Ukrainian and Soviet composer, conductor, pianist, and teacher
Felix Blumenfeld
|
---|
Felix Mikhailovich Blumenfeld
|
Born
| (
1863-04-07
)
7 April 1863
|
---|
Died
| 21 January 1931
(1931-01-21)
(aged 67)
|
---|
Nationality
| Ukraine
|
---|
Occupation(s)
| Pianist
,
composer
,
conductor
|
---|
Parents
| - Michael Frantz Blumenfeld
- Maria Szymanowska
|
---|
Felix Mikhailovich Blumenfeld
(
Russian
:
Фе?ликс Миха?йлович Блуменфе?льд
; 19 April 1863 [
O.S.
7 April] – 21 January 1931) was a
Russian
and
Soviet
composer
,
conductor
of the Imperial Opera
St-Petersburg
,
pianist
, and teacher.
He was born in Elizavetgrad, which was in 2016 renamed to
Kropyvnytskyi
(in present-day
Ukraine
),
Kherson Governorate
,
Russian Empire
, the son of Mikhail Frantsevich Blumenfeld, of
Austrian Jewish
origin, and Maria
Szymanowska
. Blumenfeld studied with Gustav Neuhaus, married to his older sister. Then he studied composition at the
St. Petersburg Conservatory
under
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
and piano under Fedor Stein between 1881 and 1885. He then taught piano there himself from 1885 until 1918, whilst also serving as conductor of the
Mariinsky Theatre
until 1911.
The Mariinsky saw the premieres of the operas composed by his
mentor
Rimsky-Korsakov. He was also the conductor at the Russian premiere of
Wagner
's
opera
Tristan und Isolde
.
In 1908, he conducted the
Paris
premiere of
Modest Mussorgsky
's opera
Boris Godunov
.
From 1918 to 1922, he was the director of the
Music-drama school of Mykola Lysenko
in
Kiev
, where, amongst others,
Vladimir Horowitz
was a pupil in his masterclasses. He returned to the
Moscow Conservatory
in 1922, teaching there until his death. Other famous pupils of his include
Simon Barere
,
Maria Yudina
,
Nathan Perelman
,
Anatole Kitain
and
Maria Grinberg
. He died in
Moscow
.
As a pianist, he played many of the compositions of his Russian contemporaries. His own compositions, which showed the influence of
Frederic Chopin
and
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
, include a
symphony
, numerous pieces for solo piano, an
Allegro de Concert
for piano and orchestra, and
lieder
. His virtuoso pieces for piano in particular have enjoyed something of a renaissance in recent years
[
citation needed
]
.
He was the uncle of
Heinrich Neuhaus
and first cousin, once removed of
Karol Szymanowski
(Felix's mother and Karol's father, Stanisław Szymanowski, were cousins).
[1]
Compositions
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Wightman, Alistair (2017).
Karol Szymanowski: His Life and Work
. Routledge.
ISBN
978-1351561365
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Academics
| |
---|
Artists
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|