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71-454: Balakirev, a committed nationalist whose music was influenced by Russian traditions, was inspired to write the piece after a trip to the Caucasus , as he relates in a letter: ...the majestic beauty of luxuriant nature there and the beauty of the inhabitants that harmonises with it – all these things together made a deep impression on me... Since I interested myself in the vocal music there, I made

142-474: A blacksmith god, and Batradz , a mighty hero. The folklore of the Caucasus shows ancient Iranian Zoroastrian influence, involve battles with ancient Goths , Huns and Khazars , and contain many connections with ancient Indian , Norse Scandinavian , and Greek cultures. Caucasian folklore contains many links with the myths of the ancient Greeks. There are resemblances between the mother goddess Satanaya and

213-468: A clerk in a sugar refinery. Gilels had perfect pitch , and at the age of five-and-a-half, he began lessons with Yakov Isaakovich Tkach  [ Wikidata ] , a piano pedagogue in Odessa. A quick learner, he was playing all three volumes of Loeschhorn's studies within a few months, and soon afterwards Clementi and Mozart sonatinas. Gilels later credited this strict training with Tkach for establishing

284-645: A medical checkup in Moscow on 14 October 1985, only a few days before his 69th birthday. Sviatoslav Richter , who knew Gilels well and was a fellow student in the class of Heinrich Neuhaus at the Moscow Conservatory , believed that Gilels was killed accidentally when a drug was wrongly injected during a routine checkup, at the Kremlin hospital. However, Danish composer and writer Karl Aage Rasmussen , in his biography of Richter, denies this possibility and contends that it

355-550: A postgraduate student at the Moscow Conservatory, and Gilels renewed his commitment to giving concerts. In 1936, he participated in his first international competition, the International Vienna Music Academy Competition. Gilels took the second place award, while his friend and fellow student Yakov Flier was the first prize winner. Two years later, in 1938, both Gilels and Flier participated in

426-687: A professor at the Moscow Conservatory , where his students included Valery Afanassiev , Irina Zaritskaya , Marina Goglidze-Mdivani , Irina Smorodinova (a Laureate of the International Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud piano competition in Paris), Igor Zhukov, Vladimir Blok and Felix Gottlieb . He was chair of the jury of the International Tchaikovsky Competition at the inaugural competition in 1958, which awarded first prize to Van Cliburn . He presided over

497-554: A repertoire ranging from baroque to late Romantic and 20th century classical composers. His interpretations of the central German-Austrian classics formed the core of his repertoire, in particular Beethoven , Brahms , and Schumann ; but he was equally illuminative with Scarlatti and 20th-century composers such as Debussy , Rachmaninoff, and Prokofiev . His recordings of Liszt 's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 9 and Sonata in B minor have acquired classic status in some circles. Gilels' recordings for most of his recording history were for

568-504: A spit, heat it up, stab it into the giant's eye, and escape. There are also links with the ancient Greek myth of Prometheus . Many legends, widespread in the Caucasus, contain motifs shared with the Prometheus story. These motifs include a giant hero, his conflict with God or gods, the stealing of fire and giving it to men, being chained, and being tormented by a bird who pecks at his liver (or heart). The Adyge / Circassian Nart Nasran,

639-654: Is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia . It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea , mainly comprising Armenia , Azerbaijan , Georgia , and parts of Southern Russia . The Caucasus Mountains , including the Greater Caucasus range, have conventionally been considered as a natural barrier between Europe and Asia , bisecting the Eurasian landmass. Mount Elbrus , Europe 's highest mountain,

710-591: Is considered by some sources to be the dividing line between Europe and Southwest Asia . According to that, the highest peak in the Caucasus, Mount Elbrus (5,642 meters) located in western Ciscaucasus, is considered the highest point in Europe. The Kuma-Manych Depression , the geologic depression that divides the Russian Plain from the North Caucasus foreland is often regarded by classical and non-British sources as

