Glière, Reinhold

▪ Russian composer

in full  Reinhold Moritsevich Glière 

born Dec. 30, 1874 [Jan. 11, 1875, New Style], Kiev, Ukraine, Russian Empire

died June 23, 1956, Moscow

      Soviet composer noted for his works incorporating elements of the folk music of Russia, Ukraine, and surrounding republics.

      Of Belgian descent, Glière was the son of a musician and instrument maker. In 1900 he graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied violin, composition, and music theory. After teaching for a while in Moscow, he studied conducting in Berlin from 1905 to 1907, first appearing in Russia as a conductor in 1908, the same year his tone poem The Sirens was enthusiastically received. Glière taught at the Kiev Conservatory and was appointed director in 1914. He returned to Moscow in 1920, taught at the conservatory there, and became involved in studying Russian folk music, traveling widely to collect material. The opera Shah Senam (first performed 1934) resulted from his study of Azerbaijan national music, and Uzbek elements appear in the music drama Gulsara (1936).

      Glière achieved a high status in the Soviet musical world after the Russian Revolution, largely because of his interest in national styles. He organized workers' concerts and directed committees of the Moscow Union of Composers and Union of Soviet Composers.

      At the end of the 20th century Glière's music was principally performed in the countries of the former Soviet Union, although his ballet The Red Poppy (1927) won international popularity for a time. Also well regarded were the ballet The Bronze Horseman (1949) and his Symphony No. 3 (Ilya Muromets; composed 1909–11). Although Glière was highly respected by many, his often politically motivated works—e.g., the overture Twenty-five Years of the Red Army (1943) and Solemn Overture for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution (1937)—were criticized by others for lack of depth and originality. Nevertheless, his influence on younger Soviet composers was profound. Among his pupils were Sergey Prokofiev (Prokofiev, Sergey), Nikolay Myaskovsky, and Aram Khachaturian (Khachaturian, Aram).

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