Milan Ristić ( sr-cyr, Милан Ристић; 31 August 1908,

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

– 20 December 1982,

) was a

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, and a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts ((SANU) SASA).

Biography

Along with

Mihovil Logar Mihovil Logar ( sr-cyr, Миховил Логар; Rijeka, Croatia, 6 October 1902 – Belgrade, Serbia, 13 January 1998) was a composer and music writer. Born in Rijeka, he spent most of his life in Belgrade. He left behind over two hundre ...

, Dragutin Čolić, Ljubica Marić,

Vojislav Vučković Vojislav ( sr-Cyrl, Војислав, ) is a Serbian masculine given name, a Slavic dithematic name (of two lexemes), derived from the Slavic words ''voj'' ("war, warrior"), and ''slava'' ("glory, fame"), which both are very common in Slavic names ...

, and

Stanojlo Rajičić Stanojlo Rajičić (Belgrade, 16 December 1910 – 21 July 2000) was a Serbian composer and musicologist. A member of the interwar ''Prague group'' generation of Serbian composers along with other colleagues such as Mihovil Logar, Ljubica Marić or ...

, Ristić belonged to the so-called "

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

group" of composers that entered musical life of the Serbian capital at the onset of the 1930s. Following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the members of this circle played leading roles in

n and Yugoslav music. Given his affiliation with the pursuits of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

contemporary music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included serial ...

he acquired during his education in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and prior to relocating to

, Milan Ristić occupies a special place among the Prague group. He received his first

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

instruction in Belgrade from Ivan Brezovšek. In 1927 he moved to Paris with his school friend, the author Oskar Davičo, where he began study of composition (1927–29) with G. Pierson. Upon his return to Belgrade, Ristić continued his education with

Miloje Milojević Miloje Milojević (Serbian Cyrillic: Милоје Милојевић; 27 October 1884, Belgrade – 16 June 1946, Belgrade) was a Serbian composer, musicologist, music critic, folklorist, music pedagogue, and music promoter. Biography T ...

and

Josip Slavenski Josip () is a male given name found among Croats and Slovenes, a cognate of Joseph. In Croatia, the name Josip was the second most common masculine given name in the decades up to 1959, and has stayed among the top ten most common ones throughout 2 ...

at the Music School in Belgrade. Following his father's death, he supported his family by playing in the Belgrade

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

band ''The Jolly Boys''. In 1929, Ristić destroyed the score of his first composition, ''Four impressionistic pieces'', but the second piano miniature of this work, "Invocation", survived. During his studies with Alois Hába at the Prague Conservatory, Ristić became familiar and began to adopt ideas about '

athematicism In music, a subject is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based. In forms other than the fugue, this may be known as the theme. Characteristics A subject may be perceivable as a complete mus ...

', the continuous development of the thematic material, and accepted linear thinking that would become a significant characteristic of his future works. His early works (''Sinfonietta'', the single-movement

Violin concerto A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin (occasionally, two or more violins) and instrumental ensemble (customarily orchestra). Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up thro ...

, and piano ''Preludes'') display the spirit of the Interwar modernism, leaning in certain cases on Hába's

quarter-tone A quarter tone is a pitch halfway between the usual notes of a chromatic scale or an interval about half as wide (aurally, or logarithmically) as a semitone, which itself is half a whole tone. Quarter tones divide the octave by 50 cents each, a ...

music teachings (''Suite for four trombones'' and the ''Septet''). Ristić returned to Belgrade from Prague in 1939 due to the

German occupation of Czechoslovakia German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

. Back home, he began working at Radio Belgrade, where he remained professionally connected going forward, but withdrew his public radio performances during the war period of the German invasion and

occupation of Yugoslavia World War II in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia began on 6 April 1941, when the country was Invasion of Yugoslavia, swiftly conquered by Axis powers, Axis forces and partitioned between Nazi Germany, Germany, Kingdom of Italy, Italy, Kingdom of Hung ...

. He returned to Radio Belgrade after WWII, in the position of assistant editor-in-chief for music programs until 1963, when he became a consultant for music programs at the Radio-Television Belgrade (today

Radio Television of Serbia Radio Television of Serbia ( sr-Cyrl, Радио-телевизија Србије, sr-Lat, Radio-televizija Srbije, italics=yes; abbr. RTS/PTC) is Serbia's public broadcaster. It broadcasts and produces news, drama, and sports programming thro ...