781-554: Is likewise called the Caucasus by many." In the Tale of Past Years (1113 AD), it is stated that Old East Slavic Кавкасийскыѣ горы ( Kavkasijskyě gory ) came from Ancient Greek Καύκασος ( Kaúkasos ), which, according to M. A. Yuyukin, is a compound word that can be interpreted as the 'mountain of the seagull(s)' (καύ-: καύαξ, καύηξ, -ηκος, κήξ, κηϋξ 'a kind of seagull' + the reconstructed *κάσος 'mountain' or 'rock' richly attested both in place and personal names). In Georgian tradition,

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852-633: Is quite distinct and differs from that of the other Western Eurasian refugia. The natural landscape is one of mixed forest , with substantial areas of rocky ground above the treeline. The Caucasus Mountains are also noted for a dog breed , the Caucasian Shepherd Dog (Rus. Kavkazskaya Ovcharka, Geo. Nagazi). Vincent Evans noted that minke whales have been recorded from the Black Sea. Emil Gilels Emil Grigoryevich Gilels (19 October 1916 – 14 October 1985, born Samuil )

923-793: Is situated in the Western Caucasus area of Russia . On the southern side, the Lesser Caucasus includes the Javakheti Plateau and the Armenian highlands , part of which is in Turkey. The Caucasus is divided into the North Caucasus and South Caucasus , although the Western Caucasus also exists as a distinct geographic space within the North Caucasus. The Greater Caucasus mountain range in

994-491: Is speculative given that Pelasgian is so poorly known. The term Caucasus is not only used for the mountains themselves but also includes Ciscaucasia (which is part of the Russian Federation ) and Transcaucasia . According to Alexander Mikaberidze , Transcaucasia is a "Russo-centric" term. The Transcaucasus region and Dagestan were the furthest points of Parthian and later Sasanian expansions, with areas to

1065-496: Is variously a one-eyed rock-throwing cannibal, who lives in a cave (the exit of which is often blocked by a stone), kills the hero's companions, is blinded by a hot stake, and whose flock of animals is stolen by the hero and his men, all motifs which (along with still others) are also found in the Polyphemus story. In one example from Georgia , two brothers, who are being held prisoner by a giant one-eyed shepherd called "One-eye", take

1136-665: The Achaemenid Empire , Parthia , and the Sassanid Empire , who would altogether rule the Caucasus for many hundreds of years. In 95–55 BC, under the reign of the Armenian king Tigranes the Great , the Kingdom of Armenia included Kingdom of Armenia, vassals Iberia, Albania, Parthia, Atropatene , Mesopotamia , Cappadocia , Cilicia , Syria , Nabataean kingdom , and Judea . By the time of

1207-717: The Georgian Amirani , the Chechen Pkharmat , and the Abkhazian Abrskil , are examples of such Prometheus-like figures. The Caucasus is an area of great ecological importance. The region is included in the list of 34 world biodiversity hotspots . It harbors some 6400 species of higher plants, 1600 of which are endemic to the region. Its wildlife includes Persian leopards , brown bears , wolves , bison , marals , golden eagles and hooded crows . Among invertebrates , some 1000 spider species are recorded in

1278-738: The Greater Caucasus mountain range. It consists of Southern Russia , mainly the North Caucasian Federal District 's autonomous republics and the Krais in Southern Russia, and the northernmost parts of Georgia and Azerbaijan . The North Caucasus lies between the Black Sea to its west, the Caspian Sea to its east, and borders the Southern Federal District to its north. The two Federal Districts are collectively referred to as "Southern Russia". The South Caucasus borders

1349-607: The Kartvelian , Northwest Caucasian , and Northeast Caucasian language families are indigenous to the area. Pliny the Elder 's Natural History (77–79 AD) derives the name of the Caucasus from a Scythian name, Croucasis , which supposedly means 'shimmering with snow'. German linguist Paul Kretschmer notes that the Latvian word kruvesis also means 'frozen mud'. Isidore of Seville 's Etymologies ( c.  625 AD) also says

1420-716: The Muslim conquest of Persia , large parts of the region came under the rule of the Arabs , and Islam penetrated the region. In the 10th century, the Alans (proto- Ossetians ) founded the Kingdom of Alania , that flourished in the Northern Caucasus , roughly in the location of latter-day Circassia and modern North Ossetia–Alania , until its destruction by the Mongol invasion in 1238–39. During

