Vladislav Aleksandrovich Uspensky
Internet Edition compiled by Onno van Rijen
Updated 23 January 2005
Born: 7 September 1937 in Omsk. Died in 2004.
Education: Uspensky sang in church chorus and got the first lessons in music from his first teacher, his mother. The indomitable wish to create was directed in the right way by a recognized master of music Dmitri Kabalevskiy, “god father” of the young musician. During his study in the musical college of the Moscow conservatoire Vladislav Uspensky broadened his understanding of music of the 20th century under the guidance of an originally thinking pedagogue S. Frid. Years of study at the Leningrad conservatoire were years of penetration into the richest spiritual and academic traditions of the city; years of merging in the creative environment of the 60's generation. The young composer associated those years with Mstislav Rostropovich, Eugeniy Mravinskiy, Michail Waiman, Boris Gutnikov, Iosif Brodsky, Michail Shemyakin and Yakov Gordin. An experienced master, B. Arapov, entrusted to him the secrets of mastery composition.
Meeting with Dmitri Shostakovich, who was his preceptor in postgraduate from 1962 till 1965, was decisive in many respects for his life and artistic career. It extended the borders of his world vision; determined the still increasing level of mastery, and finally widened his understanding of human and artistic nature. “Don't forget to write ... My fervent wish to carry on the association with you...”
Uspensky caught the best traits of his teacher, not only as an author and pedagogue but also as an individual. True devotion to his profession, accuracy in words and deeds, “civic-mindedness is not an easy talent” (R. Rozhdestvensky), particular fineness of personal relations - all these traits acquired from the great master penetrated the flesh and blood of Uspensky's nature, and have been his unshakeable Creed. “Vladislav Uspensky is a Saint-Petersburg composer, the People's Artist of Russia. In 1962 he graduated from the Leningrad conservatory composition class of professor B. Arapov and in 1965 completed the post-graduate course under professor Dmitri Shostakovich.
Style: Vladislav Uspensky masters the widest palette of musical genres: from song to opera, from instrumental miniatures to large symphonic works, from children's incedental music, film music to Divine Liturgy...
The theatric originality inherent in the talent of Uspenskiy penetrated the sphere of symphonic genres (timbre personification, colorful portrait-characters) and variety songs (monoperformance “Expectation” on verses of R. Rozhdestvenskiy). Vocal-variety and symphonic genres are united in the poetic style of the ballet “Cranes flying”; technique and principles of film production (montage, rapid change of tempos) have penetrated the opera “Intervention and the songs of the latter gave rise later to the flashing musical “Scandal in Bohemian”.
The spiritual moral source in the music of Uspensky deserves special attention. Vladislav Uspensky thoroughly understands the ethical meaning of music creations. High ethical passion is a characteristic of the many deeds - human and creative - of Vladislav Uspensky: devoted service to his art, his pupils and colleagues. Special soul magnetism (a trait also inherited from Dmitri Shostakovich), a sense of close link with his contemporaries and predecessors, and a feeling of spiritual debt - is the moral leitmotif of the composer's work. It is not mere chance that the key word in the title of many of his works is “Dedication” in the meaning of “Consecration” (“Consecration” as touching the sacraments of love, faith, friendship): “Dedication”, an elegiac symphony in memory of his mother.
The musical language of Vladislav Uspensky is marked by a striving to combine the traditions of national Russian music with modern rhythms and colors.
Web: http://home.wanadoo.nl/ovar/uspen.htm

Nato a Omsk nel 1937, Uspensky fonda le proprie origini culturali nella cultura ortodossa; assimilata all'interno della famiglia e della comunità religiosa della sua città. Durante la sua formazione musicale frequenta prima il Conservatorio di Mosca, dove è allievo tra gli altri di Dmitrij Kabalevskij, e in seguito quello di Leningrado, nel quale entra in contatto con le ricche tradizioni musicali e culturali della città e studia accanto a giovani di talento quali Mstislav Rostropovic.
Qui incontra anche Dmitrij Sostakovic, una figura decisiva nel compimento della sua formazione, con il quale perfeziona la tecnica compositiva e approfondisce la conoscenza della propria natura artistica e umana. Oggi Uspensky è tra i compositori più rappresentativi della sua generazione, docente al Conservatorio di San Pietroburgo e segretario, per la sua città, dell'Associazione Russa dei Compositori.
La sua produzione tocca tutti i generi musicali - dalla canzone all'opera lirica, dai lavori cameristica quelli sinfonici e a numerosi balletti, da composizioni didattiche alla musica da film – e trae frequentemente spunto e suggestione da opere di prosa o letterarie con un marcato senso teatrale nella scrittura musicale.
(Elena Càsoli, Il Fronimo n.112, ottobre 2000)