Konstantin Saradzhev (also ''Constantin Saradgeff'', born Saradzhian; 8 October 1877 – 22 July 1954) was an

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

n conductor and violinist. He was an advocate of new

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n music, and conducted a number of premieres of works by

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popula ...

Modest Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (; ; ; – ) was a Russian composer, one of the group known as "The Five (composers), The Five." He was an innovator of Music of Russia, Russian music in the Romantic music, Romantic period and strove to achieve a ...

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

Nikolai Myaskovsky Nikolai Yakovlevich Myaskovsky (; ; 20 April 18818 August 1950), was a Russian and Soviet composer. He is sometimes referred to as the "Father of the Soviet Symphony". Myaskovsky was awarded the Stalin Prize five times. Early years Myaskovsky ...

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

, and

Aram Khachaturian Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (; 1 May 1978) was a Soviet Armenians, Armenian composer and conductor. He is considered one of the leading Music of the Soviet Union#Classical music of the Soviet Union, Soviet composers. Khachaturian was born and rai ...

. His son Konstantin Konstantinovich Saradzhev was a noted bell ringer and musical theorist.

Biography

He was born Konstantin Solomonovich Saradzhian in

Derbent Derbent, also historically known as Darband, or Derbend, is the southernmost city in Russia. It is situated along the southeastern coast of the Dagestan, Republic of Dagestan, occupying the narrow gateway between the Caspian Sea and the Caucas ...

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...

, in 1877; his father was a doctor. He attended the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

, where he studied violin under

Jan Hřímalý Jan Hřímalý (, also ''Ivan Voitsekhovich Grzhimali''; 13 April 1844 – ) was an influential Czech violinist and teacher, who was associated with the Moscow Conservatory for 46 years in 1869–1915. Biography Hřímalý was born in Plzeň, Bo ...

and theory under

Sergei Taneyev Sergey Ivanovich Taneyev (, ; – ) was a Russian composer, pianist, teacher of musical composition, composition, music theorist and author. Life Taneyev was born in Vladimir, Russia, Vladimir, Vladimir Governorate, Russian Empire, to a cultur ...

,Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed. 1954 graduating in 1898. He then became a teacher and concert performer. He had further violin study with

Otakar Ševčík Otakar Ševčík (22 March 185218 January 1934) was a Czechs, Czech violinist and influential teacher. He was known as a Solo (music), soloist and an Musical ensemble, ensemble player, including his occasional performances with Eugène Ysaÿe. ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

in 1900. In 1901 he became conductor of the Moscow Opera Lovers' Club. He also formed his own

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

. From 1904 to 1908 he studied conducting with

Arthur Nikisch Arthur Nikisch (12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungary, Hungarian conducting, conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London, Leipzig and—most importantly—Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter ...

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. On return to Russia he conducted the summer symphony concerts at

Sokolniki Park Sokolniki Park, named for the falconry, falcon hunt of the grand princes of Principality of Moscow, Moscow formerly conducted there, is located in the eponymous Sokolniki District of Moscow. Sokolniki Park is not far from the center of the Mo ...

in 1908, 1910 and 1911. He became director of the State Institute of Theatrical Art. On 8 October 1913 he conducted the first performance of

Mussorgsky Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky (; ; ; – ) was a Russian composer, one of the group known as "The Five (composers), The Five." He was an innovator of Music of Russia, Russian music in the Romantic music, Romantic period and strove to achieve a ...

's much-delayed and still incomplete comic opera ''

The Fair at Sorochyntsi ''The Fair at Sorochyntsi'' (, ''Sorochinskaya yarmarka'', ''Sorochyntsi Fair'') is a comic opera in three acts by Modest Mussorgsky, composed between 1874 and 1880 in St. Petersburg, Russia. The composer wrote the libretto, which is based on Ni ...

'' at the Free Theatre in Moscow. Saradzhev was an advocate of new music. In 1901 he was a member of a circle of Scriabinists that included the pianist and teacher Alexander Goldenweiser, the pianist Maria Nemenova-Lunts, the writer and critic Vladimir Derzhanovsky and others. In 1909 Derzhanovsky, his wife Elena Koposova-Derzhanovskaya and Saradzhev organized "Evenings of Modern Music" in Moscow. He conducted the first professional and first fully rehearsed performance of

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of ...