1491-722: The Ottoman Empire . In the second half of the 19th century, the Russian Empire also conquered the North Caucasus. In the aftermath of the Caucasian Wars , the Russian military perpetrated an ethnic cleansing of Circassians , expelling this indigenous population from its homeland. Between the 1850s and World War I, about a million North Caucasian Muslims arrived in the Ottoman Empire as refugees. Having killed and deported most of

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1562-589: The Simurgh . The Roman poet Ovid placed the Caucasus in Scythia and depicted it as a cold and stony mountain which was the abode of personified hunger. The Greek hero Jason sailed to the west coast of the Caucasus in pursuit of the Golden Fleece , and there met Medea , a daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis . The Caucasus has a rich folklore tradition. This tradition has been preserved orally—necessitated by

1633-666: The "inhabitants of the southern coast of the Black Sea ". It was also noted that in Nakh Ков гас ( Kov gas ) means "gateway to steppe". The modern endonym for the region is usually similar in many languages, and is generally between Kavkaz and Kaukaz . The North Caucasus region is also known as the Ciscaucasus , whereas the South Caucasus region is alternatively known as the Transcaucasus . The North Caucasus contains most of

1704-570: The All-Soviet piano competition, despite being below the age limit to participate, but won a scholarship from the jury. In 1932, Gilels first visited Heinrich Neuhaus . In 1933, Gilels participated in the First All-Union Competition of Performers in Moscow, and won first prize by unanimous decision. This win made Gilels famous throughout the USSR, and led to a nationwide concert tour. However,

1775-723: The Armenians of Western Armenia during the Armenian genocide , the Turks intended to eliminate the Armenian population of Eastern Armenia . During the 1920 Turkish–Armenian War , 60,000 to 98,000 Armenian civilians were estimated to have been killed by the Turkish army. In the 1940s, around 480,000 Chechens and Ingush , 120,000 Karachay – Balkars and Meskhetian Turks , thousands of Kalmyks , and 200,000 Kurds in Nakchivan and Caucasus Germans were deported en masse to Central Asia and Siberia by

1846-565: The Caucasus region. As a result of her military campaigns and the temporary fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1204, Georgia became the strongest Christian state in the whole Near East area, encompassing most of the Caucasus stretching from Northern Iran and Northeastern Turkey to the North Caucasus. The Caucasus region was conquered by the Ottomans , Turco-Mongols , local kingdoms and khanates, as well as, once again, Iran . Up to and including

1917-683: The Caucasus was usually incorporated into the Iranian world . At the beginning of the 19th century, the Russian Empire conquered the territory from Qajar Iran . The territory of the Caucasus region was inhabited by Homo erectus since the Paleolithic Era . In 1991, early Hominini fossils dating back 1.8 million years were found at the Dmanisi archaeological site in Georgia . Scientists now classify

1988-640: The Caucasus. Most of arthropod biodiversity is concentrated on Great and Lesser Caucasus ranges. The region has a high level of endemism and several relict animals and plants, the fact reflecting the presence of refugial forests, which survived the Ice Age in the Caucasus Mountains. The Caucasus forest refugium is the largest throughout the Western Asian (near Eastern) region. The area has multiple representatives of disjunct relict groups of plants with

2059-591: The Crimean Tatars . (Letter to Eduard Reiss (1851–1911), 1892) The piece was composed in the course of one month in 1869, in stark contrast to Balakirev's usual habit of taking sometimes years to complete a work. In the score he noted that he started the work on 9/21 August in Moscow, and completed it on 13/25 September in Saint Petersburg. Balakirev revised the work in 1902. It is divided into three distinct parts, an opening ( Allegro agitato ), which introduces

2130-518: The German record company Deutsche Grammophon when he died unexpectedly in a hospital in Moscow. His recording of the "Hammerklavier" Sonata received a Gramophone Award in 1984. Gilels recorded with his daughter, including Mozart's double piano concerto with Karl Böhm and the Vienna Philharmonic and Schubert's Fantasie in F minor for piano duet . He also made some chamber-music recordings with

