Giya Kancheli

2025-10-24T03:32:41Z

2600:4041:5B31:3000:705C:92F7:A72B:4BCE: /* Chamber */

{{Short description|Georgian composer (1935–2019)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Gia Kancheli
| honorific_suffix = [[People's Artist of the USSR|PAU]]
| background = non_performing_personnel
| image = Gia Kancheli.jpg
| caption = Kancheli in March 2010
| birth_name =
| alias =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1935|08|10|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Tbilisi|Tiflis]], [[Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic|Georgian SSR]], [[Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic|Transcaucasian SFSR]], [[Soviet Union|USSR]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2019|10|2|1935|8|10|df=y}}
| death_place = Tbilisi
| genre = [[Soundtrack]], [[classical music]]
| occupation = [[Composer]]
| instrument = [[Piano]], [[Keyboard instrument|keyboard]], [[synthesizer]]
| years_active = 1961–2019
| label =
| associated_acts = [[Jansug Kakhidze]]
| module = {{Infobox person|child = yes|signature = Gia Kancheli signature (vect).svg}}
}}
'''Gia Kancheli''' ({{lang-ka|გია ყანჩელი}}; 10 August 1935 – 2 October 2019)<ref>{{cite news|last1=n.a.|title=Giya Kancheli obituary|url= https://www.thetimes.com/uk/obituaries/article/giya-kancheli-obituary-h58w67b5f|access-date=30 October 2019|work=The Times (London)|date=28 October 2019}}</ref> was a [[Georgia (country)|Georgian]] [[composer]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Historical Dictionary of Russian and Soviet Cinema|author=Peter Rollberg|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2009|place=US|isbn=978-0-8108-6072-8|pages=318–319}}</ref> He was born in [[Tbilisi]], Georgia, and resided in [[Belgium]] in later life.

After the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] in 1991, Kancheli lived first in [[Berlin]], and from 1995 in [[Antwerp]], where he became composer-in-residence for the [[Royal Flemish Philharmonic]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sikorski.de/4362/en/0%7B20%7D/a/0/giya_kancheli_turns_75_on_10_august.html|title=Giya Kancheli turns 75 on 10 August|work=Sikorski|date=August 2010|access-date=19 January 2014}}</ref> He died in Tbilisi at age 84.

==Life==
In his symphonies, Kancheli's musical language typically consists of slow scraps of minor-mode melody against long, subdued, anguished string discords. [[Rodion Shchedrin]] called Kancheli "an ascetic with the temperament of a [[maximalism|maximalist]]; a restrained [[Mount Vesuvius|Vesuvius]]".<ref>Ainslie, Sarah. "[http://www.schirmer.com/default.aspx?TabId=2419&State_2872=2&ComposerId_2872=2423 Giya Kancheli]". schirmer.com, 2006. Retrieved on 31 January 2007.</ref>

Kancheli wrote seven symphonies, and what he termed a [[liturgy]] for [[viola]] and [[orchestra]], ''Mourned by the Wind''. the [[Philadelphia Orchestra]] under [[Yuri Temirkanov]] gave the American premiere of his Fourth Symphony in 1978, not long before the cultural freeze in the United States against [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] culture. [[Glasnost]] allowed Kancheli to regain exposure, and he began to receive frequent commissions, as well as performances in Europe and North America.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Giya Kancheli|url=https://www.wisemusicclassical.com/composer/2423/Giya-Kancheli/|access-date=2020-08-17|website=www.wisemusicclassical.com|language=en}}</ref>

Championed internationally by [[Lera Auerbach]], [[Dennis Russell Davies]], [[Jansug Kakhidze]], [[Gidon Kremer]], [[Yuri Bashmet]], [[Kim Kashkashian]], [[Mstislav Rostropovich]], and the [[Kronos Quartet]], Kancheli saw world premieres of his works in Seattle, as well as with the [[New York Philharmonic]] under [[Kurt Masur]]. He continued to receive regular commissions. Recordings of his works are regularly released, notably on the ECM label.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Records|first=E. C. M.|title=ECM Records|url=https://www.ecmrecords.com/artists/1441111099/giya-kancheli|access-date=2020-08-17|website=ECM Records|language=en}}</ref>

His work ''Styx'' is for solo viola, chorus and orchestra. It is a farewell to his friends [[Avet Terterian]] and [[Alfred Schnittke]], whose names the chorus sings during the piece.<ref>Tuttle, Raymond. "[http://www.classical.net/music/recs/reviews/d/dgg71494a.php Yuri Bashmet Plays]", classical.net; retrieved 2 April 2010.</ref>

For two decades, Kancheli was the music director of the [[Rustaveli Theatre]] in Tbilisi. He composed an opera, ''Music for the Living'', in collaboration with Rustaveli director [[Robert Sturua]], and in 1999, the opera was restaged for the Deutsches National Theater in [[Weimar]].<ref>"[http://www.davisvenot.ge/index.php?lang_id=ENG&sec_id=500&info_id=6186 Ghia Kancheli - Ascetic with Energy of Maximalist]", davisvenot.ge; retrieved 2 April 2010.</ref>

