Alexander Tikhonovich
Gretchaninov
1864-1956
Alexander Tikhonovich Gretchaninov was an outstanding Russian composer, a student of Rimsky-Korsakov, best known for his choral works and arrangements of folk songs. He was an Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1925). Gretchaninov was born in Moscow in 1864 and received an excellent musical education: first at the Moscow Conservatory under Sergei Taneyev and Anton Arensky, and then at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in the class of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. One of the main spheres of his work was sacred music. Alongside Alexander Kastalsky, Gretchaninov became a leader of the “New Direction,” which sought to renew church singing by turning to ancient Russian chants. His Liturgies and All-Night Vigil, as well as innovative compositions involving instruments (such as the “Demestvennaya Liturgy”), became significant works. It is known that his “Credo” from the Second Liturgy so impressed Emperor Nicholas II that the composer was granted a lifelong pension. Simultaneously, Gretchaninov worked successfully in secular genres. His opera-bylina «Dobrynya Nikitich», written in 1903 for Fyodor Chaliapin, became a staple in the repertoire of Russian theaters. He also composed music for productions at the Moscow Art Theatre, including the famous «The Snow Maiden». The composer led an active public life: he participated in the creation of the People’s Conservatory, arranged folk songs, wrote criticism, and worked extensively with children, creating many children’s operas and pieces. After the 1917 Revolution, he wrote the “Hymn of Free Russia” to verses by Konstantin Balmont and collaborated with the People’s Commissariat for Education. From 1925, he lived in Paris, and from 1939, in the United States. Despite his emigration, Gretchaninov maintained a spiritual connection with his homeland: in 1943, he wrote the cantata «Towards Victory!», dedicated to the Red Army. While abroad, he continued to create, producing, among other works, the “Ecumenical Mass,” striving to unite the traditions of Orthodox and Catholic music. The Alexander T. Gretchaninov Children’s Music School operates in Moscow (founded in 1979, received its current name in 1994).
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