Alexei Fyodorovich Lvov (Russian: ''Алексей Фёдорович Львов'') ( – ) was a Russian composer. He is known for his work — the composition of the Imperial
Russian National Anthem
The "State Anthem of the Russian Federation" is the national anthem of Russia. It uses the same melody as the "State Anthem of the Soviet Union", composed by Alexander Alexandrov, and new lyrics by Sergey Mikhalkov, who had collaborated with ...
''
Bozhe, tsarya khrani'' (also known as ''
God Save the Tsar''). He wrote the opera ''
Undine
Undines (; also ondines) are a category of elemental beings associated with water, stemming from the alchemical writings of Paracelsus. Later writers developed the undine into a water nymph in its own right, and it continues to live in modern ...
'' in 1846. He was entombed in the
Pažaislis Monastery
Pažaislis is a neighborhood ("territory") of Kaunas, Lithuania, within its Petrašiūnai eldership. It includes the Pažaislis Monastery.
History
The name Pažaislis is Lithuanization of Polish name , literally meaning "by Zajście", i.e. lo ...
,
Kaunas (
Lithuania).
Biography
Lvov was born into a family which was keenly interested in music. He was the son of Feodor Petrovich Lvov, who was
Maestro
Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning "master" or "teacher") is an honorific title of respect (plural: maestros or maestri). The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera, in line with the ubiqu ...
of the Imperial Chapel in
St Petersburg from 1826 to 1836 (having succeeded
Bortnianskij). Lvov codified the traditional Russian liturgical musical style called "Obikhod," which is the standard repertory of most Russian Orthodox churches in the world. It is a simple style. These melodies were later edited and improved by Bakhmetev.
Alexei Fyodorovich began violin lessons at a very young age and performed regularly in concerts given at his home: for instance, at 9 he was the soloist in a performance of a violin concerto by
Viotti
Giovanni Battista Viotti (12 May 1755 – 3 March 1824) was an Italian violinist whose virtuosity was famed and whose work as a composer featured a prominent violin and an appealing lyrical tunefulness. He was also a director of French and Italia ...
. Although he had a number of teachers in his youth, from the age of 19 onwards he began to study independently, seeking to develop his own personal style through careful attention to the works of such celebrated violinists as
Corelli,
Tartini
Giuseppe Tartini (8 April 1692 – 26 February 1770) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era born in the Republic of Venice. Tartini was a prolific composer, composing over a hundred of pieces for the violin with the majority of ...
, Viotti,
Kreutzer and
Rode Rode may refer to:
People
*Ajmer Rode, Canadian writer
*Bernd Michael Rode (born 1946), Austrian chemistry professor
*Bernhard Rode (1725–1797), German painter
*Ebbe Rode (1910–1998), Danish stage and film actor
*Franc Rode (born 1934), Slove ...
. He nevertheless continued to study composition formally under the supervision of I. G. Miller (who was also one of the teachers of
Glinka).
Outside the world of music, his general education had a technical emphasis. In 1818, he completed his studies at the Institute of Communications, and embarked on a career as a civil engineer in the Imperial Army, eventually attaining the rank of general. In 1828, he was appointed
Aide-de-camp to Tsar
Nicholas I.
Lvov formed a string quartet in St Petersburg, and organised weekly concerts at his private residence, which were attended by members of high society. At these concerts it was quite usual for there to be guest performances by distinguished musicians who were visiting the Russian capital; among these were
Liszt
Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...
,
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
and
Clara Schumann
Clara Josephine Schumann (; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a ...
, and
Berlioz. His quartet undertook a number of tours in Europe, where Lvov was able to perform to public audiences (in his home country he was able to play only to private audiences owing to his elevated social rank). He also counted
Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...
,
Meyerbeer
Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner". With his 1831 opera ''Robert le d ...
and
Spontini
Gaspare Luigi Pacifico Spontini (14 November 177424 January 1851) was an Italian opera composer and conductor from the classical era.
Biography
Born in Maiolati, Papal State (now Maiolati Spontini, Province of Ancona), he spent most of his ...
amongst his personal friends.
In 1837, Lvov succeeded his father as Maestro of the Imperial Chapel, remaining in the position until 1861. In 1850, he founded the Russian Concert Society (Русское концертное общество), which was among the pioneers of symphonic concerts in Russia. In 1867, with the onset of deafness, he was obliged to withdraw from musical activity.
As a composer, Lvov's style was eclectic. He combined the traditions of Russian musical culture with strong Italian and (especially) German influences.
Lvov was married, and had a son and two daughters.
Musical Compositions
Lvov's musical output includes the following:
*the
Former Regional Anthem of Pennsylvania «Hail, Pennsylvania!»
*the
Russian Imperial Anthem «Боже, Царя храни»
*Religious works, e.g. «Иже херувимы» and «Вечери Твоея тайныя» ("Of Thy Mystical Supper")
*''Bianca and Gualtiero'' («Бианка и Гвальтьеро»), (opera), 1844
*''Undina'' («Ундина») (opera), 1847. The libretto, by
Vladimir Alexandrovich Sollogub, was based on
Vasily Zhukovsky
Vasily Andreyevich Zhukovsky (russian: Василий Андреевич Жуковский, Vasiliy Andreyevich Zhukovskiy; – ) was the foremost Russian poet of the 1810s and a leading figure in Russian literature in the first half of the 19t ...
's translation of
Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué
Friedrich Heinrich Karl de la Motte, Baron Fouqué (); (12 February 1777 – 23 January 1843) was a German writer of the Romantic style.
Biography
He was born at Brandenburg an der Havel, of a family of French Huguenot origin, as evidenced in ...
's ''
Ondine''. (The same libretto was later used by
Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...
.) Lvov's ''Undina'' was performed in St Petersburg in 1848.
[. (''History'' section, parag. 1.)]
*the operettas «Русский мужичок» and ''Barbara'' («Варвара»).
*Concerto for Violin and Orchestra
*revised version of
Pergolesi's ''Stabat Mater'', for soloists, chorus and orchestra
*24 Caprices for Violin (24 каприса)
*Dramatic Fantasy for violin and cello (an idea which was given to him by Meyerbeer). (Драматическая фантазия для скрипки и виолончели)
Other publications
These include:
* ''A Free and Asymmetric Rhythm'' («О свободном и несимметричном ритме») (this is a work which examines and discusses Old Slavonic religious chants) (1858)
* ''A Beginner’s Guide to the Violin, with 24 musical examples'' («Советы начинающему играть на скрипке с 24 музыкальными примерами») (in collaboration with V. Odoevskij) (circa 1859/1860).
Notes
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lvov, Alexei Fyodorovich
1799 births
1870 deaths
Russian Romantic composers
Russian male classical composers
Rurikids
19th-century classical composers
National anthem writers
19th-century male musicians
Privy Councillor (Russian Empire)