Baron Boris Alexandrovich Fitinhoff-Schell (russian: Борис Александрович Фитингоф-Шель, Romanization of Russian, tr. ) (1829? in Morshansk – in St. Petersburg, Russia) was a Russian composer of Baltic German descent.

Biography

Fitinhoff-Schell was born to Baltic nobility, Baltic German noble Baron Alexander Otto von Vietinghoff genannt Scheel and Yelisevet Pavlovna Yazykova. The :de:Vietinghoff (Adelsgeschlecht), Vietinghoff family, was considered part of the Uradel (or old nobility), the family was of Westphalian origin, originating in Essen. The Baltic branch had moved to the Baltic region, Baltics since the 14th Century. Even though Boris’ father was a Lutheran, he was baptised an Russian Orthodoxy, Orthodox, because his mother was a Russian people, Russian. Fitinhoff-Schell was trained at the Moscow Conservatory under Field and Henselt, and was a classmate of Tchaikovsky's. His most noted work are the ballets ''The Haarlem Tulip'' (1887) and ''Cinderella (Fitinhof-Schell), Cinderella'' (1893), composed for the Mariinsky Ballet, Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg. He also scored four operas for the St. Petersburg Imperial Opera, which were commissioned by Ivan Vsevolozhsky, director of the Imperial Theatres.Opera Glass
/ref> His ''Wedding March'', scored especially for the wedding of Nicholas II of Russia, Tsar Nicholas II and Alexandra Fyodorovna (Alix of Hesse), Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna is still occasionally heard. Fitinhoff-Schell is also noted for his ''Fantastic Overture'' to his opera ''Mazeppa (1859 opera), Mazeppa'' (1859, libretto by Prince Grigory Kugushev), in which whole-tone scales were profusely employed. Franz Liszt greatly appreciated this piece, describing its effect as ''" ... terrifying to all long and protruding ears."'' Liszt himself made use of the whole-tone scale in his ''Divina Commedia'', illustrating the Inferno, and he used it systematically in his posthumously published organ and late piano pieces.

Works

Operas

*''Mazeppa'' (1859) *''Tamara'' (1886) *''Don Juan de Tenorio'' (1888) *''Mary Stuart'' (never performed) *''Heliodora'' (never performed)

Ballets

*''The Haarlem Tulip'' (1885) *''Cinderella (Fitinhof-Schell), Cinderella'' (1893)

References

1829 births 1901 deaths Russian ballet composers Russian male classical composers Russian opera composers Male opera composers 19th-century male musicians Barons of the Russian Empire Baltic nobility {{russia-composer-stub