2201-591: The Greater Caucasus range and Southern Russia to its north, the Black Sea and Turkey to its west, the Caspian Sea to its east, and Iran to its south. It contains the Lesser Caucasus mountain range and surrounding lowlands. All of Armenia , Azerbaijan (excluding the northernmost parts), and Georgia (excluding the northernmost parts) are in the South Caucasus. The watershed along the Greater Caucasus range

Islamey - Misplaced Pages Continue

2272-456: The Greek goddess of love Aphrodite . The story of how the trickster Nart Sosruquo, became invulnerable parallels that of the Greek hero Achilles . The ancient Greek Amazons may be connected to a Caucasian "warrior Forest-Mother, Amaz-an". Caucasian legends include stories involving giants similar to Homer 's Polyphemus story. In these stories, the giant is almost always a shepherd , and he

2343-621: The Middle Ages, Bagratid Armenia , Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget , Kingdom of Syunik and Principality of Khachen organized local Armenian population facing multiple threats after the fall of antique Kingdom of Armenia . Caucasian Albania maintained close ties with Armenia and the Church of Caucasian Albania shared the same Christian dogmas with the Armenian Apostolic Church and had a tradition of their Catholicos being ordained through

2414-642: The Patriarch of Armenia. In the 12th century, the Georgian king David the Builder drove the Muslims out of the Caucasus and made the Kingdom of Georgia a strong regional power. In 1194–1204 Georgian Queen Tamar 's armies crushed new Seljuk Turkish invasions from the southeast and south and launched several successful campaigns into Seljuk Turkish-controlled Southern Armenia. The Georgian Kingdom continued military campaigns in

2485-729: The Royal Albert Hall. Gilels made his Salzburg Festival debut in 1969 with a piano recital of Weber, Prokofiev and Beethoven at the Mozarteum , followed by a performance of Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto with George Szell and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1981, Gilels suffered a heart attack after a recital at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and suffered declining health thereafter. He died unexpectedly during

2556-433: The Russian Federation. The Russian divisions include Dagestan , Chechnya , Ingushetia , North Ossetia–Alania , Kabardino–Balkaria , Karachay–Cherkessia , Adygea , Krasnodar Krai , and Stavropol Krai , in clockwise order. Two territories in the region claim independence but are recognized as such by only a handful of entities: Abkhazia , and South Ossetia . Abkhazia and South Ossetia are largely recognized by

2627-445: The Southern Caucasus (except western Georgia), northwestern Iran, the northeastern Caucasus, eastern Turkey, and as far as Syria. Under Ashurbanipal (669–627 BC), the boundaries of the Assyrian Empire reached as far as the Caucasus Mountains. Later ancient kingdoms of the region included Armenia , Albania , Colchis and Iberia , among others. These kingdoms were later incorporated into various Iranian empires, including Media ,

2698-543: The Soviet security apparatus. About a quarter of them died. The Southern Caucasus region was unified as a single political entity twice – during the Russian Civil War ( Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic ) from 9 April 1918 to 26 May 1918, and under the Soviet rule ( Transcaucasian SFSR ) from 12 March 1922 to 5 December 1936. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Georgia , Azerbaijan and Armenia became independent nations. The region has been subject to various territorial disputes since

2769-425: The Ysaÿe International Festival ( Queen Elisabeth Competition ) in Brussels . Gilels was awarded first prize, and Flier took third prize. Gilels completed his studies in Moscow in 1938. Following his activities in Brussels, a scheduled tour and American debut at the 1939 New York World's Fair was aborted because of the outbreak of the Second World War. Sergei Rachmaninoff , living in exile from Russia, had heard of

2840-444: The acquaintance of a Circassian prince, who frequently came to me and played folk tunes on his instrument, that was something like a violin. One of them, called Islamey, a dance-tune, pleased me extraordinarily and with a view to the work I had in mind on Tamara I began to arrange it for the piano. The second theme was communicated to me in Moscow by an Armenian actor, who came from the Crimea and is, as he assured me, well known among

