A short message about Franz Liszt. Liszt - a classic of Hungarian music

F. Liszt – 19th century engraving

Franz Liszt lived and worked in one of the most difficult to play and difficult to perceive, romanticism of the nineteenth century. This was another round of music evolution, which resulted in the emergence of a galaxy famous musicians And historical figures in the musical field, such as Chopin, Rachmaninov, Rimsky-Korsakov, Franz Schubert and many other musicians of those times.

At one time, the music of the Romantic era became a response to the beginning of the Enlightenment and scientific and technological development. People began to feel much freer, the imagination painted the most unprecedented and unforgettable pictures... Humanity had reached its Golden Age, although it was not yet fully aware of it.

To make it easier for you to understand at what time Franz Liszt lived and worked, it is worth mentioning and even emphasizing that the development of the phenomenon of unification with nature was just beginning, people (yes, this began to happen precisely during this period) began to have picnics, engage in mountaineering and create new travel routes. To a large extent, the development of this point of view in relation to the surrounding world was the emergence Vehicle, such as a steam locomotive, steamship and many others.

The man has not yet quite understood what to do with all this, so he fell into excessive romanticism, which turned into classicism in painting, the cult of feelings and the natural in poetry (the same Pushkin) and in music (like the hero of our today's story).

Youth

Franz Liszt was born in Hungary on October 22, 1811. He was the only child in the family. His father, Georg Adam List, served in the administration of Prince Esterhazy. The Esterhazys were the largest landowners in Hungary, they quickly became rich and were considered equal to other European monarchs.

But let's return to the parents of the famous pianist and composer. Until the age of 14, the future celebrity’s father played in the prince’s orchestra. He was a cellist. Then young Adam decided to become a novice of the Franciscan order, but two years later he changed his mind and left this order, although he continued to have warm feelings for him and named his son Franz in honor of him.

Franz (Ferenz) Liszt himself also maintained contact with the Franciscans all his life, and at the end of his life life path became one of them. But let's return to the composer's father. He also actively wrote music, dedicating it to the Hungarian monarchs. So he achieved a profitable appointment, and in his free time he continued to play in the orchestra. He played with many visiting musicians, and among them were such celebrities as Cherubini and. The latter became the idol of Adam, and then of his son, Franz.

Franz's mother was the daughter of a baker; she worked as a maid as a child, as she was orphaned very early (at the age of nine), and at the age of twenty she moved to Mattersburg to live with her brother. There she met Adam, who was visiting his father. Not later for a long time After they met, they decided to get married.

Ten months after the wedding, they had a son, whom they named Franz. It is strange that the Hungarian version of it, Ferenc, is most often used. And it’s strange because Liszt himself had little command of his seemingly native language.

Adam from the very early years began to diligently teach his son music. In addition, the child sang in the church choir, and also took lessons from the local organist.

After studying for three years, Franz, then eight, gave his first public concert. After this event, the father took the child to noble nobles, for whom he played the piano. They treated the baby very favorably, but Adam understood that Franz should continue to study. And they went to Vienna.

And so, starting in 1821, Franz Liszt began to study with the famous, who developed his versatility in piano art. He studied the theory with Antonio Salieri, after which he began to delight Viennese listeners. Even Beethoven was greatly pleased with Liszt's playing.

Years in Paris

In 1823, young Franz moved to Paris. He was going to study at the Paris Conservatory, but he was not accepted there, since Franz was not French origin. The financial situation of father and son became more and more difficult, but, despite such obviously interfering circumstances, they decided to stay in Paris.

Teachers from the Paris Conservatory sometimes studied with Franz, but no one else taught him to play the piano. His last teacher was Karl Czerny.

Franz was about fourteen years old when he began to compose sketches. He even wrote the opera Don Sancho, or the Castle of Love, which was staged in 1825.

The year is 1827. Adam List died. Franz took this incident very hard. He remained depressed for almost three years. In addition, he was tired of the role of a foreign curiosity, which he was considered in local secular salons.

And Franz then became so involved with worldly life that his obituary was published. Naturally, he did not die, but the obituary had already been printed and published, and a mystical atmosphere began to grow around Liszt.

He began to appear in society only in 1830. Just when the June Revolution took place, the noise, din and calls for justice carried away the young man. And he decided to write the “Revolutionary Symphony”.

Such famous musicians as Paganini, Berlioz (he had just written his Symphony Fantastique) and others began to communicate with him. It was the first one who provoked Liszt with his perfection of technique. Franz decided to hone his piano playing skills.

Therefore, for a while he again went into the shadows, stopped giving concerts and rearranged Paganini’s caprices for piano. It was from this moment that his brilliant experience in transcribing music began.

In 1835, he decided to diversify his activities and began publishing his articles, as well as teaching music. He also met Marie d'Agoux, who was a friend of his friend Georges Sand. Marie published her works under the pseudonym Daniel Stern, Liszt wrote articles and music. In the end, they fell in love with each other, and even her marriage did not stop the young lady. As a result, in 1835, she left her husband, and she and Liszt went to Switzerland.

Wanderings

The next period of Liszt’s life lasted no less, but thirteen years, from 1835 to 1849. At the same time, he created his famous collection of plays, which he called “Years of Wandering.”

So he and Marie lived in Geneva, from time to time moving to some picturesque village. Liszt began teaching at the Geneva Conservatory, made sketches for his collection of plays, and for a time he toured with concerts. But Paris became fascinated by another musical wonder, Thalberg, and little attention was paid to Liszt.

Together with Marie, he continued to publish articles, among which was “On the role of art and the position of the artist in modern society" They continued to live an active European life, and friends from Paris regularly visited them, for example, the same George Sand.

1837. Marie and Franz already had a child and decide to move to Italy. There they visit Rome, Naples, Venice and Florence, and Franz actively writes essays about musical life in these cities. He draws them up in the form of a letter and publishes them in Paris, addressing Georges Sand. She answered him in the same spirit, publishing her answers in the same magazines.

There, in Italy, Franz for the first time in history gives solo concert without any participation of musicians other than himself. So concert performances finally separated from the salon ones.

At this time, Liszt transcribed many of Beethoven's symphonies, which he played on the piano.