's Symphony in E flat, Op. 1 (Moscow, 22 August 1912, in the very first concert ever devoted entirely to Stravinsky's music). Saradzhev conducted the premiere of

's Piano Concerto No. 1 (25 July/7 August 1912; with the composer as soloist). Prokofiev later wrote that Saradzhev "realized splendidly all my tempos". Saradzhev served in the army in World War I, not returning to Moscow until after the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

. He became involved with the Association for Contemporary Music and founded the Evenings of Contemporary Music in 1923. He was professor of conducting at Moscow Conservatory 1922-35, where his notable students included Boris Khaikin and

Lev Oborin Lev Nikolayevich Oborin (; Moscow, Moscow, 5 January 1974) was a Soviet and Russian pianist, composer and pedagogue. He was the winner of the first International Chopin Piano Competition in 1927. Life and career Oborin's family moved frequently ...

. Saradzhev conducted the first Soviet performance of Prokofiev's 3rd Piano Concerto (22 March 1925, Orchestra of the Theatre of the Revolution; soloist

Samuil Feinberg Samuil Yevgenyevich Feinberg (, also Samuel; 26 May 1890 – 22 October 1962) was a Russian and Soviet composer and pianist. Biography Born in Odessa, Feinberg lived in Moscow from 1894 and studied with Alexander Goldenweiser at the Mosco ...

). In 1927 he conducted the Moscow premiere of

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

's Symphony No. 2 ''To October'', which followed the world premiere under Nicolai Malko in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

on 5 November, and was the first performance to include the revisions that Shostakovich had made after that premiere. He was a leading advocate of

's music. He conducted the first performances of Myaskovsky's

symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ( ...

''Silence'', Op. 9 (which was dedicated to him),Compositions by Nikolai Miaskovsky
and his symphonies No. 8 (Moscow, 23 May 1926), No. 9 (Moscow, 29 April 1928), and No. 11 (16 January 1933). Myaskovsky's Symphony No. 10 was dedicated to Saradzhev. In 1934 Myaskovsky wrote a ''Preludium and Fughetta on the name Saradzhev'' (for orchestra, Op. 31H; he also arranged it for piano 4-hands, Op. 31J). The world premiere of the revised version of Prokofiev's Sinfonietta in A major, Op. 5/48 was under Konstantin Saradzhev's baton (Moscow, 18 November 1930). He was a conductor of the

Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...

State Symphony Orchestra and in 1931 – this was 38 years after the composer died and 65 years after it was written –

's '' Concert Overture in C minor'' finally received an airing, under Saradzhev's baton in Voronezh. He later became musical director and principal conductor of the

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , ; ; sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia, as well as one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerev ...

Opera and Ballet Theatre. In September 1939 he conducted the premiere of

's first ballet ''Happiness''. From 1939 until his death he was director of the Yerevan Conservatory, and taught the orchestra, opera and conducting classes. His notable students there included Alexander Kopylov. He was principal conductor of the Armenian Philharmonia 1941-44. He died in Yerevan in 1954, aged 76. Konstantin and Zoya Saradzhev are buried at Yerevan's Central Cemetery, his memorial is a unique work of Art made of basalt.

Honours

Konstantin Saradzhev was made a Hero of Labour in 1921 and a People's Artist of the

Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (ArSSR), also known as Soviet Armenia, or simply Armenia, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union, located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Soviet Armenia ...

in 1945.

Sources

(True) Synesthete Composers and Musicians

References

External links

Saradjian
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saradzhev, Konstantin 1877 births 1954 deaths People from Derbent Moscow Conservatory alumni People's Artists of Armenia Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Russian people of Armenian descent Armenian classical violinists Armenian conductors (music) Conductors (music) from the Russian Empire Expatriates from the Russian Empire in the Ottoman Empire Male classical violinists Pupils of Jan Hřímalý Russian classical violinists Russian male conductors (music) Soviet conductors (music) Soviet music educators