Schnittke Alfred Schnittke

Alfred Garrievich Schnittke (Russian: Альфре́д Га́рриевич Шни́тке, Alfred Garrievich Shnitke; November 24, 1934 – August 3, 1998) was a Soviet and German composer. Schnittke's early music shows the strong influence of Dmitri Shostakovich. He developed a polystylistic technique in works such as the epic Symphony No. 1 (1969–1972) and his first concerto grosso (1977). In the 1980s, Schnittke's music began to become more widely known abroad with the publication of his second (1980) and third (1983) string quartets and the String Trio (1985); the ballet Peer Gynt (1985–1987); the third (1981), fourth (1984), and fifth (1988) symphonies; and the viola (1985) and first cello (1985–1986) concertos. As his health deteriorated, Schnittke's music started to abandon much of the extroversion of his polystylism and retreated into a more withdrawn, bleak style.

Selected works

Orchestra

Symphonies

• Symphony No. 0 (1957)
• Symphony No. 1 (1969–74)
• Symphony No. 2 "St. Florian" (1979)
• Symphony No. 3 (1981)
• Symphony No. 4 (1983)
• Symphony No. 5 [Concerto Grosso No. 4] (1988)
• Symphony No. 6 (1992)
• Symphony No. 7 (1993)
• Symphony No. 8 (1994)
• Symphony No. 9 (1996–97; reconstructed by Alexander Raskatov)

Other orchestral

• Pianissimo (1968)
• In Memoriam... (1977–78) (orchestral version of the Piano Quintet)
• Passacaglia (1979–80)
• Gogol Suite [Suite from 'The Census List'] (1980)
• Ritual (1984–85)
• (K)ein Sommernachtstraum (1985)
• Symphonic Prelude (1994)
• For Liverpool (1994)

Concertante works

Violin and orchestra

• Concerto No. 1 for Violin and Orchestra (1957, revised 1963)
• Concerto No. 2 for Violin and Chamber Orchestra (1966)
• Concerto No. 3 for Violin and Chamber Orchestra (1978)
• Concerto No. 4 for Violin and Orchestra (1984)

Piano and orchestra

• Poème for Piano and Orchestra (1953)
• Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (1960) (1. Allegro; 2. Andante; 3. Allegro)
• Music for Piano and Chamber Orchestra (1964) (1. Variazioni; 2. Cantus firmus; 3. Cadenza; 4. Basso ostinato)
• Concerto for Piano and String Orchestra (1979)
• Concerto for Piano four hands and Chamber Orchestra (1988) "to Viktoria Postnikova and Irina Schnittke"

Cello and orchestra

• Concerto No. 1 for cello and Orchestra (1985/1986) (1. Pesante: Moderato; 2. Largo; 3. Allegro vivace; 4. Largo)
• Concerto No. 2 for cello and Orchestra (1990) "to M.Rostropovich" (1. Moderato – 2. Allegro – 3. Lento – 4. Allegretto vivo – 5. Grave)

Viola and orchestra

• Concerto for viola and orchestra (1985)
• Monologue for viola and strings (1989)
• Concerto for viola and small orchestra (1997)

Other instruments and orchestra

• Accordion Concerto (1949), lost work
• Double Concerto for oboe, harp, and string orchestra (1971) "to Heinz Holliger, Ursula Holliger and the Zagreb Soloists" (Lento)
• Concerto Grosso No. 1 for two violins, prepared piano, harpsichord and 21 strings (1977) (1. Preludio – 2. Toccata – 3. Recitativo – 4. Cadenza – 5. Rondò – 6. Postludio)
• Concerto Grosso No. 1 for flute, oboe, harpsichord, prepared piano and string orchestra (1988 version)
• Concerto Grosso No. 2 for violin, cello and triple symphony orchestra (1981–1982) (1. Andantino-Allegro; 2. Pesante; 3. Allegro; 4. Andantino)
• Concerto Grosso No. 3 for two violins, harpsichord, celesta, piano and 14 strings (1985) (1. Allegro; 2. Risoluto; 3. Pesante; 4. Adagio; 5. Moderato)
• Concerto Grosso No. 4 [Symphony No. 5], for violin, oboe, harpsichord and orchestra (1988) (First movement in Schnittke's Symphony No. 5)
• Concerto Grosso No. 5 for violin, [offstage] piano and orchestra (1990–1991) (1. Allegretto; 2. (without tempo indication); 3. Allegro vivace)
• Triple Concerto for violin, viola, cello and string orchestra "Concerto for Three" (1994) (1. Moderato; 2. Larghetto; 3. Largo; 4. Minuet)
• Concerto Grosso No. 6 for piano, violin and string orchestra (1993) (1. Andante – Allegro; 2. Adagio; 3. Allegro vivace)
• "Five Fragments to Pictures of Hieronymus Bosch" for tenor, violin, trombone, harpsichord, timpani and string orchestra (1994) (On texts by Aeschylus) "to Vladimir Spivakov" (1. Lento; 2. Moderato; 3. Andantino; 4. Agitato; 5. Senza tempo)
• Moz-Art à la Haydn for two violins and string orchestra (1977)

