Academic literature on the topic 'Jazz and Russia; Nikolai Kapustin'

The early 20th century witnessed growing interest in the Baroque polyphony genres: prelude and fugue in jazz. Preludes and fugues op. 82 (1997) by the Russian composer Nikolai Kapustin are particularly interesting. The way he integrates the expression of classical music and the specificity of jazz music is very original.

Music Performance<br>D.M.A.<br>The music of the Russian-Ukrainian composer Nikolai Kapustin is a fascinating synthesis of jazz and classical idioms. Kapustin has explored many existing traditional classical forms in conjunction with jazz. Among his works are: 20 piano sonatas, Suite in the Old Style, Op.28, preludes, etudes, variations, and six piano concerti. The most significant work in this regard is a cycle of 24 Preludes and Fugues, Op. 82, which was completed in 1997. He has also written numerous works for different instrumental ensembles and for orchestra. Well-known artists, such as Steven Osborn and Marc-Andre Hamelin have made a great contribution by recording Kapustin's music with Hyperion, one of the major recording companies. Being a brilliant pianist himself, Nikolai Kapustin has also released numerous recordings of his own music. Nikolai Kapustin was born in 1937 in Ukraine. He started his musical career as a classical pianist. In 1961 he graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, studying with the legendary pedagogue, Professor of Moscow Conservatory Alexander Goldenweiser, one of the greatest founders of the Russian piano school. During his student years (1956 -1961) Kapustin gained popularity as an actively performing jazz pianist. After graduating from the Moscow conservatory, Kapustin joined the famous Oleg Lundstrem Jazz orchestra, which by that time was considered a leading jazz ensemble of Soviet Russia. In the beginning of the 1980's Kapustin focused entirely on composition, when his original style had flourished. The jazz language of Kapustin is a kaleidoscope of styles of the greatest twentieth century jazz composers. Almost every article describing his jazz style mentions the influences of great jazz musicians: Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, and George Gershwin. In my study I am going to take a closer look at how strong those influences are, as well as how Kapustin internalized many different jazz styles and created his own style. Kapustin's style bears qualities that belong to the Soviet jazz of 1950s and 1960s. In the second chapter detailed information will be presented about jazz tradition in Russia. This monograph concentrates on Variations, Op.41 and two Concert Etudes (# 3 and # 4) from Eight Concert Etudes, Op 40, composed in 1984. The Variations, Op.41 demonstrate the richness of Kapustin's style and his dazzling talent. These variations are based on a short Russian-Lithuanian folk theme or motive. The same motive is found in the opening of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring." Kapustin has transformed an original meditative theme into swing.The analysis of Variation, Op.41 will be followed by the analysis of two etudes (No. 3 & 4) from Eight Concert Etudes, Op.40. The Eight Concert Etudes Op.40 are not only pieces of remarkable technical difficulty, but also pieces of unique beauty and invention with romantic flair. The influence of Russian composers can be seen, including that of Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Prokofiev. My research on these works will provide a thorough representation of Kapustin as a composer and a pianist; the overview of Nikolai Kapustin's piano works; his contribution to the piano repertoire, and composer's unique place in music history. The monograph will also include comparison of two recordings by Nikolai Kapustin and Marc-Andre Hamelin along with pedagogical recommendations.<br>Temple University--Theses

Nikolai Kapustin was born in 1937 and has been active as a composer since the late 1950s, though he has only become relatively well known in the West since around 2000. Despite the fact that he has spent his whole life in Russia, Kapustin was strongly influenced by American jazz and his compositional style has always been a combination of the formal elements of classical music and the stylistic elements of jazz. Critics have all commented on Kapustin's astute blend of classical form and jazz style, mentioning the influence of Russian composers Rachmaninov and Scriabin, while also noting echoes of Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson, and Chick Corea. The Twenty-Four Preludes, Op. 53 were published in 1988 and follow the key sequence set forth by the Chopin Preludes, Op. 28. These preludes are as virtuosic and ambitious as those of Chopin, Scriabin, and Rachmaninov.A close examination of the score of the Twenty-Four Preludes, Op. 53 reveals that Kapustin uses several methods of thematic organization, including variations of scoring, thematic transformation, and spinning out the germ of an idea in a more improvisatory way and that these techniques can be traced directly to the music of Rachmaninov, Scriabin, Liszt, and Beethoven. There are examples of ternary, rondo, and monothematic forms, and the ternary Preludes in particular contain elements similar to sonata-allegro form. Kapustin's musical language is infused with the harmonic and rhythmic elements of jazz, with ample use of added note chords in sophisticated voicings. The echoes of various jazz artists are represented by his skilled use of pianistic techniques like stride and walking bass along with a broad range of harmonic and rhythmic devices that span the stylistic range from Swing and Novelty piano, to Bebop and contemporary Jazz-rock. Though he is clearly familiar with standard jazz harmonic devices, he uses them sparingly, preferring instead to use modulation and developmental models that are grounded in classical music practice. From modern jazz, he takes quartal, pentatonic, and diminished harmony, along with highly chromatic two-voiced textures similar to those used by jazz artists from the 1960s onward, particularly Miles Davis.

<p> The subject of this dissertation is the contemporary Russian composer and pianist Nikolai Kapustin. Being himself a virtuoso pianist, Kapustin has written a large repertoire for solo piano. During the last fifteen years, the popularity of Kapustin in the United States has grown enormously through performances, publications, presentations, and recordings. Kapustin's output has over 150 opus numbers in all major forms of Baroque, Classical and Romantic music, such as suite, invention, preludes and fugues, variations, sonata, concerto, and more. </p><p> Kapustin's style fuses the classical approach to form and the jazz approach to harmony and rhythm in a very unique way. His compositional style is strongly influenced by American jazz, particularly the style of Oscar Peterson, Art Tatum, Herbie Hancock, and Bill Evans. From the other side, his music is strongly influenced by composers of Classical music such as Alexander Scriabin, Sergei Rachmaninov, Frederick Chopin, Maurice Ravel, and Bela Bartok. </p><p> Kapustin composed twenty Piano Sonatas during the period of 1984-2011. There has been little research to this point regarding the music of Kapustin and no formal research has been completed concerning Piano Sonata No. 3. This sonata is the particular scope of this dissertation, as nearly every aspect of Kapustin's compositional style can be found in this work. </p><p> Sonata No. 3 was composed in 1990 and was published in August 2014. The Sonata is a one-movement work and it contains a quote of the "Dies Irae" theme, which sets this work apart from his other sonatas. </p><p> This dissertation will provide biographical information on Nikolai Kapustin, historical and musical background, and will include an analysis of Piano Sonata No. 3. </p><p> Fortunately, the author speaks the Russian language and had opportunities to meet with Nikolai Kapustin. The information obtained in personal interviews with the composer will also be presented. </p><p> Hopefully, this dissertation will promote further research, performance, and understanding of the music of one of the most outstanding modern day composers, Nikolai Grigorievich Kapustin.</p>