Children's story to the musical picture of the Musorg castle. Fairy Tale in Music: The Old Castle

PICTURES FROM THE EXHIBITION

old lock

"Pictures at an Exhibition" is a well-known suite of 10 pieces by M. P. Mussorgsky with interludes, created in 1874 in memory of Mussorgsky's friend, artist and architect V. A. Hartman. Originally written for piano, it has been repeatedly arranged for orchestra by various composers and has been processed in a wide variety of musical styles.

Architect and speaking modern language, designer Viktor Alexandrovich Hartman went down in history Art XIX century as one of the founders of the "Russian style" in architecture. He was distinguished by a desire for Russian originality and a wealth of imagination.

At the end of 1870, in Stasov's house, Mussorgsky first met the 36-year-old artist. Hartmann possessed a liveliness of character and ease in friendly communication, and a warm friendship and mutual respect were established between him and Mussorgsky. That's why sudden death Hartmann in the summer of 1873 at the age of 39 shocked Mussorgsky to the core.

In February - March 1874 at the Imperial Academy of Arts, on the initiative of Stasov and with the assistance of the St. Petersburg Society of Architects, a posthumous exhibition was held of about 400 works by Hartmann created over 15 years - drawings, watercolors, architectural projects, sketches of theater scenery and costumes, sketches art products. There were many sketches brought from foreign travels at the exhibition.

Mussorgsky's visit to the exhibition served as the impetus for the creation of a musical "walk" through an imaginary exhibition gallery. The result was a series of musical pictures that only partly resemble the works seen; in the main, the plays were the result of the free flight of the awakened imagination of the composer. Mussorgsky took Hartmann's "foreign" drawings as the basis of the "exhibition", as well as two of his sketches on Russian themes. The exhibited works were sold, so today the location of most of them is unknown. Of the drawings mentioned in the cycle, six can now be restored.

The idea to create a piano suite arose during the days of the exhibition, and already in the spring of 1874 some of the "pictures" from the future cycle were improvised by the author. But the final idea was formed in the summer. The whole cycle was written on a creative upsurge in just three weeks from June 2 to June 22, 1874. The suite's working title was Hartmann. Stasov, whose help meant a lot to Mussorgsky, he dedicated the suite.

During Mussorgsky's lifetime, "Pictures" were not published or performed, although they received approval among " mighty handful". They were published only five years after the death of the composer, in 1886, in the edition of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. But the recognition of the general public came only after Maurice Ravel, according to the same version of Rimsky-Korsakov, created his well-known orchestration in 1922, and in 1930 its first recording was released.

The suite is a vivid example of program music with its own peculiarities. It combines pictures from real life co fabulous fantasy and images of the past. Plays - "paintings" are interconnected by the theme-interlude "Walk", depicting the passage through the gallery and the transition from picture to picture. Such themes and construction of the suite are unique in classical musical literature.

Mussorgsky, according to contemporaries, was an excellent pianist, literally fascinated the audience, sitting down at the instrument, and could portray anything. However instrumental music he composed comparatively little, most of all he was attracted to opera. Mussorgsky sets the task of creating psychological portrait, penetrating into the depths of his characters, which fundamentally distinguishes his work from simple sketches by Hartmann.

The theme of the Walk is repeated several times throughout the suite. It is reminiscent of Russian folk chants: the melody begins with one voice (“singer”) and is picked up by the “choir”. In this theme, Mussorgsky simultaneously portrayed himself, moving from picture to picture: “My physiognomy is visible in the intermedes,” he wrote to Stasov. The melodic line in most interludes is played ponderously, which is sometimes seen as an imitation of the author's gait.

The theme of "Walks" varies, showing the change in the mood of the author; the key also changes, modulating to prepare the listener for the next piece.

The play is based on a watercolor painting by Hartmann when he studied architecture in Italy (the sketch has not been preserved, as the exhibited works were sold, so today the whereabouts of most of them are unknown, including the "Old Castle"). In the accompanying program for Mussorgsky's suite, Stasov wrote that this play depicts "a medieval castle in front of which a troubadour sings his song." But Hartmann did not have a troubadour in any of the two paintings depicting a medieval landscape with a castle.. It was invented by Mussorgsky, reviving the landscape. A thoughtful, smooth melody sounds against the background of a measured, monotonous accompaniment. It evokes a contemplative lyrical mood. The song of the troubadour smells of chivalrous Middle Ages - the music conveys what the artist depicted with paints.