He wrote music for films such as [[Georgiy Daneliya]]'s science fiction film ''[[Kin-dza-dza!]]'' (1986) and its [[Ku! Kin-dza-dza|2013 animated remake]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Rickards|first=Guy|date=2019-10-07|title=Giya Kancheli obituary|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/oct/07/giya-kancheli-obituary|access-date=2020-08-17|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

==Works==

===Stage===
*''Music for the living'', opera in two acts (1982–1984)

===Orchestral===
* Symphonies
** Symphony No. 1 (1967)
** Symphony No. 2 ''"Songs"'' (1970)
** Symphony No. 3 (1973)
** Symphony No. 4 ''"To the Memory of Michelangelo"'' (1974)
** Symphony No. 5 ''"To the Memory of My Parents"'' (1977)
** Symphony No. 6 (1978–1980)
** Symphony No. 7 ''"Epilogue"'' (1986)
*Concerto for Orchestra (1961)
*''Mourned by the Wind'' (''Vom Winde beweint''), liturgy for viola (or cello) and orchestra (1989)
*''Morning Prayers'' for chamber orchestra and tape (1990)
*''Abii ne viderem'' ("I turned away so as not to see") for alto flute / viola, piano and string orchestra (1992–1994)
*''Another Step... (Noch Einen Schritt...)'' (1992)
*''Wingless'' (1993)
*''Magnum Ignotum'' (1994)
*''Trauerfarbenes Land'' (1994)
*''Lament, Music of Mourning in Memory of Luigi Nono'' (1994)
*''Simi, "Joyless Thoughts"'', for cello and orchestra (1995)
*''...à la Duduki'' (1995)
*''V & V '' (1995)
*''Valse Boston'' for piano and strings (1996)
*''[[Diplipito (Kancheli)|Diplipito]]'' (1997)
*''Childhood Revisited (Besuch In Der Kindheit)'' (1998)
*''Sio'' for strings, piano and percussion (1998)
*''Rokwa'' (1999)
*''And Farewell Goes Out Sighing...'' (1999)
*''A Little Daneliade'' (2000)
*''...al Niente'' (2000)
*''Ergo'' (2000)
*''Don’t Grieve'' (2001)
*''Fingerprints'' (2002)
*''Lonesome – 2 great Slava from 2 GKs'' (2002)
*''Warzone'' (2002)
*''Twilight'' (2004)
*''Ex Contrario'' (2006)
*''Kapote'' (2006)
*''Silent Prayer'' (2007)
*''Broken Chant'' (2007)
*''Ilori '' (2010)
*''Lingering'' for large orchestra (2012)
*''Nu.Mu.Zu'' (I don't know) (2015)
*''Letters to Friends'' (2016)
*''Music for Wind Quintet and Orchestra'' (2016)

===Chamber===
*Wind Quintet (1961)
*''Night Prayers'' for string quartet (1992–1995)
*''[[Caris Mere (Kanhceli)|Caris Mere]]'' (After the wind) for soprano and viola (1994)
*''Magnum Ignotum'' for wind ensemble and tape (1994)
*''Instead of a Tango'' for violin, [[bandoneon]], piano and double bass (1996)
*''Time... and Again'' for violin and piano (1996)
*''In L'Istesso Tempo'' for piano quartet (1997)
*''Ninna Nanna'' for flute and string quartet (2008)
*''Chiaroscuro'' for string quartet (2011)
*Wind Quintet (2013)
*''Rag-GIDON-time'' for violin and piano

===Choral/Vocal===
*''Light Sorrow'', music for orchestra, boys' choir and two boy sopranos (for the 40th anniversary of the victory over fascism) (1984)
*''Midday Prayers'' for soprano, clarinet and chamber orchestra (1990)
*''Evening Prayers'', for eight alto voices and chamber orchestra (1991)
*''Psalm 23'', for soprano and chamber orchestra (1993)
*''Lament'', concerto for violin, soprano and orchestra (1994)
*''Diplipito'', for cello, counter-tenor and chamber orchestra (1997)
*''And Farewell Goes Out Sighing...'' for violin, countertenor and orchestra (1999)
*''Styx'', for viola, mixed choir and orchestra (1999)
*''[[Little Imber (Kancheli)]]'', for solo voice, children's and men's choirs and small ensemble (2003)
*''[[Amao Omi (Kancheli)|Amao Omi]]'', for SATB choir and saxophone quartet (2005)
*''Lulling the Sun'', for six-part mixed choir and percussion (2008)
*''Dixi'', for mixed choir and orchestra (2009)

== Filmography ==
{{Div col}}
* 1964 – ''Children of the Sea''
* 1965 – ''Gold'' (Animated film)
* 1967 – ''Melancholy Romance''
* 1968 – ''[[Extraordinary Exhibition]]''
* 1968 – ''[[Don't Grieve]]''
* 1970 – ''Competition''
* 1970 – ''[[Feola (film)|Feola]]'' (short)
* 1970 – ''[[The Jug (film)|The Jug]]'' (short)
* 1971 – ''Neighbour''
* 1972 – ''[[When Almonds Blossomed]]''
* 1972 – ''White Stones'' (short)
* 1972 – ''Gladiator'' (short)
* 1973 – ''[[Record (film)|Record]]''
* 1974 – ''[[The Eccentrics]]'' (with [[Jansug Kakhidze]])
* 1974 – ''Captains''
* 1974 – ''Night Visit'' (with [[Revaz Lagidze]])
* 1974 – ''[[Magic Egg]]'' (animated film)
* 1975 – ''Caucasian Prisoner''
* 1975 – ''Caucasian Romance''
* 1977 – ''[[Stepmother of Samanishvili]]'' (with [[Jansug Kakhidze]])
* 1977 – ''[[Mimino]]''
* 1977 – ''Cinema''
* 1978 – ''[[Some Interviews on Personal Matters]]''
* 1978 – ''[[Khanuma]]''
* 1978 – ''Caucasian Story''
* 1979 – ''Dumas in Caucasia''
* 1979 – ''[[Ground of Ancestors]]''
* 1980 – ''[[Earth, This Is Your Son]]''
* 1983 – ''[[Blue Mountains (1984 film)|Blue Mountains]]''
* 1984 – ''[[Day Is Longer Than Night]]''
* 1986 – ''[[Kin-dza-dza!]]''
* 1987 – ''King Lear''
* 1988 – ''[[Life of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza]]''
* 1990 – ''Oh, This Horrible TV''
* 1990 – ''[[Passport (1990 film)|Passport]]''
* 1998 – ''[[Silver Heads]]''
* 2004 – ''National Bomb''
* 2009 – ''Happiness''
* 2010 – ''Felicita''
* 2010 – ''After the Mountains''
* 2011 – ''The Tree of Life''
* 2012 – ''[[Ku! Kin-dza-dza]]'' (animated film)
{{Div col end}}

=== Played in films ===

* 2001 – Giya Kancheli (Documentary)
* 2011 – Giya Kancheli. Life in sounds (Documentary)
* 2012 – [[Mimino]] - Secret Soviet movie (Documentary)
* 2012 – [[Georgiy Daneliya]] (Documentary)
* 2014 – [[Goodbye to Language]]
* 2016 – [[Voyage of Time]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
*[[Michael Kennedy (music critic)|Kennedy, Michael]] (2006), ''The Oxford Dictionary of Music'', 985 pages, {{ISBN|0-19-861459-4}}

==External links==
* [http://home.wanadoo.nl/ovar/kancheli.htm List of works] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070603123153/http://home.wanadoo.nl/ovar/kancheli.htm |date=3 June 2007 }}
* [http://composers21.com/compdocs/kanchelg.htm Entry at The Living Composers Project]
* [http://www.siue.edu/~aho/musov/kancheli/kancheli1.html ''Music under Soviet Rule'', by Ian McDonald]
* [http://www.schirmer.com/default.aspx?TabId=2419&State_2872=2&ComposerId_2872=2423 Kancheli at Schirmer]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060517004716/http://members.optusnet.com.au/~robert2600/azimute/music/kancheli_absence.html ''The Space of Absence in the Music of Giya Kancheli'', by Dylan Trigg]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060303003422/http://www.azimute.org/music/kancheli_nostalgia.html ''Giya Kancheli and the Aesthetics of Nostalgia'', by Dylan Trigg]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080214143155/http://www.ecmrecords.com/Catalogue/New_Series/1700/1767.php?lvredir=712&cat=%2FArtists%2FKancheli+Giya%23%23Giya+Kancheli&catid=0&doctype=Catalogue&order=releasedate&rubchooser=901&mainrubchooser=9 Kancheli at ECM Records]
* {{IMDb name|0437151|Giya Kancheli}}
*[https://www.dw.com/overlay/media/en/giya-kancheli-lulling-the-sun/6115078/6116514 Lulling the Sun], performed by the Shchedryk Children's Choir, Kyiv (Marianna Sablina, director); via [[Deutsche Welle|Deutsche Welle Radio]], 26 September 2010

===Interviews===
*[http://www.bruceduffie.com/kancheli.html Giya Kancheli interview], 27 February 1995

{{Wolf Prize in Arts}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kancheli, Giya}}
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:2019 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century male composers]]
[[Category:21st-century classical composers]]
[[Category:21st-century male musicians]]
[[Category:Burials at Didube Pantheon]]
[[Category:Classical composers from Georgia (country)]]
[[Category:Male film score composers]]
[[Category:Male opera composers]]
[[Category:Musicians from Tbilisi]]
[[Category:Opera composers from Georgia (country)]]
[[Category:Soviet classical composers]]
[[Category:Soviet film score composers]]
[[Category:Soviet male classical composers]]
[[Category:Soviet opera composers]]
[[Category:Tbilisi State Conservatoire alumni]]
[[Category:Wolf Prize in Arts laureates]]

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