). He was inducted into the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts as a corresponding member in 1961, and also served as President of the Composers' Association of Serbia from 1960 to 1962. Milan Ristić received a Yugoslav Order of Labour with the Red Flag.

Works

Ristić wrote his most boldest compositions, including those in quarter- and sixth-tone systems, during his studies. He is though, best known for his nine

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

and other

orchestral work An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ce ...

s, such as ''Sinfonietta'', ''Man and war'' (

symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ''T ...

), ''Symphonic movement'', ''Suita giocosa'', ''Symphonic variations'', ''Burlesque'', ''Seven

bagatelles Bagatelle (from the Château de Bagatelle) is a billiards-derived indoor table game, the object of which is to get a number of balls (set at nine in the 19th century) past wooden pins (which act as obstacles) into holes that are guarded by wooden ...

'', ''The Suite'', ''Three little pieces'', ''Three

polyphonic Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, h ...

studies'', and ''The Gallop''. Along with his symphonic compositions, he wrote a number of concertante works, including ''Concerto for violin'', two concertos for piano, ''Concerto for clarinet'', ''Concerto for trumpet'', ''Concerto for orchestra'', and ''Concerto for

chamber orchestra Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numbe ...

''. His chamber oeuvre in the semitone system consists of notable works such as the five-string quartets, Wind quintet, ''Sonata for two violins and piano'', two sonatas for violin and piano, ''Sonata for viola and piano'', ''Duet for violin and piano'', ''Duet for violin and viola'', and twenty-four

fugues In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the c ...

for various

instrumental ensemble A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...

s. Among Ristić's quarter-tone works are: ''Suite for four trombones'', the ''Septet'', ''Suite for ten string instruments'', ''Sonata for solo violin'', and his ''Duet'' for violin and cello, which is based upon the sixth-tone

microtonal Microtonal music or microtonality is the use in music of microtones—intervals smaller than a semitone, also called "microintervals". It may also be extended to include any music using intervals not found in the customary Western tuning of tw ...

system. Ristić also composed stage music for the ballets ''Cinderella'' and ''The Tyrant'' (unfinished). His works ''Through the blizzard'', ''The Poplar'', ''

The Death of Smail-aga Čengić ''The Death of Smail-aga Čengić'' ( hr, Smrt Smail-age Čengića) is an epic poem by Croatian poet Ivan Mažuranić during 1845 and first published in the almanac ''Iskra'' for 1846. It is based on the real events of the murder of Bosnian Otto ...

'', and ''A Song about the hawk'', for narrator and chamber or large orchestra, aligned him with a few Serbian composers who fostered the melodrama genre. Ristić left behind a certain number of

folk-song Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

and dance arrangements and orchestrations of compositions by Josif Marinković and

Isidor Bajić Isidor Bajic ( sr-cyr, Исидор Бајић) (16 August 1878 – 15 September 1915) was a Serbian composer, teacher, and publisher. Biography He was born in Kula, Austro-Hungarian Empire. A pupil of Hans von Koessler in Budapest, he taught ...

. The ''Second symphony'' from 1951 represents a paradigmatic example of Ristić's compositional and technical skillfulness. Realized with limited means of expression, the symphony is oriented toward a balanced and perspicuous form achieved through transparent melodic content and functional harmonic relationships. The first, upbeat movement embraces a lyrical theme, defining in its further unfolding the contours of a sonata form. The second movement represents simulation of a serenade with a grotesque gesture embodied in the theme's orchestration, delivered by

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

accompanied by tuba and bassoon. Featuring odd meters, the ''Scherzo'' and ''Trio'' imply folk origins, though lacking any unambiguous melodic relationships with a certain folk tune. The symphony's finale develops as a modernist fugue, in which Ristić showcased his conduct of

contrapuntal In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

skills ( inversions, augmentations, and stretti). Ethereal but effective orchestration and receptiveness of performers and audience, led to international performances of this work (Geneva, orchestra ''Suisse romande''). In 1951, when the symphony was premiered (September 5, 1951, Symphonic Orchestra of the People's Republic of Serbia, conductor

Živojin Zdravković Živojin Zdravković, also referred to as Zivojin Zdravkovic, Žika Zdravković, Gika Zdravkovitch, Gika Zdravkovich (Belgrade, 24 November 1914 – Belgrade, 15 September 2001), a Serbian conductor, served as chief conductor and general manager of ...