The middle part, turning into a major, creates a gap, which is then replaced by sadness again, then the first theme returns, gradually fading away, as if falling into a dream. An unexpectedly loud finale ends the play with a short goodbye.

The French composer M. Ravel made a wonderful orchestral arrangement of the suite. In his instrumentation, "Pictures at an Exhibition" is often performed in symphony concerts.

Presentation

Included:
1. Presentation, ppsx;
2. Sounds of music:
Mussorgsky. Pictures from the exhibition:
Walk (in symphonic performance), mp3;
The Old Castle (in 2 versions: symphonic and piano), mp3;
3. Accompanying article, docx;
4. Notes for performance by the teacher, jpg.

Piano Cycle (1874)

Orchestrated by Maurice Ravel (1922)

Orchestra composition: 3 flutes, piccolo, 3 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, alto saxophone, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, triangle, snare drum, whip, clapper , plates, big drum, tom-tom, bells, bell, xylophone, celesta, 2 harps, strings.

History of creation

1873 was a difficult year for Mussorgsky. Friends stopped gathering in the evenings at L.I. Shestakova, Glinka's sister, who became seriously ill. V. Stasov, who always supported the composer morally, left St. Petersburg for a long time. With the last blow there was a sudden, in the prime of life and talent, the death of the artist Viktor Hartmann (1834-1873). “What horror, what grief! Mussorgsky wrote to Stasov. - In the last race of Viktor Hartmann in Petrograd, we walked with him after the music along Furshtadtskaya Street; At some lane he stopped, turned pale, leaned against the wall of some house and could not catch his breath. Then I did not give of great importance this phenomenon ... Having fiddled with suffocation and heartbeats myself ... I thought that this was the fate of nervous natures, for the most part, but I was bitterly mistaken - as it turns out ... This mediocre fool mows down death without reasoning ... "

The following year, 1874, at the initiative of the returned Stasov, a posthumous exhibition of Hartmann's works was organized, which presented his works in oils, watercolors, sketches from nature, sketches of theatrical scenery and costumes, and architectural projects. There were also some products made by the artist's hands - tongs for cracking nuts, a clock in the form of a hut on chicken legs, etc.

The exhibition made a huge impression on Mussorgsky. He decided to write a program piano suite, the content of which would be the works of the late artist. The composer interprets them in his own way. So, the sketch for the ballet "Trilby", depicting tiny chicks in shells, turns into "Ballet of unhatched chicks", nutcrackers in the form of a bow-legged dwarf become the basis of the portrait of this fabulous creature, and the hut clock inspires the musician to a play depicting the flight of Baba Yaga on a broomstick.

The piano cycle was created very quickly - in three weeks in June 1874. The composer reported to Stasov: “Hartmann boils, as Boris boiled,” sounds and thoughts hung in the air, I swallow and overeat, I barely have time to scratch on paper ... I want to do it faster and more reliably. My physiognomy is visible in the interludes ... How well it works. Under the "physiognomy", visible in the interludes, the composer meant the links between the numbers - the images of Hartmann. In these bundles, called "The Walk", Mussorgsky painted himself walking through the exhibition, moving from one exhibit to another. The composer finished the work on June 22 and dedicated it to V.V. Stasov.

Then, in the summer of 1874, "Pictures" with the subtitle "Memories of Viktor Hartmann" were prepared by the composer for publication, but published only in 1886, after the composer's death. It took several more years for this deeply original, unparalleled work to enter the repertoire of pianists.

The brightness of the images, their picturesqueness, piano coloring pushed for the orchestral embodiment of "Pictures". The archive of Rimsky-Korsakov preserved a page of the orchestration of one of the parts of the cycle - "The Old Castle". Later, Rimsky-Korsakov's student M. Tushmalov orchestrated it, but it remained unperformed. In 1922, Maurice Ravel, who was a passionate admirer of Mussorgsky's work, also turned to this work. His brilliant orchestral rendition of "Pictures at an Exhibition" quickly won concert stage and became as popular as the original piano version of the piece. The score was first published by the Russian Musical Publishing House in Paris in 1927.

Music

The first number - "Walk" - is based on a wide melody in Russian popular character, with characteristic folk songs variable meter, performed first by a trumpet solo, and then supported by a choir of brass instruments. Gradually, other instruments are connected, after the sound of tutti, the second number begins without interruption.

