Vasily Andreyevich Zolotarev 1873-1964

[Christopher]

That's not so much an unusual title as the dedication (of no.1) (p.2: "A la mémoire de P. Tschaïkowsky. Première symphonie pour orchestre ...")

I believe the title of the symphony (as opposed to the dedication) is Symphony of Rage.

[Christopher]

I know these symphonies are the hidden gems of the Russian/ Soviet music.   As you know, Vasili was a student of Rimsky-Korsakov, and friend of Glazunov.

I believe Rimsky-Korsakov didn't think too much of Zolotarev's music:  apparently he said something like "his name is golden but his music isn't" ('zoloto' means gold in Russian).

There is a recording of his 6th Symphony ("My Homeland") and some of his ballet music in the archives of Belarus TV-Radio Company - they said they can make it available to me....for Euro1920..!!  I mean really, what planet?!

[Alan Howe]

they said they can make it available to me....for Euro1920

Must be a masterpiece!

[dhibbard]

Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music Library has all the scores.

[dhibbard]

also the Symphony no 4 written in 1935 called "Belarus"  was a favorite of the people when written.  It's still performed in Minsk during the month of July.  When Alexander Lukashenko was last elected, they played the last movement of the symphony at his inauguration.   Perhaps its on youtube!!!

[dhibbard]

The Symphony no 5 written in 1942 was called ("The Year 1941") 
Symphony no 6 written in 1944 was called "My Country"  and No 7  ("In memory of Balakirev and Rimsky-Korsakov")  contained some fragments that both composers used in their symphonies.   Wish we had a modern recording of these......

[Alan Howe]

Could someone now provide a complete detailed listing of his symphonies, please (with dates, key signatures and titles)? Thanks!

[dhibbard]

Here is a listing of his works (Oeuvres)  in French:

Pour la scène

Décembristes (Декабристы), Opera (1925), nouvelle édition Kondrati Ryleev, 1957
Ak-Gul, opéra sur des thèmes ouzbeks, fragments (1933)
Le Prince du Lac (Князь-озеро), Ballet (1949); remporte le Prix Staline en 1950


Orchestre

Ouverture-fantaisie (1898)
Fête villageoise (Деревенский праздник), Overture, Op.. 4 (1901)
Rhapsodie hébraïque (Еврейская рапсодия), op. 7 (1903)
Symphonie n° 1 en fa dièse mineur, à la mémoire de Tchaikovski, op. 8 (1903)
Ouverture-fantaisie, op. 22 (1907)
Sinfonietta, pour double orchestre à cordes (1910)
Esquisses symphoniques sur des thème ukrainiens (1911)
Elégie, op 34 (1914)
Suite moldave (1928)
Symphonie n° 2 en ré majeur "Année 1905" (1929)   "The Year 1905"
Rhapsodie, et Suite ouzbeke (1931)
Ferganskii, marche (1931)
Le Tadjikistan rouge (1933)
Symphonie n° 3 en ut majeur "les fleurs de Cheliouskine"  (the flowers of Chelioskine)
Symphonie n° 4 en si bémol majeur "Belarus" (1935)
Danses bélarussiennes, suite (1936)
Capriccio sur des thèmes juifs (1936)
Conceto-marche pour orchestre (1941)
Concerto pour piano à quatre mains et orchestre en fa majeur (1942)
Symphonie n° 5 en ut mineur "Année 1941" (1942)  (The Year 1941)
Ouverture de fête (1943)
Ouverture fantaisie sur des thèmes biélorusses (1943)
Symphonie n° 6 "Ma Patrie" (1944)  (My Country)
Concerto pour emiriton et orchestre n° 1 (1955)
Meditations pour emiriton et orchestre (1955)
Concerto pour emiriton et orchestre n° 2 (1956) - l'émiriton est un instrument électrique inventé par le petit fils de Rimski Korsakov en 1930.
Symphonie n° 7, à la mémoire de Balakirev et Rimski Korsakov (1962)
Concerto pour violoncelle et orchestre (1943/63)


the   Esquisses symphoniques sur des thème ukrainiens (1911)  or Symphonic sketches on Ukrainian Themes score was just made available.

