Pictures from the exhibition- one of the best masterpieces in Russian piano music (1874). In form, this is a suite consisting of ten pieces, each of which reflects the content of one of the paintings by the artist Viktor Aleksandrovich Hartmann.
Victor Hartman especially brightly showed himself not so much as an artist as a talented architect, who formed his own style in architecture called the “Russian style”.
For Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, he was a very close friend, so the sudden death of Hartmann at a young age (only 39 years old!) Literally shocked the composer. 
A year after this tragic event, at the suggestion of Stasov, an exhibition of paintings by Viktor Hartmann was held, dedicated to his memory. However, the best monument to the artist was a piano cycle written by his friend.
The idea of its creation came to Mussorgsky during a visit to the exhibition, and in three weeks the cycle was ready! Some of the paintings can hardly even be called paintings. These are rather sketches, sketches, sometimes just sketches for theatrical costumes.
Only two paintings have a Russian theme - the rest of the drawings are "foreign". The whole cycle consists of ten plays (pictures) connected by one leitmotif called "Walk".
This is Mussorgsky himself, who walks around the exhibition hall and from time to time stops in front of the next painting that interests him (click on the pictures to enlarge them). Here they are:
Picture No. 1 Gnome.
Picture No. 2 "Old Castle" - the image of the old medieval castle has not been preserved.
Picture No. 3 "Tuileries Garden" - this picture depicted a garden in the Tuileries Palace (Paris). The weather is fine, the nannies are walking with the children. The picture also did not survive.
Picture No. 4 "Cattle" ("Sandomierz cattle", according to Mussorgsky himself). The painting was of a Polish cart drawn by oxen, and the effect of the approach and then the removal of this huge cart with squeaky wheels is clearly audible in the music. The picture also did not survive.
Picture number 5 "Ballet of unhatched chicks." In principle, this is not so much a picture as a sketch for ballet costumes for the dance of canary chicks (three-part form).
Picture No. 6 "Two Jews: rich and poor." With Hartmann, these characters did not exist in one painting. There were two paintings: “A rich Jew in a fur hat”:
and "Poor Jew": Both Jews are of Polish origin (Jews of Sandomierz). In Mussorgsky they have a conversation, during which each reveals his character.
Picture No. 7 Limoges market (France): market noise, hubbub, gossip, fuss. The picture also did not survive.
Picture No. 8 “Catacombs. Roman tomb" or "With the dead in a dead language". In the foreground, Hartmann depicted himself. On the right you can barely see the dimly lit skulls.
Picture No. 9 "Hut on chicken legs" (Baba Yaga). Hartmann has only a sketch of a clock. Mussorgsky has the image of "evil spirits".
Picture No. 10 “Bogatyr Gates. In the capital city of Kyiv. The painting is a project of the Kyiv Gates. These gates were never built, but their construction was planned after an unsuccessful attempt on the life of Emperor Alexander II and his miraculous rescue. Mussorgsky's play sounds like the triumph of Orthodoxy, depicting the festive chime very realistically.
Personally, I got acquainted with "Pictures" at the age of ten: my mother bought a record of Svyatoslav Richter's game. The impression was so vivid that for many years I literally dreamed of having a glimpse of the pictures that inspired Mussorgsky to create this miracle.
Today, thanks to the Internet, it has become a reality. However, what I saw greatly disappointed me: Mussorgsky's music is many times superior to the original source in its artistic value!
In addition, paintings were sold at the exhibition. Obviously, they were also sold after the exhibition, so only 6 paintings remained in the public domain. You can see them on my blog. Of course, these are just reproductions, and even in electronic form, but still better than nothing.
The fate of this piano cycle is very curious. Firstly, it was not published during the author's lifetime and, accordingly, was never performed during the composer's lifetime.
Secondly, fame for this work came thanks to the orchestral arrangement by the French composer Maurice Ravel, a recording of this arrangement was released half a century after Mussorgsky's death.
However, the cycle was written specifically for the piano! I don’t know about anyone else, but personally I like this option the most. Moreover, I never thought that the performance of Richter could ever recede into the background for me, I did not imagine a performer who could “outplay” Svyatoslav Richter himself in this masterpiece!
But today I am literally captivated by the interpretation of Mikhail Pletnev. I consider it the best and that is why I chose it for posting on my blog.
I suggest you enjoy getting to know this “pearl” of the Russian piano heritage, and even in an absolutely wonderful version:
Piano cycle M.P. Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" is an original, unparalleled piece of music, which is included in the repertoire of the most famous pianists around the world.
The history of the creation of the cycle
In 1873, the artist W. Hartmann died suddenly. He was only 39 years old, death caught him in the prime of life and talent, and for Mussorgsky, who was a friend and like-minded artist, she was a real shock. “What horror, what grief! - he wrote to V. Stasov. “This incompetent fool mows down death without reasoning ...”