), a transition from the dominant socialist realism toward (moderately socialist) modernist—socialist aestheticism took place and "the Second symphony marked the beginning of the 'new epoch' in Serbian music and culture at large" (Mikić 2009, 119). In its structural aspects, Ristić's Second symphony corresponded with the unfolding cultural changes. The symphony's neoclassic expression represents a fostering of tradition of 'healthy' classicism, contrary to the daily vulgarization of art for political purposes. Lacking the programmatic underpinnings, but skillfully developed in terms of canonic craft and simulation of certain models with folkloristic connotation (''Scherzo'' in 5/8 and ''Trio'' in 7/8 meter), by its completeness and wholeness, this symphony does not oppose the then governing doctrine, while at the same time it represents a work of modern expression. By its optimistic spirits the ''Second symphony'' embodies the momentum of transition of the entire Yugoslav society from a

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...

country to one of self-governed socialism. ''Suita giocosa'', but particularly ''The Seven bagatelles'' for orchestra, both underscore Ristić's "optimism"; "with clear forms and free but still present tonality and clarity of polyphonic procedures (…) these works carry extraordinary communicativeness" (Bergamo 1977, 80). Peričić states that Ristić's ''Bagatelles'' are "humorous, of clear formal structure, and transparent sound," and labels the composer "a master of neoclassic expression," to whose works are attributed "gaiety, lyricism, and amiable humor," but always "rationally controlled" (Peričić 1969, 471-72). Evoking his Second symphony's ''Scherzo'', Ristić in ''Bagatelles'' utilizes 5/8 meter, thus "implying folklore," but also includes a very important modernist epithet which by its "unusual harmonies" speaks about the composer's "individuality" and "contemporaneousness" (Peričić 1969, 472). The published reviews of Ristić's works at the time of their performances reinforce "the closeness with the man of our reality," "the results yielded by the synthesis of talent, healthy life outlook, and studious, hard work," and a "sound orchestral style in our music" (Bergamo 1977, 80). In the ''Third symphony'', from the position acquired in his previous works, Ristić selects and re-adopts certain procedures from his student compositions. The Symphony is dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Revolution, and was performed on the eve of the celebration of the Uprising Day, 6 July 1961, and then at the concert of the Belgrade Philharmonic with conductor

. The same year it was conferred the Belgrade October Award. The example of the ''Third symphony'' offers numerous compromises characteristic for socialist aestheticism. Expressively far from soc-realism, this work is indeed dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Revolution. But it does not feature quotations of the songs from the

National Liberation War Wars of national liberation or national liberation revolutions are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) to establish separat ...

(Narodnooslobodilacka borba, NOB) or procedures known from the 1940s. The only connection with the Revolution is found in the movements' subtitles (Youth—Unrests—Occupation—New world (Mladost—Nemiri—Okupacija—Novi svet)), but in synthesis with Ristić's biography. The "classic" four-movement

symphonic cycle A symphonic song cycle can either refer to a symphony composed of separate movements played consecutively or to a set of symphonic works linked by theme, common composer, or common conductor. A symphonic cycle should not be confused with the clos ...

with the "appropriate" order of movements (second movement ''Scherzo'', third movement slow) is realized with "contemporary" language. The language "contemporaneousness" however, is not unambiguous since it does not pertain to

dodecaphony The twelve-tone technique—also known as dodecaphony, twelve-tone serialism, and (in British usage) twelve-note composition—is a method of musical composition first devised by Austrian composer Josef Matthias Hauer, who published his "law o ...

or tonal means, while at the same time both the procedures with twelve tones and clear "tonal" centers exist in the work. Here, Ristić also demonstrated his contrapuntal and orchestration skills, though without indication of communicating an extra musical narrative. This composition does not contain a "strict, determined program," but, as Peričić states "it operates by its sole musical content." The "non-discursive" trait of this symphony is emphasized by its traditional four-movement formal plan: ''Allegro moderato—Vivace'', ''Come una Marcia funebre, Tempo I—Andante mosso— Allegro assai'', in which individual movements follow the sonata form (first and fourth movements), and binary—ternary architectural patterns (second and third movements). ''Concerto for piano and orchestra'' from 1954 is conceived simply, without the usual virtuosity. The micro plan of the work, with order of movements—fast-slow-fast—does not deviate from traditional concept. Ristić here also utilizes C. Franck's cyclical principle. Following the first subject in C-major, the appearance of the second subject in

A-flat major A-flat major (or the key of A-flat) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has four flats. The A-flat major scale is: : Its relative minor is F minor. Its parallel minor, A-flat minor, ...