2911-446: The area. Russian is used as a lingua franca most notably in the North Caucasus. The peoples of the northern and southern Caucasus mostly are Shia Muslims , Sunni Muslims , Eastern Orthodox Christians or Armenian Christians . Located on the peripheries of Turkey , Iran , and Russia , the region has been an arena for political, military, religious, and cultural rivalries and expansionism for centuries. Throughout its history,

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2982-464: The assemblage of fossil skeletons as the subspecies Homo erectus georgicus . The site yields the earliest unequivocal evidence for the presence of early humans outside the African continent; and the Dmanisi skulls are the five oldest hominins ever found outside Africa . Kura–Araxes culture from about 4000 BC until about 2000 BC enveloped a vast area of approximately 1,000 km by 500 km, and mostly encompassed, on modern-day territories,

3053-427: The closest relatives in Eastern Asia, southern Europe, and even North America. Over 70 species of forest snails of the region are endemic. Some relict species of vertebrates are Caucasian parsley frog , Caucasian salamander , Robert's snow vole , and Caucasian grouse , and there are almost entirely endemic groups of animals such as lizards of genus Darevskia . In general, the species composition of this refugium

3124-426: The collapse of the Soviet Union, leading to the First Nagorno-Karabakh War (1988–1994), the East Prigorodny Conflict (1989–1991), the War in Abkhazia (1992–93) , the First Chechen War (1994–1996), the Second Chechen War (1999–2009), Russo-Georgian War (2008), and the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War (2020). In Greek mythology , the Caucasus was one of the pillars supporting the world. After presenting man with

3195-425: The competition for many years. Gilels was one of the first Soviet artists, along with David Oistrakh , allowed to travel and give concerts in the West . His American debut was in October 1955, with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Eugene Ormandy . His British debut was in Coventry in 1951, where he performed alongside Igor Oistrakh, Galina Vischnevskaya, Mark Reizen and the composer Kabalevsky. In 1952 he played at

3266-473: The early 19th century, most of the Southern Caucasus and southern Dagestan all formed part of the Persian Empire . In 1813 and 1828 by the Treaty of Gulistan and the Treaty of Turkmenchay respectively, the Persians were forced to irrevocably cede the Southern Caucasus and Dagestan to Imperial Russia . In the ensuing years after these gains, the Russians took the remaining part of the Southern Caucasus , comprising western Georgia, through several wars from

3337-419: The fact that for most of the languages involved, there was no alphabet until the early twentieth century—and only began to be written down in the late nineteenth century. One important tradition is that of the Nart sagas , which tell stories of a race of ancient heroes called the Narts. These sagas include such figures as Satanaya , the mother of the Narts, Sosruquo a shape changer and trickster, Tlepsh

3408-421: The first century BC, Zoroastrianism had become the dominant religion of the region; however, the region would go through two other religious transformations. Owing to the strong rivalry between Persia and Rome , and later Byzantium . The Romans first arrived in the region in the 1st century BC with the annexation of the kingdom of Colchis, which was later turned into the province of Lazicum . The next 600 years

3479-422: The foundation of his technique. In turn, Tkach commented of Gilels, using a diminutive, "Milya Gilels possesses the abilities of one who is born solely for the purpose of becoming a pianist, and that with the required attention to his development, the USSR would in the future enrich itself with the acquisition of a world-renowned pianist." In May 1929, aged 12, Gilels gave his first public concert. In 1929, Gilels

3550-448: The frontline, of which film archive footage exists. In 1945, he formed a chamber music trio with the violinist Leonid Kogan (his brother-in-law) and the cellist Mstislav Rostropovich . Gilels was awarded the Stalin Prize in 1946. After the war, he toured the Soviet Bloc countries of Eastern Europe as a soloist. He also gave two-piano recitals with Yakov Flier, as well as concerts with his violinist sister, Elizaveta. In 1952, he became

3621-409: The gift of fire, Prometheus (or Amirani in the Georgian version ) was chained there by Zeus , to have his liver eaten daily by an eagle as punishment for defying Zeus's wish to keep the "secret of fire" from humans. In Persian mythology , the Caucasus might be associated with the mythic Mount Qaf which is believed to surround the known world. It is the battlefield of Saoshyant and the nest of

