Medtner winter evening history of creation. Medtner N.K.

Nikolai Karlovich Medtner was born in Moscow on January 5, 1880. He came from a family rich in artistic traditions: his mother was a representative of the famous musical family Gedike; brother Emilius was a philosopher, writer, music critic (pseudonym - Wolfing); another brother, Alexander, is a violinist and conductor. Having graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1900 with a degree in piano under V. Safonov with a small gold medal, Medtner soon attracted attention as a talented, technically strong pianist and an interesting, thoughtful musician.

He did not receive a systematic composing education, despite his early ability to compose music. During his conservatory years, Medtner attended classes in counterpoint and fugue with Taneyev for only one half year, although later, as his wife A. M. Medtner testifies, "he liked very much to show his compositions to Sergei Ivanovich and was happy when he received his approval." The main source of acquiring composing skills was for him an independent study of samples of classical musical literature.

By the time he graduated from the conservatory, Medtner was the author of a fairly large number of piano pieces, which, however, he did not make public, considering them, apparently, not mature enough and perfect for this.

The voice of Medtner, a pianist and composer, was immediately heard by the most sensitive musicians. Along with the concertos of Rachmaninov and Scriabin, Medtner's original concerts were events in the musical life both in Russia and abroad. The writer M. Shaginyan recalled that these evenings were a holiday for the listeners.

He first appeared publicly as a composer in 1903, playing in his concert on March 26 of this year, along with the works of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, several of his own pieces from the Mood Pictures cycle. In the same year, the entire cycle was published by P.I. Jurgenson. He was favorably received by critics, who noted the early maturity of the composer and the pronounced originality of his creative individuality.

Among the works of Medtner that followed the first opus, the most significant is the sonata in F minor, on which the composer worked in 1903-1904, guided by the advice of Taneyev. Its general tone is excitedly pathetic, the texture is more strict, “muscular” compared to the previous works by Medtner, the main themes, distinguished by conciseness, elasticity of rhythm, are, as it were, charged with kinetic energy, which gives impetus to further development.

Starting from this first, not yet fully mature and independent experience of mastering a new form for him, the sonata genre occupies an important place in Medtner's work. He wrote fourteen piano sonatas, three sonatas for violin and piano, but if we add to this works of a different kind based on the principles of sonata form (concertets, a quintet, even some of the pieces of small form), then we can say with confidence that not a single of Medtner's contemporaries, not only in Russia, but throughout the world, did not develop this form with such perseverance and perseverance as he did. But, having mastered the achievements of the classical and romantic era in the development of sonata form, Medtner interprets it in many respects independently, in a new way. First of all, attention is drawn to the extraordinary variety of his sonatas, which differ not only in the expressive nature of the music, but also in the structure of the cycle. But in any case, regardless of the volume and number of parts, the composer strives to consistently carry out from beginning to end a single poetic idea, which is indicated in some cases by special titles - "Tragic", "Thunderous" sonatas, "Sonata-remembrance" - or the verse epigraph prefaced by him. The epic-narrative beginning is also emphasized by such author's definitions as "Sonata-ballad", "Sonata-fairy tale". This does not give the right to talk about the programmatic nature of Medtner's sonatas in the proper sense of the word: we can rather talk about the unity of the general poetic idea, which develops throughout the entire sonata cycle.

One of Medtner's best sonatas and loved by listeners and performers is the sonata in G minor, written in 1909-1910. Slenderness, completeness of form are combined in it with expressive dramatic impetuosity of music and courageous strong-willed pathos.

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Being himself an outstanding pianist, he showed himself most fully and most vividly in the field of piano music. Of the sixty-one opuses he published, almost two-thirds were written for piano. A significant, often dominant role belongs to this favorite instrument in other compositions (romances, violin sonatas, quintets). Before leaving abroad, when living conditions forced him to expand his concert activities, Medtner performed rarely, considering his performances as a kind of reports to the public on new creative achievements.