This is "Gnome". It is characterized by bizarre, broken intonations, sharp jumps, sudden pauses, tense harmonies, transparent orchestration using the celesta and harp. All this vividly draws a fantastic and mysterious image.

"Walk", significantly reduced in comparison with the initial one, takes the listener to the next picture - "The Old Castle". The bassoon, sparingly supported by the solitary sound of the second bassoon and pizzicato double basses, sings a melancholic serenade. The melody passes to the saxophone with its characteristic expressive timbre, then it is sung by other instruments to the accompaniment imitating the sound of the lute.

A short "Walk" leads to the "Tuileries Garden" (its subtitle is "A quarrel of children after the game"). This is a lively, joyful scherzo, permeated with a cheerful hubbub, running around, and the good-natured grumbling of nannies. It rushes by quickly, giving way to a bright contrast.

The next picture is called "Cattle". Hartmann depicted under this name a heavy cart drawn by oxen on huge wheels. Measured movement with heavy chords dominates here; against its background, the tuba sings a drawn-out dreary song, in which, however, a gloomy hidden power is felt. Gradually, the sonority expands, grows, and then subsides, as if a wagon is hiding in the distance.

Another "Walk" in a modified form - with a theme in a high flute register - prepares for the "Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks" - a charming graceful schercino with bizarre harmonies, transparent orchestration, numerous grace notes imitating bird chirping.

This number is immediately followed by the everyday scene “Samuel Goldenberg and Shmuyle”, which is sharply contrasting to it, usually called “Two Jews - rich and poor”. Stasov wrote about her: “Two Jews sketched from nature by Hartmann in 1868 during his journey: the first is a rich fat Jew, smug and cheerful, the other is poor, skinny and complaining, almost crying. Mussorgsky greatly admired the expressiveness of these pictures, and Hartmann immediately gave them to his friend ... "The scene is based on a comparison of powerful energetic intonations in unison with wood and string groups and a trumpet solo with a mute - with general movement in small triplets, with mordents and grace notes, a winding loach, as if choking on a plaintive patter. These themes, first held separately, then sound simultaneously, in counterpoint in different keys, creating a duet that is unique in color.

"Limoges. Market. ( big news)" is the name of the next number. Initially, the composer preceded it with a short program: “Big news: Mr. Pusanjou has just found his cow Fugitive. But the Limoges gossips do not fully agree on this case, because Madame Ramboursac has acquired beautiful porcelain teeth, while M. Panta-Pantaléon's nose, which disturbs him, remains red as a peony all the time. This is a brilliant capriccio, based on a continuous fussy movement with capricious, changeable, teasing intonations, calls of instruments, frequent changes in dynamics, culminating in tutti fortissimo - gossips reached ecstasy in their chatter. But everything is abruptly cut off fortissimo by trombones and tuba, intoning one sound - si.

Without a break, attacca, the next number enters in sharp contrast - "Catacombs (Roman tomb)". These are only 30 measures of gloomy chords, sometimes quiet, sometimes loud, depicting a gloomy dungeon in the mysterious light of a lantern. In the picture, according to Stasov, the artist depicted himself, with a lantern in his hand, examining the catacombs. This number is, as it were, an introduction to the next, advancing without interruption - “With the dead on dead language". In the manuscript, the composer wrote: “Latin text: with the dead in a dead language. It would be nice to have a Latin text: the creative spirit of the deceased Hartmann leads me to the skulls, calls to them, the skulls quietly glowed. In mournful B minor, a modified theme of "Walks" sounds framed by quiet tremolos and brass chords reminiscent of a chorale.

"Hut on chicken legs" - again emphasized contrast. Its beginning depicts the rapid flight of Baba Yaga on a broomstick: wide jumps, alternating with pauses, turn into unstoppable movement. The middle episode - in a more chamber sound - is filled with mysterious rustles, alert sounds. The orchestration is original: against the background of the continuous trembling sounds of the flutes, the theme of Baba Yaga, consisting of short chants and formed in the first section, is intoned by the bassoon and double basses. Then it appears at the tuba and low strings, accompanied by tremolo and pizzicato strings, individual celesta chords, while the harp sounds its modified version. Unusual colors give a special shade of witchcraft, magic. And again a swift flight.

