Aleksandre "Aleksi" Machavariani (Georgian: ალექსი მაჭავარიანი; 23 September 1913 – 31 December 1995)[1] was a Soviet and Georgian composer, conductor and pedagogue. People's Artist of the USSR (1958).

Aleksi Machavariani
Born
Aleksandre Machavariani

(1913-09-23)September 23, 1913
DiedDecember 31, 1995(1995-12-31) (aged 82)
Occupation(s)Composer, conductor, music pedagogue

Biography

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Aleksi Machavariani was born in Gori, Russian Empire. He graduated from the Tbilisi Conservatory in 1936 and remained there for postgraduate studies. He studied composition under Pyotr Ryazanov. Later he joined the faculty, becoming a professor in 1963. He began his artistic career in 1935.

Machavariani produced a number of critically acclaimed plays and ballets, including the ballet "Othello" (1957) and "Hamlet" (~1964)[note 1], the operas "Mat i Sin" (Mother and Son, 1945), "Den moei Rodini" (Day of My Motherland, 1954), the symphony "Piat monologov" (Five Monologues, 1971; it earned the Shota Rustaveli Prize). He also wrote the music to many theatrical productions, including "Baratashvili" and "Legenda o liubvi"(Legend of Love). His output includes among other works also a violin concerto (1950), seven symphonies (1947–1992) and six string quartets (the last in 1993).[4][5]

He was the artistic director of the Georgian State Symphony Orchestra from 1956 till 1958 and directed the Composers' Union of Georgia from 1962 till 1968.[6]

His son, Vakhtang Machavariani, is likewise a composer, who also conducts his father's works.[7]

In 2007, a street in Tbilisi was named after him.

Awards and honors

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References

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  1. ^ Gulbat Toradze (2001). "Machavariani, Aleksi". Grove Music Online (8th ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.17336. ISBN 978-1-56159-263-0.
  2. ^ Tom Bishop; Alexa Alice Joubin, eds. (2020) [First Published in 2021]. The Shakespearean International Yearbook. Vol. 18. Taylor and Francis. pp. 102–120. ISBN 9781000074529.
  3. ^ Allardyce Nicoll, ed. (2002) [First published in 1965]. Shakespeare Survey. Vol. 18. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. p. 89. ISBN 9780521523547.
  4. ^ "Alexi Matchavariani Werkverzeichnis" (PDF) (in German). Sikorski Verlag. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
  5. ^ Wörner, Karl H.; Boelza, Igor; Goldman, Richard F.; Citkowitz, Israel; Cowell, Henry (1954). "Current Chronicle". The Musical Quarterly. 40 (3): 417. ISSN 0027-4631. JSTOR 740078. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  6. ^ Mikaberidze, Alexander (ed., 2007). Machavariani, Aleksey Archived 27 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "Vakhtang Matchavariani - the Official Web Site".
Notes
  1. ^ Despite some interest in the work, Hamlet only saw one performance, the 1964 premiere in Tbilisi, which was performed in Georgian. Machavariani considered Othello "full of human emotions and the power of love", but Hamlet as the problem of existence and death.[2][3]

Further reading

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