Franz wanted to visit Hungary, but Marie was categorically against this trip, and therefore, when a flood happened in Hungary, and Franz considered it his duty to help his compatriots, he broke up with his beloved and went to Hungary himself.

Whether Hungary or Austria, these countries received Liszt simply perfectly. By that time he was already a celebrity, and he was greeted with triumph. After one of the pianist’s concerts in Vienna, Thalberg approached him and acknowledged Liszt’s superiority in front of everyone.

In Hungary, Liszt became the embodiment of the patriotic uplift of the nation, and at the same time national pride. Nobles came to his concerts national costumes and brought gifts. Liszt donated all proceeds from the concerts to flood victims.

Between 1842 and 1848 was the peak of Liszt’s activity; he traveled all over Europe, including Russia and Turkey. Not all Russian composers liked him (for example, they did not want to recognize him), but he began correspondence with some of them. For example, with composers from “ Mighty bunch" He transcribed the works of some Russian composers for piano, and then published them in the form of collections.

During this period of his life, Liszt primarily prioritized educational activities. He played both piano compositions of great composers and their symphonies in his own arrangement for piano.

Caroline never became his legal wife, but later forced Liszt to take monastic vows and become a clergyman

Around this time he met Caroline. She was married to a Russian general, but when did that ever stop him? In 1847, they obtained her divorce and began to seek their own wedding.

And in 1848 the couple settled in Weimar. There Liszt could exercise complete leadership over the musical life of the city, and he simply could not help but take advantage of it.

Franz became closely involved in the repertoire of the local opera house. He was completely disappointed in concert activity and its effectiveness, and therefore decided to try himself as a stage director. He included works by classics such as Mozart and Gluck, as well as more modern authors, in his repertoire.

But the audience did not like the repertoire, and both the group and the audience themselves began to complain regularly. Therefore, the main result of the Weimar period should still be considered Liszt’s intense work as a composer. He was finally able to put his notes in order, revised many of his writings and published the famous “Years of Wanderings”. As with Marie, Franz wrote various essays and articles with Caroline. In addition, it was at this time that he began to give his famous free lessons music, which was attended by musicians from all over Europe.

He became close to Wagner, sharing his beliefs. Together, in the fifties of the nineteenth century, they created a union of German musicians, to which Schumann, Mendelssohn and Brahms also belonged. However, this did not stop composers from conflicting with each other in the media available at the time.

Franz never managed to get married to Caroline. Liszt’s son died, Franz himself was finally fed up with the Weimar public’s lack of understanding of his educational efforts, and he and Caroline went to atone for their sins in Rome.

On the Sunset life

In the sixties, Franz and Caroline settled in Rome, but the unlucky composer could no longer count on any semblance of married life. Not only did Caroline insist that they live in different houses, but she also forced him to take monastic vows and become a clergyman.

From now on, Liszt wrote more and more sacred music, and philosophical motifs increasingly appeared in his work. In 1866 he returned to Weimar, where he continued to give music lessons to young people. Liszt's daughter became Wagner's wife.

In 1886, Liszt caught a bad cold at one of the festivals. His health continued to deteriorate and he died soon after.

Creative heritage

How to perceive it is not even up to us to decide, but to history. Liszt became the embodiment of the era of romanticism, a musician who described in as much detail as possible inner world person. He embodied everything that concert pianism aspired to. His technical capabilities in playing the piano were simply limitless. To this day, the virtuosity of his playing and his compositions remain a beacon for other pianists. Both for those who are just beginning their creative journey, and for those who have already learned the taste of art.

But it is worth noting that Liszt actively toured and performed only in the era of his youth. For example, his tour with tenor Giovanni Baptiste Rubini in 1843 went down in history, and already in 1848 he stopped performing so actively, only occasionally delighting listeners with his unsurpassed technique.

Inventor in music

Liszt loved to experiment with mixtures of musical styles

Now such musical genres as the rhapsody and the symphonic poem seem classic, but at one time they were an outlandish novelty discovered by Franz Liszt. He also developed the theme of the one-part cyclic form, which Schumann and Chopin began to work on.

In addition, Liszt loved to experiment with mixtures of musical styles. In 1850, he already seriously argued that the time of pure arts was in the past, which was the reason for the emergence musical works, closely related to famous examples of painting.

Thus, Liszt wrote “The Betrothal” based on the painting by Raffaello, and “The Thinker” based on the sculpture by Michelangelo. Like many other software works.

By the way, it’s worth talking a little about what it is program music. Strictly speaking, program music is purely instrumental piece, without vocal accompaniment. Instead of the singer's voice, it is accompanied by an explanatory treatise, which verbally conveys the main idea of ​​the melody. Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber was known for his passion for this genre of art, and Franz Liszt too, although to a lesser extent.

He believed in the educational power of art, as well as the fact that music could truly change humanity.

In addition, Ferenc led pedagogical activity, gave open lessons, never taking money for them. Pianists from all over Europe came to see him.

He also wrote several books, including a book about Chopin, as well as a book about the music of Hungarian gypsies and a huge number of journalistic articles.

But in the end, Liszt, although he continued to create, was hopelessly disappointed with the fruits of his creativity. No matter how great a musician he was, he still did not achieve his goal. Although he managed to change the world.

