Sergei Diaghilev and his impact on the arts - Essay Example

Sergei Diaghilev and his impact on the arts Sergei Diaghilev was born on 31st March of the year 1872 in Novgorodand died 19th august, 1929 in Venice. He was a Russian impresario, responsible for the re-creation of the 20th century’s ballet. While at St Petersburg, he was a student of law and shortly composition of music. At this time he joined artists related to Bakst and Benois where he was co-founder of a review of art which ran from 1899 up to 1904. He was Imperial Theatres’ director’s assistant around 1899 to 1901. He and Volkonsky concocted a plan that troubled the existing personnel in charge of the theater. From continuous occurrences of these conflicts Diaghilev refused to edit and was left to go by Volkonsky. (Richard, pp 493) Due to miss understandings when Sylvia was being produced, he was dismissed. There was a successful exhibition which comprised six thousand portraits of history collected across Russia by Diaghilev in 1903. This brought a great impact on the culture of European like in Paris where he took Russian paintings’ exhibition. At the Opera of Paris, he staged five concerts specifically of music from Russian culture in 1907. These concerts brought a huge surprise, sensations, amazements and revelations. There were many reviews in magazines and newspapers worldwide following the performance of Glinka, Scriabin, playing by Rachmaninoff and many others. Diaghilev brought “Boris Godunov” production with Chaliapin to the Paris Opera in 1908. He restored the originality of the archives before the introduction of the trendy authentication in art of the world. Production of “Boris” made Chaliapin to have international acclaim. This is the reason why the ballet and Russian Opera season was invited from May to June in 1909. Presently this is known as Russian seasons also known as Diaghilev’s seasons. His ideas impressed the world: directing, the scenery on the stage, dance, directing, and act performing alongside music, ballet and opera production. He was accompanied by the best and talented young dancers from Russia like Nijinsky, Pavlova, Bolm and Karsavina, and this earned him a big score. There was full company formation due to repeated visits which was permanent at the time Nijinsky retired from Maryinsky theatre. Both Diaghilev and Maryinsky left Russia (Scheijen, pp 90) For another 18 years the company made itself known in entire Europe and America making it be regarded as experimental and inspiring. The success was due to bright ideas of Diaghilev of scouting talents and collaborating with artists. Diaghilev thought that ballet was supposed to be an absolute theatrical choreography, design, art and music. Diaghilev’s ballet showed reflection and was catalyzed by new trends in arts. Amongst Diaghilev’s designers were those who painted imagery, colors and patterns used on stage. His works were well established across Europe for instance, ballet russes that toured annually instead of seasonally. Ballets use human body for the purpose of expressing emotion and story. With this feature, ballets explore stories that may provide chances for the display of virtuosity by dancers. As Ballet Russes’ dances looked revolutionary, they borrowed ballet production traditions that existed. Being the strong point of the firm, Diaghilev gathered various composers, performers, designers and choreographers, though maintained the overall control over all production aspects. Diaghilev’s major achievements were ensuring close choreographer, music, and design and story integration, hence forming a spectacle where the entire effect surpassed all parts. Since the start, his desire was to come up with new ballets. Every ballet Russes period was inclusive of new creations and productions, protracted, taking up much of his energy and time. During the 1st world war, Diaghilev isolated himself from his major venues in Europe. Diaghilev and Stravinsky became successful at this time in imperial Russia. Just as the wars commence, ballets had taken five periods and were now leaving for vacation. Productions at this time were most experimental and conservative. The ballets moved to new places in South and North America. After the war, Russia was controlled by communists who made Diaghilev to never return. What gave birth to Ballet Russes was shattered forever. Great themes of Diaghilev were then treated to be modern. Some ballets showed topical interest like sports, film and beach culture. Cubist costumes for Picasso for parading showed the way artist designers of Diaghilev enlivened stage design possibilities using unique aesthetics. Moreover, Diaghilev motivated new composers in writing him scores, which revolutionized ballet musical genre and musical composition principles. Diaghilev nurtured talents of greatest choreographers by fighting them and following his heart. After Diaghilev died in 1929, most of his repertoire ballets survived in Basil and Blum companies where they are still performed up to date. Most of scores commissioned by him have turned out to be classics while designs of his company are highly treasured in collections of museum. Perhaps the impact may have been due to his choreographers and dancers, who benefited from companies and schools across the world, where Diaghilev’s impact has been eminent. Diaghilev opened a chain of series in the silver era thereby creating his own career. His works just by sight seemed lofty to secondary art itself. Surely he was an inventor and a very unique individual in the Russian history. Diaghilev created an upheaval, turmoil not only in Russia but across the world as a globe. Diaghilev was described in many ways for instance, “napoleon of Russian art”, “and powerful alchemist of culture”and“descendant of the great reformer peter 1”. Diaghilev gave birth to a great scale of arts in the Russian empire which would rule the world. Diaghilev desired to a level of being frenzy. Diaghilev uttered two words of inspiration; fame and success. Nevertheless, Diaghilev’s eruptive nature, wiping out all barriers which stood on his way of success was great achievements, which to some extent defined the directions of culture in the 20th C. At the start of this century, a great boom in the art world of Russia was evident (Garafola et al, pp211) Diaghilev made a magazine for a group of artists who would develop it around the globe. This magazine reached all parts of Europe and Russia with an unbelievable speed. A Russian writer named Chekhov wrote to Diaghilev appreciating his editorials. Diaghilev also wrote about Levitsky a forgotten talent. After which he revealed Levitsky’s unknown but extremely fantastic talent in the 18th C. Diaghilev had an extraordinary gift, he could foresee. He came up with such word as constructivism and modernism and introduced them to the language of Russia. He instigated further evolution and development of the innovative trends. Moreover, he made the revelation on Stravinsky’s wondrous talent. Diaghilev’s work was considered an achievement of great personality well recognized in the mark of history. Another conspicuous ballet master by the name Serge was Diaghilev’s brainchild’s who became famous in the whole world. Diaghilev is regarded as the mother of art that were it not for him art would not have existed. The ballets was a feature of the 20th C, flooding daily life every time the company toured and left a permanent impact on theatre, visual arts and dance. During his time in Russia, Diaghilev combined most groundbreaking, avant-garden movements in choreography, design, dance, costume and art into a stunning and unique production. His work was always new and exciting and exposed possibility in the works of arts. The form, material and color and design overwhelmed audiences, changing every angle of western culture during the 20th C. Diaghilev had a great impact on the art in very many ways as illustrated above. He inspired most of his dancers, designers, choreographers and music artists by his astonishing works there by developing art industry. From his arts he revolutionized and developed Russian art and the entire Europe. Diaghilev’s major achievements were ensuring close choreographer, music, and design and story integration, hence forming a spectacle where the entire effect surpassed all parts. Since the start, his desire was to come up with new ballets. Every ballet Russes period was inclusive of new creations and productions, protracted, taking up much of his energy and time. Moreover, Diaghilev motivated new composers in writing him scores, which revolutionized ballet musical genre and musical composition principles. Works Cited Scheijen and Sjeng. Working for Diaghilev, Gent: BAI, 2005; exhibition catalogue of the last major exhibition dedicated to Diaghilev Garafola, Lynn, Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989 Richard Taruskin. Stravinsky and the Russian Traditions (Oxford University Press, 1996), p. 493. Read More