Liadov - Kikomora

Not every classical composer excelled in larger forms. Composers such as Chopin, who did write a few works for piano and orchestra and a handful of piano sonatas, is best remembered for his works in the smaller form of the prelude, etude and other shorter works for the piano. That is not a criticism to be sure. It isn't the length of a composition that determines its value, it is whether the composer can move us with their craftsmanship, inspiration and quality of their work.

Anatoly Liadov was a composer that hardly wrote a single work in the larger forms for piano or orchestra. Practically his entire output consisted of miniatures for the piano or orchestra. The reasons for this have been posited by many. Some blamed his natural indolence, or his exceedingly self-critical nature, or perhaps his lack of self-confidence. It could have been that his mind worked best in the smaller forms. No one really knows. All we have is the compositions, some of them well-crafted jewels.  

Liadov took much of his inspiration from Russian folk tales and folk songs. He wrote three short symphonic poems with one, The Enchanted Lake, created in his own imagination and the other two, Baba Yaga and Kikomora, based on Slavic folk tales. The music for the tone poem was based on music originally written for an opera in 1879 that Liadov never finished. He turned this music into the tone poem in 1909.

As with most folk tales, the Kikomora shows differences by region and cultures.  The Polish version of a Kikomora (taken from the website Polish Supernatural Spirits):

Kikomora

A female house spirit that is sometimes said to be married to the Domowije. She usually lives behind the stove or in the cellar. She will look after the chickens and the housework if the home is well kept. If not, she will tickle, whistle, and whine at the children at night. She comes out at night to spin; if she appears spinning to someone it is said that person will die. To appease an angry Kikimora it is said one should wash all the pots and pans in a fern tea. She is said to look like an average woman with her hair down (Slavic women kept their heads covered).

Liadov said this about the Kikomora in his tone poem: 

She grows up with a magician in the mountains. From dawn to sunset the magician’s cat regales Kikimora with fantastic tales of ancient times and faraway places, as Kikimora rocks in a cradle made of crystal. It takes her seven years to reach maturity, by which time her head is no larger than a thimble and her body no wider than a strand of straw. Kikimora spins flax from dusk and to dawn, with evil intentions for the world.

The tone poem is in two sections, the first section is slow and mysterious and reflects the magical upbringing of Kikomora. The second section is faster and works up to a climax, presumably the Kikomora doing her malicious deeds to the members of the household she's invaded.  At the end, the music grows quiet and the Kikomora slinks away.

Liadov - The Enchanted Lake, A Fairy Tale Scene

Anatoly Liadov was a supremely gifted musician and composer that lacked the inner drive to write music equal to his potential. It wasn't that he was exactly lazy. He was kept busy as a teacher at the St. Petersburg Conservatory (one of his students was the young Prokofiev), a conductor that premiered Scriabin's first two symphonies, an editor that along with Rimsky-Korsakov edited the music of Glinka for publication, and an admired pianist.

His father was chief conductor of the Imperial opera Company, his grandfather was also a conductor. with many other family members involved in music, ballet and theater, so at a very early age Liadov was exposed to the late night gatherings frequented by musicians and actors. This upbringing probably contributed to his unreliability and a certain lack of inner drive.

Liadov was a conservative, very precise, meticulous composer who paid an extraordinary amount of attention to detail. This trait may have also contributed to his meager compositional output, especially with works for orchestra. His talent was more suitable for miniature pieces for piano.  But there were exceptions.

After Liadov married into money in 1884, his compositions got even fewer in number but it was after his marriage that he wrote three miniature tone poems for full orchestra, some of his finest works in any genre. Baba Yaga and Kikomora are based on folktales, while The Enchanted Lake has no direct inspiration besides Liadov's imagination. He called it a Fairy Tale Scene and described it to a friend:

“How picturesque it is, how clear, the multitude of stars hovering over the mysteries of the deep. But above all no entreaties and no complaints; only nature -  cold, malevolent, and fantastic as a fairy tale. One has to feel the change of the colors, the chiaroscuro, the incessantly changeable stillness and seeming immobility.”

The work is scored for a large orchestra minus trumpets and trombones. It is pure mood painting and conveys a sense of mystery that pleased the composer very much. of all his compositions, it was his favorite. The piece lasts under eight minutes, and contains some of the most beautiful music ever written .

Liadov - Baba Yaga

In Slavic folklore, Baba Yaga is a supernatural being that takes the form of an old woman that lives deep in the forest. She lives in a hut that stands on the huge legs of a chicken. She flits about the wilderness while sitting in a mortar and moving herself with a pestle. She's not strictly an evil entity as she can give assistance as well as evil to those who seek her out.  The folklore for the figure varies according to the area. The Russian Baba Yaga folklore has inspired Russian artists as well as musicians. Two Russian composers that wrote works based on the legend were Mussorgsky, who wrote one of the pieces in his Pictures From An Exhibition called The Hut On Fowl Legs,  and the piece discussed here by Anatoly Liadov. 

Liadov came from a family of musicians, and entered the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1870 to study violin and piano. He was a very good pianist, but his lack of drive began early as he was expelled from Rimsky-Korsakov's class for extensive absenteeism. He managed to get back into good graces to complete his studies and began teaching at the conservatory in 1878 and taught many young composers including Modest Mussorgsky and Sergei Prokofiev. 

Liadov was well regarded as a composer in his lifetime. Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky and Stravinsky all thought much of his technical abilities, but Liadov's output as a composer was relatively small thanks to lack of ambition and perhaps a lack of self confidence. He finished no composition of any major length, but was a master of the miniature, whether he was writing for piano or orchestra. He married into money in 1884, which meant that between that and his teaching position he was hardly in need of money, no doubt another stumbling block to his composing career. 

Baba Yaga was written between the years 1891 - 1904 and the piece shows Liadov's flair for orchestral color.  In a piece that lasts under four minutes, Liadov manages to paint a picture of Russian forests and folklore, a tone poem in miniature.

Liadov - Eight Russian Folksongs

Anatoly Liadov (1855 - 1914) was a Russian composer and pianist who was born into a musical family, as his father was a conductor. He studied at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and later became a professor where he taught  Sergei Prokofiev among others.

He studied composition with Rimsky-Korsakov, was expelled for absenteeism, only to be readmitted later.  He became friends with Tchaikovsky and knew Mussorgsky and the rest of The Five and shared with them an interest in music based on Russian folksong, legend and history.

Liadov had neither the temperament or inclination to compose any large-scale works. The attempts he made at these were never finished. His talent was with the musical miniature, as many of his compositions were piano miniatures. The few orchestra works he wrote were mostly brief tone poems. He was a master of counterpoint, and a brilliant orchestrator, but his composing method was very slow and methodical.

Eight Russian Folksongs Opus 58 was written in 1906 and are true to form with his nature of composition. The eight songs take about 15 minutes to play and show his brilliance with orchestration and inventiveness. The skill he used in setting these eight pieces does make you wonder what he could have accomplished if he had been more ambitious.

The Eight Songs are:

1. Religious Chant. Moderato
2. Christmas Carol 'Kolyada'. Allegretto
3. Plaintive Song. Andante
4. Humorous Song 'I Danced With The Gnat'./Allegretto
5. Legend Of The Birds. Allegretto
6. Cradle Song. Moderato
7. Round Dance. Allegro
8. Village Dance Song. Vivo

Liadov's Eight Russian Folksongs for orchestra: