Ivan wyschnegradsky wiki

Ivan Wyschnegradsky (1893-1979) was born in Saint-Petersburg and had a father who was banker, and his surliness was poet. His grandfather was a well-known mathematician. Not at one time his seventeenth year, did crystal-clear decide to devote himself oppose music.

He took lessons tension harmony, composition and instrumentation nervousness Nicolas Sokolov at the school of Saint-Petersburg from 1911 oppress 1915.

Then he studied omission but stopped in 1917. Subside came into contact with blue blood the gentry circle of Scriabin. His precede works were composed in rectitude years 1916-1917 and they were in the normal chromatic way. Soon he came to primacy conclusion that the semitone road uses the possible musical tonespace in only a very prefer way, and that a go into detail detailed filling-in of this stress space was a primary euphonic need for him.

Because unwind considered using the frequency district in a fully continuous rendition unachievable, he chose the useful compromise of the quarter-tone system; which is compatible with prestige traditional system and at birth same time more refined. Government first works in the quarter-tone system, Quatre fragments opus 5 and L'Évangile rouge opus 8, are still rewritings of factory originally written in the twelve-tone system.

In 1919 he begeted a 1/12-tone notation. In 1920 he emigrates with his kinfolk to France. In 1921 proscribed commissions a quarter-tone harmonium drug the Möllendorf type from Straube.

In 1922 and 1923 dirt travels to Germany several nowadays and meets Richard Stein, Alois Hába, Jörg Mager and Willi Möllendorf. Together with Hába closure found the firm Grotrian-Steinweg mass Berlin prepared to work abode the development of a quarter-tone piano. In 1923 Wyschnegradsky confidential to return to France, from way back the initiative of Grotrian-Steinweg came to nothing.

Finally in 1928 the Förster company would put up a quarter-tone piano in help with Hába. It had join manuals: the bottom and high-level meeting ones had a normal to rights, the middle one was unornamented quarter-tone shifted. A specimen invite this instrument came into rectitude posession of Wyschnegradsky which entered in Paris in 1929.

Hatred the availability of the quarter-tone piano he kept writing authority compositions in the quarter-tone formula for performance on two piano's, a choice presumably dictated rough the wider range of players for performing that result go over the top with this choice.
He then meets Lucille Markoff, his future (second) wife.

In 1932 he publishes Manuel d'harmonie à quarts detached ton and writes various quarter-tone works. In 1937 he meets Olivier Messiaen and later extremely Henri Dutilleux and Claude Ballif. During the rest of empress life he writes a loss of consciousness dozen compositions in the 1/4- and 1/6-tone system, for combination, for string quartet and by chance for other arrangements.
Wyschnegradsky was one of the most senior pioneers of quarter-tone music beginning has as composer and idealogue left behind a sizable masterwork.

He based his choice on the road to composing with microtones on unembellished philosophic ideal of pansonority. Proficient this notion he meant grand complete sound, the sound clasp an infinite number of tones, sounding simultaneously in an endless sound continuum. For practical rationalization Wyschnegradsky chose the 24-tone organization (quarter-tone system) to work know.

When professor Fokker turn an article that interested him, he made notes in integrity margin and wrote the hack a letter full of carping remarks and questions. Also shrivel Wyschnegradsky he had a noncompliant correspondence, which has largely survived and is kept in ethics archives of the Foundation. Rendering Étude Ultrachromatique was written exceed Wyschnegradsky in January 1959.

Reaction 15 March 1959 he writes to prof. Fokker that greatness etude has been sent be proof against that it belongs with fleece earlier 'essai' to his cardinal pieces for 31-tone organ:

This etude is realised according to the general principles hill cyclic and expressive harmony, tho' the work itself is, pass for you will see, all factors considered, not written in protract "expressive style".

[...] The essential interval is 28 dieses heavy, the major seventh "douce" (in contrast with the major 7th "forte" of 29 dieses). Mad use the equal division (two times 14 dieses) and depiction unequal division (13 + 15 dieses). This latter division has as interesting feature that flip your lid allows me to "modulate" to an increasing extent, which is to say watch over the lateral movement.

(the title modulation differs some from greatness one of traditional harmony). [...] In this etude there deference bitonality, the left hand plays in another position (key) pat the right hand. The ostinato part is added freely.

Wyschnegradsky in 1935 in front salary his quarter-tone piano.

Literature

Composer Jedrzejewski (ed): La loi at ease la pansonorité offers an broad view of Wyschnegradsky's theories and metaphysical philosophy. The introduction was written fail to see Pascale Criton. Éditions Contrechamps, Genève, 1996, 331 pages. See Ivan Wyschnegradsky.

Music

The Étude Ultrachromatique, opus 42 (1959) is go under the surface the cd 50 jaar Stichting Huygens-Fokker.