Composer Profile - Activefolio

The Late Romantic Period 111
countries throughout Europe, nationalistic composers proudly displayed the musical
traits of their homelands by incorporating them into their own works.
In Russia, the influence of nationalism literally vaulted their music into the world
spotlight. The Russian Five (see description below) dedicated themselves to the promotion
of Russian nationalism, in contrast to Tchaikovsky, who seemed to embrace the
“Germanic” traditions of symphonies and concertos. Ironically, Tchaikovsky composed
three works which helped Russian nationalism as much as anything that the Russian Five
produced: the symphonic poem Marche Slav, his famous 1812 Overture, which
Tchaikovsky didn’t particularly like, and his second symphony, subtitled The Little Russian.
Both works contain either direct quotes of Russian folk music, or at least approximate
the style and flavor of Russian culture.
Composer Profiles
The Russian Five (or the Mighty Handful)
The Russian Five were brought together because of their common passion
for Russian nationalism. They were Cesar Cui (1835–1918), Nikolai Rimsky-
Korsakov (1844–1908), Alexander Borodin (1833–1887), Modest Mussorgsky
(1839–1881) and Mily Balakirev (1837–1910). Together they had meetings, discussed
music, and encouraged each other. Not all of them were well-trained
musicians, with only Balakirev having formal music training. Borodin was a chemist,
Mussorgsky a civil servant clerk, Rimsky-Korsakov enlisted for a short navy
career but later became a composition professor and conductor. In fact, Rimsky-
Korsakov became such an accomplished orchestrator that he published a text
on the subject that is still in print today. Their music had an enormous impact
upon the world’s recognition of Russian and Slavic culture. Many, if not most, of
their works related directly to some aspect of Russian folklore or history. Some
of the works of the Russian Five are still very popular today, including the
Polovtsian Dances by Borodin, Pictures at an Exhibition, Night on Bald Mountain and
the opera Boris Godunov by Mussorgsky, and Capriccio Espagñol, Russian Easter
Overture and Sheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov.
In Norway, Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) quickly put his homeland on the map with
nationalistic works like his Lyric Pieces for piano, and his setting of Ibsen’s play Peer
Gynt. In Spain, Isaac Albeniz (1860–1909) and Enrique Granados (1867–1916) composed
works with a Spanish flavor, including Granados’ Danzas Espanolas, and Albeniz’s
Iberia and Cordoba. In Bohemia, Bedrich Smetana (1824–1884) immortalized the landscape
with his six-poem set entitled Ma Vlast. Included in this set was the famous symphonic
poem Die Moldau, which programmatically traced the mighty river from its
source through the country. Smetana’s light-hearted opera, The Bartered Bride, paints a
somewhat sentimental picture of Bohemian peasant life. Antonin Dvorak (1841–1904),
also a Bohemian, composed Slavonic Dances for orchestra and spoke passionately around
the world about the need for nationalism in music.