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3692-443: The main theme, a middle ( Tranquillo – Andantino espressivo ) that introduces an entirely new theme (both described in the above quote), and a third ( Allegro vivo – Presto furioso ), which returns to the main theme. The many existing editions have numerous alternative passages ( ossias ) – most are easier, some are more difficult. This technical difficulty made it a favourite with virtuosos such as Nikolai Rubinstein (who premiered

3763-428: The melodies that Balakirev preserved in this work are still present in folk music in the former USSR. For instance, the first theme has been found to be a variety of the Lezginka from Kabardino-Balkaria , which differs notably from Balakirev's work in its time signature . The second theme has been demonstrated to have the origins as related to Balakirev, namely that of a Tatar love song. Balakirev himself indicated in

3834-430: The name means shining white like snow: "Thus, toward the east, where it rises to a greater height, it is called the Caucasus, due to the whiteness of its snow, for in an eastern language, caucasus means “white,” that is, shining white with a very thick snow cover. For the same reason the Scythians, who live next to this mountain range, call it Croacasim, for among them whiteness or snow is called casim. 3. The Taurus range

3905-429: The natural and historical boundary between Europe and Asia. Another opinion is that the rivers Kura and Rioni mark this border, or even that of the river Aras . The Caucasus is a linguistically , culturally and geographically diverse region. The nation states that compose the Caucasus today are the post-Soviet states Georgia (including Adjara and Abkhazia ), Azerbaijan (including Nakhchivan ), Armenia , and

3976-417: The north is mostly shared by Russia and Georgia as well as the northernmost parts of Azerbaijan . The Lesser Caucasus mountain range in the south is occupied by several independent states, mostly by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, but also extends to parts of northeastern Turkey , and northern Iran . The region is known for its linguistic diversity : aside from Indo-European and Turkic languages,

4047-414: The north of the Greater Caucasus range practically impregnable. The mythological Mount Qaf , the world's highest mountain that ancient Iranian lore shrouded in mystery, was said to be situated in this region. The region is also one of the candidates for the location of Airyanem Vaejah , the apparent homeland of the Iranians of Zoroaster . In Middle Persian sources of the Sasanian era, the Caucasus range

4118-425: The piece along with Liszt's Réminiscences de Don Juan , though the injury eventually healed. Islamey has had a lasting influence on piano solo music; Ravel once remarked to a friend that his goal in writing Gaspard de la nuit was to compose a piece that was "more difficult than Balakirev's Islamey. " This turned out to be Scarbo , the third piece in the suite. Alexander Borodin included quotations from

4189-419: The piece in his opera Prince Igor , while Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov did the same in Scheherazade . The piece has been twice arranged for orchestra , by Alfredo Casella shortly before Balakirev's death, and by Sergei Lyapunov . Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra recorded Casella's orchestration in stereo on February 26, 1961, for Columbia Records . Recent musicological work has shown that

4260-399: The piece), Franz Liszt , and in recorded history, Simon Barere , Julius Katchen , György Cziffra , Boris Berezovsky , Mikhail Pletnev , Ivo Pogorelić , and Lang Lang . Balakirev, considered a virtuoso pianist in his time, once admitted that there were passages in the piece that he "couldn't manage." In addition, Alexander Scriabin seriously damaged his right hand fanatically practicing

4331-601: The reputation of Gilels, and began to listen to Gilels' radio performances. Rachmaninoff subsequently regarded Gilels as his pianistic successor, and sent him his medal and diploma. This medal, engraved with the profile of Anton Rubinstein, and the diploma were once presented to Rachmaninoff to symbolize his succession from Rubinstein, and Rachmaninoff himself added Gilels’ name to the document. Gilels treasured these relics all his life. In 1944, Gilels premiered Prokofiev's 8th Piano Sonata . During World War II, Gilels entertained Soviet troops with morale-boosting open-air recitals on

