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Flavio Rápalo

Dr. Andrés Espinoza

Music History Seminar

17 April 2023

Pictures at an Exhibition in a Psychedelic Mood

by Flavio Rápalo

Sometimes I wish I would have been born in the 1970s. I live obsessed with rock music

from this era. It is unequivocal that my favorite music of all time is progressive rock from the 70s.

As a classically trained musician, I also have a fond appreciation for classical music. Prior to

listening to Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, it had never occurred to me that rock and classical music

could harmoniously coexist. ELP’s approach to progressive rock provides an example of the band

reworking classical music, dropping some parts and adding newly composed ones, to produce a

new work. Accordingly, inspired by this notion, I have undertaken a project centering on Pictures

at an Exhibition, an album by one of my most beloved rock bands. This topic pertains to music,

art, friendship, and inspiration, encompassing a theme that is broadly applicable.

The live album Pictures at an Exhibition by Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, a notable English

progressive rock group, is a rendition of the preexisting work by Mussorgsky. The band's artistic

interpretation showcases four of the suites originally consisting of ten pieces, coupled with the

Promenade's interlinking theme. Released in November 1971 under Island Records, this musical

offering bears the band's signature distinctiveness that renewed Mussorgsky's masterpiece. The

timely debut of this album was well received by a youthful generation of revolutionary thinkers

who challenged the established system. Mussorgsky's original composition sought to illustrate

Viktor Hartmann's paintings through music. In ELP's album artwork for Pictures at an Exhibition,
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they paid homage to this theme by using solely the song titles to convey their inspiration. The band

adhered to Mussorgsky's vision of Promenade, a voyage through a gallery, rather than a literal

representation of paintings. “Sanctioned by Carl Palmer and the families of Keith Emerson and

Greg Lake, this handsome picture-led tome (available only from rocket88books.com) is probably

how Emerson, Lake & Palmer and the bulk of their fan base would want their story to be told. It's

a reasonably straight-talking oral history, which touches on their touchiness ("Greg thought Tarkus

was an opportunity for me to show off. That couldn't have been further from the truth," sniffs

Emerson), their commercial peak, which found Emerson yearning for "travelling in a beat-up van

towards some dark and dingy club in the north of England", and the strains that pulled the band

apart, from squabbling about individual playing time, to their label barring classical adaptations.

Said label's demands for radio-friendly material resulted in the disastrous Love Beach, where they

looked like the Bee Gees on the cover and sounded like almost anyone but Emerson, Lake &

Palmer” (Aizlewood).
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Progressive rock is a genre of music that emerged in the late 1960s and blends elements of

rock 'n' roll with other genres such as Western art music, jazz, and Indian classical music. While

it was popular in the early 1970s, the rise of punk in the mid-1970s pushed the genre into more

niche circuits. Critics have generally viewed progressive rock negatively, with many emphasizing

the importance of "authenticity," though this concept is difficult to define. Instead, critics have

tracked authenticity through qualities such as a sense of rebelliousness, blues elements, and

inflections of the beat. Given these criteria, progressive rock has been criticized for diluting the

influence of blues in rock music and its complex meters that are not well-suited for dancing. In his

article, Hearing Emerson, Lake, and Palmer Anew: Progressive Rock as "Music of Attractions",

Eric Hung provides a detailed discussion of the artistic qualities of Emerson, Lake, and Palmer's

album Pictures at an Exhibition.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer is commonly regarded as one of the most significant and

influential bands in the history of progressive rock. Their music was groundbreaking, challenging,

and subject to both intense admiration and criticism. While other bands merely hinted at classical

influences, ELP bravely incorporated the works of celebrated composers like Modest Mussorgsky

and others, into the realm of rock music. As a result, ELP contributed greatly to the popularization

of classical music, potentially surpassing the efforts of even the most accomplished conductors or

orchestras. “ELP transformed Mussorgsky's 1874 composition into a noisy jazz-rock hybrid.

Horribly dated psychedelic imagery that must have mesmerized viewers of the original big-screen

production detracts from steady camerawork, as shots linger on fingers and facial expressions.

Much of the attention focuses on organ-attacking, spectacle-seeking keyboardist Keith Emerson.

But with this performance, ELP collectively proved that progressive rock was, depending on a

listener's preference, a force to either be reckoned with or destroyed” (Popke).

