by performing practice, sublime critical thought, appeared as an inspiring force of national original craftsmanship.

The listed trends, at first barely noticeable, gradually gained power and, rushing towards each other, to end of the 19th century centuries have exploded the soil. Their unification marked the beginning of a new musical renaissance in England. After a long break, this country is not separate creative personalities, but entered European musical culture as a national school. By this time, the continent was talking about English composers; Brahms predicted an interesting future for English music, R. Strauss supported it in the person of E. Elgar. The intensity of its evolution at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was great.

The tradition of Austro-German romanticism has long found fertile soil in England. This is a historically determined influence, reinforced by the system music education and the practice of improving young composers in the cities of Germany, was reflected in the style (primarily in Parry, Standford, Elgar). English musicians understood that the affirmation of national identity presupposed liberation from such powerful influence. However, unlike declarations, in creativity this process was slow and difficult, since the leading genres themselves - including such conceptual ones as the symphony or symphonic poem - assumed reliance on the fruitful experience of the Austro-German school. Accordingly, the extent of German influence and the degree to which it was overcome served as a criterion for the national identity and significance of the composer’s work. Indicative, for example, are the following assessments of one of the English critics: “While the music of Parry and Stanford spoke German with English and Irish accent… Elgar’s music spoke English with a German accent.”

At the turn of the century, in Britain, as throughout Europe, there was a desire to create a musical language that would correspond to modern aesthetics. The “new word” came from France. The interest in the East that arose among English musicians prompted them to pay attention to the achievements of French impressionism. This was especially evident in the works of Cyril Scott (1879-1970), Grenville Bantock (1868-1946) and Gustav Holst. True, in Scott and Bantock the world of oriental images and moods does not affect the foundations of composer's thinking. Their image of the East is conventional, and in its embodiment it is not difficult to detect many traditional features.

The implementation of this theme in the work of Holst, who gravitated toward Indian culture, reached a different level. He sought to find a deeper, spiritual contact between Western and Eastern cultures, which is generally characteristic of the art of the 20th century. And he carried out this desire in his own way, not consistent with what his older contemporary Debussy was doing. At the same time, the discoveries of impressionism, associated with a new idea of musical space, timbre, dynamics, with a new attitude to sound, entered the palette of means of expression used by composers in England - the homeland of “landscape and marina” (C. Nodier).

Despite all their individual stylistic differences, English composers of that period were united by the desire to strengthen the folk-national foundations of their music. The discovery of peasant folklore and the creativity of the masters of the Old English school as two interrelated sources belongs to G. Holst and R. Vaughan-Williams. Turning to the heritage of the “golden age” of English art was the only possible way to revive the national tradition. Folklore and old masters, establishing connections with modern European musical culture - the interaction of these trends in the art of Holst and Vaughan Williams brought a long-awaited renewal to English music of the 20th century. The themes, plots and images of English prose, poetry, and drama served as an important support in the establishment of national ideals. For musicians, the rural ballads of Robert Burns and the godless poems of John Milton, the pastoral elegies of Robert Herrick and the poems of John Donne, rich in passionate tension, acquire a modern sound; William Blake was rediscovered. An ever deeper understanding of national culture has become the most important factor the formation and flourishing of the English school of composition of the 20th century, the formation of the aesthetic ideal of composers.

The first major representatives of the new English musical revival were Hubert Parry (1848-1918) and Charles Stanford (1852-1924). Composers, scientists, performers, musicians and teachers, they, like the founders of many national schools, were outstanding figures whose multifaceted work was selflessly aimed at creating a new national school of composition, capable of reviving the tradition of the glorious past of English music. Their own social and creative activities served high example for contemporaries and for English composers of subsequent, younger generations.

The formation of a new English school of composition took place during the long reign (1837-1901) of Queen Victoria. During this era, various areas of English culture developed fully. The large national literary tradition was especially rich and fruitful. If Parry and Stanford are closely connected with, relatively speaking, the proto-Renaissance period of the era under consideration, then the name of Elgar opens the creative period new revival.

Like its contemporaries, the English school of composers was faced, first of all, with the problems of European musical romanticism in all their scope. And naturally, Wagner’s art became their focus. The powerful influence of Wagner's music in England can only be compared with his influence then in France or with the influence of Handel in England in the 18th century.