Without a break, attacca, the finale enters - "The Bogatyr Gates (in the capital city in Kyiv)". This is the musical expression architectural project Kyiv city gates, which Hartmann saw in the old Russian style, with an arch decorated with an old helmet and a gate church. His first theme, majestic, similar to an epic tune, in the powerful sound of brass and bassoons with a contrabassoon, resembles the theme of "Walks". It expands more and more, fills the entire sound space, interspersed with the old church znamenny chant “Be baptized in Christ”, served more chamber, in strict four-parts wooden tools. The number concludes, like the whole cycle, with a solemn and festive bell ringing, conveyed by the full sound of the orchestra.

L. Mikheeva

In 1922, Maurice Ravel completed the orchestration of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition, a work of unusual originality both in terms of the music itself and its pianistic embodiment. True, there are many details in “Pictures” that can be imagined in orchestral sound, but for this it was necessary to find colors on your palette that organically merge with the original. Ravel carried out such a synthesis and created a score that has remained an example of mastery and stylistic sensitivity.

The orchestration of "Pictures at an Exhibition" was performed not only with exceptional ingenuity, but also with fidelity to the nature of the original. Minor corrections were made to it, but almost all of them are related to the specifics of the sound of the instruments. In essence, they amounted to a change in nuances, a variation in repetitions, a cut of one "Walk" repeated twice, and the addition of one measure in the accompaniment to the melody of "Ancient Castle"; the longer duration than in the original of the organ item in the Bogatyr Gates and the introduction of a new rhythm in the brass parts exhaust the list of changes made to the score. All this does not violate the general character of Mussorgsky's music, changes in details arose during the work on the score, and they were minimal.

The orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition, as always with Ravel, is based on precise calculation and knowledge of each instrument and possible timbre combinations. Experience and ingenuity prompted the composer to many characteristic details of the score. Let us recall the glissando of the strings (“Dwarf”), the magnificent solo of the alto saxophone (“The Old Castle”), the fantastic coloring of the “Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks”, the grandiose sound of the finale. For all their surprise, Ravel's orchestral finds convey the inner essence of Mussorgsky's music, and are included in the structure of his images very organically. However, as already noted, the piano texture of "Pictures" has features of orchestration, this created favorable conditions for the work of a thoughtful and inspired artist, which was Ravel.

Ravel turned to the orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition, having already worked on the score of Khovanshchina. In addition, he was the author of orchestral editions of his own piano works, and these scores were perceived as originals, not transcriptions. In relation to "Pictures at an Exhibition" such statements are impossible, but the high dignity of the orchestration of Mussorgsky's brilliant work is undeniable. This confirms his continued success with the public since the first performance, which took place in Paris on May 3, 1923 under the direction of S. Koussevitzky (This date is given by N. Slonimsky in his book "Music since 1900". A. Prunier indicates another - May 8, 1922 .).

Ravel's orchestration of "Pictures at an Exhibition" also provoked individual criticisms: it was reproached for insufficiently consistent with the spirit of the original, did not agree with changes in several measures, etc. These reproaches can sometimes be heard in our time. However, the orchestration is still the best among others, it has rightfully entered the concert repertoire: it has been played and continues to be played by the best orchestras and conductors of all countries.

Open music lesson in the 4th grade according to the Cretan program

Lesson topic : M.P. Mussorgsky “Pictures at an Exhibition”

The purpose of the lesson: Acquaintance with music from the piano suite "Pictures at an Exhibition" -

"Old lock"

Tasks:

To be able to hear the performing instruments, determine and compare the character, mood of music, means musical expressiveness;

Name the idea of ​​​​creating a suite;

Raise a love for Mussorgsky's music;

Generate interest in the subject aesthetic education students; knowledge about the composer and his works.

Planned result: exercise personal attitude in the perception of musical works, the emotional responsiveness of students.

Equipment: computer, CDs with music, music textbooks E.D. Cretan, 4th grade.

On the desk: portraits of composers P. Tchaikovsky and M. Mussorgsky, pictures for musical works by M. Mussorgsky, pictures musical instruments: cello, piano.

On student tables: table emotional states, test quiz, text of the song “Change is small”, music textbook grade 4, E.D. Kritskoy.

Organizing time:

Musical greeting:

Teacher: Today, friends, like yesterday, our day begins in the morning,

All languages ​​are spoken, millions of children speak

U-Xia: Good morning!

Woo: Good morning! With these words, children begin their day.

Wu: Good morning!

Woo: Good morning!

All: Good morning!

