Nadezhda Simonyan (February 26, 1922 - June 7, 1997) was a Russian composer who wrote over 40 film scores for movies, radio, and television, as well as chamber and orchestral works, and music for circus performances.
Simonyan was born in
Rostov-on-the-Don
Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East ...
. She studied composition and piano at
Leningrad Conservatory
The N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov Saint Petersburg State Conservatory (russian: Санкт-Петербургская государственная консерватория имени Н. А. Римского-Корсакова) (formerly known as th ...
, where she received a diploma in 1950 and earned a medal. Her teachers included
Oles Chishko
Oles' Semyenovich Chishko (1895–1976) was a Ukrainian and Russian Soviet composer and singer (tenor).
Oles' Semyenovich Chishko was born on 3 July 1895. He graduated from the Kharkiv Institute of Music and Drama (vocal) in 1924 and studied com ...
and Venedikt Pushkov.
In 1956, Simonyan wrote her first film soundtrack for ''
Old Man Khottabych
''Starik Khottabych'' (russian: Старик Хоттабыч, ''Old Man Khottabych'' or ''Old Khottabych'') is a Sovcolor Soviet fantasy film produced in the USSR by Goskino at Kinostudyia Lenfilm (Lenfilm Studio) in 1956, based on a children's ...
'', a children’s film by Gennadii Kazanskii. Peter Rollberg described Simonyan’s strength as a composer as a “ . . . warm melodiousness that equally energizes cheerful, dramatic, and tragic episodes with a pragmatic, flexible approach to instrumentation.”
In 1960, Italian film maker
Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...
praised her soundtrack for the movie
''Lady with the Dog''. She often used smaller chamber orchestras, sometimes with folk instruments, for her film scores.
Simonyan’s compositions included:
Chamber
*''Sonata'' (violin and piano)
Circus
*incidental music
Film scores
*''Adventures of Prince Florizel
''
*''
Chief of Chukotka
''Chief of Chukotka'' (russian: Начальник Чукотки, Nachalnik Chukotki) is a 1966 Soviet comedy film directed by Vitaly Melnikov.
Plot
1922. Commissar Alexey Mikhailovich Glazkov, who received a mandate from the Soviet governmen ...
''
*''Day of Happiness
''
*''Duel
''
*''Fifth Quarter
''
*''Flying Carpet
''
*''For No Apparent Reason
''
*''Green Dale
''
*''In the Town of S
''
*''Izhora Battalion
''
*''Lady with the Dog''
*''Lyalka-Ruslan and His Friend Sanka
''
*''
NIghts of Farewell
''Nights of Farewell'' (russian: Третья молодость) is a 1965 Soviet-French drama film directed by Isaak Menaker and Jean Dréville.
Plot
The film tells about the young dancer Marius Petipa, who is invited to St. Petersburg, which ...
'' (with Yuri Prokoviev)
*''Old Man Khottabych
''
*''Only One
''
*''Pani Mariya
''
*''Sinful Angel
''
*''Smart Things
''
*''
Snow Queen''
*''Strict Male Life
''
*''
Twelve Months''
*''Two Lines in Small Font
''
*''Vesenniye Perevyortyshi
''
*''While the Mountains Still Stand''
Orchestra
*Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
Piano
*pieces
Radio scores
*''Golden Apples
''
*''On the Bank of Sevan
''
*''Story of Turkey
''
*''Three Bears
''
*''Year of My Birth''
Vocal
*''Lake Sevan Cantata''
*romances
*songs
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simonyan, Nadezhda
Russian women composers
1922 births
1997 deaths
Russian film score composers