Alexander Nikolayevich Serov (Алекса́ндр Никола́евич Серо́в in
CyrillicThe Cyrillic script writing system isan alphabet developed in the First Bulgarian Empire, and used in the Slavic national languages of Russian, Bulgarian, Belarusian, Rusyn, Serbian, Macedonian, and Ukrainian, and in the non-Slavic languages of Moldovan, Kazakh, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Tuvan, and...
; Aleksandr Nikolaevič Serov in transliteration) – was a
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n
composerA composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...
and
music criticMusic journalism is criticism and reportage about music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as 'classical music'. This aspect of music journalism, today generally classified as music criticism, comprises the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of...
. He and his wife
ValentinaValentina Semyonova Serova was a Russian composer of German-Jewish decent. She studied briefly at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, but left due to a conflict with Anton Rubinstein. She began to study with Alexander Serov who at that time was only known for his writings...
were the parents of painter
Valentin SerovValentin Alexandrovich Serov was a Russian painter, and one of the premier portrait artists of his era.-Youth and education:...
. He was not only one of the most important music critics in Russia during the 1850s and 1860s, but also the most significant Russian composer of
operaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score. Opera is part of the Western classical music tradition. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
in the years between
Dargomyzhsky'sAlexander Sergeyevich Dargomyzhsky was a 19th century Russian composer. He bridged the gap in Russian opera composition between Mikhail Glinka and the later generation of The Five and Tchaikovsky....
RusalkaRusalka is an opera in four acts, six tableaux, by Alexander Dargomyzhsky, composed during 1848-1855. The Russian libretto was adapted by the composer from Pushkin's incomplete dramatic poem of the same name...
and the early operas by
CuiCésar Antonovich Cui was a Russian of French and Lithuanian descent. His profession was as an army officer and a teacher of fortifications; his avocational life has particular significance in the history of music, in that he was a composer and music critic; in this sideline he is known as a...
,
Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov , also Nikolay, Nicolai, and Rimsky-Korsakoff, was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as "The Five." Noted particularly for a predilection for folk and fairy-tale subjects as well as his extraordinary skill in orchestration, his...
,
MussorgskyModest Petrovich Mussorgsky , one of the Russian composers known as the Five, was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
, and Tchaikovsky.
Early in life Serov made friends with
Vladimir StasovVladimir Vasilievich Stasov , son of Russian architect Vasily Petrovich Stasov , was probably the most respected Russian critic during his lifetime...
, but later the two became enemies over the relative values of
Glinka'sMikhail Ivanovich Glinka , was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition inside his own country, and is often regarded as the father of Russian classical music...
two operas.
Alexander Nikolayevich Serov (Алекса́ндр Никола́евич Серо́в in
CyrillicThe Cyrillic script writing system isan alphabet developed in the First Bulgarian Empire, and used in the Slavic national languages of Russian, Bulgarian, Belarusian, Rusyn, Serbian, Macedonian, and Ukrainian, and in the non-Slavic languages of Moldovan, Kazakh, Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Tuvan, and...
; Aleksandr Nikolaevič Serov in transliteration) – was a
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n
composerA composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...
and
music criticMusic journalism is criticism and reportage about music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as 'classical music'. This aspect of music journalism, today generally classified as music criticism, comprises the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of...
. He and his wife
ValentinaValentina Semyonova Serova was a Russian composer of German-Jewish decent. She studied briefly at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, but left due to a conflict with Anton Rubinstein. She began to study with Alexander Serov who at that time was only known for his writings...
were the parents of painter
Valentin SerovValentin Alexandrovich Serov was a Russian painter, and one of the premier portrait artists of his era.-Youth and education:...
. He was not only one of the most important music critics in Russia during the 1850s and 1860s, but also the most significant Russian composer of
operaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score. Opera is part of the Western classical music tradition. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
in the years between
Dargomyzhsky'sAlexander Sergeyevich Dargomyzhsky was a 19th century Russian composer. He bridged the gap in Russian opera composition between Mikhail Glinka and the later generation of The Five and Tchaikovsky....
RusalkaRusalka is an opera in four acts, six tableaux, by Alexander Dargomyzhsky, composed during 1848-1855. The Russian libretto was adapted by the composer from Pushkin's incomplete dramatic poem of the same name...
and the early operas by
CuiCésar Antonovich Cui was a Russian of French and Lithuanian descent. His profession was as an army officer and a teacher of fortifications; his avocational life has particular significance in the history of music, in that he was a composer and music critic; in this sideline he is known as a...
,
Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov , also Nikolay, Nicolai, and Rimsky-Korsakoff, was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as "The Five." Noted particularly for a predilection for folk and fairy-tale subjects as well as his extraordinary skill in orchestration, his...
,
MussorgskyModest Petrovich Mussorgsky , one of the Russian composers known as the Five, was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
, and Tchaikovsky.
Early in life Serov made friends with
Vladimir StasovVladimir Vasilievich Stasov , son of Russian architect Vasily Petrovich Stasov , was probably the most respected Russian critic during his lifetime...
, but later the two became enemies over the relative values of
Glinka'sMikhail Ivanovich Glinka , was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition inside his own country, and is often regarded as the father of Russian classical music...
two operas. Serov's admiration for
Richard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director and essayist, primarily known for his operas...
likewise did not endear him to The Mighty Handful, especially the younger competing critic
César CuiCésar Antonovich Cui was a Russian of French and Lithuanian descent. His profession was as an army officer and a teacher of fortifications; his avocational life has particular significance in the history of music, in that he was a composer and music critic; in this sideline he is known as a...
, who, like Stasov, had been on better terms with Serov earlier.
Although Serov's operas
JudithJudith , is an opera in five acts, composed by Alexander Serov during 1861-1863. Derived from renditions of the story of Judith from the Old Testament Apocrypha, the Russian libretto, though credited to the composer, has a complicated history . The premiere took place in 1863 in Saint Petersburg...
and
RognedaRogneda is an opera in five acts, composed by Alexander Serov during 1863-1865. The scenario, by the composer, was based on the novel Askold's Grave by Mikhail Nikolaevich Zagoskin and the poem Rogneda by Kondraty Ryleev...
were quite successful in their day, none of his operas are frequently performed today. A CD recording of
Judith (with some cuts) was made in 1991 by the forces of the
Bolshoi TheatreThe Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by the architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and greatest ballet and opera companies of the world, respectively...
under
conductorConducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. Orchestras, choirs, concert bands and other musical ensembles often have conductors.-Nomenclature:...
Andrey Chistiakov.
Operas
- Judith
Judith , is an opera in five acts, composed by Alexander Serov during 1861-1863. Derived from renditions of the story of Judith from the Old Testament Apocrypha, the Russian libretto, though credited to the composer, has a complicated history . The premiere took place in 1863 in Saint Petersburg...
(Юдифь, 1861-1863)
- Rogneda
Rogneda is an opera in five acts, composed by Alexander Serov during 1863-1865. The scenario, by the composer, was based on the novel Askold's Grave by Mikhail Nikolaevich Zagoskin and the poem Rogneda by Kondraty Ryleev...
(Рогнеда, 1863-1865)
- The Power of the Fiend
The Power of the Fiend is an opera in five acts by Alexander Serov, composed during 1867-1871. The libretto is derived from a comedy by Aleksandr Ostrovsky from 1854 entitled Live Not As You Would Like To, But As God Commands. The opera was premiered posthumously on 19 April 1871 at the...
(Вражья сила, 1867-1871)