Night On Bald Mountain: Masters of Modification.

Who Wrote It?

“Modest Mussorgsky.” AudioSparx. Accessed April 2, 2014.

https://www.audiosparx.com/sa/composer/sounds.cfm/composer_iid.31

Trevor J. Hedrick

Dr. Schmidt

MUSC 302.001

04/29/2014

Word Count:

a. Body: 3398

b. Footnotes, Table, Bibliography: 2614

c. Total: 6012

2

I. St. John’s Eve

A folk legend not based in fact, states that someone must pluck the flower that blooms

from the fern bush on the night of St. John’s Eve to start their journey to finding what they

truly desire. Petro has fallen in love with Pidorka but unfortunately has been told to never see

her again. What does a young man want more than love? For Petro, that is nothing. To be

together again with Pidorka, Petro must pluck the flower that Basavruik tasked him. Little

does Petro know what is to come next. A witch appears to hand Petro a spade with which he

must dig until he sheds blood. Ivas appears captured in the ground, Pidorkas brother. The

witch did not say whose blood was to be shed. After lopping off Ivas head, Petro finds a large

quantity of gold and several nights of deep sleep from being knocked unconscious. After they

are married, things start to go downhill rather quickly and Petro becomes insane. Eventually,

Pidorka is convinced to visit the witch at Bear’s Ravine for help. Petro suddenly remembers

what happened at Bear’s Ravine to throw an axe at the witch. Ivas appears with blood all

over and Petro is carried away by the devil. Pieces of broken pottery and a pile of ash are all

that lie where he stood. Following this, Basavriuk appears in the village again and Pidorka

goes on a pilgrimage. Even after sprinkling holy water on everything across the town, there

continues to be poltergeists raging the city. The village becomes abandoned.1 Preparing a

writing to be set to music from a poem must be a feat. Modest Petrovich Musorgsky’s work

Night On Bald Mountain has gone through many editorial processes. Such processes include

simple editing and organization, orchestration and reorchestration, compositional completion,

1 Gogol, Nikolai Vasil’evich, St. John’s Eve, and Other Stories from “Evenings at the

Farm” and “St. Petersburg Stories” (New York: Books for Libraries Press, 1971), 23-51.

3

rediscovery of originals, the recombining of versions, and actual recomposition.2 You will

learn not only the history of the piece but the reasons why musicians, producers, composers

and listeners alike don’t use this piece as much as Musorgsky liked. Not only have those

prior mentioned had the opportunity to enjoy Musorgsky’s original Night on Bald Mountain

due to its ever changing orchestration; of which will be covered throughout this writing. It

takes quite a bit of time to get through the history of Night On Bald Mountain, the many

discrepancies between the original and the first several versions as well as problems with the

other versions created. Hold on as we travel through time to discover the many possibilities

as to why we are hearing the Night on Bald Mountain in the form we hear today.

II. History of Night On Bald Mountain

In order to clarify the status of the origins of Night on Bald Mountain, what follows is a

brief summary of its history, which will be the topic of detailed discussion in subsequent

paragraphs. The first version of Night on Bald Mountain was an orchestral tone poem,

completed and orchestrated by Musorgsky in 1867, and entitled St. John’s Night on Bald

Mountain.3 It was a programmatic work, depicting a witches’ sabbath. At some point before

1872, Musorgsky revised it, though neither version ever received a public performance, due

largely to Balakirev’s critical reaction.4 The early revision is the earliest surviving version of

the piece; it had been lost until 1933 and remained unpublished until 1968, when it was

2 Daniel W. Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation of the Current Performance Versions of

Musorgsky’s Night On Bald Mountain, Based on the History and Content of Musorgsky’s

Original Extant Versions and A New Orchestration of Night On Bald Mountain, Respectfully

Based Upon Musorgsky’s Original Extant Versions” (PhD diss., The Ohio State University,

1992). 3 Charles O’Connell, The Victor Book of Overtures, Tone Poems and Other Orchestral

Works (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950). 4 Stephen Walsh, Musorgsky and his Circle: A Russian Musical Adventure (New York:

Knopf, 2013), 166.