, as well as meter changes in the second movement (4/4, 5/4, 4/4, and 5/4) depart from "classical" solutions. The second, lyrical movement begins with a polyphonic excerpt with meter changes, thus implying folk connotations. The third movement, featuring

chord Chord may refer to: * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve * Chord ( ...

s brisker then used previously, flows in an upbeat motion. The oeuvre of Milan Ristić additionally includes Concerto for violin (1944), Concerto for clarinet (1964), the Fourth (1966), Fifth (1967), Sixth (1968), Seventh (1972), Eighth (1974), and Ninth (1976) symphonies, Concerto for piano from 1973, and Concerto for trumpet from 1978.

Selected works

Orchestral: *''Sinfonietta'' (1939) *''First symphony'' (1941) *''Man and war'' (''Čovek i rat'') (1942), symphonic poem *''Second symphony'' (1951) *''Suita giocosa'' (1956) *''Symphonic variations'' (1957) *''Burlesque'' (1957) *''The Seven bagatelles'' (1959) *''Third symphony'' (1961) *''Music for chamber orchestra'' (1962) *''Fourth symphony'' (1966) *''Fifth symphony'' (1967) *''Sixth symphony'' (1968) *Seventh symphony (1972) *''Eighth symphony'' (1974) *''Ninth symphony'' (1976) Concertante works: *''Concerto for violin'' (1944) *''First concerto for piano'' (1954) *''Concerto for chamber orchestra'' (1958) *''Concerto for orchestra'' (1963) *''Concerto for clarinet'' (1964) *''Second concerto for piano'' (1973) *''Concerto for trumpet'' (1978) Chamber works: *''Duet'' for violin and viola (1931) *''First string quartet'' (1935) *''Wind quintet'' (1936) *''Suite for violin and viola'' (1937) *Second string quartet (1942) *Sonata for viola and piano (1945) *''Music for quartet of horns'' (1970) *''Five sketches'' for flute, clarinet, viola, and harp (1971) *''Five characters'' for wind quintet (1972) *''Third string quartet'' (1977) *''Fourth string quartet'' (1977) *''Fifth string quartet'' (1977) Solo pieces: *''Little suite'' for solo double bass (1975) Sheet Music *Concerto for chamber orchestra (Composers' Association of Serbia, CAS (Udruženje kompozitora Srbije, UKS), 1971) *First concerto for piano and orchestra (Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, SASA (SANU), 1979) *Second concerto for piano and orchestra (SASA, 1977), orchestral score and reduction for two pianos *Third symphony (SASA, 1965) *Fourth symphony (CAS, 1968) *Seventh symphony (SASA, 1981) *''Symphonic variations'' (Yugoslav Composers Editions, 1961) Recordings *''Five characters'' for five instruments, Rudolf Bruči and Milan Ristić; Yugoslav Music Forum, Jugoton, LPS-61062, 1973. *The Eighth symphony and ''Five pieces'' for chamber orchestra, PGP RTB, LP 2517; Contemporary Yugoslav Composers, 1977.

Literature

*Bergamo, Marija. 1977. ''A Composer's Work: The Creative path of Milan Ristić'' (Delo kompozitora: Stvaralački put Milana Ristića). Belgrade: Univerzitet umetnosti. *Marinković, Sonja, ed. 2010. ''Milan Ristić''. Belgrade: FMU. *Mikić, Vesna. 2007. "The Neoclassical tendencies" (Neoklasične tendencije). In ''A History of Serbian music''. Belgrade: Zavod za udžbenike. *Mikić, Vesna. 2009. ''The Faces of Serbian music – Neoclassicism'' (Lica srpske muzike – neoklasicizam). Belgrade: FMU. *Milin, Melita. 1998. ''The Traditional and the novel in post World War II Serbian music'' (1945-1965) (Tradicionalno i novo u srpskoj muzici posle Drugog svetskog rata (1945-1965)). Belgrade: Institute of Musicology, SASA. *Peričić, Vlastimir. 1969. ''Composers in Serbia'' (Muzički stvaraoci u Srbiji). Belgrade: Prosveta. *Stojanović-Novičić, Dragana and Marija Masnikosa.2007. "Orchestral music," in ''A History of Serbian music'', Belgrade: Zavod za udžbenike. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ristic, Milan 1908 births 1982 deaths Serbian composers Musicians from Belgrade 20th-century composers