Medtner did not like to perform in large rooms in front of a large audience, preferring chamber-type concert halls. The inclination towards seclusion, intimacy was generally characteristic of the artistic appearance of Medtner. In a response letter to his brother Emilius, he wrote: “If my art is “intimate”, as you often say, then it should be so! to these people I consider it my duty. And in this I am firm and iron, as one should be the son of the century ... "

One of the favorite types of Medtner's piano work was the genre of a fairy tale - a small work of lyric-epic content that tells about various impressions seen, heard, read, or about the events of inner spiritual life. Distinguished by the richness of imagination and the diversity of character, Medtner's fairy tales are not the same in their scale. Along with simple, unpretentious miniatures, we find among them more detailed and complex compositions. The first of them appears at Medtner in 1905.

At the same time, Medtner's vocal work is also developing. In the summer of 1903, when he first began to take a serious interest in poetic literature and to develop in himself "some technique in reading poetry," the German poet Goethe opened before him the way to understanding the secret power of the poetic word. “And now,” he shared his impressions with his brother Emilius, “when I discovered Goethe, I positively went crazy with delight. During the years 1904-1908, Medtner created three cycles of songs based on Goethe’s poems. The composer wrote them on the original German text, which allowed him to preserve all the features of the author's poetic speech.Despite some of their unevenness, Medtner's three Goethe cycles should be generally attributed to the composer's highest achievements in the field of chamber vocal music.They were duly appreciated by contemporaries and in 1912 were awarded the Glinkin Prize.

Having created a kind of "musical offering" to the highly valued German poet, Medtner subsequently turns mainly to Russian poetry. In 1911 - 1914, a number of romances appeared on the verses of Tyutchev and Fet, who had previously been underestimated by him, but the main attention of the composer was attracted by Pushkin's poetry. One can just as well speak of the "Pushkin period" of Medtner's vocal work, with which its first decade deserves the name "Goethe's". Prior to this, Medtner's appeal to Pushkin had only an occasional, episodic character. In the years 1913-1918, like the earlier Goethe ones, Medtner created three Pushkin cycles one after the other.

The romances included in them are very unequal, but if among them there are undoubted successes, and the best of Medtner's Pushkin romances deserve to be classified as masterpieces of Russian vocal lyrics of the beginning of the century. First of all, these are the two vocal poems "Muse" and "Arion", the images of which grow in Medtner's musical interpretation to epic proportions.

Medtner's pedagogical activity also proceeded quite successfully. In 1909-1910 and 1915-1921 Medtner was a piano professor at the Moscow Conservatory. Among his students are many later famous musicians: A. Shatskes, N. Shtember, B. Khaikin. V. Sofronitsky, L. Oborin used Medtner's advice.

And the composer had something to say to his students. After all, Medtner was the highest master of polyphony. The goal of his aspirations was "the fusion of the contrapuntal style with the harmonic one", the highest example of which he found in the work of Mozart.

The external, sensual side of sound, sound paint, as such, was of little interest to Medtner. For him, the main thing in music was the logic of expressing a thought or feeling in a complete, consistently unfolding harmonic construction, the elements of which are firmly interconnected and subject to a single holistic concept. An excessive abundance of colors could, from his point of view, only distract the listener's attention from the development of the main idea and thereby weaken the strength and depth of the impression. Characteristically, with all his skill and comprehensive technical equipment, Medtner was completely devoid of a sense of orchestral sonority. Therefore, when composing all three of his piano concertos, where he had to resort to the help of an orchestra, he was forced to seek advice and help from his fellow musicians.

The composer's piano concertos are monumental and approach symphonies. The best of them is the First, whose images are inspired by the terrible upheavals of the world war. A relatively small one-movement concerto is distinguished by the greatest internal integrity and unity of intention. Medtner worked hard on it for four whole years. In the summer of 1917, he wrote to his brother Emilia: "The concert, started three years ago, is still not finished. However, his music is completely finished, but the instrumentation of rock is only a third. Instrumentation is very difficult for me. I am essentially an improviser."

In the early 1920s, Medtner was a member of the MUZO People's Commissar of Millet. In 1921 he went abroad, toured France, Germany, England, Poland, as well as the USA and Canada. In 1927, the composer came to the USSR, gave concerts with a program of his works in Moscow, Leningrad, Kyiv, Kharkov, Odessa.