Already at the turn of the century, English composers made persistent attempts to get out of the influence of the German classical-romantic traditions, which had taken such deep roots on English soil. Let us remember that Parry wanted to create - as opposed to Mendelssohn's - national variety philosophical oratorio. A major achievement was Elgar's trilogy of small cantatas, The Spirit of England (1917).

The first true composer that England has produced since Purcell is called Edward Elgar (1857-1934). He was very closely associated with English provincial musical culture. At the initial stages of its creative life He served as a composer and arranger for the orchestra of his native Worcester, also wrote for musicians in Birmingham, and worked for local choral societies. His early choral songs and cantatas are in line with the great English choral tradition that emerged in the 80s and 90s. XIX century - that is, exactly when Elgar created the early choral works, - to the climax phase. Elgar's oratorio The Dream of Gerontius (1900), which brought glory to English music on the continent, was such a significant achievement for the composer that it generally supplanted Mendelssohn's Elijah and became the second favorite oratorio of the English public after Handel's Messiahs.

Elgar’s significance for the history of English music is determined primarily by two works: the oratorio “The Dream of Gerontius” (1900, on the poem by J. Newman) and the symphonic “Variations on a Mysterious Theme” (“Enigma” - variations (Enigma (lat.) - riddle. ), 1899), which became the pinnacle of English musical romanticism. The oratorio “The Dream of Gerontius” sums up not only the long development of the cantata-oratorio genres in the work of Elgar himself (4 oratorios, 4 cantatas, 2 odes), but in many ways the entire preceding path of English choral music. Another important feature was also reflected in the oratorio national renaissance- interest in folklore. It is no coincidence that, after listening to “The Dream of Gerontius,” R. Strauss proposed a toast “to the prosperity and success of the first English progressive, Edward Elgar, the master of the young progressive school of English composers.” Unlike the Enigma oratorio, the variations laid the first stone in the foundation of the national symphony, which before Elgar was the most vulnerable area of \u200b\u200bEnglish musical culture. “The Enigma Variations indicate that in the person of Elgar the country has found an orchestral composer of the first magnitude,” wrote one of the English researchers. The “mystery” of the variations is that the names of the composer’s friends are encrypted in them, hidden from view and theme song cycle. (All this is reminiscent of the “Sphinxes” from R. Schumann’s “Carnival.”) Elgar also wrote the first English symphony (1908).

Elgar's work is one of the outstanding phenomena of musical romanticism. Synthesizing national and Western European, mainly Austro-German influences, it bears the features of lyrical-psychological and epic directions. The composer widely uses the system of leitmotifs, in which the influence of R. Wagner and R. Strauss is clearly felt.

The establishment of new positions in English music came at a time of turning point in the spiritual life of Great Britain. Those were years of great trials and changes. First World War forced many artists of this country, which considered itself a stronghold of inviolability in Europe, to react sensitively to contradictions of unprecedented scale surrounding reality. Post-war English music is dominated by a centrifugal need to look at the world with a broad-spectrum view. The younger generation decisively came into contact with the innovative searches of European masters - Stravinsky, Schoenberg. The origins of "Facade" by William Walton (1902-1983) are compositional ideas drawn from Schoenberg's "Pierrot Lunaire", but the basis of the style of the work is the anti-romanticism proclaimed by Stravinsky and the French "Six". Constant Lambert (1905-1951) surprised his compatriots by starting to work in the genre of ballet from the very first steps on his creative path, the traditions of which were interrupted in England in the second half of the 18th century; in fact, it is quite natural that the composer was attracted to this genre, which in Europe by the 20s of the 20th century had become a symbol of modern artistic quest. Lambert's ballet Romeo and Juliet (1925) was a kind of response to Stravinsky's Pulcinella. At the same time, with his other composition - Elegiac Blues for small orchestra (1927) - Lambert responded to the jazz that amazed Europeans. Alan Bush (1900-1995) connected his activities with Eisler’s creative position and the labor movement; he not only adopted the corresponding socio-political and philosophical ideas, but also developed his compositional technique, relying on the experience of the New Vienna School, fruitfully refracted by Eisler.

In the first half of the 30s, the change in composer generations that had emerged in the previous decade was finally determined. In 1934, England lost three major masters - Elgar, Dilius, Holst. Of these, only Holst actively worked before last days. Elgar, after a decade of silence, only came to life for creativity in the early 30s. At the same time, struck by a serious illness and blindness, Dilius, who lived in France, was inspired by the unexpected success of his music in his homeland, in London, where his author’s festival was held in 1929, and in a surge of strength he dictated his latest works.

