Nikolai Sergeevich Korndorf (, January 23, 1947 – May 30, 2001) was a Russian and

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

(from 1991) composer and conductor. He was prolific both in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

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 ...

, and in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Biography

Born in

, (

Russian SSR Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

), Korndorf studied composition with

Sergey Balasanian Sergey Artemyevich Balasanian (; 13 August 1902 in Ashgabat, Russian Empire13 June 1982 Moscow, Russian SFSR) was a Soviet Armenian composer. He taught composition in the Moscow Conservatory. Balasanian wrote the first Tajik opera – ''The Up ...

at 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 ...

from 1965 to 1970. During these years, he wrote a one-act opera ''A tale on...'' () based on the work of

Semyon Kirsanov Semyon Isaakovich Kirsanov (; – 10 December 1972) was a Soviet and Russian poet and journalist. Biography Still in his teens, Kirsanov was the organizing force in his native Odessa in 1921 behind the Southern Association of Futurists. In ...

. In 1973 Korndorf completed post-graduate studies with his opera ''Feast in the Time of Plague'' based on the play of the same name by

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin () was a Russian poet, playwright, and novelist of the Romantic era.Basker, Michael. Pushkin and Romanticism. In Ferber, Michael, ed., ''A Companion to European Romanticism''. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005. He is consid ...

. He studied conducting with Leo Ginsburg from 1967 to 1979 and taught composition and orchestration at the Conservatory from 1972 to 1991. In 1973 he became a member of the Union of Composers and the Moscow Presidium of the Soviet Composers' Union. He was a co-founder and deputy president of the New

Association for Contemporary Music Association for Contemporary Music (ACM) (, ''ASM - Assotsiatsiya Sovremennoy Muzyki'') was an alternative organization of Russian composers interested in avant-garde music. It was founded by Nikolai Roslavets in 1923. ACM ran concert series and p ...

(ACM). His early works were written in a traditional and academic manner until he adopted an atonal post-expressionist style. Later, he turned to a kind of

minimalist In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

repetitive aesthetic, notable in his ''Confessiones'' (1979) for double bass and twelve wind instruments, and in ''Jarilo'' (1981) an extensive piece for piano and tape. Korndorf developed this aesthetic further in his large-scale works such as the three ''Hymns'' (1987–1990), his 3rd and 4th Symphonies, and the opera '' MR (Marina and Rainer)'' based on correspondence between

Marina Tsvetaeva Marina Ivanovna Tsvetaeva ( rus, Марина Ивановна Цветаева, p=mɐˈrʲinə ɪˈvanəvnə tsvʲɪˈta(j)ɪvə, links=yes; 31 August 1941) was a Russian poet. Her work is some of the most well-known in twentieth-century Russ ...

and

Rainer Maria Rilke René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), known as Rainer Maria Rilke, was an Austrian poet and novelist. Acclaimed as an Idiosyncrasy, idiosyncratic and expressive poet, he is widely recognized as ...

. In 1991 Korndorf left

for

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, where he began experimenting with electro-acoustic media. In

, he became an associate composer of the

Canadian Music Centre The Canadian Music Centre was founded in 1959 by a group of Canadian composers who saw a need to create a repository for Canadian music. It now holds Canada's largest collection of Canadian concert music, and works to promote the music of its As ...

and an associate of the Canadian League of Composers. He taught composition at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

towards the end of his life. A champion of Korndorf's music, Russian conductor Alexander Lazarev has performed and recorded most of his work. Korndorf died suddenly while playing soccer with friends in 2001. He was 54.

Selected works

*Concertino for viola and string orchestra (1970) *Sonata for viola solo (1970) *''Feast in the Time of Plague'' – one-act opera after

(1972) *Symphony 1 – for full symphony orchestra (1975) *''Confessiones'' – for 14 players and tape (1979) *Symphony No. 2 – for full symphony orchestra (1980) *''Movements'' – for percussion ensemble (1981) *''Primitive music'' – for twelve saxophones (1981) *''Yarilo'' – for piano and tape (1981) *''Yes!!'' –

ritual A ritual is a repeated, structured sequence of actions or behaviors that alters the internal or external state of an individual, group, or environment, regardless of conscious understanding, emotional context, or symbolic meaning. Traditionally ...

for three singers, chamber ensemble and tape (1982) *''Singing'' – for mezzo-soprano and tape (1982) *''Tristful Songs'' – for chamber choir and percussion (1 player) (1983) *''Con Sordino'' – for 16 string instruments and harpsichord (1984) *''Lullaby'' – for two pianos (1984) *Brass-quintet for two trumpets, horn, trombone and tuba (1985) *''Concerto capriccioso'' – for violoncello solo, string orchestra and percussion (1986) *''Amoroso'' – for 11 players (1986) *''The Dance in Metal in Honour of

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and Extended technique, non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one ...