In his work and abroad, Medtner again turns to Russian poetry. Two romances based on Tyutchev's poems and two Pushkin's romances - "Elegy" ("I love your unknown dusk") and "Cart of Life" were included in the opus written in 1924, and at the end of the 1920s another cycle was created - " Seven songs on Pushkin's poems. Pushkin's poetry is also represented in Medtner's last vocal opus, written already at the end of his life. In this group of compositions, the composer is occupied with various tasks, predominantly of a characteristic nature. The most interesting of them is the "Cart of Life", highly valued by the author himself, which allegorically characterizes various periods of human life in the form of a daring rollicking road song. In Medtner's last Pushkin cycle, attention is drawn to "Scottish Song", "Raven Flies to Raven" and two Spanish romances - "Before the noble Spanish woman" and "I am here, Inezilla" with their characteristic complex, intricately patterned rhythm.

In 1928, the last series of Medtner's fairy tales was published in Germany, consisting of six plays of this genre, with a dedication to Cinderella and Ivan the Fool.

The ever-increasing feeling of loneliness over the years, alienation from everything that determined not only the development of musical art in the 20th century, but also the entire structure of the modern world, forced Medtner to fence himself off from the environment, protecting the purity of spiritual values ​​​​and ideals dear to him. This imposed on his work the seal of isolation, sometimes gloominess and gloomy unsociableness. These features of Medtner's music were noted more than once by the composer's contemporaries. Of course, he could not completely fence himself off from what was happening in the reality around him, and the echoes of contemporary events found a conscious or unconscious echo in his works. Composed in the early 1930s, when a premonition of impending upheavals was already brewing in Europe, Medtner called the Thunderstorm Sonata "the most modern" of his works, "because it reflects the thunderous atmosphere of modern events."

In 1935, the most important event in Medtner's life took place - the composer's book "Muse and Fashion" was published in Paris. The thoughts and judgments expressed in it are the result of long, concentrated reflections that worried Medtner throughout his conscious life. The author sharply critically assesses the contemporary state of music, likening it to a "detuned lyre".

In his reasoning, he proceeds from the recognition of certain eternal, unshakable foundations, or, as he puts it, the "meanings" of music, the deviation from which leads to disastrous consequences for it. "Loss of meanings" in modern music Medtner considers the main reason for the crisis and confusion she is experiencing. Since 1936, Medtner lived in England, where his work was recognized. While abroad, he continued to consider himself a Russian musician and declared: "I have never been and never will be an emigrant." He was deeply shocked by the attack of Nazi Germany on the USSR: "... Moscow is experienced by me, as if I were there, and not here" (from a letter to I.E. and E.D. Prenam dated October 27, 1941). On June 5, 1944, Medtner performed in a concert in favor of the Joint Committee for Assistance to the Soviet Union in London, where his music was performed next to the works of Glinka, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich. In the last years of his life, Medtner was forced to give up concert performances due to heart disease.

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  Medtner's ancestors were of Scandinavian origin (Danish father, Swedish-German mother), but by the time of his birth, the family had already lived in Russia for many years. He received his first piano lessons at the age of six from his mother, then studied with his uncle, Fyodor Gedike (father of Alexander Gedike). At Medtner he entered the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied in the classes of Anatoly Galli, Paul Pabst, Vasily Sapelnikov and Vasily Safonov, and graduated with a large gold medal. Medtner studied composition on his own, although in his student years he took theory lessons from Nikolai Kashkin and harmony from Anton Arensky.

  Shortly after graduating from the conservatory, Medtner took part in the Rubinstein Piano Competition, where he earned an honorable mention from an influential jury, however, on the advice of Sergei Taneev and his older brother Emil, instead of a concert career, he seriously took up composition, performing only occasionally, and mostly with his own compositions. . In 1903 some of his works appeared in print. Sonata f-moll attracted the attention of the famous Polish pianist Joseph Hoffmann, Sergei Rakhmaninov (who became one of Medtner's closest friends in later years) turned his attention to the music of the young composer. In 1907 and 1907, Medtner gave concerts in Germany, but did not make much of an impression on critics. At the same time, in Russia (and especially in Moscow) he had many admirers and followers. The recognition of Medtner as a composer came in 1909, when he was awarded the Glinka Prize for a cycle of songs to the words of Johann Wolfgang Goethe. The first performer of a number of his songs was Valentina Dmitrievna Filosofova, daughter of General Dmitry Filosofov.

