Serge Yulievitch Conus (russian: Серге́й Юльевич Коню́с; October 18, 1902 – October 26, 1988) was a
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
pianist and composer who performed in the United States and Europe.
Biography
Early life
Conus was born in Moscow to composer
Julius Conus of French origins and a Russian mother, Zoya Vladimirovna ''née'' Voronina. His musical family also included his grandfather
Eduard Conus, a professor at the
Moscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory (russian: Московская государственная консерватория им. П. И. Чайковского, link=no) is a musical educational inst ...
, and fellow professor and composer uncles
Georges and
Leon Conus. He began studying piano at the age of four and wrote his first composition at the age of six. At seven, he composed a piece for piano and voice, and a ''
gavotte
The gavotte (also gavot, gavote, or gavotta) is a French dance, taking its name from a folk dance of the Gavot, the people of the Pays de Gap region of Dauphiné in the southeast of France, where the dance originated, according to one source. A ...
'', which he would later play for the Princess Heiress of Italy.
After obtaining his Baccalaureate degree at the Russian
gymnasium of
Essentuki, Conus left Russia in 1920 and rejoined his parents and his brother Boris in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...
, France. He continued his musical studies in the piano at the National Conservatory, with the famous pianists
Isidor Philipp
Isidor Edmond Philipp (first name sometimes spelled Isidore) (2 September 1863 – 20 February 1958) was a French pianist, composer, and pedagogue of Jewish Hungarian descent. He was born in Budapest and died in Paris.
Biography
Isidor Philipp ...
and
Alfred Cortot as his teachers.
Religious awakening
Shortly after his studies at the Paris Conservatory, Conus left his family for
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
where he spent two years in monasteries. He became the bell ringer of the
Saint Alexander Cathedral
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...
in
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...
. His burgeoning faith in
Russian Orthodoxy prodded him to enter
University of Sofia
Sofia University, "St. Kliment Ohridski" at the University of Sofia, ( bg, Софийски университет „Св. Климент Охридски“, ''Sofijski universitet „Sv. Kliment Ohridski“'') is the oldest higher education i ...
's theological program, where he obtained his degree in Theology in 1929.
He continued his piano and composition studies, encouraged by the Polish Ministry of Sofia to pursue a musical career in
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. There he gave a series of "soirées musicales" in the private homes of Polish aristocrats.
Performances in Europe
Conus stayed in Warsaw from 1929 to 1933, and then returned to Bulgaria where he gave a series of recitals in concert halls and on the radio.
In 1936, he studied in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, with
Paul von Kohn, professor and student of
Anton Rubinstein
Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein ( rus, Антон Григорьевич Рубинштейн, r=Anton Grigor'evič Rubinštejn; ) was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor who became a pivotal figure in Russian culture when he founded the Sa ...
. In the following years, he gave a great number of widely acclaimed concerts throughout Europe in cities such as Vienna, Paris, Rome, Pisa, Florence, and other cities. He played the works of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt,
Medtner
Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (russian: Никола́й Ка́рлович Ме́тнер, ''Nikoláj Kárlovič Métner''; 13 November 1951) was a Russian composer and virtuoso pianist. After a period of comparative obscurity in the 25 years immedi ...
, as well as original compositions. In France at La Rochelle and Cognac, he gave a series of recitals consecrated chronologically to the music of Beethoven and Chopin. In Paris, he was a student of noted pianist
Isidor Philipp
Isidor Edmond Philipp (first name sometimes spelled Isidore) (2 September 1863 – 20 February 1958) was a French pianist, composer, and pedagogue of Jewish Hungarian descent. He was born in Budapest and died in Paris.
Biography
Isidor Philipp ...
.
Morocco
In 1950, he departed for
Kenitra
Kenitra ( ar, القُنَيْطَرَة, , , ; ber, ⵇⵏⵉⵟⵔⴰ, Qniṭra; french: Kénitra) is a city in north western Morocco, formerly known as Port Lyautey from 1932 to 1956. It is a port on the Sebou river, has a population in 201 ...
,
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
, where he was a Professor of music for almost ten years, traveling as far as Tunisia and Algeria to teach, and also played in a jazz band.
Later years in the United States
Conus arrived in the United States in September 1959. He taught for two years at the
Boston Conservatory of Music
Boston Conservatory at Berklee (formerly The Boston Conservatory) is a private performing arts conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in dance, music, and theater.
Boston Conservatory was founde ...
, and gave local private lessons and small concerts throughout the country, though never achieving the same level of fame as he had in Europe. He died of a
cerebral hemorrhage in
St. Elizabeth's Hospital
St. Elizabeths Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Southeast, Washington, D.C. operated by the District of Columbia Department of Behavioral Health. It opened in 1855 under the name Government Hospital for the Insane, the first federally oper ...
in Boston in 1988, leaving behind a legacy of unpublished musical works.
References
*
*
External links
www.greatpianomusic.comnbsp;— Web site containing audio of Conus' work
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conus, Serge
1902 births
1988 deaths
Russian classical pianists
Male classical pianists
Russian composers
Russian male composers
Russian Orthodox Christians from Russia
Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States
Russian people of French descent
Musicians from Moscow
Pupils of Isidor Philipp
20th-century classical pianists
20th-century composers
20th-century Russian male musicians