[eschiss1]

Are those composition or publication dates? Sym.1 was published in 1903, Op.4 in 1901 and Op.7 in 1903 so on the information given I can't tell.  FLP has Op.22 published in 1907, Ferganskii marsch of 1931 was published in 1935 acc FLP (know.freelibrary.org) - ok, that's an exception... - FLP also has composed 1901 for op.4 i see (ded. Rimsky), 1907 for op.22 (ded. Balakirev)- ok, sorry, had to ask I guess   FLP gives 1902 for composition date for the 1st symphony, however. (Unless it's 1902-3 composition, 1903 publication. Is there a really good biography of Vasily Zolotarev in any language , I wonder...)


The cello concerto is available in reduction (by Stogorskiĭ) (in 1963) at some libraries- unfortunately none I think that I can easily interloan from (Tompkins Co Pub Library doesn't presently, I think, have interloan agreements with U Oklahoma Library or Arizona State U Library- it might...

Note that concertos for baian and orchestra (in baian/piano reductions by F. Lips) are in some library catalogs sometimes attributed to "Vasilij Zolotarev" that were probably published, I'm guessing, as being by "V. Zolotarev", with "Vasilij" being the librarians' interpolation - the publisher not guessing that a librarian might have heard of Vasily Zolotarev but not Vladislav Zolotarev, figuring the other way around more likely.

[Alan Howe]

So, in English, the symphonies by Zolotarev (1872-1964) are:

Symphony No.1 in F sharp minor 'To the memory of Tchaikovsky', Op.8 (1903)
Symphony No.2 in D major 'The Year 1905' (1929)
Symphony No.3 in C major 'The Flowers of Chelyuskin'* (year?)
Symphony No.4 in B flat major 'Belarus' (1935)
Symphony No.5 in C minor 'The Year 1941' (1942) 
Symphony No.6 (key?) 'My Homeland' (1944) 
Symphony No.7 (key?) 'To the memory of Balakirev and Rimsky-Korsakov' (1962)

*Do the flowers relate to the SS Chelyuskin (ship) or to the area of Cape Chelyuskin in the far north of Russia?>>>
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Chelyuskin

Now, my immediate reaction is to want to hear No.1 in particular, as it falls squarely within UC's time-frame. The remainder, however, don't, so we do need some sort of assurance as to their idiom, please.

Secondly, I wonder to what extent the symphonies from No.2 onwards are Soviet-era nationalist pot-boilers without much real musical substance (judging purely by their clearly patriotic-sounding titles). If his rough contemporary Steinberg is anything to go by, there was probably a lot of music of this type churned out in that era. So I remain to be convinced. We need evidence, please, that this discussion is of real relevance here...

[Gareth Vaughan]

The score and parts for No. 1 are in Fleisher, as Eric has pointed out. It is 134pp long and scored as follows: 2-fl, 1-pc, 2-ob, 2-cl, 2-bn, 4-hn, 2-tpt, 3-trb, 1-tb, tmp, prc, str. 
Eric also mentioned that Fleisher has scores and parts for the Op. 4 & Op. 22 Overtures, the Rhapsodie Hebraique, Op. 7, and the Ferganskii March; FLP has the String Quartets Opp. 5, 6, 13 & 33 and the Op. 19 String Quintet as well. So obtaining enough performance material for a couple of CDs would be relatively easy.

[eschiss1]

That information can also be had at the IMSLP link above btw (though only the score- non-PD-EU until 2035? - is available there.)

[dhibbard]

Symphony no 7 was written and published in Moscow in 1962. 

[dhibbard]

I wonder if there are recordings of his symphonies in the Latvian Music Academy of the student orchestra made pre 1990 ??    It does seem that the titles have that Stalinist theme ...   "the year 1905"...etc.  or in Tallinn?

[eschiss1]

Atm all conjecture I imagine...