Franz Liszt (1811–1886) - Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, teacher, music writer, public figure. He studied with K. Czerny (piano), A. Salieri, F. Paer and A. Reich (composition). In 1823–35 he lived in Paris, where his talent as a virtuoso pianist developed (he performed from the age of 9) and his teaching and composing career began. Communication with prominent figures of literature and art - G. Berlioz, N. Paganini, F. Chopin, V. Hugo, J. Sand, O. Balzac, G. Heine and others influenced the formation of his views. Having met the July Revolution of 1830 with enthusiasm, he wrote the “Revolutionary Symphony”; He dedicated the piano piece “Lyon” to the uprising of Lyon weavers in 1834. In 1835–39 (“the years of wandering”) Liszt lived in Switzerland and Italy. During this period Liszt reached his perfection performing arts, creating concert pianism in his modern form. The defining features of Liszt's style were the synthesis of the rational and the emotional, the brightness and contrast of images combined with dramatic expression, colorful sound, stunningly virtuosic technique, and orchestral-symphonic interpretation of the piano. IN musical creativity Liszt realized the idea of ​​the interconnection of various arts, especially the internal connections between music and poetry. He created “The Traveler’s Album” for piano (1836; partly served as material for the “Years of Wanderings” cycle), the fantasy sonata “After Reading Dante”, “Three Sonnets of Petrarch” (1st edition), etc. Since the late 30s . until 1847 Liszt toured with great triumph throughout all European countries, including Hungary, where he was honored as national hero(in 1838–40 he gave a series charity concerts to help flood victims in Hungary), in 1842, 1843 and 1847 in Russia, where he met M.I. Glinka, Mich. Y. Vielgorsky, V.F. Odoevsky, V.V. Stasov, A.N. Serov and others. In 1848, leaving his career as a virtuoso pianist, Liszt settled in Weimar, with which the flowering of his creative and musical development is associated - educational activities. In 1848–61, Liszt's most significant works were created, including 2 symphonies, 12 symphonic poems, 2 piano concertos, sonata in B minor, Etudes of the highest performing skills, “Fantasy on Hungarian folk themes.” As a conductor (court conductor) Liszt staged over 40 operas (including operas by R. Wagner) on the stage of the Weimar Theater, 26 of them for the first time, performed in symphony concerts all Beethoven symphonies, symphonic works G. Berlioz, R. Schumann, M.I. Glinka and others. In his journalistic writings he advocated a progressive principle in art, against the academicism and routine of the epigones of the Leipzig school, in contrast to which the musicians united around Liszt formed the Weimar school. Liszt's activities met with opposition from conservative court and bourgeois circles in Weimar, and in 1858 Liszt resigned from the post of court conductor. From 1861 he lived alternately in Rome, Budapest and Weimar. Deep disappointment in the bourgeois reality of his time and pessimistic moods led Liszt to religion, and in 1865 he accepted the rank of abbot. At the same time, Liszt continued to participate in musical -social life Hungary: he was the initiator of the creation of the Academy of Music (now named after him) in 1875 and its first president and professor, promoted the work of Hungarian composers (F. Erkel, M. Mossonyi, E. Remenyi); contributed to the growth of young national music schools in other countries, supported B. Smetana, E. Grieg, I. Albeniz and other composers. He took a special interest in Russian musical culture: he studied and promoted the work of Russian composers, especially the “Mighty Handful”; highly valued the musical-critical work of A. N. Serov and V. V. Stasov, the pianistic art of A. G. and N. G. Rubinshtein, etc. Until the end of his life, Liszt continued free classes with students, having trained over 300 pianists from different countries. Among the students: E. d’Albert, E. Sauer, A. Reisenauer, A. I. Ziloti, V. V. Timanova; Many composers used his advice. Liszt's multifaceted creative activity - a bright representative romanticism - played a huge role in the formation of the Hungarian national music school (composing and performing) and in the development of world musical culture. In his works there was an organic fusion of folk-Hungarian origins (verbunkos) and the achievements of European professional music (“Hungarian Rhapsodies”, “Heroic March in the Hungarian Style”, “Funeral Procession” for piano, symphonic poems, oratorios, masses and other works). The enduring significance of Liszt’s work lies in democracy and effective humanism ideological content, its main themes are man’s struggle for high ideals, the desire for light, freedom, and happiness. The defining principles of the composer's innovative work are programmaticity and the associated monothematicism. Programming determined the composer’s renewal of the genre of fantasy and transcription, the creation of a new musical genre- a one-part symphonic poem, was reflected in the search for new musical and expressive means, which was especially evident in the late period of creativity. Liszt’s ideological and artistic principles became widespread in the works of various composers national schools, including Russian, who highly valued his creative genius, which was reflected in musical -critical articles V.V. Stasova, A.N. Serova and others.

Essays: Opera Don Sancho, or The Castle of Love (1825, Paris); oratorios - The legend of St. Elizabeth (1862), Christ (1866), etc.; masses - Esztergom (Granskaya, 1855), Hungarian Coronation (1867); cantatas; Requiem (1868); For orchestra - Faust Symphony (after J. W. Goethe, 1857); symphony for Dante's Divine Comedy (1856); 13 symphonic poems (1849–82), including Mazepa (after V. Hugo, 1851), Preludes (after J. Autrand and A. Lamartine), Orpheus, Tasso (all - 1854), Prometheus (after I. G. Herder, 1855); 2 episodes from Lenau’s “Faust” (1860), etc.; For piano With orchestra - 2 concerts (1856, 1861), Dance of Death (1859), Fantasy on Hungarian folk themes (1852), etc.; For piano - sonata h-moll; cycles of plays: Poetic and religious harmonies (according to A. Lamartine), Years of Wanderings (3 notebooks); 2 ballads; 2 legends; 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies; Hungarian historical portraits; Spanish Rhapsody; Etudes of the highest performing skills, concert etudes, variations, plays in dance form, including 3 forgotten waltzes, marches, etc.; For vote With piano - songs and romances (about 90) to the words of G. Heine, J. V. Goethe, V. Hugo, M. Yu. Lermontov and others, instrumental pieces, chamber instrumental ensembles; transcriptions (mainly for piano) his own works and works of other composers, including Etudes after Paganini’s Caprices.

Franz Liszt was born on October 22, 1811 in the village of Doborjan(Hungary).As a child, he was fascinated by gypsy music and the cheerful dances of Hungarian peasants. The father was the manager of the estate of Count Esterhazy. He was an amateur musician and encouraged his son's interest in music; He taught Ference the basics of pianogames. At the age of 9, Ferenc gave his first concert in the neighboring town of Sopron. Soon he was invited to the magnificent Esterhazy Palace. Ferenc's performance amazed the count's guests, and several Hungarian nobles decided to pay for Ferenc's further education. He was sent to Vienna, where he studied composition with Salieri and piano with Czerny. Liszt's Viennese debut took place on December 1, 1822. Critics were delighted, and from then on Liszt was assured of fame and full houses.

From the famous publisher A. Diabelli he received an invitation to compose variations on a waltz theme, invented by Diabelli himself; Thus young musician found himself in the company of the great Beethoven and Schubert, to whom the publisher made the same request. Despite this, Liszt (as a foreigner) was not accepted into the Paris Conservatory; he had to continue his education privately. After the death of his father (1827), Liszt began giving lessons. Then he met the young Berlioz and Chopin, whose art had a strong influence on him:

Liszt managed to “translate into the language of the piano” the coloristic richness of Berlioz’s scores and combine Chopin’s soft lyricism with his own stormy temperament.