'' – for one percussion player (1986) *''In Honour of

Alfred Schnittke Alfred Garrievich Schnittke (24 November 1934 – 3 August 1998) was a Russian composer. Among the most performed and recorded composers of late 20th-century classical music, he is described by musicologist Ivan Moody (composer), Ivan Moody as a ...

(AGSCH)'' – string trio for violin, viola and violoncello (1986) *Hymn I ''Sempre Tutti'' – for full symphony orchestra (1987) *Hymn II – for full symphony orchestra (1987) *'' MR (Marina and Rainer)'' – chamber opera in one act after J. Lourié (1989) *Symphony No. 3 – for full symphony orchestra, boys' choir, men's choir, piano solo and narrator (1989) *Hymn III ''In Honour of

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

'' – for full symphony orchestra and soprano (1990) *''

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

-Variations'' – for string sextet (1990) *''Continuum'' – for organ and tape (bells, gongs and tam-tams) (1991) *''The Magic Gift of Segnoro Luigi'' – for percussion ensemble (1991) *''Prologue'' – for full symphony orchestra (1992) *''Let the Earth Bring Forth'' – for chamber ensemble (1992) *String Quartet for two violins, viola and violoncello (1992) *''...Si Muove!'' – play for instrumental ensemble, actors and dancers (1993) *''Epilogue'' – for full symphony orchestra (1993) *''Victor'' (The Victor) – for full symphony orchestra (1995) *''Welcome!'' – for female choir and instruments played by singers themselves (1995) *''Get out!!!'' – for any four or more instruments (1995) *''Welcome!'' – version for six female voices and instruments played by singers themselves (1995) *''Are You Ready, Brother?'' – trio for piano, violin, and violoncello (1996) *Symphony No. 4 ''Underground music'' – for full symphony orchestra (1996) *''Music for Owen Underhill and His Magnificent Eight'' – for chamber ensemble (1997) *''Passacaglia'' – for solo cello (1997) *''The smile of Maud Lewis'' – for small symphony orchestra (1998) *''Canzone triste'' – for harp (1998) *''Musica Nominis Expers'' – for full symphony orchestra (1998) *''In D'' – for full symphony orchestra (1998) *''Triptych : Lament, Response and Glorification'' – for cello and piano (1998–1999) *''A Letter to V. Martynov and G. Pelecis'' – for piano (1999) *''Echo'' – for mixed choir and ensemble (1999) *''Merry Music for Very Nice People'' – for violin, cello, clarinet, piano and percussion (2000)

Recordings

*CD Art and Electronics CD AED 68017 *CD Megadisc MDC 7817: Patricia Kopatchinskaya (violin), Daniel Raskin (viola), Alexander Ivashkin (cello), Ivan Sokolov (piano) *CD Sony SK 66824: BBC SO, Alexander Lazarev (conductor),

Catherine Bott Catherine Bott (born 11 September 1952) is a British singer and broadcaster. Following her studies at The King's High School For Girls and Guildhall School of Music and Drama, with Arthur Reckless, she began her career as a member of Swingle I ...

(soprano) (1994)

Bibliography

*Baker's ''Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', 7th edition, Schirmer books, A Division of Macmillan, Inc. New York. Maxwell MacMillan, Canada, Toronto, 1984. 8th edition, 1992. *''Contemporary Composers'', St. James Press, Chicago, London, 1992. *Kuzina, Olga: ''Nikolai Korndorf. Kompozitory Moskvy (Moscow's Composers)'', 4th issue, Moscow, Kompozitor, 1994. pp. 142–165 (in Russian). *Ferenc, Anna: ''The Association for Contemporary Music in Moscow: An interview with Nikolai Korndorf.'' Tempo, 190. September, 1994. pp. 2–4. *Guljanitskaja, Natalia: ''On the style of contemporary spiritual musical compositions'', Musykalnaya Arademi' No. 1, 1994. pp. 18–25 (in Russian). *Dubinets, Elena: ''In memory of Nikolai Korndorf'', Musykalnaya Arademia, 2002, No. 2

References

External links

*
Korndorf at Onno van Rijen's Soviet Composer's PageCanadian Music Centre
* Tara Wilson: 'Russian Post-Minimalist Music: A Semiological Investigation into the Narrative Approaches employed by Alexander Knaifel between 1978 and 1994' (PhD Thesis: Goldsmiths, University of London, 2015). {{DEFAULTSORT:Korndorf, Nikolai 1947 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Canadian composers 20th-century classical composers 20th-century Canadian male musicians Canadian classical composers Canadian film score composers Canadian opera composers Male film score composers Russian male opera composers Musicians from Moscow Russian film score composers Russian male classical composers Russian opera composers Moscow Conservatory alumni