  Medtner took an active part in the activities of the House of Songs. Soon he received a professorship in the piano class of the Moscow Conservatory, and another Glinka Prize for piano sonatas. N. K. Medtner was a member of the board of the Russian Musical Publishing House, established in 1909 by Sergei Kusevitsky, which, in addition to him, also included Alexander Gedike, Sergei Rakhmaninov, Alexander Skryabin (later Alexander Ossovsky took his place), Nikolai Struve.

  Creation

  One of the last romantic composers, Medtner occupies an important place in the history of Russian music, along with Alexander Scriabin, Sergei Rachmaninov and Sergei Prokofiev, in whose shadow he remained throughout his career. The piano occupies a dominant place in Medtner's work - he does not have a single composition in which this instrument would not be involved. An excellent pianist, Medtner is sensitive to the expressive possibilities of the piano; his works place high technical demands on the performer. Medtner's style of music differs from most of his contemporaries, in which the Russian spirit is harmoniously combined with classical Western traditions - perfect structural unity, mastery of polyphonic writing, sonata form. The composer's language has hardly changed over time.

  The Russian and German sides of Medtner's musical personality are clearly manifested in his attitude to the melodic component, which ranges from Russian motifs ("Russian Fairy Tale") to the finest lyricism (Second Concerto). Medtner's harmony is saturated and rich, but practically does not go beyond the framework that was formed in the 19th century. The rhythmic component, on the other hand, is sometimes quite complicated - Medtner uses various types of polyrhythm.

  Fourteen piano sonatas occupy a special place in Medtner's heritage. These are compositions of various scales, from small one-movement sonatas from the Triad to the epic e-moll sonata, Op. 25 No. 2, which fully reveals the composer's mastery of large-scale structure and depth of thematic penetration. Among other works by Medtner for solo piano, thirty-eight miniatures of various character, elegant and masterfully written, entitled by the author as "Tales", stand out. The three piano concertos are the only pieces in which Medtner uses an orchestra. Medtner's chamber compositions include three sonatas for violin and piano, several small pieces for the same composition, and a piano quintet. Finally, another area of ​​Medtner's work is vocal compositions. More than a hundred songs and romances were written to the verses of Russian and German poets, mainly Pushkin and Goethe. The piano plays a no less important role than the voice.

  Compositions

  Concertos for piano and orchestra

  • Concerto No. 1 c-moll, op. 33 (1914―1918)
  • Concerto No. 2 c-moll, op. 50 (1920―1927)
  • Concerto No. 3 e-moll, op. 60 (1940―1943)