4

published for rental purposes only. The very first version is currently available for sale

through Kalmus, who published it in 1982.5 Musorgsky was clearly excited about his

composition and wanted badly to have it performed but could not get it to be done. He also

displayed an ongoing fascination with its subject matter. These two factors may well have led

him later to revise it for use in two different operas, Mlada and The Fair at Sorochintsy.6 In

1874 Musorgsky apparently completed his second version of Night on Bald Mountain, which

was intended for insertion into the opera/ballet, Mlada. Unfortunately no manuscript of this

version of Mlada has survived, nor has any copy for that matter. It is likely that through his

letters regarding choral parts in the piece, served as the basis for his last version which

excluded the choral parts.

The third and final version of Night on Bald Mountain was intended as an interlude to his

unfinished comic opera, The Fair at Sorochintsy.7 Musorgsky never lived to orchestrate this

“second operatic version,” but left a completed piano/vocal score, from 1880.8 The vocal

parts are believed to be leftover from his Mlada version, as are the other extensive revisions.

If this is true, the most important change after the lost Mlada version was the addition of the

contrasting ending that depicts the arrival of dawn. To summarize, of Musorgsky’s many

revisions, two completed versions remain. The first is an orchestral tone poem, orchestrated

and revised by Musorgsky himself. The second, intended as an intermezzo in an opera was

completed but not orchestrated by Musorgsky. It included major revisions and an added

ending, not to mention the addition of choral parts. The lack, therefore of a definitive

5 Malcolm H. Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam 1881-1981 (Ann Arbor, MI: UMI

Research Press, 1982), 135. 6 Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam, 137.

7 Mark Humphreys, “Rimsky-Korsakov,” Grove Music Online, accessed March 3, 2014.

Oxford Music Online. 8 Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam, 155.

5

Musorgsky version, along with the fact that the tone poem was missing for approximately

forty years, contributed to an unfortunate situation of Musorgsky not actually receiving

performances of his own material.

“The Mighty Handful.” Blogspot. Accessed April 27, 2014.

http://5themightyrussianhandful.blogspot.com/.

The ten years leading up to Musorgsky’s composition of Night on Bald Mountain were

pivotal for him, both personally and professionally; one reason for their importance is the

associations he developed within the artistic community. One of the earliest of these

associations was with Alexander Borodin. Within the following two years, he met A.S.

Dargomizhsky (1813-1869) who was then the “most renowned composer in Russia,”9 Mili

Balakirev, Cesar Cui, and the Stasov brothers (Vladmir ad Dmitri) who eventually became

closely associated with this selective circle of musicians. By 1862 he had made his fourth and

final acquaintance within the group of composers that eventually became widely known as

the Might Handful, Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Pictured above is the Mighty Handful. The

first seeds, that later resulted in the composition of Night on Bald Mountain, were planted

around Christmas of 1858, when Musorgsky planned an opera based on Gogol’s story, St.

John’s Eve. The story is the opening statement of this writing. It was to be a corporate effort,

involving Pyotr Boborykin, Oleg Yasherov, Mily Balakirev, Modest Musorgsky, and

9 Jay Leyda and Sergei Bertensson, The Musorgsky Reader: The Life of Modeste

Petrovich Musorgsky in Letters and Documents (New York: Da Capo Press, 1947).

6

Musorgsky’s brother, Filaret Musorgsky.10

Though nothing appears to have developed from

those plans, the idea captured Musorgsky’s imagination. Less than two years later, he wrote

Balakirev on September 26, 1860, telling him of his preparation of a new work based on a

drama by Baron Mengden called, The Witch. The scene was to take place on Bald Mountain,

and Musorgsky said that it contained:

. . . a witches; sabbat, separate episodes of sorcerers, a solemn march for all this

nastiness, a finale-the glorification of the sabbat in which Mengden introduces the

commander of the whole festival on Bald Mountain. The libretto is very good. I already

have some material for it; it may turn out to be a very good thing.11

No specific negative or positive reaction toward Night on Bald Mountain came from others in

Musorgsky’s circle at that time, in part because Musorgsky seems to have shelved the work

(at least in his communications) following Balakirev’s refusal to perform it. There were

many discrepancies between the original and first versions which will be described in the

next section.