During the classes:

The music of P. Tchaikovsky "Variations on a Rococo Theme" sounds(4 cl. 5 h. No. 2 disk)

Wu: What piece did you listen to? Name it.

U-Xia: Variations on a Rococo Theme.

U-Xia: P.I. Tchaikovsky.

Wu-l: What are variations?

Wu-Xia: Development, change of music. When the same music sounds in different options develops, changes.

Wu-l: What does rococo mean?

Wu: This french word, which in translation into Russian means - a shell.

Wu-l: Where did this style originally originate? What does this mean?

U-Xia: In architecture. Which means sophistication, grace, grace. It was her image that was often placed in the center of the ornament.

(drawing in the Rococo style p. 76, textbook)

U-l: What is the difference musical works rococo?

Wu-Xia: Sophistication, grace, grace?

U-l: By what means of musical expression was this achieved?

(work on the table)

Wu-Xia: Slow tempo, quiet dynamics, graceful rhythm, major.

U-l: What intonations do we hear in Tchaikovsky's music?

U-Xia: Joking, marching, lyrical, sincere.

Wu-l: What do these intonations give to music?

Y-Xia: Russian character.

U-l: For what instrument did the composer write this work?

Wu Xia: For cello and orchestra.(show picture of cello)

Wu-l: Who is the soloist on the cello?

U-Xia: Mstislav Rostropovich.

(Fizminutka)

U-l: Today at the lesson we will get acquainted with the music from the suite of the Russian composer M.

Mussorgsky "Pictures at an Exhibition".(portrait of the composer)

We have already met some of them.

Name the pieces from the suite that you know. (look at the pictures on the board)

U-Xia: "Baba Yaga", "Dwarf", "Ballet of unhatched chicks."

What is a suite?

Wu-Xia: A series, a sequence of diverse plays.

Wu-l: Do you remember the idea of ​​creating a suite?

After the death of a friend M.P. Mussorgsky, the artist Viktor Hartmann, the composer selected 10 of his favorite paintings and wrote music for them in the form of a suite.

After each picture, an interlude called "Walk" sounds, i.e. transition from one picture to another. Intermedia is a detached work that has nothing to do with the plot.

"Walk" - listening.

The composer interpreted the artist's pictures in his own way. For example: Hartmann's drawing depicted a clock in the form of a hut on chicken legs. And Mussorgsky in his music decided to show the hut inhabited. He called this picture "Baba Yaga".

U-l: Let's mentally travel with you to the Middle Ages, to the times of castles and knights, beautiful ladies, troubadours and minstrels - itinerant singer-musicians.

(Figure p.79, textbook)

U-l: How did we see the castle in the picture?

Wu-Xia: Gray, gloomy, mysterious.

Woul: And now let's compare it with Mussorgsky's music.

"Old Castle" - Hearing(disc 4 cl. 5 h. No. 3)

Wu-l: How did this music sound?(table of emotional states)

Wu-Xia: Quiet, mysterious, bewitching.

Wu-l: What does this music say? Does the mood change in the music?

Wu Xia: A memory of the past of this castle, where there was both joy and sadness, where life was once in full swing.

U-l: By what means of musical expression did the composer achieve this?

Wu-Xia: Quiet dynamics, gradually rising and falling, calm tempo, minor.

U-l: What instrument sounded?

Wu: Piano.

U-l: What did the accompaniment remind you of?

U-Xia: Songs of the Troubadours.

U-l: Why does the picture end with a loud chord?

Wu-l: What would you say about this musical picture? What would you draw?

Let this task be homemade.

Lesson Summary:

Test quiz

1. Who is the composer of Pictures at an Exhibition?
2. According to the sketches of which artist, the work “Pictures at an Exhibition” by M.P. was created. Mussorgsky?
3. What is a suite?
4. How many parts are in the suite “Pictures at an Exhibition” by M.P. Mussorgsky?
5. What is an interlude?
6. What is the name of the interlude in the suite?

(students read out questions and answers, compare them, mark the correct answers)

The teacher announces grades for the lesson. Homework is recorded.

U-l: The lesson ends, soon the change. Let's sing a song.

"Change is small" - performance.

MOU-sosh s. login

Open music lesson:

M.P. Mussorgsky "Pictures at an Exhibition" - "Old Castle»

4th grade

music teacher Boyko T.I.

