Rodion Shchedrin | |
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| Родион Щедрин | |
_02_(cropped).jpg) Shchedrin in 2017 | |
| Born | (1932-12-16)16 December 1932 Moscow,Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Died | 29 August 2025(2025-08-29) (aged 92) Munich, Bavaria, Germany |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, pianist and music pedagogue |
| Works | List of compositions |
| Spouse | |
| Awards | |
Rodion Konstantinovich Shchedrin (Russian:Родион Константинович Щедрин,IPA:[rədʲɪˈonkənstɐnʲˈtʲinəvʲɪtɕɕːɪˈdrʲin]; 16 December 1932 – 29 August 2025) was a Soviet and Russian composer, pianist, and music teacher. He wrote in a wide range of genres, including operas such asLolita andThe Left-Hander, and ballets such as theCarmen Suite, created for his wife, the ballerinaMaya Plisetskaya of theBolshoi Theatre. His orchestral works includes five concertos for orchestra and six piano concertos, in which he often appeared as soloist. He also composed vocal works such asThe Sealed Angel, as well aschamber music and film scores, includingAnna Karenina. His works have been widely performed and commissioned internationally, particularly in the United States and Western Europe. Shchedrin is regarded as one of the leading composers of the late Soviet period and an important figure in Russian contemporary music in the decades that followed.[1]
Shchedrin was born in Moscow on 16 December 1932, into a musical family: his father was a composer and teacher ofmusic theory,[2] and his grandfather was an Orthodox priest. He was exposed to spiritual independence and critical awareness at an early age.[3] He studied at theMoscow Choral School andMoscow Conservatory, where he studied composition withYuri Shaporin and piano withYakov Flier, graduating in 1955.[2]
Shchedrin's early works aretonal and colourfully orchestrated, often incorporating elements of folk music, while some of his later compositions employedaleatoric andserial techniques.[4] An accomplished pianist and organist, he performed the solo part of his First Piano Concerto in 1954, while still a student, withGennady Rozhdestvensky conducting.[1] The concerto draws on Russian folklore, combining empathy with ironic detachment.[3] Although a capable performer, he decided early to focus primarily on composition.[1] Among his early works was the balletThe Little Humpbacked Horse, premiered in 1955.
In 1958 Shchedrin married the ballerina Maya Plisetskaya, who later became prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Theatre, and they remained together until her death in 2015.[5][2] Many of his ballets were written with her in mind, includingCarmen Suite (1967),Anna Karenina (1971, based on Tolstoy'snovel), andLady with a Lapdog (1985, afterChekhov's short story).[3][5] The couple were prominent figures in the cultural life of the Soviet Union, although both were closely monitored by theKGB.[5]
Shchedrin composed his First Symphony in 1958, characterized by "movements in the wrong order" and a tone of "wildness and aggression". His Second Symphony, written between 1962 and 1965, is structured as 25 overlapping preludes, including a double fugue and canon. In 1963 he completed his firstConcerto for Orchestra, a single-movement work in which monothematic material is combined with other motifs and variations. SubtitledNaughty Limericks (Osorniye chastushki), the piece achieved success with both audiences and critics, and was later choreographed byGeorge Balanchine.[3] Between 1964 and 1970 Shchedrin composed a cycle of 24 Preludes and Fugues after he heard those ofDmitri Shostakovich, in turn inspired bythose of J. S. Bach. He followed this with thePolyphonic Notebook, a collection of 25 piano preludes written in 1972 as homages to earlier music.[3]
Shchedrin taught at theMoscow Conservatory from 1965 to 1969.[1] In his Second Piano Concerto he experimented withTwelve-tone techniques and incorporated elements of jazz. In 1967 he toured Europe with theLeningrad Philharmonic underYevgeny Mravinsky, performing the work.[3] The following yearLeonard Bernstein commissioned his Second Concerto for Orchestra, subtitledZvony (The Chimes), for the 125th anniversary of theNew York Philharmonic. The music evokes the sounds of traditional Russian bells, though without nostalgic intent.[3]