In the early 1830s, Liszt's idol became the Italian virtuoso violinist Paganini; Liszt set out to create an equally brilliant piano style, and even adopted from Paganini some of the features of his behavior on the concert stage. Liszt had virtually no rivals as a virtuoso pianist.FerencSheetwas handsome, his concert trips of those years were invariably accompanied by loud and publicly discussed affaires de coeur, “novels.” In 1834, Liszt began life together with Countess Marie d'Agu (she later acted as a writer under the pseudonym Daniel Stern). From their union three children were born - a son and two daughters, the youngest of whom, Cosima, married the great pianist and conductor G von Bülow, and then became the wife of Richard Wagner.

(At the piano is F. Liszt. At his feet is Marie d’Agoux. In the center sits J. Sand, with his hand on Dumas. Hugo and Rossini are standing behind, with his arm around Paganini’s shoulders.)

Liszt performed in Austria, Belgium, England, France, Hungary, Scotland, Russia and in 1849 gave a series of concerts, the proceeds of which went towards the construction of a monument to Beethoven in Bonn. In 1844 Liszt became bandmaster at the ducal court in Weimar. This small German city was once a thriving cultural center, and Liszt dreamed of returning Weimar to the glory of the capital of the arts. In 1847, having decided to devote himself to Weimar, Liszt undertook a farewell concert tour. While in Russia, he met Princess Caroline Sein-Wittgenstein, and returned with her to Weimar. In his role as conductor, Liszt supported everything new, radical, and sometimes rejected by others. With equal zeal, he performed the works of old masters and the experiments of beginning composers. He organized a week of Berlioz's music at a time when the romantic style of this composer was not understood in France. Liszt even managed to organize the premiere of Wagner's opera Tannhäuser in Weimar during the years when its author was a political exile and threatened with arrest.

Richard Wagner in the center, Franz Liszt, his daughter Cosima

Liszt is considered a seminal figure in the history of music. As a composer and transcriptionist, he created more than 1,300 works. Like Chopin and Schumann, Liszt in his composer activity gave the palm to the solo piano. Probably the most popular work Liszt - Dreams of Love (Liebestraum).

Among Francis Liszt's other works for piano, one can highlight the 19 Hungarian Rhapsodies (which are based on Gypsy rather than Magyar tunes). Some of themwere later orchestrated.Liszt also wrote more than 60 songs and romances for voice and piano and several organ works, including a fantasy and a fugue on the theme BACH. Liszt's transcriptions include piano transcriptions of Beethoven's symphonies and fragments from works by Bach, Bellini, Berlioz, Wagner, Verdi, Glinka, Gounod, Meyerbeer, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Paganini, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, Chopin, Schubert, Schumann and others.

Liszt became the creator of the genre of one-movement semi-programmed symphonic form, which he called the symphonic poem. This genre was intended to express extra-musical ideas or retell musical means works of literature and fine arts. The unity of the composition was achieved by introducing leitmotifs or leitthemes running through the entire poem. Among orchestral works Liszt (or plays with orchestra) are most interested in the symphonic poems, especially the Preludes, Orpheus and Ideals. For different compositions with the participation of soloists, choir and orchestra, Liszt composed several masses, psalms, an oratorio, and the legend of St. Elizabeth.

Ratings creative heritage Liszt's career as a composer and pianist in the period following his death was controversial. Perhaps the immortality of his compositions was ensured by his bold innovation in the field of harmony, which in many ways anticipated the development of modern musical language. The chromatisms used by Liszt not only enriched the romantic style of the last century, but also, more importantly, anticipated the crisis of traditional tonality in the 20th century. Leaf andWagnerwere adherents of the idea of ​​a synthesis of all arts as highest form artistic expression.

Like a pianistSheetperformed in concerts literally before last days own life. Some believe that he is the inventor of the genre of pianist recitals and the special pathetic concert style that made virtuosity a self-sufficient and exciting form. Breaking with old tradition, Liszt turned the piano around so that concertgoers could better see the musician's impressive profile and his hands. Sometimes Liszt would place several instruments on stage and travel between them, playing each with equal brilliance. The emotional pressure and force of hitting the keys was such that during the tour he left broken strings and broken hammers all over Europe. All this was an integral part of the performance. Liszt masterfully reproduced the sonority of a full orchestra on the piano; he had no equal in reading notes from sight; he was also famous for his brilliant improvisations. But Liszt's authorship in the field of musical form and harmony, the new sound of the piano and symphony orchestra instruments was supported by the leading composers of his time. Having absorbed the culture of Germany and France, a classic of Hungarian musicSheet, made a great contribution to the development of European musical culture.

Life of Franz Liszt endedat the age of 75. He died while visiting the Bayreuth festivals and was buried on July 31, 1886. at the Bayreuth City Cemetery.

The musical genius of Hungary, Liszt Ferenc, is known for his multifaceted and vibrant personality. The amazing talents of this enthusiast were manifested not only in the creation of works, but were also expressed in other forms. A talented pianist, music critic and conductor, he also actively participated in social activities, and his desire for novelty, freshness and vitality brought qualitative changes to the musical art of that period.

Liszt Ferenc was born in 1811 into the family of an amateur musician. WITH youth he fell in love with Hungarian and Gypsy folk songs, which had a great influence on the development of his talent and left an imprint on his creativity. Liszt received his first music lessons from his father and at the age of 9 he was already in several cities in Hungary.

To continue studying music, Ferenc in 1820 traveled with his father to Vienna, where he took private lessons. At the age of 11, Liszt wrote his first work, “Variations for Diabelli’s Waltz.” Unsuccessful admission to the Paris Conservatory in 1823 (he was not accepted due to foreign origin) did not break young genius, and he continued private studies. And soon he conquered Paris and London with his virtuoso performances. During this time, Franz Liszt wrote many piano pieces and one serious operatic work.

