Rachinsky Gabriel Andreevich

Main article: History of music in Russia

Rachinsky Gabriel Andreevich - Russian violinist, composer.

Biography

Father Andrei Rachinsky - violinist at the court of Peter III

Gabriel Rachinsky's father, musician and composer Andrei Andreevich Rachinsky, was born around 1729 in the city of Augustov (the territory of the Crown as part of the Commonwealth). Rachinsky belonged to the West Russian gentry family, was educated in Lviv and there around the beginning of the 1750s for three years he was regent of the episcopal chapel.

In 1753, he emigrated to the territory of the Hetman, subject to the Russian Empire, and became regent of the chapel of the hetman Kirill Razumovsky.

In 1762, Andrei Rachinsky served as a chamber musician at the court of Peter III in St. Petersburg. Judging by the fact that the emperor presented Rachinsky with the Stradivarius violin from his collection, Rachinsky Sr. was an excellent violinist. All famous works of A. Rachinsky are written in the genres of choral church music.

In addition to music, A. Rachinsky carried out various assignments of Razumovsky, including supervising the construction of buildings in the Hetman. It is possible that the Transfiguration Church in Glukhov, which has survived to this day, was built in 1765 under the leadership of^[1] Rachinsky^[2].

Transfiguration Church in Glukhov

The wife of Andrei Rachinsky was Maria Ivanovna Yavorskaya, a relative of the famous bishop and poet Stefan Yavorsky.

1777: Birth in Novgorod-Seversky

Gabriel Rachinsky was born in 1777 in Novgorod-Seversky (Russian Empire) and at birth was recorded as a sergeant in the Izmailovsky regiment, but was at home until the age of 12.

Gabriel's first music teacher was his father. The violin of Stradivarius's work was also inherited from him, on which the future virtuoso played all his life.

1789: Training in Kyiv

Father tried to give Gabriel the right and serious musical education. In 1789, he was taken to the Kyiv Theological Academy, where he stayed for six years and, in addition to general subjects, studied Latin, French and German, while continuing to study music at the same time.

1795: Moving to Moscow and entering the university gymnasium

In 1795, Rachinsky left the Academy and went to Moscow, where he entered the university gymnasium, in 1797 he graduated from its course and remained with her as a teacher of the highest music class, which he led until 1805, when he retired, giving himself more and more to music. At the same time, his first Russian songs appeared with variations: "How did I upset you" and "Boring, mother, live alone in the spring."

Around 1808, the first works of Rachinsky were published in Moscow. An anonymous poem dedicated to Rachinsky speaks of the love of the Russian public:

"Rachinsky! where did you take

art

Giving birth to an inexplicable feeling

With the bow and sound of your strings?.. "

By 1815, Rachinsky had gained such wide fame, especially among Muscovites, with his concerts ending in Russian songs that several poems were already devoted to him.

He began to tour the cities of the Russian Empire, performing his compositions, as well as the music of Titz, Viotti and Rode. He visited Kaluga, Tver, Orel, Kursk, Nizhny Novgorod, Kharkov, Poltava, Kyiv and some other big cities, everywhere using the sympathy of the public, and his performance of Russian folk songs was most successful.

1817: Edition of collected works for violin and seven-string guitar and departure to Novgorod-Seversky

In 1817, the publication of the composer's collected works by subscription took place. The collection consisted of at least two collections, the content of which we know from the ads in the "Moscow Vedomosti"^[3].

The first collection included 10 pieces for violin with various accompaniment, and the second - 10 pieces for seven-string guitar, the most fashionable instrument in Russia in the first half of the 19th century.

Unfortunately, most of Rachinsky's works are lost (or not found), but even by the names of the plays you can imagine a creative portrait of the composer (text from an advertisement in Moskovskiye Vedomosti):

• 48 variations on gypsy dance for violin with the accompaniment of the second violin and bass, in these variations there is one that expresses the game of balalaika and horn;

• Russian song "How to live without a friend," in a quartet with variations;

• A waltz presented to my cousin.

Shortly after the publication of these collections, Gabriel Andreevich leaves Moscow and returns to his native Novgorod-Seversky, apparently to enter into inheritance rights after the death of his older brother. Rachinsky was a nobleman and, accordingly, an amateur musician. However, even after leaving Moscow, Rachinsky does not stop concert activities. It is known, for example, about his concert in Kyiv in 1818.

1823: Return to Moscow and concert in St. Petersburg

In 1823, the musician returned to Moscow. Judging by the number of surviving publications dedicated to Rachinsky in subsequent years, Muscovites greeted him very warmly. As the author of The Russian Herald wrote:

Rachinsky captured his game seven years ago; he is now even more fascinated by hearing and souls. These seven years, spent in pleasant solitude on the banks of the Desna River, elevated his special talent to the degree of perfection, where, it seems, art itself already believes the limit.

Rachinsky's opposition to foreign violinists who worked or toured in Russia was especially popular. The Russian violinist became a symbol of national art for the nascent Slavophile movement.

"Ole Bulistas! Put

At the feet of Rachinsky bows.

"So! Our violins, "exclaim,

"Beeps before his violin." "

In 1828, Gabriel Rachinsky arrived in St. Petersburg. His concert, given on May 20 in the hall of the Philharmonic Society, gathered a lot of public who wanted to listen to a Moscow celebrity. Artistically owning the bow, Rachinsky, soon took possession of the attention of the audience, when at the end of the concert he switched to performing Russian songs and played:

• "How did I upset you,"
• "The snow is not white in an open field has become whitened,"
• "Boring, mother, live alone in the spring,"
• "Around the corner," and some others, the sympathy of the public turned into a noisy delight, and the applause did not stop for a long time.