Choral music

• Nagasaki – oratorio (1958)
• Voices of Nature (1972)
• Requiem (1974–75)
• Minnesang, for 52 voices (1981)
• Seid Nüchtern und Wachet... [Faust Cantata] (1983)
• Three Sacred Hymns (1983–84)
• Concerto for Mixed Chorus (1984–85)
• Psalms of Repentance / Penitential Psalms (1988)

Chamber music

• Sonata No. 1 for violin and piano (1963; orchestrated, 1968) ^{[note 1]}
• Dialogue, for violoncello and 7 instruments (1965)
• String Quartet No. 1 (1966)
• Serenade for violin, clarinet, double-bass, piano and percussion (1968)
• Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano "Quasi una Sonata" (1968; orchestrated, 1987)
• Canon in Memoriam Igor Stravinsky, for string quartet (1971)
• Suite in the Old Style, for violin and piano or harpsichord (1972)
• Gratulationsrondo, for violin and piano (1973)
• Hymn I for cello, harp and timpani (1974)
• Hymn II for cello and double-bass (1974)
• Hymn III for cello, bassoon, harpsichord and bells or timpani (1974)
• Hymn IV for cello, bassoon, double-bass, harpsichord, harp, timpani and bells (1974–1979)
• Prelude in Memoriam Dmitri Shostakovich, for 2 violins (1975)
• "Cantus Perpetuus" for keyboard instrument and percussion (1975)
• Quintet for piano and strings (1972–76)
• "Stille Nacht", arr. for violin and piano (1978)
• Sonata No. 1 for violoncello and piano (1978)
• Stille Musik, for violin and violoncello (1979)
• Hommage to Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, for piano six hands (1979)
• String Quartet No. 2 (1981)
• Septet for flute, two clarinets, violin, viola, cello and harpsichord or organ (1981–1982) (1. Introduction. Moderato; 2. Perpetuum mobile. Allegretto; 3. Choral. Moderato)
• "Course of life" ("Lebenslauf") for four metronomes, piano and three percussionists (1982) "to Wilfried Brennecke (de) and John Cage"

• String Quartet No. 3 (1983)
• Sound and Echo (Schall und Hall), for trombone and organ (1983)
• String Trio (1985, also arranged as Piano Trio, 1992) – shares a theme with the Cello Concerto No. 1 from 1986
• String Quartet No. 4 (1989)
• Madrigal in Memoriam Oleg Kagan, for solo violin or violoncello (1990)
• Musica nostalgica, for violoncello and piano (1992)
• Peer Gynt: Epiloque, for violoncello, piano and tape (1993)
• Sonata No. 2 for violoncello and piano (1994)
• Sonata No. 3 for violin and piano (1994)