In 1827, his father died, and Liszt continued his self-study and toured a lot. The formation of his worldview and ethical beliefs was influenced by the revolutionary events of the 30s, which were reflected in some of his symphonies. Liszt Ferenc communicated with many celebrities, who also influenced his development with their art. artistic ideals. So, getting acquainted with Hugo, Chopin, Berlioz and Paganini, these outstanding personalities, forced Liszt to hone and train his skills.

Ferenc, in addition to writing many articles about artists and their life in society. In addition, he taught at the conservatory and traveled a lot with his concerts throughout all European countries. He also visited Russia, where he met Glinka and other musical figures.

In the period from 1848 to 1861. his life takes a different direction. Liszt Ferenc marries, leaves his career as a virtuoso pianist and begins conducting at the Weimar Theater. He fights for new art, new genres and sounds. He completes and refines his earlier works, and also creates new ones that are even more perfect. Liszt also writes books about the study of Hungarian music, conducts free teaching activities and supports young musicians.

In 1858, he left the theater and moved to Rome, where he took the rank of abbot and wrote bright spiritual works. However, while remaining a secular person, Liszt cannot fully devote himself to the church. And in 1869 Ferenc returned to Weimar. Continuing his active and active life, he creates a conservatory in Budapest, where he is the director and teacher. He continues to write a little and give concerts.

This is Franz Liszt! His biography is extremely interesting and rich, and the activities of this man significantly influenced the development of world musical culture.

Ferenc(French) Liszt (Hung. Liszt Ferenc, German Franz Liszt; October 22, 1811, Riding, Austrian Empire - July 31, 1886, Bayreuth, German Empire) - Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, teacher, conductor, publicist, one of the largest representatives of musical romanticism. Founder of the Weimar School of music.

Sheet was one of greatest pianists XIX century. His era was the heyday of concert pianism, Sheet was at the forefront of this process, with limitless technical capabilities. To this day, his virtuosity remains a reference point for modern pianists, and his works remain the pinnacle of piano virtuosity.

In 1843 Sheet He made a concert tour with tenor Giovanni Batista Rubini in the Netherlands and Germany.

Active concert activity as a whole ended in 1848 ( last concert was given in Elisavetgrad), after which Sheet rarely performed.

As a composer Sheet made a lot of discoveries in the field of harmony, melody, form and texture. Created new ones instrumental genres(rhapsody, symphonic poem). He formed the structure of a one-part cyclic form, which was outlined by Schumann and Chopin, but was not developed so boldly.

Sheet actively promoted the idea of ​​a synthesis of arts (Wagner was his like-minded person in this). He said that the time of the “pure arts” was over (this thesis was put forward by the 1850s). If Wagner saw this synthesis in the connection between music and words, then for Liszt it was more connected with painting and architecture, although literature also played a big role. Hence such an abundance of program works: “The Betrothal” (based on a painting by Raphael), “The Thinker” (a sculpture by Michelangelo on the tombstone of Lorenzo Medici) and many others. Subsequently, the ideas of the synthesis of arts found wide application. Liszt believed in the power of art, which can influence the masses of people and fight evil. His educational activities are connected with this.

Sheet conducted teaching activities. Pianists from all over Europe came to see him in Weimar. In his house, where there was a hall, he gave them open lessons, and never took money for it. Among others, Borodin, Siloti and d'Albert visited him.

Conducting activities Sheet took up work in Weimar. There he staged operas (including Wagner's) and performed symphonies.

Literary works include a book about Chopin, a book about the music of the Hungarian gypsies, as well as many articles devoted to current and global issues.

Biography

Franz Liszt was born on October 22, 1811 in Hungary, in the town of Doborjan (Austrian name Riding), county of Sopron (now the Austrian state of Burgenland) and was only child in family.

Parents

His father, Georg Adam Sheet(1776-1826) served as an official in the administration of Prince Esterházy. The Esterhazy princes encouraged art. Until the age of 14, Adam played cello in the prince's orchestra, led by Joseph Haydn. After graduating from the Catholic gymnasium in Pressburg (now Bratislava), Adam Sheet He entered the Franciscan order as a novice, but two years later he decided to leave it. According to some reports, he maintained a lifelong friendship with one of the Franciscans, which, as some researchers suggest, inspired him to name his son Franz, and he himself Sheet, also maintaining connections with the Franciscans, in later years life joined the order. Adam Liszt composed dedicating his works to Esterhazy. In 1805, he achieved his appointment to Eisenstadt, where the residence of the princes was located. There, in 1805-1809, in his free time from his main job, he continued to play in the orchestra, having the opportunity to work with many musicians who came there, including Cherubini and Beethoven. In 1809 Adam was sent to the Riding. In his house there hung a portrait of Beethoven, who was his father’s idol and later became his son’s idol.

Ferenc's mother Liszt, Anna-Maria, née Lagger (1788-1866), daughter of a baker from Krems an der Donau. Orphaned at age 9, she was forced to move to Vienna, where she was a maid, and at age 20 she moved to Mattersburg to live with her brother. In 1810 Adam Sheet, having arrived in Mattersburg to visit his father, he met her, and in January 1811 they got married.

In October 1811, a son was born, who became their only child. The name given at baptism was written in Latin as Franciscus, and in German it was pronounced Franz. In Russian-language sources, the Hungarian name Ferenc is more often used, although he himself Sheet, having a poor command of Hungarian, never used it.

Father's participation in musical formation son was exceptional. Adam Sheet He began teaching his son music early, giving him lessons himself. In the church the boy was taught to sing, and the local organist taught him how to play the organ. After three years of training, Ferenc performed in a public concert for the first time at the age of eight. His father took him to the houses of noble nobles, where the boy played the piano, and managed to evoke a favorable attitude among them. Realizing that his son needs a serious school, his father takes him to Vienna.

Since 1821 Sheet In Vienna he studied piano with Karl Czerny, who agreed to teach the boy free of charge. The great teacher did not like the boy at first, as he was physically weak. Cherny school gave Leaf the versatility of his piano art. Theory Sheet studied with Antonio Salieri. Speaking at concerts, Liszt created a sensation among the Viennese public. During one of them, Beethoven, after Ferenc’s brilliant improvisation in the cadenza of one of his concerts, kissed him. Liszt remembered this all his life.

