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Vladimir Vasilievich Stasov (also Stassov; ; 14 January O.S. 2 January">Adoption of the Gregorian calendar#Adoption in Eastern Europe">O.S. 2 January/small> 1824 – 23 October .S. 10 October/small> 1906), was a Russian
O.S. 2 January">Adoption of the Gregorian calendar#Adoption in Eastern Europe">O.S. 2 January/small> 1824. He graduated from the School of Jurisprudence in 1843, was admitted to the Imperial Academy of Arts in 1859, and was made honorary fellow of the Russian Academy of Sciences in 1900, together with his friend Leo Tolstoy.
'', '' Francesca da Rimini'', and the String Quartets 2 and 3">Francesca da Rimini (Tchaikovsky)">Francesca da Rimini'', and the String Quartets 2 and 3are first-rate and highly original; the remainder are mediocre or weak."
Nor was he consoling about
Tchaikovsky Research article on Vladimir Stasov
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stasov, Vladimir Vasilievich 1824 births 1906 deaths Writers from Saint Petersburg People from Sankt-Peterburgsky Uyezd Art critics from the Russian Empire Music critics from the Russian Empire Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Imperial School of Jurisprudence alumni Burials at Tikhvin Cemetery __FORCETOC__
Vladimir Vasilievich Stasov (also Stassov; ; 14 January critic
A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as Art criticism, art, Literary criticism, literature, Music journalism, music, Film criticism, cinema, Theater criticism, theater, Fas ...
of music and art. Born into a wealthy, noble family, Stasov became a prominent figure in mid-19th-century Russian culture. He discovered a large number of Russia's greatest talents, inspired many of their works and fought their battles in numerous articles and letters to the press. As such, he carried on a lifelong debate with Russian novelist and playwright Ivan Turgenev
Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev ( ; rus, links=no, Иван Сергеевич ТургеневIn Turgenev's day, his name was written ., p=ɪˈvan sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrˈɡʲenʲɪf; – ) was a Russian novelist, short story writer, poe ...
, who considered Stasov "our great all-Russian critic." He wanted Russian art to liberate itself from what he saw as Europe's hold. By copying the west, he felt, Russian artists could be, at best, second-rate. However, by borrowing from their own native traditions, they might create a truly national art that could match Europe's with its high artistic standards and originality. By "national" Stasov meant an art that would not only portray people's lives but also be meaningful to them and show them how to live.
Early life and education
The son of a famousRussia
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 architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
Vasily Petrovich Stasov (1769–1848), Vladimir Stasov was born in Saint Petersburg
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 14 January Career
"The Mighty Five"
In 1847, Stasov published amonograph
A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...
on Mikhail Glinka's use of folk motifs in his music; from that time, Stasov advocated Russianness over European influence in music. In the years which followed he served as an elder adviser to the group of Russian composers known as " The Mighty Five". He also warmed to 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 ...
after hearing the composer play the finale of his ''Little Russian'' Symphony at a Christmas 1872 gathering at Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's home. Shortly after this gathering, Stasov prompted Tchaikovsky to write a piece based on Shakespeare's ''The Tempest''. He also drafted a program, initially for Hector Berlioz
Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...
, that Tchaikovsky eventually used for his Manfred Symphony. In between those two works, Stasov suggested an opera based on Alfred de Vigny
Alfred Victor, Comte de Vigny (; 27 March 1797 – 17 September 1863) was a French poet and early French Romanticism, Romanticist. He also produced novels, plays, and translations of Shakespeare.
Biography
Vigny was born in Loches (a town to wh ...
's historical romance ''Cinq-Mars''. Tchaikovsky was then intent on writing ''Eugene Onegin
''Eugene Onegin, A Novel in Verse'' (, Reforms of Russian orthography, pre-reform Russian: Евгеній Онѣгинъ, романъ въ стихахъ, ) is a novel in verse written by Alexander Pushkin. ''Onegin'' is considered a classic of ...
'', and Charles Gounod
Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...
had already written an opera
Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
based on ''Cinq-Mars''.
Repin and the Peredvizhniki
Beginning in the 1870s, Stasov ardently supported the realistic painters known as Peredvizhniki as well asIlya Repin
Ilya Yefimovich Repin ( – 29 September 1930) was a Russian painter, born in what is today Ukraine. He became one of the most renowned artists in Russian Empire, Russia in the 19th century. His major works include ''Barge Haulers on the Volga' ...
.
Intolerant of difference
When artists did not follow his precepts, Stasov could become both intolerant and vocal. Stasov called the finale of Tchaikovsky's ''Little Russian'' symphony "one of the most important creations of the whole Russian school." Otherwise, his overall verdict on Tchaikovsky's work was negative: "The Conservatoire, academic training, eclecticism and overworking of musical materials laid its dread, destructive hand on him. Of his total output, a few worksRomeo and Juliet
''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...
'', '' The Tempest
''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...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 ...
, a composer who, as a member of "The Five," he had helped nurture but about whom, for all the public praise of his musical gifts, there was always a note of intellectual condescension. Founder Mily Balakirev confided to Stasov that he thought Mussorgsky "almost an idiot." Stasov replied, "I think he is a total idiot." But this exchange reportedly occurred before Mussorgsky wrote his greatest songs and any of his operas, starting in the 1860s.
He was harsher still with the modernist art magazine '' Mir iskusstva'' and its founders, Alexandre Benois, Léon Bakst and Sergei Diaghilev when the magazine appeared in 1898. He called Diaghilev "a decadent cheerleader" in print and ''Mir iskusstva'' "the courtyard of the lepers" (an image borrowed from Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician.
His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...
's novel ''Notre-Dame de Paris
Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...
'').
Stasov's correspondence with leading personalities of Russian art life is invaluable. He is known also for his opposition to music critic and erstwhile friend Alexander Serov regarding the relative merits of Glinka's two opera
Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
s.
He was so impressed by the literary talent of the Jewish schoolboy Samuil Marshak that he arranged an exception from the Pale of Settlement
The Pale of Settlement was a western region of the Russian Empire with varying borders that existed from 1791 to 1917 (''de facto'' until 1915) in which permanent settlement by Jews was allowed and beyond which the creation of new Jewish settlem ...
laws for him and his family.
Stasov's brother, Dmitry Stasov (1828–1918), was a notable advocate
An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...
who took part in the foundation of the Russian Music Society. His niece, Elena Stasova (1873–1966), was a prominent Marxist
Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...
revolutionary and functionary in the Soviet government.Cathy Porter, ''Alexandra Kollontai: The Lonely Struggle of the Woman Who Defied Lenin.'' New York: The Dial Press, 1980; pg. 38.
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Brown, David, ''Tchaikovsky: The Man and His Music'' (New York: Pegasus Books, 2007). * Figes, Orlando, ''Natasha's Dance: A Cultural History of Russia''(New York: Metropolitan Books, 2002). * Holden, Anthony, ''Tchaikovsky: A Biography'' (New York:New York: Random House, 1995). * Volkov, Solomon, ''St. Petersburg: A Cultural History'' (New York: The Free Press, A division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1995).External links
Tchaikovsky Research article on Vladimir Stasov
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stasov, Vladimir Vasilievich 1824 births 1906 deaths Writers from Saint Petersburg People from Sankt-Peterburgsky Uyezd Art critics from the Russian Empire Music critics from the Russian Empire Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Imperial School of Jurisprudence alumni Burials at Tikhvin Cemetery __FORCETOC__