Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Cˇiurlionis
Kevin Holm-Hudson
School of Music, University of Kentucky, USA
Kjholm2@uky.edu http://www.uky.edu/FineArts/Music/faculty/kevin_holm-hudson.htm
Darius Kucinskas
Department of Sound and Visual Art Technologies, Kaunas Technological University, Lithuania
darikuci@kaunas.omnitel.net Darius.Kucinskas@ktu.lt
Background in art history. In the early twentieth century, numerous composers and artists—including Scriabin,
Schoenberg, and Kandinsky—explored connections between music and visual art. Even so, Lithuanian artist-
composer Mikalojus Konstantinas Cˇiurlionis (1875-1911) stands apart in the extent of his formal training in both
areas, and the degree to which he believed the two media interpenetrated. Initially trained as a musician, Cˇiurlionis
studied painting at the Warsaw School of Fine Arts from 1904 through 1906. Between 1907 and 1909 he aimed at
synthesis of the arts with paintings often analogous to musical forms (for example, the four-painting Sonata of the
Sun). Some scholars have linked Cˇiurlionis to symbolism (Fauchereau 2000) or abstraction (Rannit 1984); others
have examined musical metaphor in Cˇiurlionis’s painting.
Background in music theory. As Cˇiurlionis’s involvement in painting deepened, his music changed; functional
harmony was replaced by intersecting lines and a preoccupation with isometry, suggesting increasingly literal
translation of visual principles into musical notation. Theories of musical isometry (see for example Riemann 1896
and Lendvai 1993, as well as the growing body of literature in neo-Riemannian theory) parallel Washburn and Crowe’s
(1988) cross-cultural and cross-historical survey of isometries in the decorative arts. Each of the four plane
isometries (rotational symmetry, reflection, translation, and glide reflection) has its musical counterpart.
Aims. Rather than analyzing musical metaphor in Cˇiurlionis’s art, we will show how Cˇiurlionis’s creative process in
his music was influenced by visual principles.
Main contribution. Cˇiurlionis’s posthumous fame was as an artist until publication of his music began in 1957.
Since then, several Lithuanian scholars have analyzed his music (Cˇiurlionyte 1959, Landsbergis 1965, 1984, 1992,
2000, Kucinskas 2002, 2003a, 2003b); outside Lithuania, scholarly attention has been focused mainly on his
paintings. The extent to which Cˇiurlionis’s newly discovered “visual thought” of 1904-1906 permeated his music
during those years and thereafter has scarcely been examined.
Implications. By examining the structural similarity of Cˇiurlionis’s different artistic media, one is able to uncover
the deeper unity of his artistic expression (Kucinskas 2003, 4). We believe that this study of some of the distinctive
tendencies of Cˇiurlionis’s art manifested in his music will yield a deeper understanding of his creative process.
Although the Lithuanian artist and composer began his serious study of painting as a
Mikolajus Konstantinas Cˇiurlionis (1875- member of the first class of the Warsaw
1911) is revered as a cultural hero in his School of Fine Arts on March 15, 1904,
native country, his musical work is little studying there until the end of 1906
known outside Lithuania. Born into a musical (Umbrasas in Gosˇtautas 1994, 405). As
family (his father was a church organist), he early as 1896, however, Cˇiurlionis had
studied composition at the Warsaw Music already begun his search for a “new [graphic]
Institute from 1897 to 1899 and continued his language” by creatively ‘improving’ existing
studies in composition at the Leipzig music notation to indicate subtleties of
Conservatory in 1901-1902. Cˇiurlionis notation and performance (Kucinskas 2003a,
probably began to receive private lessons in 1). Certainly by February 1902 he had
painting in late 1902 (Nasvytis 1972b, 11- already conceived of visual art and music as
12); he completed his first serious painting, intertwined; in a letter Cˇiurlionis described
Music of the Forest, in the fall of 1903. He the music of Berlioz and Richard Strauss as
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(Example 4), all four chords are [0268]s, the of key-area relationships, especially as the
second and fourth chords in the sequence adoption of equal temperament became more
becoming altered as well. While the T10/T2I widespread. However, the equal-tempered
relationship is preserved between the first “chromatic” circle (see Example 5) is a useful
and third chords, additional relationships schema for melodic structure (Brower 2000,
obtain as well: T5 or T7I from the first to p. 339), and this conception is congruent with
Ivanov’s theory.
second and second to third chord, T11 or T11I
from the third to fourth, and T4 or T0I from
the second to fourth.