Cover of the first edition of "Pictures at an Exhibition" by M. P. Mussorgsky (edited by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov) 1886

Cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition", consisting of 10 musical sketches and interlude "Walk", was created by the Russian composer Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky in the period from June 2 to June 22, 1874, but the idea of ​​​​creating it arose earlier - in the spring of that year. During this period, the composer visited an exhibition of works, dedicated to creativity talented architect and designer Viktor Aleksandrovich Hartman. It featured over 400 works, including famous creations the author, as well as small sketches, some of which inspired the composer to create the cycle.

Speaking about the history of writing "Pictures at an Exhibition", it is impossible not to mention the fact that during the life of V.A. Hartmann was friendly with M.P. Mussorgsky, and the death of a comrade and creator close to the ideas of The Mighty Handful was a serious blow to the composer.

Description of works

“Pictures at an Exhibition” opens with an interlude “ Walk”, as conceived by the author, this play depicts a composer walking through an exhibition of paintings; it is repeated several times during the cycle.

Sketch " Dwarf” is performed in the key of E-flat minor, it is distinguished by dynamics, broken lines, changes in moments of tension and calmness. Hartmann's sketch, which served as the basis for this melody, has not survived, but it is known that it depicted a Christmas tree nutcracker toy.

The slow, poetic, deep melody of the play " old lock” in the key of G-sharp minor, reminiscent of live singing to the accompaniment of an old instrument, invites us for a walk around the Italian castle depicted in the artist’s watercolor. This painting by Hartmann was not listed in the exhibition catalogue.

The "Old Castle" is being replaced by a light, sunny, moving, light melody " tuileries garden» in the key of B major. By the middle, she becomes more calm, as if nannies appear among the playing guys. The composition ends with a blending of the two themes. According to the memoirs of the artist's associates, the drawing depicted the Tuillieries Palace, filled with walking children.

« livestock"- this is a gloomy, heavy melody that conveys the slow progress of an ox-cart, Slavic folk melodies are woven into its musical outline. Sketch draws vividly musical means joyless life common people, performed in the key of G-sharp minor.

At the heart of the play Ballet of unhatched chicks» there are sketches for the costumes that Hartmann designed for staging in Bolshoi Theater. The piece is written in the key of F major, it is a light, extremely dynamic melody, depicting a funny, chaotic dance, which becomes more ordered by the end of the work.

Musical etude " Two Jews, rich and poor is based on drawings donated to the composer by Hartmann. The composition lies in the key of B-flat minor, it resembles a lively conversation between two characters, one of which is depicted with the help of heavy, confident sounds, complemented by a gypsy scale, and the other with thin, plaintive melodies.

The next noisy and dynamic, fussy and light piece " Limoges. Market” is performed in the key of E-flat major, it vividly conveys the atmosphere of a market filled with gossip and hubbub, whose life, frozen for a second, resumes again. Almost nothing is known about the drawing that inspired the composer.

« Catacombs. With the dead in a dead language"- a slow, gloomy work, the coldness and mystery of which are perceived even more sharply after the lightness of the previous composition. Lifeless, sometimes harsh, sometimes quiet monotones hang in the silence of the dungeon. This play is dedicated to the painting "Paris Catacombs".

Composition " Baba Yaga"- this is a dynamic, expressive play, fully justifies its name. Sometimes it is filled with the frenzy of full chords, sometimes it becomes unsettling and unstable, the piece is distinguished by dissonances and uneven accents. It is based on a sketch depicting a clock in the shape of a mythical character's dwelling.

The cycle ends with a powerful, slow rhythm with large durations of the piece " Bogatyrsky gate. In the capital city in Kyiv". It's loud solemn music, based on Russian folk motives, replaced by a quiet melody. It ends with a skillfully recreated with the help of the piano bell ringing and code. The play is dedicated to the sketch of the architectural gates in Kyiv, developed by Hartmann.

The Pictures at an Exhibition Suite was written by Modest Mussorgsky in 1874 as a tribute to his friendship with the artist and architect Viktor Hartmann (who died before he was forty). It was the posthumous exhibition of paintings by a friend that gave Mussorgsky the idea to create a composition.

This cycle can be called a suite - a sequence of ten independent pieces, united by a common idea. Like every play musical picture, reflecting the impression of Mussorgsky, inspired by this or that drawing by Hartmann.
Here are bright everyday pictures, and well-aimed sketches of human characters, and landscapes, and images of Russian fairy tales, epics. Individual miniatures contrast with each other in content and expressive means.