By the end of the 30s, the young generation is entering a time of creative maturity. The time of experimentation is left behind, the main interests are determined, creativity rushes into the mainstream of established traditions, mastery and strictness in relation to one’s ideas appear. Thus, William Walton writes a monumental biblical oratorio (“Belshazzar’s Feast”, 1931) and follows it with large orchestral works (First Symphony, 1934; Violin Concerto, 1939). Michael Tippett (b. 1905) rejects his earlier works; He declares new works in the chamber genre (First Piano Sonata, 1937) and concert orchestral works (Concerto for double string orchestra, 1939; Fantasia on a theme by Handel for piano and orchestra, 1941) the beginning of his creative journey, the first culmination of which was the oratorio “Child” of our time" (1941). In those years, Lambert (the mask “The Last Will and Testament of Summer” for soloist, choir and orchestra, 1936), Berkeley (First Symphony, 1940), Bush (First Symphony, 1940) were working on large-scale compositions in those years.

Among the many bright and original artistic individuals with which the English school of composers of the 20th century is rich, Benjamin Britten stands out. It was he who was destined to find in his work a harmonious interaction of multidirectional (and for the previous generation of English composers, almost mutually exclusive) tendencies - the embodiment of the ideas of modernity and the implementation of the originality of national art.

britten music ensemble vocal

1. Short story English Music
2. Listen to music
3. Prominent representatives of English music
4. About the author of this article

A Brief History of English Music

Origins
The origins of English music are in the musical culture of the Celts (the people who lived in the first millennium in the territory of modern England and France), the carriers of which, in particular, were bards (singer-storytellers of ancient Celtic tribes). Among the instrumental genres are dances: jig, country dance, hornpipe.

6th - 7th centuries
At the end of the 6th century. - early 7th century Church choral music is developing, with which the formation of professional art is associated.

11th - 14th centuries
In the 11th-14th centuries. Music spread poetic art minstrels. Minstrel - in the Middle Ages, a professional musician and poet, sometimes a storyteller, who served a feudal lord. In the 2nd half of the 14th century. secularism is developing musical art, vocal and instrumental court chapels are created. In the first half of the 15th century. the English school of polyphonists, led by John Dunstable, emerges

16th century
Composers of the 16th century
K. Tai
D. Taverner
T. Tallis
D. Dowland
D. Bull
The royal court became the center of secular music.

17th century
At the beginning of the 17th century. English musical theater is formed, leading its origins from the mysteries (musically - dramatic genre Middle Ages).

18th-19th centuries
18th–19th centuries – crisis in English national music.
Foreign influences are penetrating the national musical culture, Italian opera is conquering the English audience.
Prominent foreign musicians worked in England: G. F. Handel, I. K. Bach, J. Haydn (visited 2 times).
In the 19th century, London became one of the centers of European musical life. The following people toured here: F. Chopin, F. Liszt, N. Paganini, G. Berlioz, G. Wagner, G. Verdi, A. Dvorak, P. I. Tchaikovsky, A. K. Glazunov and others. The Covent Theater was created -Garden (1732), Royal Academy of Music (1822), Academy of Ancient Music (1770, first concert society in London)

The turn of the 19th – 20th centuries.
The so-called English musical revival, that is, a movement for the revival of national musical traditions, manifested in an appeal to English musical folklore and the achievements of the masters of the 17th century. These trends characterize the work of the new English school of composition; its prominent representatives are composers E. Elgar, H. Parry, F. Dilius, G. Holst, R. Vaughan Williams, J. Ireland, F. Bridge.

You can listen to music

1. Purcell (Giga)
2. Purcell (Prelude)
3.Purcell (Didonna's Aria)
4.Rolling Stone s "Rolling Stones" (Kerol)
5. Beatles "The Beatles" Yesterday