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evidently came to see musical lines as lines, Chudovsky, V. A. (1914). “The Poet of the Vertical
in an abstract, spatial sense; this led to his Line.” Translated by Povilas Gaucˇys and
experiments with varying kinds of symmetries Birute Vaicˇjurgis-Sˇlezˇas. In Stasys
and the ordering of intervallic space into Gosˇtautas, ed., Cˇiurlionis: Painter and
Composer. Collected Essays and Notes,
controlled patterns of expansion and
1906-1989. Vilnius: Vaga.
contraction. Therefore, we assert that his Cˇiurlionis, M. K. (1972). 32 Reprodukcijos.
search for a “distinctive musical language” Introductory text by Antanas Venclova.
was not fruitless. In fact, his abstract Vilnius: Vaga.
conceptualization of musical line and register, Fauchereau, S. (2000). Cˇiurlionis au-delà du
as analogues for artistic principles, was his Symbolisme.” In M. K. Cˇiurlionis 1875-
distinctive musical language. Even 1911 catalogue d’exposition Paris, Musée
Stasˇkevicˇius admits that “the piano works d’Orsay 8 novembre 2000 – 4 février 2001.
from 1904-09 do not resemble the music of Paris: Éditions de le Réunion des Musées
any of his contemporaries” (Stasˇkevicˇius nationaux.
Fedotov, V. (1995). “Polyphony in the Paintings of
1981, 86).
M. K. Cˇiurlionis.” Leonardo 28/1: 53-56.
Gosˇtautas, S. (Ed.) (1994). Cˇiurlionis: Painter
Cˇiurlionis’s musical works remain largely
and Composer. Collected Essays and
unknown in the West, partly because of the Notes, 1906-1989. Vilnius: Vaga.
delay in editing and publishing them in his Ivanov, P. (1995). “A Hierarchical Theory of
native country and largely due to Lithuania’s Aesthetic Perception: Scales in the Visual
cultural isolation from the West during the Arts.” Leonardo Music Journal 5: 49-55.
years of Soviet occupation. With Ivanov, V. (1914). “Cˇiurlionis and the Synthesis
independence has come a newfound interest of the Arts.” Translated by R. E.
in the music of the Baltics—the success of Richardson. In Stasys Gosˇtautas, ed.,
Estonian composer Arvo Pärt being but one Cˇiurlionis: Painter and Composer.
notable example. Accordingly, Edition Peters Collected Essays and Notes, 1906-1989.
Vilnius: Vaga.
published a collection of Cˇiurlionis’s piano
Kucinskas, D. (2002). “Peculiarities of Musical Text of
music in 1985; German pianist Nikolaus Mikalojus Konstantinas Cˇiurlionis.” In Composing
Lahusen is in the process of recording Principles: Continuity and Innovation in
Cˇiurlionis’s complete piano works for the Contemporary Music. Vilnius: Lietuvos Muzikos
Celestial Harmonies label (the first CD was Akademija.
recorded in 2000). It is therefore becoming ----------. (2003a). Three Etudes on Music of Mikalojus
easier to gain access to these pieces, though Cˇiurlionis. Kaunas: Kauno Technologijos
there is still much that can be discovered in Universitetas.
them. It is hoped that this survey of some of ----------. (2003b). “Some Aspects of Musical
the distinctive tendencies of Cˇiurlionis’s art Language of Mikalojus Konstantinas
Cˇiurlionis”. Paper presented at the
manifested in his music—rather than the
Seminaire “Musique and Arts Plastiques.
other way around—will encourage further Interactions”, University of Sorbonne (Paris
study of a remarkable body of work. IV), Department of Music and Musicology,
France.
References Landsbergis, V. (1965). “The Spring Sonata.”
Andriusyte-Zukiene, R. (2000). “Cˇiurlionis et L’Art Translated by Birute Vaicˇjurgis-Sˇlezˇas.
Européen.” In M. K. Cˇiurlionis 1875-1911 In Stasys Gosˇtautas, ed., Cˇiurlionis:
catalogue d’exposition Paris, Musée Painter and Composer. Collected Essays
d’Orsay 8 novembre 2000 – 4 février 2001. and Notes, 1906-1989. Vilnius: Vaga.
Paris: Éditions de le Réunion des Musées ----------. (1984). “The Symbolism of Sounds.”
nationaux. Translated by Emilija Sakadolskiene. In
Bowlt, J. E. (1994). “M.K. Cˇiurlionis: His Visual Stasys Gosˇtautas, ed., Cˇiurlionis: Painter
Art.” In Stasys Gosˇtautas, ed., and Composer. Collected Essays and
Cˇiurlionis: Painter and Composer. Notes, 1906-1989. Vilnius: Vaga.
Collected Essays and Notes, 1906-1989. ----------. (1992). Cˇiurlionis: Time and Content.
Vilnius: Vaga. Translated by Olimpija Armalyte. Vilnius:
Brower, C. (2000). “A Cognitive Theory of Musical Lituanus.
Meaning.” Journal of Music Theory 22/2: ----------. (2000). “Cˇiurlionis, Musicien et
323-380. Peintre.” In M. K. Cˇiurlionis 1875-1911
catalogue d’exposition Paris, Musée
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