  piano solo

  • Eight paintings, op. 1 (1895-1902): Prologue ― Andante cantabile, Allegro con impeto, Maestoso freddo, Andantino con moto, Andante, Allegro con humore, Allegro con ira, Allegro con grazia
  • Three improvisations, op. 2 (1896―1900): Nixe, Reminiscence of a ball ("Eine Ball-Reminiscenz"), Infernal scherzo ("Scherzo infernale")
  • Four Pieces, op. 4 (1897―1902): Etude, Caprice, Musical Moment "The Dwarf's Complaint", Prelude
  • Sonata f-moll, op. 5 (1895―1903)
  • Three arabesques, op. 7 (1901―1904): Idyll, Tragic Fragment a-moll, Tragic Fragment g-moll
  • Two Tales, op. 8 (1904―1905): c-minor, c-minor
  • Three Tales, op. 9 (1904―1905): f-moll, C-dur, G-dur
  • Three Dithyrambs, op. 10 (1898―1906): D-dur, Es-dur, E-dur
  • Sonata Triad, op. 11 (1904―1907): As-dur, d-moll, C-dur
  • Two Tales, op. 14 (1905-1907): "Song of Ophelia" f-moll, «Procession knights e-moll
  • Three short stories, op. 17 (1908-1909): G-dur, c-minor, E-dur
  • Two Tales, op. 20 (1909): b-moll, № 1, "Campanella" h-moll, No. 2.
  • Sonata in g-moll, op. 22 (1901―1910)
  • Four lyrical fragments, op. 23 (1896-1911): c-minor, a-minor, f-minor, c-minor
  • Sonata-fairy tale c-moll, op. 25 No. 1 (1910-1911)
  • Sonata "Night Wind" e-moll, op. 25 No. 2 (1910-1911)
  • Four Tales, op. 26 (1910―1912): Es-dur, Es-dur, f minor, fis-moll
  • Ballade Sonata Fis-dur, op. 27 (1912―1914)
  • Sonata a-moll, op. 30 (1914)
  • Three Pieces, op. 31 (1914): Improvisation, Funeral March, Fairy Tale
  • Four Tales, op. 34 (1916-1917): "Magic Violin" h-moll, e-moll, "Goblin" a-moll, d-moll
  • Four Tales, op. 35 (1916-1917): C major, G major, a minor, cis minor
  • "Forgotten Motives", op. 38 (1919-1922): "Sonata-Reminiscence" (Sonata-Reminiscenza), Graceful Dance (Danza graziosa), Festive Dance (Danza festiva), River Song (Canzona fluviala), Country Dance (Danza rustica), Evening Song (Canzona serenata), Christmas dance (Danza silvestra), In the spirit of memories (alla Reminiscenza)
  • "Forgotten Motives", op. 39 (1919―1920): Meditation (Meditazione), Romance (Romanza), Spring (Primavera), Morning Song (Canzona matinata), sonata "Tragic"(Sonata Tragica, op. 39 No. 5)
  • "Forgotten Motives", op. 40 (1919―1920): Danza col canto, Danza sinfonica, Danza fiorata, Danza jubilosa, Danza ondulata, Danza ditirambica
  • Three Tales, op. 42 (1921―1924): f-moll ("Russian Fairy Tale"), c-moll, gis-moll
  • Second improvisation, op. 47 (1925―1926)
  • Two Tales, op. 48 (1925): C major, g minor
  • Three hymns to labour, op. 49 (1926―1928)
  • Six Tales, op. 51 (1928, dedicated to Cinderella and Ivan the Fool): d-moll, a-moll, A major, fis-moll, fis-moll, G-dur
  • Sonata "Romantic" b-moll, op. 53 #1 (1929―1930)
  • Thunderstorm Sonata f-moll, op. 53 #2 (1929―1931)
  • Romantic sketches for youth, op. 54 (1931―1932): Prelude (Pastoral), Bird's Tale, Prelude (Tempo di sarabanda), Fairy Tale (Scherzo), Prelude, Fairy Tale (organ grinder), Prelude (Hymn), Fairy Tale
  • Theme and Variations, op. 55 (1932―1933)
  • Idyll Sonata G-dur, op. 56 (1935―1937)
  • Two elegies, op. 59 (1940―1944): a minor, e minor
  Compositions without opus number and unpublished
  • Funeral adagio in e-moll (1894-1895), unpublished
  • Three Pieces (1895-1896): Pastoral in C-dur, Musical moment in c-minor, Humoresque fis-minor, unpublished
  • Prelude in b minor (1895-1896), unpublished
  • Six Preludes (1896-1897): C-dur, G-dur, e-moll, E-dur, gis-minor, es-moll
  • Prelude Es-dur (1897), unpublished
  • Sonata in h minor (1897), unpublished
  • Impromptu in the spirit of a mazurka in b-moll (1897), unpublished
  • Impromptu in f minor (1898), unpublished
  • Sonatina g-moll (1898)
  • Two cadenzas for the Fourth Piano Concerto