Prominent representatives of English music

G. Purcell(1659-1695)

G. Purcell - largest composer seventeenth century.
At the age of 11, Purcell wrote his first ode dedicated to Charles II. From 1675, Purcell's vocal works were regularly published in various English music collections.
Since the late 1670s. Purcell is the Stuart court musician. 1680s - the heyday of Purcell's creativity. He worked equally successfully in all genres: fantasy for string instruments, music for the theatre, odes - songs of welcome, Purcell's collection of songs "British Orpheus". Many of the melodies of his songs, close to folk tunes, gained popularity and were sung during Purcell’s lifetime.
In 1683 and 1687 Trio collections were published - sonatas for violins and bass. The use of violin works was an innovation that enriched English instrumental music.
The pinnacle of Purcell's work is the opera "Dido and Aeneas" (1689), the first national English opera (based on Virgil's "Aeneid"). This is the biggest phenomenon in the history of English music. Its plot is reworked in the spirit of English folk poetry– the opera is distinguished by the close unity of music and text. Purcell's rich world of images and feelings finds varied expression - from the psychologically profound to the rudely provocative, from the tragic to the humorous. However, the dominant mood of his music is soulful lyricism.
Most of his creations were soon forgotten, and Purcell's works became famous only in the last third of the 19th century. In 1876 The Purcell Society was organized. Interest in his work increased in Great Britain thanks to the activities of B. Britten.

B.E. Britten (1913 - 1976)

One of the greatest masters of English music of the 20th century - Benjamin Britten - composer, pianist and conductor. He started composing music at the age of 8. Since 1929 he has studied at the Royal College of Music in London. Already in his youthful works his original melodic gift, imagination, and humor were evident. In his early years, solo vocal and choral works occupied an important place in Britten's work. Britten's individual style is associated with the national English tradition (the study of the creative heritage of Purcell and other English composers of the 16th - 17th centuries). Among Britten's best works, which have received recognition in England and other countries, are the operas Peter Grimes, A Midsummer Night's Dream and others. In them, Britten appears as a subtle musical playwright - an innovator. “War Requiem” (1962) is a tragic and courageous work dedicated to pressing modern problems, condemning militarism and calling for peace. Britten toured the USSR in 1963, 1964, 1971.

Musical groups of the 20th century
"Rolling Stones"

In the spring of 1962, guitarist Brian Jones organized a group whose name was the Rolling Stones. The Rolling Stones consisted of Mick Jagger (vocals), Brian Jones and Keith Richards (guitars), Bill Wyman (bass - guitar) and Charlie Watts (drums).
This group brought hard and energetic music, aggressive performance style and relaxed behavior to the British stage. They neglected stage costumes and wore long hair.
Unlike the Beatles (who aroused sympathy), the Rolling Stones became the embodiment of the enemies of society, which allowed them to gain lasting popularity among young people.

"The Beatles"

In 1956, a vocal and instrumental quartet was created in Liverpool. The group consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison (guitars), Ringo Starr (drums).
The group gained wild popularity by performing songs in the “big beat” style, and from the mid-60s, the Beatles’ songs became more complex.
They were honored to perform in the palace in front of the queen.

About the author of this article

In my work I used the following literature:
- Musical encyclopedic dictionary. Ch. ed. R.V.Keldysh. 1990
- Magazine “Student Meridian”, 1991 Special issue
- Musical Encyclopedia, Ch. Ed. Yu.V.Keldysh. 1978
- Modern encyclopedia “Avanta plus” and “Music of our days”, 2002 Ch. ed. V. Volodin.

Charles Ives “Discovery” of Ives occurred only in the late 30s, when it turned out that many (and very different) methods of modern musical writing had already been tested by the original American composer in the era of A. Scriabin, C. Debussy and G. Mahler . By the time Ives became famous, he had not composed music for many years and, seriously ill, cut off ties with the outside world.

Subsequently, in the 20s, moving away from music, Ives became a successful businessman and a prominent insurance specialist (author of popular works). Most of Ives's works belong to the genres of orchestral and chamber music. He is the author of five symphonies, overtures, program works for orchestra (Three Villages in New England, Central Park in the Dark), two string quartets, five sonatas for violin, two for piano, pieces for organ, choruses and more than 100 songs. Symphony no. 1 i. Allegro Rej. ii. Largo ii. Adagio molto iii. Scherzo: Vivace iv. Allegro molto i. Allegro Ray. II. Largo II. Adagio malto III. Scherzo: Vivace intravenously Allegro malto

In the Second Piano Sonata (), the composer paid tribute to his spiritual predecessors. Each of its parts depicts a portrait of one of the American philosophers: R. Emerson, N. Hawthorne, G. Topo; the entire sonata bears the name of the place where these philosophers lived (Concord, Massachusetts). Their ideas formed the basis of Ives's worldview (for example, the idea of merging human life with the life of nature) Sonata No. 2 for Piano: Concord, Mass., i. Emerson ii. Hawthorne iii. The Alcotts iv. Thoreau Sonata 2 for piano:. Concord, Massachusetts, i. Emerson II. Hawthorne III. Alcotts IV Toro

Edward William Elgar E. Elgar the greatest English composer turn of XIX-XX centuries. Having received his first music lessons from his father, an organist and owner of a music shop, Elgar further developed independently, learning the basics of the profession in practice. Only in 1882 did the composer pass exams as an external student at the Royal Academy of Music in London in violin class and in musical theoretical subjects. Already in childhood, he mastered playing many instruments - violin, piano, and in 1885 replaced his father as church organist. In 1873, Elgar began his professional career as a violinist in the Worcester Glee Club (choral society), and from 1882 . worked in his hometown as an accompanist and conductor of an amateur orchestra.