Let's say a few words about the artist V.A. Hartmann, because without a story about him, the story of M. Mussorgsky's piano cycle cannot be complete.
Viktor Aleksandrovich Hartman (1834-1873)
V.A. Hartmann
V.A. Hartmann was born in St. Petersburg in the family of a French staff doctor. Orphaned early and brought up in the family of an aunt, whose husband was a famous architect - A.P. Gemilian.
Hartman successfully graduated from the Academy of Arts and worked in various types and genres of art: he was an architect, stage designer (he was engaged in the design of performances), an artist and ornamentalist, one of the founders of the pseudo-Russian style in architecture. The pseudo-Russian style is a trend in Russian architecture of the 19th - early 20th centuries, based on the traditions of ancient Russian architecture and folk art, as well as elements of Byzantine architecture.
Increased interest in folk culture, in particular, in the peasant architecture of the XVI-XVII centuries. Among the most famous buildings of the pseudo-Russian style was the Mamontov printing house in Moscow, created by V. Hartmann.
The building of the former printing house of Mamontov. contemporary photography
It was precisely the desire in his work for Russian originality that brought Hartmann closer to the participants in the Mighty Handful, which included Mussorgsky. Hartmann sought to introduce Russian folk motifs into his projects, which was supported by V. V. Stasov. Mussorgsky and Hartmann met in his house in 1870, becoming friends and like-minded people.
Returning from a creative trip to Europe, Hartmann began the design of the All-Russian Manufactory Exhibition in St. Petersburg and in 1870 received the title of academician for this work.
Exhibition
A posthumous exhibition of works by V. Hartmann was organized in 1874 on the initiative of Stasov. It featured the artist's oil paintings, sketches, watercolors, sketches of theatrical scenery and costumes, and architectural projects. There were also some products that Hartmann made with his own hands at the exhibition: a clock in the form of a hut, tongs for cracking nuts, etc.
Lithograph based on a sketch by Hartmann
Mussorgsky visited the exhibition, it made a huge impression on him. There was an idea to write a software piano suite, the content of which would be the works of the artist.
Of course, such a powerful talent as Mussorgsky interprets the exhibits in his own way. For example, the sketch for the ballet "Trilby" depicts Hartmann's tiny chicks in their shells. Mussorgsky turns this sketch into the Ballet of Unhatched Chicks. The clock-hut inspired the composer to create a musical drawing of Baba Yaga's flight, etc.
Piano cycle by M. Mussorgsky “Pictures at an Exhibition”
The cycle was created very quickly: in three weeks in the summer of 1874. The work is dedicated to V. Stasov.
In the same year, "Pictures" received the author's subtitle "Memories of Viktor Hartmann" and were prepared for publication, but published only in 1876, after Mussorgsky's death. But several more years passed before this original work entered the repertoire of pianists.
It is characteristic that in the play "The Walk", which connects the individual pieces of the cycle, the composer meant himself walking around the exhibition and moving from picture to picture. Mussorgsky in this cycle created a psychological portrait, penetrated into the depths of his characters, which, of course, was not in Hartmann's simple sketches.
So, Walk. But this play constantly varies, showing a change in the mood of the author, and its tone also changes, which is a kind of preparation for the next play. Sometimes the melody of "Walks" sounds ponderous, which indicates the author's gait.
"Dwarf"
This piece is written in the key of E-flat minor. Its basis is Hartmann's sketch depicting nutcrackers ("nutcracker") in the form of a gnome on crooked legs. First, the gnome sneaks, and then runs from place to place and freezes. The middle part of the play shows the character's thoughts (or his rest), and then he, as if frightened of something, starts his run again with stops. The climax is the chromatic line and departure.
"Old lock"
The key is G-sharp minor. The play was created based on a watercolor by Hartmann, created by him while studying architecture in Italy. The drawing depicted an ancient castle, against which a troubadour with a lute was drawn. Mussorgsky created a beautiful drawn-out melody.
« Tuileries garden. Children quarrel after playing»
Key in B major. The intonations, the tempo of the music, its major scale depict an everyday scene of children's games and quarrels.
"Bydło" (translated from Polish - "cattle")
The play depicts a Polish cart on large wheels, drawn by oxen. The heavy step of these animals is conveyed by a monotonous rhythm and rough strokes of the lower register keys. At the same time, a sad peasant tune sounds.
"Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks"
This is one of the most popular pieces in the cycle. It was created in the key of F major according to Hartmann's sketches for the costumes for Y. Gerber's ballet Trilby staged by Petipa at the Bolshoi Theater (1871). In an episode of the ballet, as V. Stasov wrote, “a group of little pupils and pupils of the theater school, dressed up as canaries and running around the stage. Others were inserted into the eggs, as if into armor. In total, Hartmann created 17 costume designs for the ballet, 4 of them have survived to this day.