  METNER, figures grew up. artistic culture, brethren. Their parents are premier. German origin; ancestors from the mother's side (representatives of the Gebhard and Gedike families) lived in Russia from the end. 18 - beg. 19th century, many of them were musicians. Nikolai Karlovich, composer and pianist. One of the largest authors of Russian. fp. music 1st floor. 20th century In 1900 he graduated from Moscow. cons. as a pianist (studied with A. I. Galli, P. A. Pabst, V. I. Safonov). Composition was not specially studied. He gave concerts in Russia and (since 1904) abroad, performing works by L. van Beethoven, R. Schumann, F. Chopin, P. I. Tchaikovsky and his own. From 1906 he gave annual author's concerts. In the 1900s worked in private music. school of L. E. Konyus, in the Elizabethan Institute; one of the founders of the People's Cons. (1906). Member Council of Ros. music publishing house founded by S. A. Kusevitsky. In 1909–10, 1915–21 prof. Moscow cons., among the students - N. V. Shtember, N. I. Sizov, P. I. Vasiliev, L. G. Lukomsky, A. V. Shatskes. OK. 1909 met S.V. Rachmaninov, who highly appreciated him as a musician and supported him during the years of emigration (contributed to the organization of concert tours in the USA, etc.). In 1921, M. went abroad, performed in Germany, Poland [in 1922 in Warsaw he performed his 1st fp. concerto (op. 1918) with orchestra under dir. E. Mlynarsky], Switzerland, Italy, France, Great Britain, in 1924-25 and 1929-30 - in the North. America (here he played his 1st piano concert under the direction of L. Stokowski, F. Stock, F. Reiner, O. S. Gabrilovich). In 1927 he toured the USSR, gave 13 author's concerts in different cities, for the first time in Moscow he performed his 2nd piano. concerto (op. 1927, dedicated to Rachmaninoff) with an orchestra under the control. brother - A.K. Medtner. From 1935 he lived in Great Britain, where he actively gave concerts in 1935–37; in 1944 in a concert of the Royal Philharmonic. ob-va in the Albert Hall for the first time played its 3rd fp. concerto (Concert-ballad, op. 1943) under the control. A. Boult. The last major work - Fp. quintet (1948; in 1950 recorded on a gramophone record with the participation of the author).

  M. - the composer and pianist are characterized by exacting taste, a sense of the artist. measures, external restraint of expression, self-absorption. The style of his works is an original refraction of the traditions of the late German. romanticism and Russian. music con. 19th century - almost never evolved. His compositions are characterized by the mastery of the muses. forms (according to S. I. Taneev, “Medtner was born already with sonata form”), the richness of contrapuntal. fp. textures, graphic design (in the foreground - a melodic beginning), muted color, "kinetic tension" (according to the definition of N. Ya. Myaskovsky). Main area of ​​creativity - chamber music for piano. and with the participation of FP. Among the works (publ. 61 opus): for piano. - 3 concerts, St. 13 sonatas (Sonata Triad, 1904–07, Sonata-Fairy Tale, 1911, Sonata-Ballad, 1914, Romantic Sonata, 1930, Thunderstorm Sonata, 1931, Idyll Sonata, 1937, etc.), “Forgotten Motifs” ( 1918–20; 1st notebook includes the Sonata-remembrance; 2nd notebook entitled "Lyrical motifs"; 3rd notebook - "Dance motifs"), 10 opuses of "fairy tales" (M. is the creator of this genre variety of instrumental miniatures); for violin and piano. - 3 sonatas (1910; 1925; Epic Sonata, 1938); romances to the words of I. V. Goethe, F. Nietzsche, A. S. Pushkin, F. I. Tyutchev and others.

  Most of the recordings of M.'s works with the participation of the author were made after 1946; in 1950 a number of M.'s songs were recorded, performed by E. Schwarzkopf and the author.

  The author of the book "Muse and Fashion" (1935); his notes are collected in the book. The Daily Work of a Pianist and Composer (1963; 2nd ed., 1979).

  Emily Karlovich(lit. pseudo. Wolfing and others) (1872, Moscow - on the night of July 10-11, 1936, Pillnitz, near Dresden), philosopher, art critic, publicist. Graduated from law school. Faculty of Moscow. un-ta (1898). From Ser. 1890s worked as a musician. critic. He was close to the symbolists. In the 1900s head music the department of "Golden Fleece". In 1910, with the participation of A. Bely, he organized the Musaget publishing house, the editor of the Musaget publishing house published there. "Works and Days". From 1914 he lived in Zurich. His main articles are collected in the book. "Modernism and Music" (1912).

  Alexander Karlovich, violist, violinist, conductor, teacher, composer, honored. art. RSFSR (1935). Studied in Moscow. cons. in the violin class of I. V. Grzhimali (1892–98). In 1902 he graduated from the Music and Drama. school Mosk. Philharmonic about-va, where he studied with Vikt. WITH. Kalinnikova, G. E. Konyus (composition), V. Kes (violin, conducting); taught there (until 1907). He played in orchestras (including in 1902–11 concertmaster of the Symphony Chapel), from 1908 he acted as a conductor. He taught at the Synodal School of Church Singing (in 1903-1914 he taught violin and viola classes), People's Council. (since 1906; one of its founders), Mus. technical school at Moscow. cons. (1924–31); in 1932–55 the head of the orchestral class of the Moscow. cons. Conducted symphony. concerts of the All-Union Radio Orchestra, the Bolshoi Theater. Since 1919 conductor, in 1920-30 Ch. conductor and director music part of the Chamber Theatre, the author of music for performances.