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Discussing the original version of Modest Mussorgsky's suite and the orchestral rendition

by Maurice Ravel is significant. The composition, Pictures at an Exhibition, was intended as a

commemoration of Viktor Hartmann, a Russian artist, and comprises ten pieces along with the

frequent and varied Promenade, which was originally written for piano in June 1874. While

Mussorgsky's composition has since become a masterpiece for accomplished pianists, Ravel's

orchestral adaptation, completed in 1922, has become the most widely recorded and performed

version in the history of the piece. Both Mussorgsky and Hartmann were dedicated to the

advancement of Russian art and their shared passion led to a close friendship. Hartmann's untimely

death on August 4, 1873, had a profound emotional impact on Mussorgsky. Their mutual dream

of promoting nationalism in art was also a significant aspect of their friendship. The two often

discussed Russian art, provided each other with advice, and presented their latest works to one

another. However, following Hartmann's premature passing, Mussorgsky and his closest friends

organized a major exhibition of Hartmann's 400 works at the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint

Petersburg in February and March of 1874. Pictures at an Exhibition represents Mussorgsky's

journey through the Imperial Academy exhibition, with each movement of the suite offering a

musical depiction of some of Hartmann's artwork. “For composers, the death of a close friend or

family member tends to have one of two effects: they either retreat into their own world, devoid

of inspiration and unable to compose, or this life experience results in a creative surge forward. In

the case of Mussorgsky, the latter was true” (Elliott).

Promenade:
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Another notable artwork is Viktor Alexandrovich Hartmann's Plan for a City Gate in Kiev.

Hartmann, a Russian architect and painter who lived during an era when both European and

Russian nationalism flourished, created this piece as a commemorative tribute requested by Tsar

Alexander II after he survived an assassination attempt. Although the gate was never constructed,

Hartmann's Plan for a City Gate in Kiev came to symbolize his own unfulfilled potential. As

previously mentioned, Mussorgsky and Hartmann were committed to promoting fundamentally

Russian art, and this dedication led them on a journey to find a national identity. This endeavor

involved a search for a national aesthetic that had been expressed during Russia's Golden Age and

would subsequently be expressed through music, art, design, and other art forms. Hartmann's Plan

for a City Gate in Kiev aimed to capture the inherent Russian and Ukrainian aesthetics that were

central to this quest. “When one hears Mussorgsky’s music, one assumes that the gate must be

absolutely spectacular, one of the jewels of the Russian Empire. But in spite of the exciting musical

depiction, plans to build the actual gate were abandoned; there is no Great Gate of Kiev in real

life. The structure survives only in Victor Hartmann’s design and Modest Mussorgsky’s music”

(Dromanik).
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In comparing the various artworks, such as ELP's Pictures at an Exhibition live album with

Modest Mussorgsky's suite, or Viktor Hartmann's Plan for a City Gate in Kiev with Mussorgsky's

suite, it is evident that each artist faced significant challenges that ultimately contributed to the

success of their respective works. For instance, the opening soundtrack of ELP's album was played

on a pipe organ positioned above the stage level, requiring the band to insert a drum roll to facilitate

Emerson's descent back to the stage after playing the opening soundtrack. Mussorgsky's piece

follows a rondo form that introduces three themes in a specific sequence. Ravel's version employs

a brass instrument fanfare to introduce the same A theme, which may explain why Emerson chose

to use a pipe organ in his rendition.

Similarly, circumstances conspired to dampen Mussorgsky's spirits following the death of

his close friend Hartmann, who had given him two paintings that later formed the basis of Pictures

at an Exhibition. Although Hartmann's Plan for a City Gate in Kiev was not built, it still represented

his creative potential. The enduring legacy of these artworks can be attributed to the shared ideals

of nationalism that Mussorgsky and Hartmann pursued, which ultimately inspired subsequent

generations of artists. The impact of these passions is still felt today, as evidenced by the continued

popularity of Pictures at an Exhibition. In essence, these artworks are a testament to Newton's third

law, which states that every force has an equal and opposite reaction. Had these events not

occurred, this discussion would not have taken place, but their shared subject matter has persisted

across generations.
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Works Cited

Aizlewood, John. "Emerson, Lake & Palmer." Classic Rock, January 2022, 92. Gale General

OneFile (accessed April 17, 2023).

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A687158154/ITOF?u=gale15691&sid=bookmark-

ITOF&xid=5af42059.

Dromanik. “The Great Gate of Kiev”. Lost in Wonder, Love, and Praise..., 20 Mar. 2014,

https://fatherdrom.wordpress.com/tag/the-great-gate-of-kiev/.

Elliott, Suzanne. “Modest Mussorgsky: Pictures At An Exhibition”. Classic FM, 17 Apr. 2012,

https://www.classicfm.com/composers/mussorgsky/music/pictures-exhibition/.

Hung, Eric. 2005. “Hearing Emerson, Lake, and Palmer Anew: Progressive Rock As ‘Music of

Attractions’”. Current Musicology, no. 79/80 (April).

https://doi.org/10.7916/cm.v0i79/80.5057.

Popke, Michael. "Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Pictures At An Exhibition." Goldmine, November

19, 2010, 58. Gale General OneFile (accessed April 17, 2023).

https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A249390075/ITOF?u=gale15691&sid=bookmark-

ITOF&xid=7c1620f0.