V. Hartman. Costume design for the ballet "Trilby"
The theme of the play is not serious, the melody is playful, but, created in a classical form, it receives an additional comic effect.
"Samuel Goldenberg and Shmuyle", in the Russian version "Two Jews, rich and poor"
The play was created on the basis of two drawings presented to Mussorgsky by Hartmann: “A Jew in a fur hat. Sandomierz” and “Sandomierz [Jew]”, created in 1868 in Poland. According to Stasov, "Mussorgsky greatly admired the expressiveness of these pictures." These drawings served as prototypes for the play. The composer not only combined two portraits into one, but also forced these characters to speak among themselves, revealing their characters. The speech of the first one sounds confident, with imperative and moralizing intonations. The speech of the poor Jew is in contrast to the first one: on the top notes with a rattling tint (flamboyant notes), with mournful and pleading intonations. Then both themes sound simultaneously in two different keys (D-flat minor and B-flat minor). The play ends with a few loud notes in an octave, it can be assumed that the rich have the last word.
"Limoges. Market . Big news »
Hartmann's drawing has not survived, but the piece's melody in E-flat major conveys the noisy bustle of the market, where you can find all the latest news and discuss them.
« Catacombs. Roman tomb»
Hartmann depicted himself, V. A. Kenel (a Russian architect) and a guide with a lantern in his hand in the Roman catacombs in Paris. Faintly lit skulls are visible on the right side of the picture.
V. Hartmann "Paris Catacombs"
The dungeon with the tomb is depicted in the music with unisons of two octaves corresponding to the theme and quiet "echoes". The melody appears among these chords like shadows of the past.
"Hut on chicken legs (Baba Yaga)"
Hartmann has a sketch of an elegant bronze clock. Mussorgsky has a vivid, memorable image of Baba Yaga. It is drawn with dissonances. At first, several chords sound, then they become more frequent, imitating a "run-up" - and a flight in a mortar. Sound "painting" very clearly depicts the image of Baba Yaga, her lame walk (after all, a "bone leg").
"Bogatyr Gates"
The play is based on Hartmann's sketch for the architectural design of the Kyiv city gates. On April 4 (according to the old style) April 1866, an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of Alexander II, which later became officially called the “April 4 event”. In honor of the emperor's salvation, a gate project competition was organized in Kyiv. Hartmann's project was created in the old Russian style: a dome with a belfry in the form of a heroic helmet and a decoration above the gate in the form of a kokoshnik. But later the competition was canceled, and the projects were not implemented.
V. Hartman. Sketch for the gate project in Kyiv
Mussorgsky's play paints a picture of the people's triumph. The slow rhythm gives the piece grandeur and solemnity. The broad Russian melody is replaced by a quiet theme, reminiscent of church singing. Then the first theme enters with renewed vigor, another voice is added to it, and in the second part a real bell ringing is heard, created by the sounds of the piano. First, the ringing is heard in a minor, and then goes into a major. Smaller and smaller bells join the big bell, and at the end small bells sound.
Orchestrations of M. Mussorgsky's cycle
Bright and picturesque "Pictures at an Exhibition", written for the piano, were repeatedly arranged for the symphony orchestra. The first orchestration was done by Rimsky-Korsakov's student M. Tushmalov. Rimsky-Korsakov himself also orchestrated one play in the cycle, The Old Castle. But the most famous orchestral embodiment of "Pictures" was the work of Maurice Ravel, a passionate admirer of Mussorgsky's work. Created in 1922, Ravel's orchestration became as popular as the author's piano version.
The orchestra in the orchestral arrangement of Ravel includes 3 flutes, a piccolo flute, 3 oboes, an English horn, 2 clarinets, a bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, a contrabassoon, an alto saxophone, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, a tuba, timpani, triangle, snare drum, whip, rattle, cymbals, bass drum, tom-tom, bells, bell, xylophone, celesta, 2 harps, strings.
TALE IN MUSIC
Modest Mussorgsky. old lock
1st lesson
Program content. To teach children to feel the mood of music, to distinguish between expressive means that create an image.
Lesson progress:
Educator: Have you ever seen the old castle? Thick stone walls, high towers, fancy elongated windows with carved bars...
The castle usually stands in a picturesque place, on a high mountain. It is severe, powerful, surrounded by a fence - thick walls, ramparts, ditches. Hear how music can paint a picture of an old castle played by a symphony orchestra.
Hearing: Modest Mussorgsky. "Old Castle" from the cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition" (performed by a symphony orchestra).
This play was written by the remarkable Russian composer Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky. It is part of his "Pictures at an Exhibition" series. You are already familiar with some of the pieces from this cycle.