  Medtner N.K. The daily work of a pianist.pdf

  

  FROM THE COMPILERS
  Nikolai Karlovich Medtner usually kept short notes while studying composition or playing the piano. He wrote down what plays he worked on, how long he worked on, what should be paid special attention to. These records are of a different nature. Sometimes they have a fundamental, generalizing meaning, but most often they are brief reminders to oneself, made at a certain stage in learning a particular piece. Medtner insistently recommended that his students immediately write down the considerations that arise during the lessons. He believed that one should not unnecessarily burden one's memory, since simple and seemingly obvious truths are often forgotten in the process of work.
  Such a great musician and pianist as Medtner recognized the need to constantly remind himself: “listen and listen, do not look at the keys”; "immersion in silence, and all out of silence"; "close your eyes"; “Down with accents, sharp blows and, in general, any kind of tension>; "elbows apart and free"; “do not force the finger lever”, etc.
  The notes are purely intimate, they were intended by Medtner yulko for himself. Therefore, some records of deep thoughts are so concise that their meaning cannot be immediately understood, requiring slow, thoughtful reading. For example: "everything should be at hand"; “be mindful of the tempos in connection with the sound of the given piano”; "to give what is given"; “pap thread about wide lines, waves, perspectives”, etc.
  Both in his work with students and in his personal studies, Medtner was always creatively looking for new ways, rejecting the dogmatic approach. Therefore, his instructions sometimes seem contradictory, but in fact this is only a flexible adaptation to certain features of the performer's mental make-up and the structure of his hands, to the requirements of interpreting various works, depending on the stages of preparatory work.
  Medtner's notebooks provide a rare glimpse into the creative laboratory of the outstanding composer and performer, who deeply analyzes and superbly organizes the process of his work. It was the latter that allowed Medtner to create 62 opuses of compositions and at the same time achieve extraordinary performance excellence, although he devoted no more than four hours a day to playing the piano (two hours in the morning and in the evening).
  Many thoughts from recordings can help our young musicians find productive ways of working.
  The appendix contains exercises, partly available in notebooks, partly dictated by Medtner to his students.
  In addition to exercises, Medtner constantly used for training some of Kramer's etudes, D. Scarlatti's sonatas, preludes and fugues from J. S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, L. Beethoven's 32 variations, almost all of F. Chopin's etudes, some f. Liszt,
  The concert repertoire of Medtner, in addition to his own compositions, included, as can be seen from the recordings, the following works:
  I. S. B a x. Preludes and Fugues from the Well-Tempered Clavier: c-moll, Cis-dur, B-dur from Volume I and D-moll from Volume II;
  D. Scarlatti. Sonatas B-dur, d-moll, F-dur;
  B. A. Mozart. Concert A-dur;
  L. Beethoven. Concerto G-dur, 32 variations, sonatas D-dur, op. 10, C-dur, op. 53, e-moll, op. 90, f-moll, op. 57, "Turkish March" arranged by A. Rubinstein, "Chorus of Dervishes" arranged by C. Saint-Saens;
  R. Schuman. Toccata;
  F. Chopin. All studies op. 10 and 25, fantasia in f minor, ballads in F major and f minor, polonaises in es minor and fis minor, preludes (especially G major, Des major);
  F. List. Polonaise, "Feux follets", "Gnomenreigen";
  C. Rachmaninov. Etudes-pictures and preludes.
  Notebooks have been preserved in the form of scattered sheets, which are not always dated. The earliest notes date back to 1916, the latest to 1940.
  In this publication, the recordings are grouped into sections where, where possible, thoughts related to individual issues of performance or composition are collected. The collection consists of four sections: I. General attitudes in the pianist's work II. Work on the basic elements of musical performance
  III. About the exercise
  IV. Thoughts on the composer's work
  The originality of the author's language is fully preserved. Notes and comments on the exercises were made by the compilers: M. A. Gurvich and L. G. Lukomsky, the introductory article “On the notebooks of N. K. Medtner” and the text of the appendix were written by P. I. Vasiliev.