Solo instrumental

• Fuga for solo violin (1953)
• Six Preludes, for piano (1953–1954)
• Variations for piano (1954–1955)
• Improvisation and Fugue, for piano (1965) (1. Lento; 2. Vivo)
• Variations on one chord, for piano (1965)
• "Potok" ("Stream"), electronic composition (1969)
• Eight Pieces, for piano (1971) Dedicated to his son Andrei (1. Folk Song – Andantino; 2. In the Mountains – Moderato; 3. Cuckoo and Woodpecker – Vivo; 4. Melody – Andante; 5. Tale – Lento; 6. Play – Allegro; 7. Children's Piece – Andantino; 8. March – Allegretto)
• Cadenza to Mozart's Piano Concerto in C minor, K. 491 (first movement) (1975)
• Two Cadenzas to Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61, for solo violin, 10 violins and timpani (1975–1977)
• In Memoriam Igor Strawinsky, Sergei Prokofiev and Dmitri Shostakovich for piano six hands (1979) (Based on "Chinese March" from The Nightingale, Humoresque Scherzo and Polka from The Golden Age.)
• Two Short Pieces, for organ (1980)
• Cadenzas to Mozart's Piano Concerto in C K467 (first and second movements) (1980)
• A Paganini, for solo violin (1982)
• Cadenza to Mozart's Piano Concerto in C major KV 503 (first movement) (1983)
• Two Cadenzas to Mozart's Bassoon Concerto in B flat major KV 191 (1983)
• Piano Sonata No. 1 (1987–88)
• Klingende Buchstaben, for solo cello (1988)
• Madrigal in Memoriam Oleg Kagan, first version for violin solo (1990)
• Madrigal in Memoriam Oleg Kagan, second version for cello solo (1990)
• Three Fragments, for harpsichord (1990) (1. Andante; 2. Vivo; 3. Lento)
• Five Aphorisms, for piano (1990)
• Piano Sonata No. 2 (1990)
• Cadenzas to Mozart's Piano Concerto in B flat major KV 39 (first and third movements) (1990)
• For the 90th Birthday of Alfred Schlee, for viola solo (1991)
• Piano Sonata No. 3 (1992)
• Improvisation, for solo cello (1993)
• Sonatina for piano four hands (1995) (Allegro moderato – one movement)

Operas

• Life with an Idiot, opera in 2 acts, libretto by Viktor Yerofeyev (1992)
• Historia von D. Johann Fausten, opera in 3 acts and an epilogue, libretto by Jörg Morgener (Jürgen Köchel) and Alfred Schnittke (1991–1994)
• Gesualdo, opera in 7 tableaux, a prologue and an epilogue, libretto by Richard Bletschacher (1993)

Ballets

• Labyrinths, ballet in five episodes. Libretto by Vladimir Vasilyev. (1971)
• Der Gelbe Klang (The Yellow Sound), ballet suite. Libretto by Wassily Kandinsky. (1973)
• Sketches, ballet in one act. “Choerographic fantasia” by Andrey Petrov after the themes by Nikolai Gogol. (1985)
• Peer Gynt, ballet in three acts by John Neumeier based on Henrik Ibsen’s drama (1988)

Soundtracks

• Adventures of a Dentist, film directed by Elem Klimov (1965, material reused in Suite in the Old Style and Symphony No. 1)
• Commissar, film directed by Aleksandr Askoldov (1967, released 1988), based on one of Vasily Grossman's first short stories, "In the Town of Berdichev"
• The Glass Harmonica, animated film directed by Andrei Khrzhanovsky (1968, much material reused in Second Violin Sonata)
• Seagull, film directed by Youli Karassik (1970)
• Belorussian station, film directed by Andrei Smirnov (1970)
• Sport, Sport, Sport, film directed by Elem Klimov (1971)
• You and I, film directed by Larisa Shepitko (1971)
• Butterfly, animated film directed by Andrei Khrzhanovsky (1973)
• My Past and Thoughts, TV Movie (1973)
• Agony, two-part film directed by Elem Klimov (1974, main theme reused in the finale of the Second Cello Concerto)
• Clowns and Children (Clowns und Kinder), short film directed by Alexander Mitta (1976)
• The Ascent, film directed by Larisa Shepitko (1977)
• The Story of an Unknown Actor, film directed by Aleksandr Zarkhi (1977)
• Little Tragedies, three-part TV film directed by Mikhail Schweitzer (1979)
• Ekipazh (Air Crew), film directed by Alexander Mitta (1979)
• Skazka Stranstviy (The Story of Voyages, also known as The Fairytale of the Wanderings), film directed by Alexander Mitta (1982)
• Dead Souls, five-part TV miniseries directed by Mikhail Shveytser (1984)
• The Last Days of St. Petersburg (1992, new score for 1927 film, co-written with the composer's son Andrey)
• The Master and Margarita, film directed by Yuri Kara (1994)