Elgar’s significance for the history of English music is determined primarily by two works: the oratorio “The Dream of Gerontius” (1900, on J. Newman’s poem) and the symphonic “Variations on a Mysterious Theme,” which became the pinnacle of English musical romanticism. The “mystery” of the variations is that the names of the composer’s friends are encrypted in them, and the musical theme of the cycle is hidden from view. (All this is reminiscent of the “Sphinxes” from R. Schumann’s “Carnival.”) Elgar also wrote the first English symphony (1908). Among the composer's other numerous orchestral works (overtures, suites, concertos, etc.), the Violin Concerto (1910) stands out as one of the most popular works of this genre. The Dream Of Gerontius

Elgar's music is melodically charming, colorful, has a bright characteristic, and in symphonic works it attracts orchestral mastery, subtlety of instrumentation, and the manifestation of romantic thinking. By the beginning of the 20th century. Elgar gained European fame. Land of Hope and Glory

Ralph Vaughan Williams English composer, organist and musical and social activist, collector and researcher of English musical folklore. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge University with C. Wood and at the Royal College of Music in London () with H. Parry and C. Stanford (composition), W. Parrett (organ); improved in composition with M. Bruch in Berlin, with M. Ravel in Paris. Organist of South Lambeth Church, London. Since 1904 member of the Folk Song Society. From 1919 he taught composition at the Royal College of Music (from 1921 professor). The director of the Bach Choir.

The symphonic works of Vaughan-Williams are distinguished by their drama (4th symphony), melodic clarity, mastery of voice production, and inventive orchestration, in which the influence of the Impressionists is felt. Among the monumental vocal-symphonic and choral works are oratorios and cantatas intended for church performance. Of the operas, the most successful is “Sir John in Love” (1929, based on “The Gossips of Windsor” by W. Shakespeare). Vaughan Williams was one of the first English composers to actively work in cinema (his 7th symphony was written based on the music for the film about the polar explorer R. F. Scott). Vaughan Williams Symphony 4.

She began learning to play the piano at the age of 5, and by the age of 8 she was playing almost all of Beethoven’s works by heart. By the age of 20, the number of her concerts reached 100 per year. “When I listen to myself play, I feel as if I’m present at own funeral", this phrase seemed prophetic, because in 1960, due to a heart attack at a concert, she musical activity stopped. She composed several of her own works (“Sonata by Julia Hess”, “Farewell”). Style: classical music. During the wars, she gave concerts all over the world, for which she was appreciated and is still remembered by many people.

American jazz pianist, conductor, songwriter, jazzman, flautist, actor and composer, winner of 14 Grammy awards and one of the most influential jazz musicians. Hancock's music combines elements of rock along with freestyle elements of jazz. Hancock serves as Ambassador Good will UNESCO, as well as chairman of the Thelonious Monk Jazz Institute. They say about Herbie: “The genius of pure simplicity.”

Vocalist, musician, pianist, arranger, composer, harmonica player. He was blind from childhood, but this did not stop him from becoming a brilliant pianist at the age of 8. “He sees, because he feels,” his parents said. Wonder likes to use a lot of complex chords in his compositions. US President Barack Obama is a longtime fan of Stevie Wonder's music. His name in English-speaking countries has become a common noun for the blind.