III. Discrepancies Between Original and First Versions

On July 5, 1867, Musorgsky reported his completion of the work to Rimsky-Korsakov

and revealed his source of visual pictures for the witches’ sabbat, upon which Night on Bald

Mountain was based:

There is a book, Witchcraft, by Khotinksky, containing a very graphic description of a

witchs’ sabbat provided by the testimony of a woman on trial, who was accused of being

a witch, and had confessed love pranks with Satan himself to the count.12

One week later, another letter from Musorgsky, this time to Vladmir Nikolsky, confirms his

enthusiasm for St. John’s Night on Bald Mountain. He asserts: “In form and character my

10

Leyda, and Bertensson, The Musorgsky Reader, 4. 11

Leyda, and Bertensson, The Musorgsky Reader, 89. 12

David Brown, Musorgsky: His Life and Works (New York: Oxford University Press,

2002).

7

composition is Russian and original. Its tone is hot and chaotic.” About his own musical

convictions, he emphasizes the importance of “the true representation of folk fantasy,”

instead of the “German manner.”13

The aforementioned letters to Rimsky-Korsakov and Nickolsky present Musorgsky’s

thoughts about St. John’s Night on Bald Mountain quite clearly. Musorgsky defends his

work, saying, “I rated, will rate and I will continue to rate this piece a decent one.”14

Even

though Balakirev did not fully agree, Musorgsky continued to do just that, revising and

making changes to the piece. Edward R. Reilly, who provides an excellent analysis of it

based on Musorgsky’s discussion, points out the discrepancies in detail, as does Robert

William Oldani.15

The most striking discrepancy between Musorgsky’s description and the

extant version is a seven-bar excerpt that he writes out. Musorgsky says, “. . . in the vile

glorification, for example, there is a fragment for which Cesar [Ciu] will send me to the

conservatory. Here it is:

Example 1. First Excerpt from Musorgsky Letter of Original.16

13

Richard Taruskin, Musorgsky: Eight Essays and an Epilogue (New Jersey: Princeton

University Press, 1993). 14

Taruskin, Musorgsky: Eight Essays. 15

Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam, 140. 16

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.”

8

Here the witches are honoring Satan as you see, naked, barbarous, and filthy.17

Neither the

above example, nor anything remotely like it, can be found anywhere in the surviving score.

The other musical example Musorgsky provides in the letter, shown below, has been altered

in the extant score, the discrepancy involving the first two measures of the excerpt.

Example 2. Second Excerpt from Musorgsky Letter of Original.

Examination of the extant score, below, compared the example from his letter, reveals

rhythm changes and added notational dissonance of E-natural against B-flat in the extant:

Example 3. Discrepancy Between Letter and Extant Score.

Other alterations include the relocating of an Eb-minor section, the apparent removal of a

section in B minor, and the removal of the “semiecclesiastic quasi-trio.”18

It is natural to assume that additional revisions, outside of those revealed by Musorgsky’s

letter, may have been imposed. Musorgsky did, however, remain true to the original program,

17

Alison Latham, “Night on the Bare Mountain,” Grove Music Online, accessed March

3, 2014, Oxford Music Online. 18

Chris Pasles , "O.C. Music: New Route to Changed 'Mountain'," Los Angeles Times,

last modified December 07, 1994, http://articles.latimes.com/1994-12-07/entertainment/ca-

5924_1_bald-mountain.

9

to much of the original material, and to the use of contrasting orchestrational colors. He

clearly saw his changes as revisions, and not as a new version of the piece. The first extant

version of Musorgsky’s score carries this inscription, which he must have backdated to the

date of the original composition: “Planned in 1866. Began to write for orchestra, June 12,

1867, finished the work on St. John’s Day, June 23, 1867 . . .”19

IV. Modifications

An encounter with one of Musorgsky’s original manuscripts inspired Leopold Stokowski

to create his own version of Night on Bald Mountain. Stokowski was clearly familiar with

Musorgsky’s works, as he had already created a version of Boris Godunov and an

orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition.20

His own statements perhaps best reveal the

reasons for his new version of the Bald Mountain score and the actual process involved.

