Sergei Tolstoy
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Count Sergei Lvovich Tolstoy (Russian: Сергей Львович Толстой; 10 July 1863,
Yasnaya Polyana Yasnaya Polyana ( rus, Я́сная Поля́на, p=ˈjasnəjə pɐˈlʲanə, literally: "Bright Glade") is a writer's house museum, the former home of the writer Leo Tolstoy. Bartlett, p. 25 It is southwest of Tula, Russia, and from Mosco ...
– 23 December 1947,
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
) was a composer and
ethnomusicologist Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...
who was among the first Europeans to make an in-depth study of the music of India. He was also an associate of the Sufi mystic,
Inayat Khan Inayat Khan Rehmat Khan ( ur, ) (5 July 1882 – 5 February 1927) was an Indian professor of musicology, singer, exponent of the saraswati vina, poet, philosopher, and pioneer of the transmission of Sufism to the West. At the urging of his ...
, and participated in helping the
Doukhobor The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia an ...
s move to Canada.


Biography

He was the eldest son of
Leo Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...
. As a child, he studied music with his mother Sophia. He also studied composition with
Sergei Taneyev Sergey Ivanovich Taneyev (russian: Серге́й Ива́нович Тане́ев, ; – ) was a Russian composer, pianist, teacher of composition, music theorist and author. Life Taneyev was born in Vladimir, Vladimir Governorate, Russia ...
. From 1881 to 1886, he was enrolled in the "Department of Natural Sciences, Physics and Mathematics" at
Moscow University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...
, while attending classes 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 ...
taught by
Nikolay Kashkin Nikolay Dmitriyevich Kashkin (russian: Николай Дмитриевич Кашкин; 15 March 1920) was a Russian music critic as well as a professor of piano and music theory at the Moscow Conservatory for 33 years (1866-96 and 1905-08). ...
.Brief biography
@ the Leo Tolstoy website.
After graduating, he worked in the
Tula Tula may refer to: Geography Antarctica *Tula Mountains *Tula Point India *Tulā, a solar month in the traditional Indian calendar Iran * Tula, Iran, a village in Hormozgan Province Italy * Tula, Sardinia, municipality (''comune'') in the pr ...
branch of the
Peasants' Land Bank The Peasants' Land Bank (russian: Крестьянский поземельный банк) was a financial institution of the Russian Empire founded during the reign of Tsar Alexander III, by Nobles'. The Peasants' Land Bank in 1885 was created t ...
and later became a manager at the Saint Petersburg branch. In 1890, he became head of the
zemstvo A ''zemstvo'' ( rus, земство, p=ˈzʲɛmstvə, plural ''zemstva'' – rus, земства) was an institution of local government set up during the great emancipation reform of 1861 carried out in Imperial Russia by Emperor Alexander ...
for
Chernsky District Chernsky District (russian: Че́рнский райо́н) is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-three in Tula Oblast, Russia.Law #954-ZTO As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Chernsky Municipal District.Law #546-Z ...
, near the family estate. Over the next ten years, he came to the defense of many
Tolstoyans The Tolstoyan movement is a social movement based on the philosophical and religious views of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Tolstoy's views were formed by rigorous study of the ministry of Jesus, particularly the Sermon on the Mo ...
who were being suppressed for anti-government activities; notably
Leopold Sulerzhitsky Leopold Antonovich Sulerzhitsky (russian: Леопольд Антонович Сулержицкий; September 27, 1872 – December 30, 1916) was a Russian theatre director, painter and pedagogue of Polish descent. He is associated with the Mosc ...
. From 1898 to 1899, he helped to organize the Doukhobor community for resettlement in Western Canada and accompanied them to Lawlor Island in Nova Scotia. He was married in 1895, but his wife died of tuberculosis five years later after a separation of two years. He remarried in 1906. During this time, he also composed, setting the words of several poets to music; including
Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...
, Fofanov,
Fet The field-effect transistor (FET) is a type of transistor that uses an electric field to control the flow of current in a semiconductor. FETs (JFETs or MOSFETs) are devices with three terminals: ''source'', ''gate'', and ''drain''. FETs contr ...
and
Tyutchev Fyodor Ivanovich Tyutchev ( rus, Фёдор Ива́нович Тю́тчев, r=Fyódor Ivánovič Tyútčev, links=1, p=ˈfʲɵdər ɪˈvanəvʲɪt͡ɕ ˈtʲʉt͡ɕːɪf; Pre-Reform orthography: ; – ) was a Russian poet and diplomat. ...
. At the "House of Song" competition in 1908, he was awarded a prize for his settings of ten poems by
Robert Burns Robert Burns (25 January 175921 July 1796), also known familiarly as Rabbie Burns, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who hav ...
. From 1913 to 1914, he worked with Inayat Khan, who was visiting Russia, and began his studies of Indian music. As a result, he agreed to provide the score for a ballet based on the play ''
Shakuntala Shakuntala (Sanskrit: ''Śakuntalā'') is the wife of Dushyanta and the mother of Emperor Bharata. Her story is told in the '' Adi Parva'' of the ancient Indian epic ''Mahabharata'' and dramatized by many writers, the most famous adaption bein ...
'' by
Kālidāsa Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and t ...
. In 1915, he published sheet music for "Hindu Songs and Dances" arranged for the piano. Until 1921, he was the Russian representative of Khan's personal
Sufi Order A tariqa (or ''tariqah''; ar, طريقة ') is a school or order of Sufism, or specifically a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking ''haqiqa'', which translates as "ultimate truth". ...
. He also worked to preserve his father's legacy, writing the first guide to Yasnaya Polyana in 1914, as well as several works about the role music played in Tolstoyan philosophy. He also served on a committee devoted to promoting his father's works. After the
October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
, he worked in the music department of the
People's Commissariat A People's Commissariat (russian: народный комиссариат; Narkomat) was a structure in the Soviet state (in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, in other union and autonomous republics, in the Soviet Union) from 1917– ...
and participated in expeditions to gather folklore. From 1921 to 1930, he was a researcher at the State Institute of Musical Science and, from 1926 to 1930, he was a professor at the Moscow Conservatory. He was also a recipient of the
Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (russian: Орден Трудового Красного Знамени, translit=Orden Trudovogo Krasnogo Znameni) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to th ...
and a member of the
Union of Soviet Composers The Union of Russian Composers (formerly the Union of Soviet Composers, Order of Lenin Union of Composers of USSR () (1932- ), and Union of Soviet Composers of the USSR) is a state-created organization for musicians and musicologists created in 193 ...
. His personal papers are archived at the in Moscow. Most of his music is unpublished and exists in manuscript only.


References


Further reading

* Sergei Tolstoy, ''Tolstoy Remembered by His Son'', translated by Moura Budberg, Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1961 * Sergej Tolstoy and the Doukhobors: A Journey to Canada (Diary and Correspondence) / Trans. J. Woodsworth; Ed. by A. Donskov // Slavic and East European Journal. — 2001. — Vol. 45, pt. 1. — (British Library Serials). — ISSN 0037-6752


External links


"Hindoo Songs and Danses"
@ Scribd {{DEFAULTSORT:Tolstoy, Sergei 1863 births 1947 deaths Counts of the Russian Empire Russian composers Russian male composers Russian musicologists Russian music critics Russian music educators Doukhobors Tolstoyans Leo Tolstoy