Zara Aleksandrovna Levina (russian: Зара Александровна Левина; born February 5 ( O.S. January 25), 1906, in

Simferopol Simferopol () is the second-largest city in the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and is considered the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. However, ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

– June 27, 1976, in Moscow) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

and

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 ...

. She was from a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family. Zara Levina studied

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 ...

in the

Odessa Conservatory Odesa National Music Academy named after AV Nezhdanova ( uk, Одеська національна музична академія імені А. В. Нежданової) or Odesa Conservatory is a Ukrainian state institution of higher music educ ...

, which she passed with a gold medal. She graduated from 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 ...

in 1932, where she had studied piano and composition. In her early age, Zara Levina admired the composers

Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin (; russian: Александр Николаевич Скрябин ; – ) was a Russian composer and virtuoso pianist. Before 1903, Scriabin was greatly influenced by the music of Frédéric Chopin and composed ...

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer ...

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

and

Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

. She mainly wrote choral works (mostly romances, then children's songs) and, besides, also other vocal music, as well as two piano concertos and solo piano works. The inspiration of those five composers is evident throughout her works. Both of her piano concertos have been recorded, as has her 1928 first

violin sonata A violin sonata is a musical composition for violin, often accompanied by a keyboard instrument and in earlier periods with a bass instrument doubling the keyboard bass line. The violin sonata developed from a simple baroque form with no fixed form ...

(by

David Oistrakh David Fyodorovich Oistrakh (; – 24 October 1974), was a Soviet classical violinist, violist and conductor. Oistrakh collaborated with major orchestras and musicians from many parts of the world and was the dedicatee of numerous violin w ...

). She was married to the composer Nikolai Chemberdzhi (1903–1948). Her grandson is the pianist Alexander Melnikov. Her granddaughter is the pianist and composer Katia Tchemberdji.

Recordings

* 2017 ''Zara Levina: The Piano Concertos'', Capriccio C5269 **

Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (''Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin'') is a German symphony orchestra based in Berlin. In Berlin, the orchestra gives concerts at the Konzerthaus Berlin and at the Berliner Philharmonie. The orchestra has also ...

Ariane Matiakh Ariane Matiakh (born 1980) is a French conductor. Biography The daughter of two opera singers, Matiakh obtained prizes in piano, chamber music, conducting at the ''Conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Reims'' and piano accompaniment at th ...

, conductor;

Maria Lettberg Maria Lettberg (born October 28, 1970 in Riga) is a Swedish pianist, resident in Berlin. Biography and artistic work Lettberg is the daughter of a university professor of Russian literature and a mathematician. When she was seven, Maria's tale ...

, piano soloist * 2019 ''Zara Levina: Piano Sonatas Nos. 1 & 2; Violin Sonata; Poeme; Canzonetta; Hebrew Rhapsody'', Capriccio C5356 ** Maria Lettberg, piano;

Yury Revich Yury Revich (born 28 August 1991) is an Austrian classical violinist and composer. He was named the Young Artist of the Year in 2015 by the International Classical Music Awards (ICMA) and the 2016 ECHO Klassik "Newcomer of the year (violin)" award ...

, violin; Gernot Adrion, viola; Ringela Riemke, cello; Katia Tchemberdji, piano

References

Levina page from van Rijen Soviet Composer SiteMUGI

External links

* 1906 births 1976 deaths Musicians from Simferopol Ukrainian Jews Jewish classical musicians Women classical composers 20th-century classical composers Soviet classical composers Moscow Conservatory alumni 20th-century women composers {{Ukraine-musician-stub