Pashkevich Vasily Alekseyevich

Main article: Music in Russia in the XVIII century

Vasily Alekseevich Pashkevich (1742? - March 9, 1797, St. Petersburg) - Russian composer, conductor, teacher, violinist, singer, one of the creators of the Russian national opera.

Biography

Little is known about the life of Vasily Pashkevich and many facts are either hypothetical or rely on lost documents. Also, there is no portrait preserved that could be considered reliable.

The exact time and place of birth of the composer remain unknown. In 1756 he entered the court service, and was assigned to the staff of the chapel of the court church (at the school under Capella he undergoes an initial course of study under the guidance of the Italian composer Vincenzo Manfredini), from 1763 he began to play in the orchestra of "ballroom music" as a violinist (the second court orchestra of Catherine II).

From August 14, 1773 to October 15, 1774, Pashkevich was invited to teach singing at the Academy of Arts, but music in this educational institution was not a priority, so Pashkevich soon refused this work.

Pashkevich gained composer fame after the premiere of the opera Misfortune from the Carriage. The first performance took place on November 7, 1779 in one of the halls of the Hermitage and caused a wide resonance. Poet M.N. Muravyov shared his impressions of the premiere in one of the letters:

"We are amused here by a Russian comic opera. You cannot imagine with what kind of common joy this birth of a new spectacle is accepted from us: the seventh day of this month was given for the first time the comic opera "Misfortune from the Carriage," an essay by Yakov Borisovich [Knyazhnin]. Mr. Pashkevich, a music writer, was himself an actor in the theater. "

From 1779 to 1783, the composer worked at the Free Theater by K. Knipper. This work allowed him to collaborate with outstanding Russian playwrights Ya. B. Knyazhnin and M. A. Matinsky. Pashkiewicz's four best operas were related to work in this theater. The opera "Misfortune from the Carriage" immediately after the premiere in the Hermitage was included in the repertoire of this theater, in addition, it hosted the premieres of the operas "The Stingy" to the libretto by Knyazhnin (1782), "As you live and you will be known, or the St. Petersburg Living Room" (1st edition, 1782) "Tunisian Pasha" (the premiere date is not known, the music has not been preserved). All these compositions belong to the genre of comic opera.

By the end of the 1780s, Pashkevich gained significant fame in court circles. He writes operas on the texts of Empress Catherine II: "Fevey" (1786), "Fedul with Children" (1791, together with Martin-i-Soler). Some sources of the 19th century mention that the author of the music of the opera "Fevey" is a certain Brix (Ilariy Brike), and Pashkevich allegedly acted only as an arranger ^[1].

The music for the performance "Initial Management of Oleg" (1790, together with K. Kanobbio and J. Sarti) was even published in the form of a score. In the early 1790s, the opera "St. Petersburg Drawing Court" was also staged on the court stage in the second edition.

For ten years (since 1780), a huge career growth has taken place in Pashkevich's life. On August 23, 1783, he was transferred from the second "ballroom" orchestra to the first and awarded the title of "chamber musician," and in 1789 he returned to the second orchestra, but already as the leader - "accompanist of ballroom music" with the rank of college assessor (of all the composers who served at the Russian court, only the Italian Sarti was granted the same rank). In addition to the court and theater service, Vasily Pashkevich was engaged in pedagogical activities (it is assumed that one of his students was the Russian composer Evstigney Fomin). Until the death of Empress Catherine II, he continued to compose music for court entertainment.

In 1797, Paul I dismissed him with a one-time reward, that is, without assigning a pension. On March 9 (March 20), 1797, the composer died, leaving a widow with a one-year-old daughter.

Main works

Operas

• "Misfortune from the Carriage," libretto by J. Knyazhnin (1779)
• "Stingy," libretto by J. Knyazhnin (1782)
• "Tunisian Pasha," libretto by M. Matinsky (1783), the opera has not survived
• "Fevey," libretto by Catherine II, poems by V.K. Trediakovsky, M.V. Lomonosov and others (1786)
• Choirs for the opera "Initial Management of Oleg" on the libretto of Catherine II (1790)
• "Fedul with Children," libretto by Catherine II (1791, together with V. Martin-i-Soler)
• "As you live, so you will be known, or the St. Petersburg Drawing Room"), libretto by M. Matinsky (1st edition 1782 - not preserved, 2nd edition 1792).
• "The Unfortunate in Love Clerk" (1795)

Theatre music

• "Temple of World Jubilation," music for the "theater festival" (1780, together with F. Torelli and Camaschino)
• "Liar" Music for the comedy by Y. B. Knyazhnin.

Choral music

• Lunchtime (not preserved)
• Five 4-voice spiritual concerts "Now the time is coming," "Come take it," "Happy people and have fun," "Glory to God in the highest," "Hear Lord my voice" (not preserved)
• Choir "Cupid and Psyche" to poems by G. Derzhavin (1793)

See also

• Bortnyansky Dmitry Stepanovich

Шаблон:XVIII Century Music CD

Notes