Giving an account of this concert, the Northern Bee, by the way, wrote: "Rachinsky should serve as an example for all writers and artists. Whether you want to be loved by the fatherland, the public, be known, have fiery adherents - be national, that's the whole secret. "

Rachinsky was indeed national. Perfectly performing many difficult compositions by Titz, Rode, Vioti, Mastrin and other famous violin composers, at the same time he was most fond of himself and captivated others with the performance of purely national Russian songs. All his variations of Russian songs are so good, so melodic and at the same time so folk that they made an exciting impression on the listener. Taking care, first of all, that the variation fully conveyed the folk motive, he tried to catch it during the singing of either the Russian peasant bread-maker or the Russian box-maker.

This public reaction is recorded in another review:

We were pleased to see that the Russian Spirit did not doze in our public. There was no end to the enthusiasm and applause when playing Russian songs. There is no doubt that the folk chant is closer to the Russian heart than the aria of the bravura of Rossini's composition.

However, not only Russian motifs and not only Russian songs were put to music and Rachinsky kept them: a native of the Hetman, he put some Ukrainian songs and more than ten Polish ones to music with no less art and talent. Both those and others are distinguished by their melodic and fidelity to the folk motif.

Owning a guitar with no less art than a bow, he animated it with his game. And not only ordinary listeners admired his game: according to reviews of the best modern music critics, Rachinsky completely comprehended the nationality of Russian song, and the themes are long, difficult to vary, and he conveyed short, cheerful and dull in all perfection of folk expression. His adagio breathed a particularly pleasant feeling and some kind of personality, which is characteristic of him alone.

"Its variations were distinguished by accurate imitation of the indigenous Russian chant and strict observance of the originality of the motifs. His very game shone with a clean finish and especially a sophisticated taste. Every note under his bow had a special expression that reminded every Russian of the incomparable melody of domestic songs. "

Of course, such a purity of the game could not appear by itself, even with the enormous abilities that Rachinsky had. He achieved such perfection in the game only thanks to long-term enhanced music classes. He chose and, so to speak, created a special kind of game that brought to possible ^[4].

Returning from St. Petersburg in 1828, for another eleven years he continued to perform in Moscow and some other nearby cities. Everyone already knew him as a wonderful musician, and always met enthusiastically.

Around 1831, apparently, the last published play by Rachinsky was published. These are variations on the most popular Russian song "Luchinushka" in those years. Fortunately, these notes have survived.

1839: Illness and return to Novgorod-Seversky

In the late 1830s, consumption began to develop; in 1839 he left Moscow and returned to Novgorod-Seversky. Arriving at his homeland, Rachinsky did not give up music and always willingly played with familiar landowners at the request of the guests. Despite the success enjoyed by his concerts and for almost 35 years of activity as a virtuoso, Rachinsky, a poet and artist by nature, was unable to financially provide for his old age, and therefore in recent years he was in need and after his death left his family without any means.

In 1843, on March 18, he died in Novgorod-Seversky, where he was buried.

Compositions

As noted by Andrei Penyugin^[5], according to Rachinsky's extant works, we can safely say that in his person we see the most worthy heir to Ivan Khandoshkin, the great Russian composer of the 18th century. Moreover, in his treatments of Russian songs, provincial Rachinsky was largely closer to folk music than St. Petersburg Khandoshkin.

Of the works of Gabriel Rachinsky (of which up to 50) the following songs are most common:

• "Around the Corner by the Bottom," a Russian song with variations,
• "The snow is not white in an open field," a Russian song with variations,
• "Hello, dear, my good," a Russian song with variations,
• "I walked around the flowers,"
• "Among the Valley Flat," a song by Stepan Davydov with variations;
• Ukrainian song "Viyut Vitry, Viyut Buenny" and several Polish songs.

Also in the Consolidated Catalog of Russian Musical Editions are mentioned as not yet ^[6]:

• Variations for violin on Russian song: "Boring mother to live alone in the spring." Mosk. statements. — 1808. - № 69.

• 48 variations on gypsy dance for violin with accompaniment of the second violin and bass, "in these variations there is one that expresses the game of balalaika and horn." They went out of print. Mosk. statements. — 1810. - № 34.

• Ten pieces for a seven-string guitar:

1. Russian song: I walked around the flowers, with variations;

2. Russian song: Molodka young, with variations;

3. Polish en sol majeur;

4. Polish en re majeur;

5. Polskoy ep mi mineur;

6. Polish en si mineur;

8. Waltz;

9. March;

10. Fantasy.

Mosk. statements. — 1817. - № 24.

• Ten pieces for violin:

1. Russian song: How do I live without a friend, in a quartet with variations;

2. Russian song: Boring mother in the spring to live alone, for the same violin with variations;

3. Russian song: Remember, remember my kind, for violin with variations;

4. Russian song: How did I upset you, in a quartet with variations;

5. Russian song: Behind the stakes, around the corner, in a quartet with variations;

6. Gypsy dance with variations and accompaniment of cello and second violin;

7. Duet for two violins;

8. A waltz served to my cousin, with piano accompaniment;

9. Polskoy in the quartet;

10. Romance: Quand tu m'aimois, with variations and accom. fp.

Mosk. statements. — 1817. — № 24.

Шаблон:XVIII Century Music CD

Notes