Paris

After Vienna Sheet went to Paris (1823). The target was the Paris Conservatoire, but Liszt they weren’t accepted there because they only accepted Frenchmen. However, the father decided to stay in Paris, despite the difficult financial situation. Because of this, we had to constantly organize performances. This is how professional activity began at an early age Liszt.

We studied with Leaf teachers from the same Paris Conservatory (among them were such outstanding musicians as Ferdinando Paer and Antonin Reicha), but no one else taught him to play the piano. Czerny was his last piano teacher.

In this period Sheet began to compose - mainly repertoire for his performances - etudes. At the age of 14 he began the opera Don Sancho, or the Castle of Love, which was even staged at the Grand-Opera in 1825.

Adam died in 1827 Sheet. Ferenc I had a hard time experiencing this event and was depressed for about 3 years. In addition, he was irritated by his role as a “clown,” a curiosity in secular salons. For these reasons, for several years Sheet disappeared from the life of Paris, his obituary was even published. The mystical mood, previously noticed in Liszt, increased.

In the light Sheet appeared only in 1830. This is the year of the July Revolution. Liszt captivated fast paced life around him, calls for justice. The idea of ​​a “Revolutionary Symphony” arose, in which revolutionary songs were to be used. Sheet back to active work, gave a successful concert. A circle of musicians close to him was formed: Berlioz (who created the Symphony Fantastique at that time), Paganini (who came to Paris in 1831). The play of the brilliant violinist prompted Liszt achieve even greater excellence in performance. For some time he gave up giving concerts, worked hard on his technique and transcribed Paganini's caprices for piano, published under the title of six etudes. This was the first and extremely brilliant experiment in piano arrangement, which Liszt subsequently brought to such a high degree.

On Liszt as a virtuoso, Chopin also had a tremendous influence, who, according to popular opinion, Leaf was skeptical, not having had time to see the flowering of his work after 1848 and seeing in him only a virtuoso, however, as a performing artist Sheet was highly valued by Chopin, who communicated with him in Paris. In a letter of 1833, Chopin wrote: “I would like to steal from him the manner of performing my own etudes.”

Among acquaintances Liszt also writers Dumas, Hugo, Musset, Georges Sand.

Articles were published around 1835 Liszt O social status artists in France, about Schumann, etc. At the same time Sheet He also began his teaching career, which he never abandoned.

In the early 30s Sheet met Countess Marie d'Agoux, a friend of Georges Sand. She was addicted contemporary art. The Countess had some literary abilities and published under the pseudonym Daniel Stern. The work of George Sand was a standard for her. Countess d'Agout and Sheet were in a state of romantic love. In 1835, the Countess left her husband and broke all ties with her circle. Together with Leaf she went to Switzerland - this is how the next period of her life began Liszt.

"Years of Wandering"

The next period of life lasts from 1835 to 1848 Liszt, to which the name “Years of Wanderings” was assigned (after the title of the collection of plays).

In Switzerland Sheet and Marie d'Agoux lived in Geneva and from time to time in some picturesque village. Liszt made the first sketches of plays for the collection “The Traveler’s Album,” which later became “The Years of Wanderings” (French: “Années de pèlerinage”), taught at the Geneva Conservatory, and sometimes traveled to Paris for concerts. However, Paris was already captivated by another virtuoso, Thalberg, and Liszt did not have his former popularity. At this time, Liszt had already begun to give his concerts an educational theme - he played symphonies (in his arrangement for piano) and Beethoven concertos, paraphrases on themes from operas, etc. Together with d'Agu, Liszt wrote the article “On the role of art and the position of the artist in modern times.” society." In Geneva, Liszt did not drop out of active European life. Friends from Paris came to see him, including Georges Sand.

In 1837, already having one child, Sheet and d'Agu went to Italy. Here they visited Rome, Naples, Venice, Florence - centers of art and culture. From Italy, Liszt wrote essays about local musical life, which he sent to Paris for publication. The writing genre was chosen for them. The addressee of most of the letters was George Sand, who also responded to Liszt with essays in the magazine.

In Italy Sheet For the first time in history, he played a solo concert, without the participation of other musicians. It was a bold and daring decision that completely separated concert performances from salon performances.

Fantasies and paraphrases on themes from operas (including Donizetti’s “Lucia”), adaptations of “ Pastoral Symphony"Beethoven and many of Berlioz's works. After giving several concerts in Paris and Vienna, Liszt returned to Italy (1839), where he finished transcribing Beethoven's symphonies for piano.

Liszt had long dreamed of going to Hungary, but his friend Marie d'Agoux was against this trip. At the same time, a large flood occurred in Hungary, and Liszt, already possessing enormous popularity and fame, considered it his duty to help his compatriots. Thus there was a break with d’Agu, and he left for Hungary alone.

Austria and Hungary greeted Liszt triumphantly. In Vienna, after one of the concerts, Sigismund Thalberg, his longtime competitor, approached him, recognizing Liszt’s superiority. In Hungary, Liszt became the spokesman for the patriotic uplift of the nation. Nobles came to his concerts in national costumes and presented him with gifts. Liszt donated the proceeds from the concerts to the benefit of flood victims.

Between 1842 and 1848, Liszt traveled throughout Europe several times, including Russia, Spain, Portugal, and was in Turkey. This was the peak of his concert activity. Liszt was in Russia in 1842 and 1848. Liszt was listened to in St. Petersburg prominent figures Russian music - V.V. Stasov, A.N. Serov, M.I. Glinka. At the same time, Stasov and Serov recalled their shock at his performance, but Glinka did not like Liszt, he ranked Field higher.

Liszt was interested in Russian music. He highly appreciated the music of “Ruslan and Lyudmila”, made a piano transcription of “Chernomor’s March”, and corresponded with the composers of the “Mighty Handful”. In subsequent years, ties with Russia were not interrupted; in particular, Liszt published a collection of selected excerpts from Russian operas.

At the same time, Liszt's educational activities reached their peak. In his concert programs he included many piano works classics (Beethoven, Bach), own transcriptions of the symphonies of Beethoven and Berlioz, songs of Schubert, organ works Bach. On Liszt’s initiative, celebrations were organized in honor of Beethoven in Bonn in 1845, and he also contributed the remaining amount for the installation of a monument to the brilliant composer there.

