Leonid Desyatnikov

Leonid Arkadievich Desyatnikov (Russian: Леонид Аркадьевич Десятников, born 16 October 1955 in Kharkiv, Ukrainian SSR). He is a graduate of the Leningrad Conservatory and a member of the Composers Union of St. Petersburg. Desyatnikov has written four operas, several cantatas and numerous vocal and instrumental compositions. His principal works include an opera The Children of Rosenthal (Vladimir Sorokin, libretto); ballets Lost Illusions and Opera, a chamber opera Poor Liza after Nikolay Karamzin; Gift, a cantata on poems by Gavriil Derzhavin; Dichterliebe und -leben, a vocal cycle on poems by Daniil Kharms and Nikolay Oleynikov; The Leaden Echo for voice(s) and instruments on the poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins; The Rite of Winter 1949, a symphony for choir, soloists and orchestra; Songs of Bukovina for piano.

Portrait

Life and career

Leonid Desyatnikov was born in 1955 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. He is a graduate of the Leningrad Conservatory, where he studied composition and instrumentation. Desyatnikov has penned four opera, several cantatas and numerous vocal and instrumental compositions. His principal compositions include: The Children of Rosenthal (an opera in two acts; libretto, Vladimir Sorokin), commissioned by the Bolshoi Theatre; Poor Liza (a chamber opera in one act; libretto, Leonid Desyatnikov, after the novel by Nikolai Karamzin); Gift (a cantata based on the verses of Gavrila Derzhavin); The Leaden Echo (a work for voice(s) and instruments based on the poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins); and The Rite of Winter 1949 (a symphony for chorus, soloists and orchestra).

Desyatnikov has been collaborating with Gidon Kremer since 1996 as a composer (Wie der Alte Leiermann...; the chamber version of Sketches to Sunset; Russian Seasons) as well as arranging the works of Astor Piazzolla, including the tango-operita María de Buenos Aires and the tango suite Cuatro estaciones porteñas. Desyatnikov wrote the scores for the films Sunset (1990), Lost in Siberia (1991), Hammer and Sickle (1994), Moscow Nights (Katya Izmailova) (1994), Giselle’s Mania (1995), Prisoner of the Mountains (1996), All That Is Tender (1996), Moscow (2000), His Wife’s Diary (2000) and The Target (2010), "Trompe-loeil" for piano four hands, Aldeburgh (2023, June), "Reflections on the Folk Song" for 19 strings and viola obbligata, Stockholm (2024, August), "Saint Petersburg, Florida", barcarola for two pianos, Padova (2024, September).

Leonid Desyatnikov left St Petersburg in March 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At the present time, he lives in Haifa, Israel.

Awards

Desyatnikov was awarded a Golden Ram prize and the Grand Prix of the IV International Cinema Music festival in Bonn for his score for Moscow and the special prize of the Window to Europe Cinema Festival in Vyborg. In 2006 the opera The Children of Rosenthal received the special jury prize of The Golden Mask National Theatre Award. In 2003 Desyatnikov was awarded the State Prize of Russia.

Works

Desyatnikov is the author of four operas, the symphony The Rite of Winter 1949, vocal cycles to the poems of Rilke and the OBERIU poets, and several instrumental transcriptions of themes by Ástor Piazzolla. The style of his music is defined by the composer himself as "an emancipation of consonance, transformation of banality and 'minimalism' with a human face". His favourite genre is "a tragically naughty bagatelle".

Opera

• Poor Liza (Бедная Лиза) one-act chamber opera, libretto by Leonid Desyatnikov after Nikolai Karamzin (1976; 1980)
• Nobody Wants to Sing or Bravo-bravissimo, Pioneer Anisimov (Никто не хочет петь, или Браво-брависсимо, пионер Анисимов a comic opera for children in two acts, libretto by B. Chaban (1982)
• Vitamin of the Growth (Витамин роста) one-act classical opera for children, for the soloists and piano after the poem by Oleg Grigoriev (1985)
• The Children of Rosenthal (Дети Розенталя) opera in two acts, libretto by Vladimir Sorokin. Commissioned by the Bolshoi Theatre, premiere March 23, 2005

Chamber music

• Variations on the Obtaining of a Dwelling for violoncello and piano.
• Wie der alte Leiermann for violin and piano
• Du côté de chez Swan for two pianos
• Sketches to Sunset, quintet for flute, clarinet, violin, double bass and piano
• Return for oboe, clarinet, two violins, viola, cello and tape

Other genres

• Gift (Dar), after Gavrila Derzhavin
• Dichterliebe und -leben, a vocal cycle to the poems by Daniil Kharms and Nikolay Oleynikov
• The Leaden Echo, for voice(s) and instruments after Gerard Manley Hopkins,
• Russian Seasons for voice, solo violin and strings

Music for symphony orchestra

• The Rite of Winter 1949, a symphony for chorus, soloists and orchestra.
• Sketches to Sunset for orchestra

Ballet

• Lost Illusions

Film music

• Sunset ("Закат", Zeldovich, 1990)
• Lost in Siberia ("Затерянный в Сибири", 1991, Mitta)
• Katia Izmailova (Moscow nights) ("Подмосковные вечера", Todorovsky, 1994)
• Hammer and Sickle ("Серп и молот", Livnev, 1994)
• Giselle's Mania ("Мания Жизели", Uchitel, 1995)
• The Prisoner of the Mountains ("Кавказский пленник", Bodrov, 1996)
• Whoever Softer ("Тот, кто нежнее", Karpykov, 1996)
• His Wife's Diary (Uchitel, 2000)
• Moscow ("Москва", Zeldovich, 2000)
• Tycoon ("Олигарх", Loungine, 2002)
• Dreaming of Space ("Космос как предчувствие", Uchitel, 2005)
• Captive ("Пленный", Uchitel, 2008)
• Target ("Мишень", Zeldovich, 2011)
• Van Goghs ("Ван Гоги", Livnev, 2019)

External links

• Portrait CD on Quartz
• Two Mozarts
• Review
• Scandal in Bolshoi
• Loyal children
• Not art, but pathology
• The rest is noise
• Autobiography, works, publications (in Russian)
• Interview 2003 (in Russian)
• Interview 2004 (in Russian)
• Interview 2005 (in Russian)
• Leonid Desyatnikov at IMDb