The cycle begins with the play "The Walk", which personifies the composer's walk through the gallery from picture to picture, so this theme is repeated in the intervals between the descriptions of the paintings.
The work consists of ten parts, each of which conveys the image of a picture.

Spanish Svyatoslav Richter
Walk 00:00
I. Dwarf 01:06
Walk 03:29
II. Medieval castle 04:14
Walk 08:39
III. Tuile garden 09:01
IV. Cattle 09:58
Walk 12:07
V. Ballet of unhatched chicks 12:36
VI. Two Jews, rich and poor 13:52
Walk 15:33
VII. Limoges. Market 16:36
VIII. Catacombs. Roman tomb 17:55
IX. Hut on chicken legs 22:04
X. Heroic gates. In the capital city of Kyiv 25:02

The first picture is "Gnome". Hartmann's drawing depicted a nutcracker in the form of a clumsy gnome. Mussorgsky endows the dwarf in his music with human character traits, while maintaining the appearance of a fabulous and bizarre creature. In this little play deep suffering is also heard, and the angular tread of a gloomy dwarf is also imprinted in it.

In the next picture - "The Old Castle" - the composer conveyed the night landscape and quiet chords that create a ghostly and mysterious flavor. calm, enchanted mood. Against the background of the tonic organ point, the sad melody of the troubadour depicted in Hartmann's painting sounds. The song changes

The third picture - "The Tuilliers Garden" - contrasts sharply with the previous plays. It depicts children playing in a park in Paris. Everything is joyful and sunny in this music. Fast paced, whimsical accents convey the revival and fun of children's play against the backdrop of a summer day.

The fourth picture is called "Cattle". Hartmann's drawing shows a peasant wagon on high wheels pulled by two dull oxen. In the music, one can hear how wearily, oxen step heavily, a wagon slowly drags with a creak.

And again, the nature of the music changes dramatically: provocatively and stupidly, out of place dissonances sound in a high register, alternating with chords, and all at a rapid pace. Hartmann's drawing was a sketch of costumes for the ballet Trilby. It depicts young students of a ballet school performing a characteristic dance. Dressed as chicks, they are not yet completely freed from the shell. Hence the funny name of the miniature "Ballet of Unhatched Chicks".

The play "Two Jews" depicts a conversation between a rich man and a poor man. Mussorgsky's principle was embodied here: to express the character of a person in music through speech intonations as accurately as possible. And although this song does not vocal part, there are no words, in the sounds of the piano one can unmistakably hear the rough, arrogant voice of the rich man and the timid, humble, begging voice of the poor. For the rich man's speech, Mussorgsky found imperious intonations, the decisive character of which is enhanced by the low register. The speech of the poor man is in deep contrast to her - quiet, quivering, intermittent, in a high register.

In the picture "The Limoges Market" a colorful market crowd is drawn. In music, the discordant dialect, cries, hustle and festive bustle of the southern bazaar are well conveyed by the composer.


The miniature of the "Catacombs" is written according to the drawing by Hartmann "Roman Catacombs". The chords sound, now quiet and distant, as if echoes lost in the depths of the labyrinth, then sharp clear, like the sudden ringing of a falling drop, the ominous cry of an owl... walls, a disturbing, vague presentiment.

The next picture - "Hut on chicken legs" - draws fabulous image yaga women. The artist depicts a clock in the form of a fairy-tale hut. Mussorgsky rethought the image. His music embodies not a beautiful toy hut, but its mistress, Baba Yaga. So she whistled and rushed in her mortar to all the devils of the dog, driving them with a broom. From the play it blows with epic scope, Russian prowess. It is not for nothing that the main theme of this picture echoes the music from the scene near Kromy in the opera Boris Godunov.

Even greater kinship with Russian folk music, with images of epics is felt in the last picture - "Bogatyr Gates". Mussorgsky wrote this play inspired by Hartmann's architectural sketch City Gates in Kyiv. With intonations and its harmonic language, the music is close to Russian folk songs. The character of the play is majestically calm and solemn. Thus, the last picture, symbolizing the power native people, naturally completes the entire cycle.

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The fate of this piano cycle is very curious.
On the manuscript of "Pictures" there is an inscription "For publication. Mussorgsky. July 26, 74 Petrograd”, however, during the life of the composer, “Pictures” were not published or performed, although they received approval among the “Mighty Handful”. They were published only five years after the death of the composer by V. Bessel in 1886, in the edition of N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov.

