Igor Markevitch

Igor Markevitch is a Leader and Compositeur born on July 27th, 1912 with Kiev in Ukraine and dead on March 7th, 1983 with Antibes. It was naturalized Italy N in 1947 and French in 1982.

Biography

The name of Markévitch comes from its prestigious genealogy: it kills from Marko a Prince of Bosnia, which in XVe century came to Ukraine like many Christians, driven out by the Sultan, then fixed and anoblies. The name is thus composed of Marko-vitch, that is to say wire of Mark . The family had thrived until the XIXe century. Its great-grandfather, although lawyer, had founded with Anton Rubinstein, the academy of Saint-Petersbourg in 1862. As a brilliance violoncellist it took part, with his Stradivarius, with concerts of the largest musicians like Rubinstein, Rimsky-Korsakov, Liadov, Glazounov… His/her large father, Marshal of the nobility, painter of formation, married a Frenchwoman and received the type-setter Mikhaïl Glinka in his residence. All the family had, since strong a long time, “divinized” the music or in any case occupied everyone.

Childhood

Igor was born in Ukraine. His/her father, Boris Nikolaïevitch is pianist, former student of Eugen d' Albert and Raoul Pugno in Paris. Large the maternal mother of Igor being French, her mother Zoia Pokitonova (- 1972) had been high in France. His/her father had given up his privileges to devote itself only to the music. Reached of a pulmonary tuberculosis it had been obliged to pass from long stays in sanatorium, with Davos to Switzerland, after its twenty years. Two years after her birth, the family leaves the Ukraine definitively: surprised by the political war and events, any return is impossible. They place initially in Paris. The small one, lengthened under the piano, listens, “ crossed right through by a torrent of resonances ”, and fixed in its memory of many works of the broad repertory of his/her father, whom he sings or whistles automatically.

In 1915, the health of Boris Nikolaïevitch being degraded, all the family settles in Switzerland initially in Lausanne, then in Leysin a health resort, and finally, at one hour from there, at the edge of the lake Léman, in the area of Vevey, with Turn-with-Peilz, in a property in hiring, the Villa Maria . Decided to fix itself in Switzerland, his/her father gives courses of piano, which extremely helps with to join to the two ends … All the friends and family members met saturdays which were entirely devoted to the music.

Around his seven years his/her father learns how to him to play failures, then as soon as the child included/understood, it requires to play with the blind man , for example while gardening…

Formation

The child starts to study the piano with a pupil of his father, Mrs Pasteur. His/her father gives him only some lessons. With his mother, it goes to its first symphonic concert where very young Clara Haskil plays the Concerto of Schumann (1921).

In 1922, it loses his forty seven years old father. The mother of Igor, her Nina sister and him, move in a repugnant ground floor downtown. The child is unceasingly thorough with reading or to rather study a Ballade of Chopin than to leave in strolls in the bicycle: “ Let us see, my small, Beethoven rode bike? ”, answered his/her mother. The evening the reward is the reading of Tostoï or Russian Pouchkine…

He escapes sometimes and discovers the quartets of Beethoven on the gramophone of his professor of literature, Emmanuel Buenzod, which dedicates a “ mystical admiration ” with the Master of Bonn.

During three years which follow, its first Master of piano was Paul Loyonnet (1886-1988). He took his lessons in Lausanne where Mrs Pasteur, being used to him as répétitrice, accompanied it. He had two professors thus. Markevitch pays: with Loyonnet, throwing far studies and exercises, we plunged then with delight in Mozart, Schubert or Schumann .

After Igor with Emile-Robert Blanchet a pupil of Busoni works. In 1925 its young pupil presents a work entitled to him Noces of which its Master pressing the value: What struck it in this music of child was undoubtedly less his intrinsic value that the knowledge which it showed and which I had not learned nowhere. Strainer organizes a meeting with Alfred Cortot of passage to Lausanne. Cortot invites it, with its load, the school which it founded in Paris (the Teacher training school). He entrusts to the mother of the child: This boy, Madam, will give you many joys and from pride It must learn how to make use of what it knows of God. , which charmed it.

With the autumn 1927, the family settles again with Paris but division the time of the year between Vevey and the capital. Single child of the institution which reception a score of adult pupils (whose Lennox Berkeley for example of which he became the friend and who made known to him Hindemith or Milhaud), he repeats in the class of piano with Mrs Kastler, the composition, the Harmonie and the counterpoint with Nadia Boulanger (Russian by his/her mother), with which he always maintained the privileged reports/ratios founded in admiration and the affection. It revealed to him the music in all its intelligence, acquiring the privileged direction of the interpreter, confluence of objectivity present and subjectivity of the past. Nadia transmitted to him art to fill with enthusiasm by the rigor.

It gains its first under by carrying out arrangements for short films. His/her mother makes him the French reading, while he writes and later also when he composes his own music. It gives some courses, which makes it possible to improve the ordinary one.

The composition and the training of the direction of orchestra

Whereas it is only sixteen years old, it meets Diaghilev with the Opera of Paris (December 1928). Always in the search of new and ballet musics suitable to surprise, to astonish or cause the public, Diaghilev a type-setter capable to give him a partition for the next season of the Russian Ballets thinks of having found. This one, after having listened to the Final of the Sinfonietta three times, orders to him a concerto for piano as a test. To develop its still primary notions in the field of the orchestration Serge Pavlovitch Diaghilev makes give lessons by an Italian type-setter, from whom it had already ordered two ballets: Vittorio Rieti, a pupil of Respighi and Casella. Diaghilev supervises and stimulates the work in progress, discussing to change such or such passage. The Concerto is created by the author with the piano and under the direction of Roger Désormière at the time of one evening ballet to London on July 15th 1929 and gains a real success. The precipitated death of Diaghilev leaves unfinished projected following work.

