Ippolitov-Ivanov, Mikhail
IPPOLITOV-IVANOV, Mikhail Mikhailovich (b. 7 (19) November, 1859, Gatchina; d. 28 January 1935, Moscow) — graduated from St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1882 with specialties in theory, composition, and conducting; student of N. Rimsky-Korsakov. From 1882 to 1893 lived in Tbilisi, Georgia, where he contributed to the development of Georgian national classical music. From 1895 to 1901 conducted the Russian Choral Society in Moscow; from 1899 to 1906, served as Musical Director of Mamontov’s and Zimin’s opera theaters in Moscow. From 1893, professor of harmony, composition, and orchestration at the Moscow Conservatory; from 1905 to 1918, Director of the Moscow Conservatory.Besides a complete setting of the Divine Liturgy (opus 37) and the All-Night Vigil (opus 43), Ippolitov-Ivanov composed thirteen shorter liturgical choruses. In the field of secular choral music, he composed several dozen works, with and without accompaniment, more than half of which are for treble voices. Generally speaking, Ippolitov-Ivanov did not employ previously existing chant melodies in his sacred works, choosing instead to compose in a mixed harmonic-contrapuntal style, reminiscent of Tchaikovsky in his Divine Liturgy.