Stokowski freely admits to establishing himself as the ultimate authority over what was and

was not inspired in both scores, instead of deferring to the original(s) as the ultimate

authority. Reilly’s further exploration and elaboration mentions Stokowki’s version as an

adaptation and reorchestration of Rimsky-Korsakov’s version placing it no higher than

Stokowki thought of his own revisions.21

Stokowski may have shortened Night on Bald

Mountain to suit its function in the Disney movie Fantasia, but he may also have been

reacting to the over-repetition of Rimsky-Korsakov. Stokowski’s version included more

revisions to Rimsky-Korsakov’s score than simple omissions. Instrumentation is expanded

over Musorgsky’s and Rimsky-Korsakov’s to include two piccolos (instead of one), english

19

“Mussorgsky – Night On Bald Mountain,” September 8, 2008, video clip, accessed

March 5, 2014, YouTube, www.youtube.com, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCEDfZgDPS8. 20

Robert W. Oldani, “Musorgsky, Modest Petrovich,” Grove Music Online, accessed

March 3, 2014, Oxford Music Online. 21

Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam.

10

horn, E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, contrabassoon, and expanded horn and trombone

sections.22

Orchestration is generally heavier, favoring bass instruments and perhaps an over-

zealous use of percussion. Dominant percussion is particularly noticeable in the opening

section. He also incorporates small formal aspects of the second operatic version, generally

favoring Musorgsky in both use and non-use of fermatas and pauses. The ending section

includes a 20-measure cut of the already shortened Rimsky-Korsakov version, and, though

not in Stokowski’s actual score, the Fantasia version includes a segue to the popular

Schubert hymn, Ave Maria.23

A brief look at the opening of Stokowski’s version provides specific examples of his

approach to the orchestration, as opposed to Musorgsky’s. The opening bass motive, shown

below, is immediately different in the two scores.

Example 4. Pizzicato Bass Motive.24

While Musorgsky employs timpani, pizzicato cellos and basses, and two bassoons,

Stokowski only employs pizzicato violas, cellos, and basses. The ensuing upward surges in

22

Modest Musorgsky, Night On The Bare Mountain, ed. Georgy Kirkor. (Moscow:

Muzyka,1967), accessed March 4, 2014, International Music Score Library Project,

http://imslp.org/wiki/Night_on_Bald_Mountain_(Mussorgsky,_Modest). 23

Brown, Musorgsky: In Memoriam. 24

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.”

11

Musorgsky’s score occur in the woodwinds, with support from cellos and basses; Stokowski

uses only piccolo and upper strings.25

Another conductor to follow Rimsky-Korsakov’s precedent was Rene Leibowitz. He

created his own version of Night on Bald Mountain for a 1964 recording; like Stokowski, he

was a conductor, and like Stokowski, his version is primarily a reaction to the weaknesses of

Rimsky-Korsakov’s version.26

Like the Stokowski version, Leibowitz’ version follows the

form of Rimsky-Korsakov’s score quite closely, excepting major excisions and a smattering

of his own added material. The first cut is an eight-bar omission, beginning the fifth measure

of rehearsal letter G, which happens to be a large triumphal section. A massive transitional

ritardando at rehearsal letter L precedes the next omission, which advances 34 measures of

material. Leibowitz did not seem to get most of his orchestral ideas from Musorgsky either,

because he uses an expanded orchestra. Audible additions include xylophone, expanded

percussion, bass clarinet, and contrabassoon. The edit is interesting, but could not seriously

have resulted from “extensive research of all available Musorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov

materials given.”27

Truth be told, Stokoski and Leibowitz reacted to what they did not like

about Rimsky-Korsakov’s version. Both conductors reacted against what they saw as

needless repetition in Rimsky-Korsakov’s version. Both conductors sought to rectify the

problem by getting inspiration from the original and orchestrating in a manner more fitting

for Mussorgky’s subject. Perhaps the real answer to their frustrations lies exclusively in

