Lourié - Two Mazurkas

Two Mazurkas Op. 7 (1912)

Arthur Lourié (1892-1966) was an important musical figure in post-1917 Russia and a composer of decidedly avant-garde music. In the wake of the October Revolution, Lourié was appointed chair of the Music division of Soviet Education Ministry, which was established to cultivate a new and revolutionary music suitable for the Soviet citizen. During the 1910s, Lourié was viewed as a fanatical advocate of all modern art and some of his early compositions anticipate the musical advances of the West vis-à-vis the Second Viennese School and "Les Six". His extreme policies eventually clashed with a number of musicians and Soviet bureaucrats, causing him to bitterly resign his post, and in 1921, Lourié followed the footsteps of other Russian émigrés and left Russia for good. He settled in Berlin and then Paris, joining Stravinsky's circle, but when WWII engulfed Europe, Lourié fled again to America, where he remained in obscurity for the rest of his life. His early works show tangible influences from Scriabin, but the trajectory of his aesthetics is far-reaching: one can find Scriabinesque, Rachmaninovian or Webern-like piano works, orchestral compositions hinting at Prokofiev, and choral music recalling Mussorgsky.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• scriabin
• rachmaninov
• medtner

[ultracoolhomies]

I feel like I'm listening to Scriabin.

[JCHBONNET]

The influence of Scriabin is undisputable. However, after listening to a few of Lourié's works, it is possible to discern typical patterns : as far as I can see, Lourié has his own style heavily influenced by the Russian avant-guarde (I include Rachmaninov in the avant-guarde although these pieces are not influence by Rachmaninov).

[MINORSECONDXXI]

@EugenArbrakh I know... It is indeed tonal... You are right... I think I sometimes simply have too much of a sort of "comparative imagination".

[EugenArbrakh]

@MINORSECONDXXI The opening theme is clearly tonal... if you look closely to the LH patterns (and the key signature) the G-minor tonality is evident!

[MINORSECONDXXI]

Thanks a lot for the upload.

The opening main theme kind of reminded me of twelve-tone music, and on second thought a bit of a prelude by Iwan Wyschnegradsky, although this is neither twelve-tone nor quarter-tone.

As for the dodecaphonism, I think it's just me being stupid and mistaken, but I really think it did remind me of a prelude by Iwan Wyschnegradsky. But maybe I'm just too imaginative?

[askthemailman]

sooo good!

[MagicDonDino]

Very Scriabin style!

[yuehchopin]

Scriabins Erscheinung, auch sehr schoen.