Alexander (Gustav) Adolfovich Winkler, also Alexandre Adolfovitch Winkler (russian: Александр Адольфович (Густав) Винклер; 3 March 1865 in

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Besançon Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerla ...

), was a Russian

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, j ...

, composer and music educator of German descent.

Biography

Winkler completed his studies in law at the University of Kharkiv in 1887 and also studied piano at the Kharkiv Music School of the

Russian Musical Society The Russian Musical Society (RMS) (russian: Русское музыкальное общество) was the first music school in Russia open to the general public. It was launched in 1859 by the Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna and Anton Rubinstein ...

, graduating in 1889. He continued to study piano with Alphonse Duvernoy 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. ...

, and 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 ...

with

Theodor Leschetizky Theodor Leschetizky (sometimes spelled Leschetitzky, pl, Teodor Leszetycki; 22 June 1830 – 14 November 1915 was an Austrian- Polish pianist, professor, and composer born in Landshut in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, then a crown land ...

, where he was also a composition student of Karel Navrátil. Winkler returned to the music school in Kharkiv as Professor of Piano from 1890 to 1896. On the recommendation of Leschetizky, he was invited to

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

to teach at the Conservatory, where he had piano classes from 1896 to 1924, becoming Professor of Piano in 1909.Энциклопедия «Немцы России» (Encyclopedia of German Russians): Alexander Winkler
The young

Sergei 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, p ...

was one of his pupils from 1905. From 1907, Winkler was music critic for the German-language newspaper ''St. Petersburgische Zeitung''. Like many professors of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, he was a member of the Belyayev circle, a creative group of musicians led by

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...

, which certainly affected his compositional work. In 1924, Winkler emigrated to France, where from 1925 he taught at the University of Franche-Comté in Besançon. Apart from a few songs, Winkler composed only instrumental music, notably compositions for piano and chamber music. He made piano transcriptions for a number of works by

Mikhail Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka ( rus, link=no, Михаил Иванович Глинка, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka., mʲɪxɐˈil ɪˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈɡlʲinkə, Ru-Mikhail-Ivanovich-Glinka.ogg; ) was the first Russian composer to gain wide recogni ...

Alexander Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov; ger, Glasunow (, 10 August 1865 – 21 March 1936) was a Russian composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Russian Romantic period. He was director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory between 1905 ...

and Rimsky-Korsakov including ''

Capriccio Espagnol ''Capriccio espagnol'', Op. 34, is the common Western title for a five movement orchestral suite, based on Spanish folk melodies, composed by the Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1887. It received its premiere on 31 October 1887, in ...

'' and the ballet ''

Raymonda ''Raymonda'' (russian: Раймонда) is a ballet in three acts, four scenes with an apotheosis, choreographed by Marius Petipa to music by Alexander Glazunov, his Opus 57. It was first presented by the Imperial Ballet at the Imperial Mar ...

'', as well as orchestral works by

Alexander 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 ...

Selected works

;Orchestra * ''En Bretagne'' (В Бретани), Ouverture-fantaisie sur 3 chants bretons (Fantasy Overture on 3 Breton Songs), Op. 13 (1908) * ''Variations sur un thème russe'' (Variations on Russian Theme; Вариации на русскую тему), Op. 16 (published 1912) * ''Dramatic Overture'' (Драматическая увертюра) ;Concertante * ''Air finnois varié'' (Variations on a Finnish Air; Вариации на финскую тему) for violin and orchestra, Op. 18 (1912) * ''Dernier Printemps'' (The Last Spring; Последняя весна) for cello and orchestra (1935) ;Chamber music * String Quartet No. 1 in C major, Op. 7 (1897) * Piano Quartet in G minor, Op. 8 (1899) * String Quartet No. 2 in D major, Op. 9 (1901) * Sonata in C minor for viola (or violin) and piano, Op. 10 (1902) * String Quintet in E minor for 2 violins, 2 violas and cello, Op. 11 (1906) * String Quartet No. 3 in B major, Op. 14 (1909) * Piano Trio in F minor, Op. 17 (1912) * Sonata in D minor for cello and piano, Op. 19 (c.1920); dedicated to

* Piano Quintet in D minor, Op. 29 (1933) * ''Deux morceaux'' (2 Pieces) for viola and piano, Op. 31 (1933) :# Méditation élégiaque :# La toupie: Scène d'enfant ;Piano * ''Variations et fugue sur un thème original'' (Variations and Fugue on an Original Theme), Op. 1 * ''Deux morceaux'' (2 Pieces; Две пьесы), Op. 3 (1894) :# Gavotte :# Impromptu à la Schumann * ''Drei Klavierstücke im alten Stile'' (3 Piano Pieces in Old Style), Op. 4 (1895) :# Sarabande :# Gigue :# Minuetto * ''Trois morceaux'' (3 Pieces; Три пьесы), Op. 6 (1897) :# Étude-humoresque :# Berceuse :# Valse-impromptu * ''Variations et fugue sur un thème de J. S. Bach'' (Variations and Fugue on a Theme by J. S. Bach; Вариации и фуга на тему И.-С. Баха) in E major for 2 pianos, Op. 12 (1906) * ''Trois morceaux'' (3 Pieces; Три пьесы), Op. 15 (1909) :# Prélude in D minor :# Caprice in C minor :# Étude in B minor * ''Au Cimetière: Passacaglia pour Piano en mode phrygien'' (At the Cemetery: Passacaglia for Piano in

Phrygian mode The Phrygian mode (pronounced ) can refer to three different musical modes: the ancient Greek ''tonos'' or ''harmonia,'' sometimes called Phrygian, formed on a particular set of octave species or scales; the Medieval Phrygian mode, and the moder ...

) in D minor/D phrygian, Op. 23 ;Vocal * ''5 Mélodies'' for voice and piano, Op. 2 ;Literary * ''A Brief Guide to Basic Music Theory'' (Краткое руководство по элементарной теории музыки) (1895, Kharkiv)

Discography

* ''Russian Viola Sonatas'' – Eliesha Nelson (viola), Glen Inanga (piano); Sono Luminus DSL-92136 (2011) :: Sonata for viola and piano, Op. 10 :: ''Two Pieces'' for viola and piano, Op. 31 * ''Viola Incognita'' – Pavel Ciprys (viola), Daniel Wiesner (piano); RadioServis (Czech Radio) CR0386-2 (2012) :: Sonata for viola and piano, Op. 10

References

External links

*
Энциклопедия «Немцы России» (Encyclopedia of German Russians): Alexander Winkler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winkler, Alexander Adolfovich 1865 births 1935 deaths Russian composers Russian male composers Russian classical pianists Male classical pianists Musicians from Kharkiv Pupils of Theodor Leschetizky National University of Kharkiv alumni Russian people of German descent Academic staff of Saint Petersburg Conservatory Ukrainian emigrants to France