Musorgsky’s original scores, instead of in the patching up work of Rimsky-Korsakov’s

25

Modest Musorgsky, Night On Bald Mountain, No.286 (NewYork: Edwin F. Kalmus –

Publisher of Music, 1985). 26

Marina Frolova-Walker, “Musorgsky, Modest Petrovich,” Grove Music Online,

accessed March 3, 2014, Oxford Music Online. 27

Frolova-Walker, “Musorgsky, Modest Petrovich.”

12

reworking of the piece entirely. That we would not know unless we had the opportunity to

speak with the gentlemen.

Vissarion Shebalin’s 1931 orchestration of The Dream Vision of the Pleasant Lad is

without question the only posthumous version of Night on Bald Mountain to date that is

faithful to the notes and form of the piano/vocal score, but the orchestration succeeds in

retaining the style of contrasting calls favored by Musorgsky.28

Shebalin’s orchestration has

remained, then, the only true representative, valid version of Musorgsky’s second operatic

version of Night on Bald Mountain; the existence of the first extant version, which was

discovered shortly before Lamm’s publication of Sorochintsy Fair, however, confuses

Shebalin’s accomplishment.29

The rediscovery in 1933 of Musorgsky’s orchestral tone poem,

St. John’s Night on Bald Mountain, confused the performance issue in two respects; first, the

event automatically produced a historically viable performance version of the piece.30

Even

though it did not include Musorgsky’s later revisions, few would argue that his original

version deserves to be performed, especially in favor of Rimsky-Korsakov’s and later

Stokowski’s and Leibowitz’ rewritten versions. After all, it is Murosgky’s only orchestration

of Night on Bald Mountain. Because it is longer and looser in structure than Rimsky-

Korsakov’s version (and Musorgsky’s later version) however, and because it did not include

such added Sorochintsy Fair material as the beautiful ending to which audiences had grown

accustomed, most listeners probably preferred Rimsky-Korsakov’s version to the

rediscovered original. The second cause for confusion stemming from the rediscovery of St.

John’s Night reveals the problem with Shebalin’s orchestration: Lamm’s edition of

28

Modest Musorgsky, “Night On Bald Mountain (Noch’ na Lisoy gore), symphonic

poem, edited by Rimskey-Korsakov,” accessed March 10, 2014. 29

Natalia L’istnova, Shebalin (Sovetski: Kompozitor, 1982), 286. 30

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.”

13

Musorgsky’s works was faithfully based on existing manuscripts, which did not officially

include the new, rediscovered first extant version of Night on Bald Mountain.31

Thus,

Shebalin’s orchestration of the second operatic version would appear to be his own, not

deferring orchestrationally to Musorgsky’s original tone poem. This one factor alone detracts

from its historical authenticity. The uneducated and perhaps unconscious response of

conductors and audiences to this confusion has been to assume that, since none of the second

operatic versions are historically perfect, Rimsky-Korsakov’s is as acceptable as any.32

For example of what some changes and confusion that was created may be, provided

below are several excerpts of what changes Shebalin wrote. In the opening pizzicato bass

motive, Shebalin omits Musorgsky’s timpani and bassoon, leaving only the lower strings.

This is shown in example 4 on page 10. In the jeering eighth-note motive, shown below in

example 5, instead of Musorgsky’s flute/oboe/cornet/trumpet combination, Shebalin employs

a flute/oboe/clarinet/cornet combination, voiced in the manner of Rimsky-Korsakov’s.

Example 5. Jeering Eighths.33

Further exemplifying orchestrational differences, Shebalin adds cellos, contrabasses, and

bassoons to the ensuing trombone/tuba melody, which is shown for reference on the next

page in example 7.

31

Walsh, Musorgsky and his Circle. 32

Walsh, Musorgsky and his Circle. 33

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.”

