- Mussorgsky wrote Kartinki s vïstavki (Pictures from an Exhibition), for piano, in June of 1874.
- The suite was inspired by an art exhibit of the works of Viktor Hartmann. Hartmann was a friend of Mussorgsky who had died in the previous year. Hartmann’s exhibited work included architectural drawings, paintings, and designs for dramatic productions. Read more about Hartmann, and take a look at his surviving drawings, here.
- Pictures was one of many Mussorgsky pieces which Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov edited for publication after the composer’s death. The piece was published in 1886. Rimsky-Korsakov didn’t make as many alterations in Pictures as he did in a number of Mussorgky’s other, less finished works.
- Mussorgsky never orchestrated Pictures at an Exhibition. The first person to orchestrate the set was Mikhail Tushmalov, who produced his version around 1891. Maurice Ravel made his famous orchestration of Pictures in 1922.1
Sources
- Robert W. Oldani, “Musorgsky [Mussorgsky; Moussorgsky], Modest Petrovich,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed March 25, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000019468.
Cut IDs
10585 21550 55708 49994 15709 21496 21540 12688 15276 14594 14595