However, after some time, Liszt became disillusioned with his educational activities. He realized that it did not achieve its goal, and the average person would rather listen to a medley from a fashionable opera than a Beethoven sonata. Liszt's active concert activities ceased.

At this time, Liszt met Princess Caroline Wittgenstein, the wife of the Russian General Nicholas (1812-1864; son of Field Marshal P. Wittgenstein). In 1847, they decided to unite, but Caroline was married, and, moreover, devoutly professed Catholicism. Therefore, it was necessary to seek a divorce and a new wedding, which the Russian Emperor and the Pope had to authorize.

Weimar

In 1848 Sheet and Caroline settled in Weimar. The choice was due to the fact that Liszt was given the right to direct the musical life of the city; moreover, Weimar was the residence of the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, the sister of Emperor Nicholas I. Apparently, Liszt hoped through her to influence the emperor in the matter of divorce.

Sheet set to work Opera theatre, updated the repertoire. Obviously, after disappointment in concert activities, he decided to shift the educational emphasis to the activities of the director. Therefore, the repertoire includes operas by Gluck, Mozart, as well as contemporaries - Schumann (Genoveva), Wagner (Lohengrin) and others. The symphony programs included performances of works by Bach, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Berlioz, as well as their own. However, in this area too, Liszt met with failure. The public was dissatisfied with the theater's repertoire, the troupe and musicians complained.

The main result of the Weimar period was intense composing work Liszt. He put his sketches in order, finished and revised many of his compositions. "Traveler's Album" after great job became "Years of Wanderings". Piano concertos, rhapsodies (in which melodies recorded in Hungary were used), Sonata in B minor, etudes, romances, and the first symphonic poems also appeared here.

To Weimar to Leaf Young musicians came from all over the world to take lessons from him. Together with Caroline Liszt he wrote articles and essays. I started a book about Chopin.

Liszt's rapprochement with Wagner on the basis of common ideas dates back to this time. In the early 50s, the Union of German Musicians, the so-called “Weimarians”, was created, as opposed to the “Leipzigians” (which included Schumann, Mendelssohn, Brahms, who professed more academic views than Wagner and Liszt). Fierce conflicts often arose between these groups in the press.

At the end of the 50s, the hope of a wedding with Caroline finally melted away, in addition, Liszt was disappointed by the lack of understanding of his musical activities in Weimar. At the same time, Liszt's son died. Again, as after the death of his father, mystical and religious feelings intensified in Liszt. Together with Caroline, they decided to go to Rome to atone for their sins.

Later years

In the early 60s, Liszt and Caroline moved to Rome, but lived in different houses. She insisted that Sheet became a clergyman, and in 1865 he took minor monastic vows as an acolyte. Liszt's creative interests now lay primarily in the field of sacred music: these are the oratorios “The Legend of St. Elizabeth”, “Christ”, four psalms, a requiem and the Hungarian Coronation Mass (German: Kronungsmesse). In addition, the third volume of “Years of Wanderings” appeared, rich philosophical motives. Liszt played in Rome, but extremely rarely.

In 1866, Liszt traveled to Weimar, and the so-called second Weimar period began. He lived in the modest house of his former gardener. As before, young musicians came to him - among them Grieg, Borodin, Ziloti.

In 1875 activities Liszt concentrated mainly in Hungary (in Pest), where he was elected president of the newly founded High school music. Liszt taught, and among his students were Emil von Sauer, Alexander Siloti, Karl Tausig, d'Albert, Moritz Rosenthal, Sophie Menter and many others. He wrote “Forgotten Waltzes” and new rhapsodies for piano, the cycle “Hungarian Historical Portraits” (about the figures of the Hungarian liberation movement).

Daughter Liszt Cosima at this time became Wagner's wife (their son is the famous conductor Siegfried Wagner). After Wagner's death she continued to organize Wagner festivals in Bayreuth. At one of the festivals in 1886, Liszt caught a cold, and soon the cold turned into pneumonia. His health began to deteriorate and his heart was bothering him. Due to swelling in his legs, he could only move with assistance.

On July 19, 1886, his last concert took place. Liszt died on July 31 of the same year in a hotel in the arms of a valet. According to published documents of the Frankfurt Masonic Lodge, Franz Liszt was a Freemason and a member of the Frankfurt Unity Masonic Lodge since 1841.
Emperor Franz Joseph I elevated Liszt to knighthood on October 30, 1859, leaving a handwritten note of Liszt's full name: Franz Ritter von Liszt (from German Ritter - knight, horseman)
Pictured on postage stamps Austria 1961, Hungary 1932 and 1986, Hungary post block 1934.

Works

There are 647 Liszt works in total: 63 of them for orchestra, about 300 arrangements for piano. In everything that Liszt wrote, one can see originality, a desire for new paths, a wealth of imagination, courage and novelty of techniques, a unique view of art. His instrumental compositions represent a remarkable step forward in musical architecture. 13 symphonic poems, the Faust and Divina comedia symphonies, and piano concertos provide a wealth of new material for the researcher of musical form. Liszt's musical and literary works include brochures about Chopin (translated into Russian by P. A. Zinoviev in 1887), about Berlioz's "Benvenuto Cellini", Schubert, articles in "Neue Zeitschrift für Musik" and a large essay on Hungarian music (" Des Bohémiens et de leur musique en Hongrie").

In addition, Franz Liszt is known for his Hungarian Rhapsodies (composed 1851-1886), which are among his most striking and original works of art. Liszt used folklore sources (mainly gypsy motifs), which formed the basis of the Hungarian Rhapsodies. It should be noted that the genre of instrumental rhapsody is a kind of “innovation” by Liszt. Rhapsodies were created in the following years: No. 1 - around 1851, No. 2 - 1847, No. 3-15 - around 1853, No. 16 - 1882, No. 17-19-1885.