14

Example 7. Trombone/Tuba Melody.34

Whether Shebalin was thwarted in his desire for an entirely historical presentation of Dream

Vision of a Pleasant Lad by unfortunate timing, or he simply preferred to employ his own

orchestration, it remains that the two orchestrations are clearly distinct from one another.

V. Who Wrote It?

The previously mentioned paragraphs serve to provide historical background and

evaluative commentary for the existing versions of Musorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain. In

light of the history of these various version and the current performance practices

surrounding them, that the need for a definitive Musorgsky version becomes apparent. It is

unfortunate that the rediscovered tone poem not Shebalin’s orchestration of the second

operatic version have received much attention from conductors or the general public.35

Ironically, the two most historically accurate scores have remained virtually unknown, while

the Rimsky-Korsakov and Stokowski recomposed versions have enjoyed public approval.

Owing to Kalmus’ relatively recent republication of the first extant version, however, the

original tone poem is again receiving ripples of interest. The general performance status of

the various versions is reflected in current lists of available recordings. The number of

available recordings of each version of Night on Bald Mountain, as reported by Schwann’s

34

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.” 35

Brown, Musorgsky: His Life and Works.

15

Opus and Phonolog Reports through Summer, 1991, is listed below:36

Version of the Piece Number of Recordings

Rimsky-Korsakov’s version 35

Stokowski’s version 5

Musorgsky’s first extant version 3 (2 are new)

Shebalin’s orchestration (within opera) 1

Leibowitz’ version 1 (re-released)

Though musicologically accurate editions of Musorgsky’s first extant version and his second

operatic piano/vocal score have since become reality, no existing orchestration of the second

operative score can claim such musicological credibility. Thoroughly unknown to most

musicians, the second operatic version of Night on Bald Mountain, as presented in

Sorochintsy Fair, is an exciting, tightly-woven piece, without the weaknesses in structure and

long-winded tendencies of the first extant version.37

It is in no respect wanting the formal

revisions of Rimsky-Korsakov or anyone else. Antol Lyadov, who initially began completing

Sorochintsy Fair, made a wise general observation: “. . . it is easy to throw out this or that

strange doubling, to clean up various unpleasant parallelisms, to bring modulations in order.

There’s just one problem: the result is not at all the same as Musorgsky’s.” As Lyadov states,

36

Simon Perry, “Rummaging Through the ‘Catacombs’: Clues in Musorgsky’s Pitch

Notation,” Music Analysis 14, no. 2 (July - Oct. 1995): 221-255, accessed March 5, 2014,

JSTOR. 37

Edward Garden, “Three Night on Bare Mountain,” The Musical Times 129, no.1745

(July 1988): 333-335, accessed March 5, 2014, JSTOR.

16

“gone somewhere are the salient features and peculiarities, gone is the composer’s

personality, lost is something that is very essential to Musorgsky’s style.”38

One must now

ask, whose version do you listen to most often? Who really wrote Night on Bald Mountain?

We now know fundamentally that Musuorgsky wrote the first extant version; we are not sure,

however, exactly what the very first extant manuscript looked like or how it sounded. The

listener may be reading or listening to the score with the composer’s name as “Modest P.

Musorgsky,” but is that really the true composition that the listener is listening to? Savor the

thought.

38

Lochrie, “A Critical Evaluation.”

17

Bibliography

Books

Brown, David. Musorgsky: His Life and Works. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. Cook

Library ML410.M97B75 2002.

The contents of this book aid the reader in the understanding of the pieces Musorgsky

wrote. The book is not meant to give primarily biographical information but more for the

use of understanding the different works written and how they compare.

Brown, Malcolm H. Musorgsky: In Memoriam 1881-1981. Ann Arbor, MI: UMI Research Press,

1982. Cook Library ML410M97M9.

Gives biographical references. Helps the reader understand the first extant version of

Night on Bald Mountain as well as gives commentary on Musorgskys interactions with

The Mighty Five.

Burkholder, J. Peter, Donald J. Grout, and Claude V. Palisca. A History of Western Music. New

York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010.

