Identifier: moderncomposerso00elso (find matches)
Title: Modern composers of Europe : being an account of the most recent musical progress in the various European nations, with some notes on their history, and critical and biographical sketches of the contemporary musical leaders in each country
Year: 1905 (1900s)
Authors: Elson, Arthur, 1873-1940
Subjects: Composers
Publisher: Boston : L.C. Page
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

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r strings are the most im-portant. He has written numerous piano pieces,including two sonatas in the later opus numbers.Among his songs are several with piano accom-paniment, instead of his favourite orchestra. Heis certainly the greatest of all the Russians, withthe possible exception of Rimsky-Korsakoff. Hehandles his orchestral masses with skill and surety,and understands the best uses of modern instru-mental colouring. He is not carried away by har-monic complexity, but allows his rich progressionsto support melodies of captivating beauty. En-dowed with great imaginative power and real in-spiration, he still has many years of activity beforehim, in which he will doubtless win further laurels. Anton Stepanovitch ArenskjLJvas born at Nijni-Novgorod, on July 30, 1861, and is, therefore,one of the younger school. At the age of nine,without any tuition, he attempted to write a stringquartette. His education was received in St. Peters-burg, where he entered the conservatory, and studied
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, . ■ ■ ■ ■. ANTON STEPANOVITCH ARENSKY. THE NEW RUSSIANS 273 under Rimsky-Korsakoff. In 1882 he graduated,and soon afterward became known, at Moscow aswell as St. Petersburg, through a symphony and apiano concerto. He was then called to the Moscowconservatory as professor of counterpoint. Therehe made his reputation as a composer by producinga grand opera, A Dream on the Volga, whichappeared in 1892. Raphael, a one-act work, wascomposed for a reunion of the Artistic Congress.A ballet came later, A Night in Egypt, but Aren-skys best-known opera is Nal and Damajanti.The subject is taken from one of the East Indianepics. Nal, or Nala, was a king possessed of allvirtues, but beset with a passion for gambling. Inlove with the daughter of a neighbouring king, thebeautiful Damajanti, he was chosen by her as hus-band. The wicked god Kali, however, wished herfor his own. But Nala held her in happiness, untilone day, after twelve years of bliss, he neglectedsome rite, and Kali gained p

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