In 1968 Shchedrin refused to sign an open letter approving the invasion ofCzechoslovakia byWarsaw Pact.[6] He became president of theUnion of Russian Composers in 1973, succeeding Shostakovich[5][6] who had suggested him for the post.[7] Shchedrin's third Concerto for Orchestra is based on music of Russian provincial circuses. It was premiered in 1989 by theChicago Symphony Orchestra conducted byLorin Maazel.[1] The fourth,Khorovody (Round Dances), was written in 1989, and the fifth,Four Russian Songs, was composed in 1998. He used the "phenomenon of notatedaleatorics" in his Third Piano Concerto, in 33variations with a theme at the end. He premiered it on 5 May 1974, playing his earlier concertos the same night, which caused a sensation.[3] The performance with theUSSR Symphony Orchestra conducted byYevgeny Svetlanov was recorded and released on LP and later on CD. Shchedrin wrote his Fourth Piano Concerto in 1991, commissioned bySteinway for the centenary of the company's founding. It is subtitled "sharp keys", and the composer used only sharp keys as his "kind of musical minimalism" but with "timbral effects and thematic variety", as the musicologistSigrid Neef noted.[3]
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Shchedrin was made a member of theBerlin Academy of Arts in 1989. He worked towards the transformation of the Soviet Union as a member of theInter-regional Deputies Group, an opposition party inspired byAndrei Sakharov. Following thecollapse of the Soviet Union, Shchedrin took advantage of the new opportunities for international travel and musical collaboration, and largely divided his time between Munich and Moscow.[1] He was also a citizen ofLithuania[8] and Spain.[9] He was regarded as one of the leaders of Russian new music during the following decades, while also building a significant reputation in the United States and Western Europe.[1]
Shchedrin's concert operaThe Enchanted Wanderer was commissioned byLorin Maazel for theNew York Philharmonic; the composer based his libretto on a story byNikolai Leskov. It was premiered in New York 2002.[10] A festival of Shchedrin's music was given in Moscow that year on the occasion of his 70th birthday. In June 2008, Shchedrin Days took place in Armenia with the participation of Shchedrin and Maya Plisetskaya as honorary guests.[11] He was invited to the 2009Rheingau Musik Festival byWalter Fink, as the 19th composer to be featured in the annualKomponistenporträt.[12] He and his wife attended the concerts which included his Russian liturgyThe Sealed Angel for choir and flute, performed inEberbach Abbey. His chamber music includedAncient Melodies of Russian Folk Songs (2007) with the cellistRaphael Wallfisch and himself at the piano, and the song cycleMeine Zeit, mein Raubtier (My Age, my Wild Beast) with tenorKenneth Tarver and pianistRoland Pöntinen who played it also at theVerbier Festival.[13] His Double Concerto "Romantic Offering" for piano, cello and orchestra was premiered on 9 February 2011 byMartha Argerich andMischa Maisky with theLuzerner Sinfonieorchester conducted byNeeme Järvi.[14] The premiere of a German version of his operaLolita was performed as the opening night of theInternationale Maifestspiele Wiesbaden in a production of theHessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden in 2011.[15] His dramatic sceneCleopatra i zmeja (Cleopatra and the Serpent) for soprano and orchestra, commissioned by theSalzburg Whitsun Festival, was premiered byMojca Erdmann and theMariinsky Theatre Orchestra, conducted byValery Gergiev, on 28 May 2012.[16]
Shchedrin died in Munich on 29 August 2025, at the age of 92.[1][4][17]
Shchedrin composed in many genres: stage works, including operas such asNot Love Alone (1961) andDead Souls (1976, afterNikolai Gogol's novel); ballets; incidental music;[1] orchestral works, including symphonies, concertos for orchestra, and concertos for solo instruments (often piano); chamber music; solo piano works; vocal music for soloists and choirs; arrangements; and film scores.[2][18][19]
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