A classroom textbook with useful bibliographic information regarding Musorgsky as well

as how Nickolay Rimsky-Korsakov interacted. There is not any information regarding

Night on Bald Mountain but a substantial amount of information on Rimsky-Korsakov

and Musorgskys relationship.

Emerson, Caryl. The Life of Musorgsky. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Cook

Library ML410.M97E42 1999.

The life of Mursorgsky outside of music is the focus of this book. One will find

information about his relationships with women as well as substances throughout this

book. The book ends with a great prologue pertaining to “The Musorgsky Problem”

which was that of substantial military value and how he has affected Russia today.

Emerson, Caryl, and Robert W. Oldani. Modest Musorgsky and Boris Godunov. Cambridge

University Press, 1994. Cook Library ML410.M97E43.

Myths, realities and reconsiderations are the focus of this book. It is centered around

Musorgsky’s Boris Godunov but there happens to be a great dialogue of Musorgsky and

how he came about reading Gogul’s St. John’s Eve.

18

Gogol, Nikolai Vasil’evich. St. John’s Eve, and Other Stories from “Evenings at the Farm” and

“St. Petersburg Stories.” New York: Books for Libraries Press, 1971. Cook Library

PG3332.S3 1886a.

These are stories written by Nikolai Gogul. St. John’s Eve is one Musorgsky used in his

piece Night on Bald Mountain.

Leyda, Jay, and Sergei Bertensson. The Musorgsky Reader: The Life of Modeste Petrovich

Musorgsky in Letters and Documents. New York: Da Capo Press, 1947. Cook Library

ML410.M97A3 1947.

With a large focus on the documents and letters Musorgsky wrote to The Mighty Handful

as well as allies and adversaries, this book gives us insight into the emotions behind why

Musorgsky wrote what he did.

L’istnova, Natalia. Shebalin. Sovetski: Kompozitor, 1982. UMCP ML410.S524 L6 1982.

A biography of Vissarion Shebalin. This text gives us information on the changes he

made to Musorgsky’s scores.

O’Connell, Charles. The Victor Book of Overtures, Tone Poems and Other Orchestral Works.

New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950. Cook Library MT125.O3.

Contains a very large group of specifically tone poems and overtures that give the reader

a better knowledge of how what the composer had in mind while composing from the

tone poem. The book also gives brief biographical information on the composer.

Taruskin, Richard. Musorgsky: Eight Essays and an Epilogue. New Jersey: Princeton University

Press, 1993. St. Mary’s College of Maryland Library ML410.M97T37 1993.

Contains powerful conversation between Musorgsky and his mentors in regards to his

pieces. The text is mainly a detailed description of where Musorgsky drew his vocal and

orchestral music from with some elaboration on special text by Shakespeare and how it

affected his writing.

Walsh, Stephen. Musorgsky and his Circle: A Russian Musical Adventure. New York: Knopf,

2013.

A book that will help absolutely anyone understand everything you need to know about

Musorgsky. The text contains an incredible amount of detail about Musorgsky’s history,

his friend circles, family and many of his works.

19

Articles

Garden, Edward. “Three Night on Bare Mountain.” The Musical Times 129, no.1745 (July

1988): 333-335. Accessed March 5, 2014. JSTOR.

Incredibly descriptive article regarding minute details such as Musorgsky’s ‘chemical

whole-tone scale’ as well as his diabolical thought process throughout composition of the

piece.

Perry, Simon. “Rummaging Through the ‘Catacombs’: Clues in Musorgsky’s Pitch Notation.”

Music Analysis 14, no.2 (Jul. - Oct. 1995): 221-255. Accessed March 5, 2014. JSTOR.

Descriptive article on the relationship of pitch spelling and content through the letters and

essays of The Mighty Handful in relation to Night on Bald Mountain. The article is a

thorough dissection of music by Musorgsky.

Schwarm, Betsy. “Night On Bald Mountain.” In Encyclopedia Britannica.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1669633/Night-on-Bald-Mountain

Brief article of background to Night on Bald Mountain.