Cover of the first edition of Pictures at an Exhibition
Since the latter was sure that Mussorgsky's notes contained errors and omissions that needed to be corrected, this publication did not exactly correspond to the author's manuscript, it had a certain amount of editorial "brilliance". The circulation sold out, and a year later the second edition was published, already with a foreword by Stasov. However, the work did not receive wide popularity at that time, the pianists brushed it aside for a long time, not finding in it the “accustomed” virtuosity and considering it to be non-concert and non-piano. Soon M. M. Tushmalov (1861-1896), with the participation of Rimsky-Korsakov, orchestrated the main parts of Pictures, the orchestral version was published, the premiere took place on November 30, 1891, and in this form they were quite often performed in St. Petersburg and Pavlovsk, and the final performed by the orchestra and as a separate piece. In 1900, an arrangement for piano four hands appeared, in February 1903 the young pianist G. N. Beklemishev performed the cycle for the first time in Moscow, in 1905 “Pictures” were performed in Paris at a lecture by M. Calvocoressi about Mussorgsky.

But the recognition of the general public came only after Maurice Ravel, according to the same version of Rimsky-Korsakov, created his well-known orchestration in 1922, and in 1930 its first recording was released.

However, the cycle was written specifically for the piano!
For all the brilliance of Ravel's orchestration, he still lost those deeply Russian features of Mussorgsky's music, which are heard precisely in the piano performance.

And only in 1931, on the fiftieth anniversary of the composer's death, "Pictures at an Exhibition" were published in accordance with the author's manuscript in the academic publication "Muzgiz", and then they became an integral part of the repertoire of Soviet pianists.

Since then, two traditions of piano performance of "Pictures" have coexisted. Among the supporters of the original author's version are such pianists as Svyatoslav Richter (see above) and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Others, such as Vladimir Horowitz in his recordings and performances of the mid-20th century, tried to reproduce on the piano the orchestral incarnation of "Pictures", that is, to make a "reverse transcription" of Ravel.

Piano: Vladimir Horowitz. Recorded: 1951
(00:00) 1. Promenade
(01:21) 2. The Gnome
(03:41) 3. Promenade
(04:31) 4. The Old Castle
(08:19) 5. Promenade
(08:49) 6. The Tuileries
(09:58) 7. Bydlo
(12:32) 8. Promenade
(13:14) 9. Ballet of Unhatched Chicks
(14:26) 10. Samuel Goldenberg and Schmuÿle
(16:44) 11. The Marketplace at Limoges
(18:02) 12. The Catacombs
(19:18) 13. Cum mortuis in lingua mortua
(21:39) 14. The Hut on Fowl's Legs (Baba-Yaga)
(24:56) 15. The Great Gate of Kiev

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Pictures from the exhibition With sand animation.

Rock version of Pictures at an Exhibition.

Wassily Kandinsky. Synthesis of Arts.
Kandinsky's step towards the realization of the idea of ​​"monumental art" was the staging of "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Modest Mussorgsky "with its own scenery and with heroes - light, color and geometric shapes."
This was the first and only time he agreed to work from a finished score, which was a clear indication of his deepest interest.
The premiere on 4 April 1928 at the Friedrich Theater in Dessau was a resounding success. The music was played on the piano. The production was very cumbersome, because it meant constantly moving scenery and changing lighting of the hall, about which Kandinsky left detailed instructions. For example, one of them said that a black background was required, on which the "bottomless depths" of black should turn into purple, while dimmers (rheostats) did not yet exist.

"Pictures at an Exhibition" by Modest Mussorgsky has repeatedly inspired artists to create a moving video sequence. In 1963, the ballet master Fyodor Lopukhov staged the ballet "Pictures from an Exhibition" in musical theater Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko. In the USA, Japan, France, the USSR, talented cartoons were created on the themes of Pictures at an Exhibition.

Nowadays, we can plunge into the “synthesis of arts” by going to a concert French pianist Mikhail Rud. In his famous project Modest Mussorgsky / Wassily Kandinsky. "Pictures at an Exhibition" he combined the music of the Russian composer with abstract animation and video based on watercolors and instructions from Kandinsky.

The capabilities of the computer inspire artists to create 2D and 3D animations. Another of the most interesting experiments in creating "moving" paintings by Wassily Kandinsky.

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text from many sources