Reinhold Glière
Late Romantic · 1875–1956
Reinhold Glière was born in Kyiv in 1875, the son of an instrument maker, and built his career as both composer and teacher in the Russian, then Soviet, musical world. He studied at the Moscow Conservatory and later taught there for decades; his students over the years included the young Prokofiev, whom he tutored privately, and Khachaturian.
While many contemporaries chased new sounds, Glière stayed a Romantic, writing big, colorful, melodic orchestral music in the tradition of Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov. His Third Symphony, Il'ya Muromets, is an enormous four-part portrait of a legendary Russian folk hero, a knight of old epic songs. He also left concertos for unusual soloists, including one of the repertoire's few concertos for harp.
Start with the Symphony no. 3, Il'ya Muromets, ideally with an hour to spare, or the Harp Concerto for something gentler.
39 works in the catalog, across 5 genres. Log what you listen to with Opus, the classical music journal for iPhone.
Chamber
- 8 Pieces for Violin and Cello, op. 39
- 10 Duos, for cello, op. 53
- Albumblätter, for cello and piano, op. 51
- Impromptu, for harp
- Pieces for Various Instruments and Piano, op. 35
- Suite, for guitar and bass
- Waltz, for cello and piano, op. 48
Keyboard
- 3 Mazurkas, op. 29
- Esquisses, op. 47
- Fugue on a Theme of A Russian Christmas Song in B flat major
- Orientale, op. 38, no. 17
- Prelude, op. 26, no. 1
- Préludes, op. 30
Orchestral
- Harp Concerto, op. 74
- Horn Concerto, op. 91
- Symphony no. 3 in B minor, op. 42, "Il'ya Muromets"
- Ballad, for cello and orchestra, op. 4
- Bronze Horseman Suite, op. 89a
- Cello Concerto, op. 87
- Concerto for Coloratura Soprano and Orchestra, op. 82
- Concerto Waltz, op. 90
- Folk Song, for Violin and Orchestra
- Heroic March for the Buryiat-Mongolian ASSR, op. 71
- Overture: Holiday at Ferghana, op. 75
- Overture on Slavonic Themes
- Romance, op. 3
- Sirens, op. 33
- Solemn Overture, op. 72
- Symphony no. 1 in E flat major, op. 8
- Symphony no. 2 in C minor, op. 25
- The Zaporozhy Cossacks, op. 64
Stage
- Gyul'sara Opera
- Shakh-Senem Opera
- The Bronze Horseman Ballet
- The Red Poppy, op. 70 Ballet
Vocal
- Human Tears, for voice and piano, op. 6, no. 2
- That my grief were with you, for voice and piano Op.28, no. 3
- The Melancholy of Love, for voice and piano, op. 46, no. 3
- The Night March, for voice and piano, op. 50, no. 1
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