The play is interesting in that the music, without the help of words, very expressively depicts a picture of a gloomy, severe old castle, and we feel some kind of extraordinary spirit of mystery, antiquity. As if the castle is visible in the fog, surrounded by a halo of mystery, magic. (The play is repeated.)
2nd lesson
Program content. To develop the creative imagination of children, the ability to express the nature of music in a word, drawing.
Lesson progress:
Educator Listen to a play in which the music paints a picture of an old castle performed on the piano (performs a play, the children remember its name).
Hearing: Modest Mussorgsky. "Old Castle" from the cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition" (piano performance).
Educator: What do you think, does anyone live in this castle or is it abandoned, uninhabited? (Performs a fragment.)
Children. There is no one in it, it is abandoned, empty.
Educator: Why do you think so, how did the music tell about it?
Children. The music is frozen, sad, quiet, slow, mysterious.
P edagog o g. Yes, the music sounds mysterious, magical, as if everything froze, fell asleep. The same sound in the bass is repeated quietly and monotonously, creating a character of numbness, mystery.
The melody against this gloomy, sleepy magical background sounds sad, mournful, sometimes with some excitement, as if the wind is howling in the empty chambers of the castle. And again everything freezes, remains motionless, subsides...
Do you know the story of the sleeping beauty? It tells about how the princess, having pricked her finger with a spindle, fell asleep for many, many years. She was bewitched by an evil sorceress. But the good sorceress managed to soften the witchcraft, and she predicted that the princess would wake up when a beautiful young man fell in love with her. Together with the princess, everyone who was in the castle at the ball fell asleep. The castle plunged into a stupor, overgrown, dragged on with cobwebs, dust, everything froze for hundreds of years... (Snippet sounds.) Maybe the composer wanted to depict such a castle or another - the castle of Koshchei the Immortal, in which there is nothing alive, a gloomy, terrible, dull castle? (Snippet sounds.)
Come up with your own fairy tale about an old castle, so that it is close in spirit, according to the mood of this music, and draw a castle that appears in your imagination when you listen to this music. (The play is repeated.)
Presentation
Included:
1. Presentation - 8 slides, ppsx;
2. Sounds of music:
Modest Mussorgsky. "Old Castle" from the cycle "Pictures at an Exhibition" (piano and symphony orchestra), mp3;
3. Accompanying article - abstract of classes, docx;
4. Notes for independent performance by the teacher, jpg.
Today we will consider the work that M. P. Mussorgsky created - “The Old Castle”. It was originally written for the piano, but was repeatedly arranged by composers for orchestral performance and processed in various musical styles.
Story
Let's start with how Mussorgsky created his work. "The Old Castle" is a piece that is part of the "Pictures at an Exhibition" suite. A series of musical "images" is dedicated to the memory of the composer's friend, the artist and architect V. A. Hartman.
Mussorgsky, "The Old Castle": features of the composition
The work was created in 1874. Hartmann's watercolor of Italian architecture served as the basis for the play. The sketch of the painting has not been preserved. The exhibited works were actively sold, the location of the inspiring canvas is unknown. Mussorgsky's The Old Castle describes the corresponding medieval structure. A troubadour sings before him. The composer manages to revive this character. To do this, he uses a thoughtful, smooth melody that sounds against the background of a monotonous measured accompaniment. Such music evokes a lyrical contemplative mood. The song of the troubadour is filled with knightly Middle Ages. Music conveys the idea that the artist has depicted through paint.
Author
Mussorgsky, according to contemporaries, is an excellent pianist. He captivated listeners when he sat down at the instrument. Through sound, he was able to recreate any picture. At the same time, this composer composed relatively little instrumental music. Opera attracted him the most. It was to her that Mussorgsky devoted most of his creative energy. The Old Castle, however, is one of his most famous works. He set himself the artistic task of creating a psychological portrait and penetrated into the souls of his characters.
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 of musical expression;
Name the idea of creating a suite;
Raise a love for Mussorgsky's music;
To form interest in the subject, aesthetic education of students; knowledge about the composer and his works.
Planned result: to show a personal attitude in the perception of musical works, 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 of musical instruments: cello, piano.
On student tables: table of emotional states, test quiz, lyrics 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
Wu: 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 versions, it develops and changes.
Wu-l: What does rococo mean?
U-Xia: This is a 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 between musical works in the rococo style?
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 homework.
Lesson Summary:
Test quiz
- Who is the composer of Pictures at an Exhibition?
- According to the sketches of which artist, the work “Pictures at an Exhibition” by M.P. was created. Mussorgsky?
- What is a suite?
- How many parts are in the suite “Pictures at an Exhibition” by M.P. Mussorgsky?
- What is an interlude?
- 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.
