Alexander Goldenweiser (composer)

Alexander Borisovich Goldenweiser (also spelled Goldenveyzer;^[1] Russian: Алекса́ндр Бори́сович Гольденве́йзер; 10 March [O.S. 26 February] 1875 – 26 November 1961)^[1]^[2] was a Russian and Soviet pianist, teacher and composer.

Goldenweiser was born in Kishinev, Bessarabia, Russia.^[1] In 1889, he was admitted to the Moscow Conservatory in the class of Alexander Siloti (also Ziloti). He graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1895 in the piano class of Pavel Pabst (previously with A.I.Siloti), winning the Gold Medal for Piano, in 1897 – in the composition class of Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov. He also studied composition with Anton Arensky and counterpoint with Sergei Taneyev (1892–1893).

He joined the faculty of the Conservatory shortly afterward, where he worked as the dean, and during his tenure there, his pupils included Grigory Ginzburg, Lazar Berman, Samuil Feinberg, Rosa Tamarkina, Dmitry Kabalevsky, Galina Eguiazarova, Nikolai Kapustin, Alexander Braginsky, Sulamita Aronovsky, Tatiana Nikolayeva, Dmitry Paperno, Nodar Gabunia, Oxana Yablonskaya, Nelly Akopian-Tamarina, Dmitri Bashkirov, Dmitry Blagoy and many others.^[3] See: List of music students by teacher: G to J#Alexander Goldenweiser.

Rachmaninoff's Second Suite, Op. 17, was dedicated to him as well as Medtner's Lyric Fragments, Op. 23.

He was a close friend of Leo Tolstoy.^[4]^[5] He published memories of his relationship with Tolstoy in his book Vblizi Tolstogo.^[6]

He made a number of renowned recordings as a pianist, including four recordings on piano roll for the Welte-Mignon reproducing piano in 1910.^[7] He died in 1961, in Moscow Oblast.

^ ^a ^b ^c Jaffé, Daniel (15 February 2022). Historical Dictionary of Russian Music. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 180. ISBN 978-1-5381-3008-7.
^ I.M. Yampol'sky "Alexander (Borisovich) Goldenweiser" in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians London: Macmillan, 1980
^ "Archived item". Archived from the original on 2005-10-16. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
^ Troyat, Henri. Tolstoy. New York: Grove Press, 2001, p. 606.
^ Smith, Charles D, and Richard J. Howe. The Welte-Mignon: Its Music and Musicians. Vestal, N.Y: Published by Vestal Press for the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association, 1994, p. 375. ISBN 9781879511170
^ Golʹdenveĭzer, Aleksandr B. Vblizi Tolstogo. Moskva: Gos. izd-vo khudozhestvennoĭ literatury, 1959.
^ Smith, Charles D, and Richard J. Howe. The Welte-Mignon: Its Music and Musicians. Vestal, N.Y: Published by Vestal Press for the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association, 1994, p. 375. ISBN 9781879511170

[Jaffé-1] Jaffé, Daniel (15 February 2022). Historical Dictionary of Russian Music. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 180. ISBN 978-1-5381-3008-7.

[2] I.M. Yampol'sky "Alexander (Borisovich) Goldenweiser" in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians London: Macmillan, 1980

[3] "Archived item". Archived from the original on 2005-10-16. Retrieved 2008-03-12.

[4] Troyat, Henri. Tolstoy. New York: Grove Press, 2001, p. 606.

[5] Smith, Charles D, and Richard J. Howe. The Welte-Mignon: Its Music and Musicians. Vestal, N.Y: Published by Vestal Press for the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association, 1994, p. 375. ISBN 9781879511170

[6] Golʹdenveĭzer, Aleksandr B. Vblizi Tolstogo. Moskva: Gos. izd-vo khudozhestvennoĭ literatury, 1959.

[7] Smith, Charles D, and Richard J. Howe. The Welte-Mignon: Its Music and Musicians. Vestal, N.Y: Published by Vestal Press for the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors' Association, 1994, p. 375. ISBN 9781879511170

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