List of essays

Piano works

• Sketches of the highest performing skills (1st edition - 1826, 2nd 1836, 3rd 1851)
• Sketches based on Paganini's caprices S.141 / Bravorstudien nach Paganinis Capricen - (1st ed. Bravura, 1838, 2nd ed. Large studies based on Paganini's caprices - Grandes Etudes de Paganini, 1851)
• Tremolo g-moll
• Octaves Es-dur
• La campanella gis-moll
• Arpeggio E-dur
• La Chasse E-dur
• Theme et variations a-moll
• 3 concert etudes (circa 1848)
• 2 concert etudes (circa 1862)
• "The Traveler's Album" (1835-1836)
• "Years of Wandering"
• 1st year - Switzerland S.160 (9 plays, 1835-1854) / Annees de pelerinage - Premiere annee - Suisse
• I. La chapelle de Guillaume Tell / Chapel of William Tell
• II. Au lac de Wallenstadt / On Lake Wallenstadt
• III. Pastorale / Pastorale
• IV. Au bord d'une source / At the spring
• V. Orage / Thunderstorm
• VI. Vallee d'Obermann / Obermann Valley
• VII. Eclogue / Eclogue
• VIII. Le mal du pays / Homesickness
• IX. Les cloches de Geneve / The Bells of Geneva
• 2nd year - Italy S.161 (7 plays, 1838-1849), including Fantasy-sonata After reading Dante (Apres une lecture du Dante, 1837-1839), ext. - “Venice and Naples”, 3 plays, 1859 / Annees de pelerinage - Deuxieme annee - Italie, S.161
• I. Sposalizio / Betrothal
• II. Il penseroso / The Thinker
• III. Canzonetta del Salvator Rosa / Canzonetta by Salvator Rosa
• IV. Sonetto 47 del Petrarca / Petrarch's Sonnet No. 47 (Des-dur)
• V. Sonetto 104 del Petrarca / Petrarch's Sonnet No. 104 (E-dur)
• VI. Sonetto 123 del Petrarca / Petrarch's Sonnet No. 123 (As-dur)
• VII. Apres une lecture du Dante, fantasia quasi una sonata / After reading Dante (fantasy sonata)
• Supplement “Venice and Naples” S.162
• I. Gondoliera / Gondoliera
• II. Canzone / Kanzona
• III. Tarantella / Tarantella
• 3rd year S.163 (7 plays, 1867-1877) / Annees de pelerinage - Troisieme annee
• I. Angelus. Priere aux anges gardiens / Prayer to the Guardian Angel
• II. Aux cypres de la Villa d'Este I / At the cypresses of Villa d'Este. Threnody I
• III. Aux cypres de la Villa d'Este II / At the cypresses of Villa d'Este. Threnody II
• IV. Les jeux d'eau a la Villa d'Este / The fountains of Villa d'Este
• V. Sunt lacrymae rerum (en mode hongrois) / In the Hungarian style
• VI. Marche funebre / Funeral march
• VII. Sursum corda / Let's lift up our hearts
• "Poetic and Religious Harmonies" (1845-1852)
• "Consolations" (1849)
• "Hungarian historical portraits" (1870-1886)
• 2 legends S. 175 (1863)
• I. Saint François d’Assise: La prédication aux oiseaux / Saint Francis of Assisi, Sermon to the Birds
• II. Saint François de Paule marchant sur les flots / Saint Francis of Paola walking on the waves
• 2 ballads (1848-1853)
• Sonata (1850-1853)
• “Mephisto - Waltz” (circa 1860, first orchestral version)
• Hungarian Rhapsodies (1st edition - 1840-1847, 2nd - 1847-1885)
• Waltzes, gallops, polonaises, czardas, marches and others.

Works for piano and orchestra

• First concert in Es-dur (1849, reworked – 1853, 1856)
• Second concert in A major (1839, reworked – 1849, 1853, 1857, 1861)
• “Dance of Death” (1849, revised – 1853, 1859)

Symphonic works

Symphonic poems

• "What is heard on the mountain" (1847-1856)
• “Tasso. Complaint and Triumph" (1849, revised - 1850-1854)
• “Preludes” (1848, revision – 1850-1854)
• "Orpheus" (1854)
• "Prometheus" (1850, revised - 1855)
• "Mazeppa" (1851)
• "Holiday Bells" (1858)
• "Lament for Heroes" (1850-1854)
• "Hungary" (1854)
• "Hamlet" (1858)
• "Battle of the Huns" (1857)
• "Ideals" (1857)
• "From Cradle to Grave" (1881-1882)

Symphonies

• "Faust" (1854-1857)
• "Dante" (1855-1856)
• Oratorios and masses[edit | edit wiki text]
• "The Legend of Saint Elizabeth" (1857-1862)
• "Christ" (1862-1866)
• Grand Mass (1855)
• Hungarian Coronation Mass (1866-1867)

Songs and romances (about 90)

Literary works

• "Letters from a Bachelor of Music" (1837-1839)
• “Paganini. Regarding his death" (1840)
• "Chopin" (1851, new edition – 1879)
• "Tannhäuser" (1849)
• "Lohengrin" (1850)
• "The Flying Dutchman" (1854)
• "On Gluck's Orpheus" (1854)
• "On Beethoven's Fidelio" (1854)
• "On Weber's Euryanthus" (1854)
• "Das Rheingold" (1855)
• "Berlioz and his Harold Symphony" (1855)
• "Robert Schumann" (1855)
• "Clara Schumann" (1855)
• “Mozart. On the centenary of his birth" (1856)
• “Criticism of criticism. Ulybyshev and Serov" (1857)
• "John Field and His Nocturnes" (1859)
• “On the Gypsies and their music in Hungary” (1860, new edition – 1881)

Performances to Liszt's music

• "Hungarian Rhapsody" No. 2 (1847) - 1900 production by Lev Ivanov
• “Marguerite and Armand,” a ballet by Frederick Ashton to the music of Franz Liszt, was staged in 1963 for Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. (Currently in the role of Marguerite Sylvie Guillem).
• In 1958, for the Leningrad Choreographic School, Kasyan Goleizovsky composed the ballet “Listiana”, consisting of works by Franz Liszt: “The Forgotten Waltz”, “Consolation”, “Waltz-Improvisation”, “Leaf from the Album”, “The Thinker”, “Forgotten Romance”, "Rush" and "Campanella"
• In 1974, the ballet “Othello” to the music of F. Liszt was staged by choreographer Peter Durrell

On the screen

Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 was performed in the Oscar-winning The series Cat Concerto (1946) from the Tom and Jerry cartoon series. "Cat Concert" was recognized as the best cartoon of 1946.