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4402-505: The score that the coda should be played similarly to the Russian Tropak , again a traditional Russian tune. Notable recordings include: Simon Barere (1947, APR), Vladimir Horowitz (1950, Sony/BMG), Emil Gilels (1951, DOREMI), Julius Katchen (1958, Decca), György Cziffra (1957 & 1970, EMI), Boris Berezovsky (1996, Teldec) and Mikhail Pletnev (2000, DG). Caucasus The Caucasus ( / ˈ k ɔː k ə s ə s / ) or Caucasia ( / k ɔː ˈ k eɪ ʒ ə / ),

4473-418: The state record company for classical music repertoire, Melodiya . These recordings, in turn, were licensed in the west under EMI Records , and in the United States under Angel Records (and EMI's budget Seraphim Records ). In 2013 Warner Classics absorbed EMI Classics, thereby acquiring the bulk of Gilels' recordings. Gilels was in the midst of completing a recording cycle of Beethoven's piano sonatas for

4544-403: The stresses of touring led Gilels to curtail his touring and to return to Odessa, to conclude his studies, even declining an invitation to transfer to the Moscow Conservatory. Gilels subsequently regarded Reingbald as his true teacher, mentor and lifelong friend. Gilels graduated from the Odessa Conservatory in the autumn of 1935. Subsequently, he was accepted into the class of Heinrich Neuhaus as

4615-531: The term Caucasus is derived from Caucas ( Georgian : კავკასოსი Ḳavḳasosi ), the son of the Biblical Togarmah and legendary forefather of the Nakh peoples . According to German philologists Otto Schrader and Alfons A. Nehring, the Ancient Greek word Καύκασος ( Kaukasos ) is connected to Gothic hauhs 'high' as well as Lithuanian kaũkas 'hillock' and kaukarà 'hill, top', Russian куча 'heap'. British linguist Adrian Room claims that * kau- also means 'mountain' in Pelasgian , though this

4686-417: The world community as part of Georgia. The region has many different languages and language families. There are more than 50 ethnic groups living in the region. No fewer than three language families are unique to the area. In addition, Indo-European languages, such as East Slavic , Armenian and Ossetian , and Turkic languages , such as Azerbaijani , Kumyk language and Karachay–Balkar , are spoken in

4757-399: Was a Soviet pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time. His sister Elizabeth , three years his junior, was a violinist. His daughter Elena became a pianist. Gilels was born to a Jewish family on 19 October 1916 (6 October, Old Style ) in Odessa (then part of the Russian Empire , and now Ukraine ) to Gesya and Grigory Gilels. His father worked as

4828-592: Was accepted to the Odessa Conservatory  [ ru ] into the class of Bertha Reingbald  [ uk ] . Under the tutelage of Reingbald, Gilels broadened his range of cultural interests, with a particular aptitude for history and literature. In 1932, Arthur Rubinstein visited the Odessa Conservatory and met Gilels, and the two of them remained friends through the remainder of Rubinstein's life. Like Tkach, Reingbald carefully guided Gilels in terms of allowing him to give live concerts, and protected her student from excessive concert performances. He competed in

4899-466: Was just a false rumour. Gilels was married twice. He was first married to pianist Rosa Tamarkina in 1940. His second wife was Fariset (Lala) Hutsistova, a graduate of Moscow Conservatoire, whom he married in 1947. They had a daughter, Elena , a pianist who graduated from Flier’s class at the Moscow Conservatoire, and who performed and recorded with her father. Gilels is universally admired for his superb technical control and burnished tone. Gilels had

4970-480: Was marked by a conflict between Rome and Sassanid Empire for the control of the region. In western Georgia the eastern Roman rule lasted until the Middle Ages. As the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia (an eponymous branch of the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia ) was the first nation to adopt Christianity as state religion (in 301 AD), and Caucasian Albania and Georgia had become Christian entities, Christianity began to overtake Zoroastrianism and pagan beliefs. With

5041-418: Was referred to as Kaf Kof . The term resurfaced in Iranian tradition later on in a variant form when Ferdowsi , in his Shahnameh , referred to the Caucasus mountains as Kōh-i Kāf . "Most of the modern names of the Caucasus originate from the Greek Kaukasos (Lat., Caucasus ) and the Middle Persian Kaf Kof ". "The earliest etymon" of the name Caucasus comes from Kaz-kaz , the Hittite designation of

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