The black guitarist Chuck Berry, who stood at the origins of rock and roll, had such an influence on this music that it is simply impossible to imagine this style without him. He composed many catchy songs that became examples of rock and roll, and came up with many tricks that guitarists still repeat on stage. John Lennon’s statement is very symptomatic: “If the term “rock and roll” did not exist, this music would have to be called “Chuck Berry” “Chuck Berry”. American musician Chuck Berry Chuck Berry 1926) (1926)

Bob Dylan is usually called “the revelation of America,” and in this sense, his work is the opposite of the work of pop stars who are masters of allegory. It is known that songs, like a mirror, reflect their author with all his actions and aspirations. Dylan's songs are characterized by a certain deliberateness and originality, emphasizing independence of judgment. Even in his early years of creativity, he rejected any outside opinions about how to sing and write music. American singer and composer Bob Dylan American singer and composer Bob Dylan (1941) (1941)

The phrase “King of Rock and Roll” is associated with Elvis Presley. He is ranked third among the greatest performers of all time and greatest vocalists by Rolling Stone magazine. During his career, Elvis Presley won three Grammy awards (1967, 1972, 1975) and was nominated 14 times. In January 1971, the singer was awarded the Jaycee Award - as one of the “ten outstanding people of the year” American rock singer Elvis Presley ()

British rock band from Liverpool, founded in 1960, featuring John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The famous Liverpool group has achieved many successes that are still amazing today, and which modern performers are trying to repeat. The Beatles' greatest achievement is that their "A Day In The Life" is their most best song In Great Britain, the album “Revolver” (1966) was recognized as the best album in the history of rock and roll, and a sad song called “Yesterday” was performed more than seven million times in the last century. And that's not all the Beatles' achievements!

Her successes in the musical field are impressive. Today the singer was awarded 34 “gold” discs and 21 “platinum” ones. During her career, she received two GRAMMY awards. Since 1964, more than 60 million of her records have been sold worldwide... Her success in the musical field is impressive. Today the singer was awarded 34 “gold” discs and 21 “platinum” ones. During her career, she received two GRAMMY awards. Since 1964, more than 60 million of her records have been sold worldwide... In 1992, Barbra Streisand's four CDs, Just for the Chronicle, were released, representing a sonic illustration of her career, starting with her first sound recording in 1955. The discs contain recordings of Barbra Streisand's early television shows, awards acceptance speeches and unpublished songs. In 1992, Barbra Streisand's four CDs, Just to Record, were released, providing a sonic snapshot of her career from her first recording in 1955. The discs contain recordings of Barbra Streisand's early television shows, awards acceptance speeches and unpublished songs. “You have to live without subordinating your life to other people’s opinions,” Barbra sums up his life experience. This is the only way you won’t change yourself.” “You have to live without subordinating your life to other people’s opinions,” Barbra sums up his life experience. This is the only way you won’t change yourself.” American singer, composer, director, screenwriter, film actress (1942)

British rock band formed in 1964. The original lineup consisted of Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle and Keith Moon. The band achieved enormous success through their extraordinary live performances and are considered both one of the most influential bands of the 60s and 70s, as well as one of the greatest rock bands of all time. The Who became famous in their homeland both due to the innovative technique of smashing instruments on stage after a performance, and due to their hit singles. The Who 1964

The concept of “composer” first appeared in the 16th century in Italy, and since then it has been used to refer to a person who writes music.

19th century composers

In the 19th century Vienna music school represented by such an outstanding composer as Franz Peter Schubert. He continued the traditions of Romanticism and influenced an entire generation of composers. Schubert created more than 600 German romances, taking the genre to a new level.

Franz Peter Schubert

Another Austrian, Johann Strauss, became famous for his operettas and light musical dance forms. It was he who made the waltz the most popular dance in Vienna, where balls are still held. In addition, his heritage includes polkas, quadrilles, ballets and operettas.

Johann Strauss

A prominent representative of modernism in music of the late 19th century was the German Richard Wagner. His operas have not lost their relevance and popularity to this day.

Giuseppe Verdi

One can contrast Wagner with a majestic figure Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi, who remained faithful to operatic traditions and gave Italian opera a new breath.

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Among the Russian composers of the 19th century, the name of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky stands out. He is characterized by a unique style, combining European symphonic traditions with Glinka's Russian heritage.

Composers of the 20th century

Sergei Vasilyevich Rahmaninov

Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninov is rightfully considered one of the most brilliant composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His musical style was based on the traditions of romanticism and existed in parallel with avant-garde movements. It was for his individuality and lack of analogues that his work was highly appreciated by critics all over the world.

Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky

The second most famous composer of the 20th century is Igor Fedorovich Stravinsky. Russian by origin, he emigrated to France and then the USA, where he showed his talent in full force. Stravinsky is an innovator who is not afraid to experiment with rhythms and styles. His work shows the influence of Russian traditions, elements of various avant-garde movements and a unique individual style, for which he is called “Picasso in music.”