It continues its formation in the art of the direction with Pierre Monteux (1933), which had created so many masterpieces with the Russian Ballet as from the years 1910, had just founded the Monteux School, intended for the young chiefs. Its first concert will be nothing less than with the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, invited by Monteux for the creation of Rébus . It is twenty years old. Work was given the same year to Boston and New York by Koussevitzky.

Then he works with Hermann Scherchen (1934/36), which calls it “ my orchis poisoned ”.

He marries the girl of Nijinsky, Kyra.

Its models in compositions are Honegger, Hindemith and especially Stravinsky. But at the end of the Thirties its production of rarefies.

During the Second world war, Igor Markevitch belongs to Italian resistance as from 1943 in the area of the Apennines to the north of Florence.

It remarie with Topazia Caetani which will give him several children of which a famous leader, Oleg. It is naturalized Italian in 1947.

The leader

The end of the war marks the beginning of an international career. He undertakes a career of leader which will return it universally celebrates, to the head mainly Orchestre Lamoureux, Philharmonic orchestra of Berlin or Philharmonia in London. This is why it is more known today for its activity of chief than for his talents of type-setter.

From 1948 to 1956, it ensures the class of direction of orchestra of Mozarteum of Salzburg.

From 1952 to 1955, he is the leader of Stockholm. He will discover there the type-setter Franz Berwald and will leave of them splendid discs thanks to the transfers of recording of the years 1953 to 1955 with the Philharmonic one of Berlin.

Lamoureux concerts

After two seasons in Montreal, then with Havana, it returns on the old continent to take the direction of best the French phalange of the time, the orchestra of the Concerts Lamoureux of 1957 to 1961. It is one period ostentation where and created many works are ordered: Double of Pierre Boulez, Anthem of Messiaen, Achorripsis of Xenakis, the Concerto for viola of Milhaud, the Third symphony of Barraud… With this orchestra is also engraved many recordings of references, still impossible to circumvent today: Berlioz, Milhaud, Honegger, Debussy, Gounod or Roussel…

From 1965 to 1972, it is responsible for the Orchestra for the Radio Spanish Television and sign the direction with the Royal Academy of Madrid.

Then he is the musical director of the Academy Holy-Cecile of Rome.

He is naturalized French in 1982.

Although Russian of origin, although naturalized Italian after war, primarily French felt Markevitch.

Genevese musicologist R. Aloys Mooser said of him: I hardly met but two type-setters who had equal aptitudes in art to write and in that to lead: G. Mahler and R. Strauss. To these two exceptions comes to be added that of Igor Markevitch today.

Principal works

As a type-setter

Sinfonietta (1929) for orchestra
Concerto for piano (1929)
Cantata (1929/1930) on a text of Jean Cocteau
Partita (1930) for piano and small orchestra
Rebus (1931) for orchestra
the Take-off of Icare (1932) Ballet for orchestra
the Paradise lost (1934 -35) Oratorio for soloists, chorus and orchestra
Lorenzo it Magnifico (1940) for soprano and on a text of Laurent Splendid the
Icare (1943) orchestrates dévinitive version

Orchestrations

6 melodies of Moussorgsky (1945)
the Musical offering of JS. Bach (1950)

As a writer

Made in Italy (1940) Memories
Not of organ - Discussions with Claude Rostand (1959)
To be and to have been Memories. Gallimard (1980), 512 p.

Theory

historical, analytical and practical Study of the symphonies of Beethoven ( Die Sinfonien von Ludwig van Beethoven: historische, analytische und praktische Studien ; published with the Editions Peters, Leipzig, 1982).

Selective discography

Type-setter

complete Works for orchestra, 7 vol. - (1995-2004, Marco Polo 8.223653/666/724/882 & 8.225054/076/120)

Leader

Berlioz, Fantastic Symphony (1954), Moussorgski Tables of an exposure (1953) - (DGG)
Berlioz, Fantastic Symphony (1962), Cherubini Ouverture of Anacréon, Auber, Opening of the Dumb woman of Portici - (DGG)
Berwald, Symphonies n° 3 & 4 , Schubert Symphony n° 4 - (DGG)
Lili Baker, Of the bottom of the abyss, Psalms 24 & 129, Pie Jesus, Vieille Buddhist part - Orchestre Lamoureux (1958) - (Emi)
Cherubini, Requiem in minor D , Mozart Mass of Crowning - (DGG)
Gounod, Mass of Holy Cecile - (DGG)
Milhaud Choléphores , Honegger Symphony n° 5 , Roussel Bacchus & ARIANE - (DGG)

Stravinsky, the Rite of Spring , Pétrouchka , Pucinella , Continuation of the Kiss of the Fairy , Prokofiev Continuations Love of the three oranges , Scythian Continuation , the Steel step - (Emi)

Stravinsky, the Rite of Spring versions 1951 & 1959 (Will 1076)

Stravinsky, history of the Soldier - (Philips)

Tchaikovski, integral of the Symphonies - (Philips)

Notes & references

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