Dissertation

Lochrie, Daniel W. “A Critical Evaluation of the Current Performance Versions of Musorgsky’s

Night On Bald Mountain, Based on the History and Content of Musorgsky’s Original

Extant Versions and A New Orchestration of Night On Bald Mountain, Respectfully

Based Upon Musorgsky’s Original Extant Versions.” PhD diss., The Ohio State

University, 1992.

Descriptive dissertation which gives a large amount of examples pertaining to the

different versions of Night on Bald Mountain and how it has become what it is today.

Oxford Music Online

Frolova-Walker, Marina. “Musorgsky, Modest Petrovich.” In Grove Music Online. Accessed

March 3, 2014. Oxford Music Online.

Brief summary of biographical background on Musorgsky.

Humphreys, Mark. “Rimsky-Korsakov.” In Grove Music Online. Accessed March 3, 2014.

Oxford Music Online.

Brief summary of biographical background on Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov.

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Latham, Alison. “Night on the Bare Mountain.” In Grove Music Online. Accessed March 3,

2014. Oxford Music Online.

Helps to familiarize the reader and listener to what exactly the piece is and where it came

from.

Oldani, Robert W. “Musorgsky, Modest Petrovich.” In Grove Music Online. Accessed March 3,

2014. Oxford Music Online.

Biographical background on Musorgsky in relation to his substance and alcohol abuse

and how it affected his composition.

Scores

Musorgsky, Modest. A Night On Bald Mountain, Edited by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov. Paris: J.

Hamelle, 1909. Reprint, Melville, NY: Belwin Mills, 1972. Accessed March 4, 2014,

International Music Score Library Project,

http://imslp.org/wiki/Night_on_Bald_Mountain_(Mussorgsky,_Modest).

Digital full orchestral score.

---. Night On The Bare Mountain, Edited by Georgy Kirkor. Moscow: Muzyka,1967.

Accessed March 4, 2014, International Music Score Library Project,

http://imslp.org/wiki/Night_on_Bald_Mountain_(Mussorgsky,_Modest).

Piano solo score.

---. Night On Bald Mountain. New York: Edwin F. Kalmus - Publisher of Music, 1985. Cook

Library M1002.M8N8

Large print orchestral score.

---. Night On Bald Mountain, No.286. NewYork: Edwin F. Kalmus – Publisher of Music, 1985.

St. Mary’s College of Maryland Library M1002.M98N545

Small print version of orchestral score with marking changes.

Recording

Musorgsky, Modest. St. John’s Night on Bald Mountain, “A Night on the Bare Mountain.”Berlin

Radio Symphony Orchestra. Conducted by Gilbert Levine. Capriole CA14012. N.d,

compact disc. Accessed March 5, 2014. Naxos Music Library.

Clean and clear recording with little commentary throughout. The recording is of the

piece in its entirety.

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Website

“Mussorgsky – Night On Bald Mountain.” September 8, 2008. Video clip. Accessed March 5,

2014. YouTube. www.Youtube.com, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCEDfZgDPS8.

A clip online of the piece with some commentary in the description regarding the history

of the piece. The clip is used more for audio purposes.

Newspaper

Pasles, Chris. "O.C. Music: New Route to Changed 'Mountain'." Los Angeles Times. Last

modified December 07, 1994. http://articles.latimes.com/1994-12-07/entertainment/ca-

5924_1_bald-mountain

Focuses on Disney’s “Fantasia” and movie scorings to the piece Night on Bald Mountain.

Iconography

“The Mighty Handful.” Blogspot. Accessed April 27, 2014.

http://5themightyrussianhandful.blogspot.com/.

Photo collage of The Mighty Handful together.

“Modest Mussorgsky.” AudioSparx. Accessed April 2, 2014.

https://www.audiosparx.com/sa/composer/sounds.cfm/composer_iid.31.

Portrait photo of Modest Musorgsky.

Discography

Mussorgsky, Modest. “Night On Bald Mountain (Noch’ na Lisoy gore), symphonic poem, edited

by Rimsky-Korsakov.” Accessed March 10, 2014.

http://www.allmusic.com/composition/night-on-bald-mountain-noch-na-l%C3%AFsoy-

gore-symphonic-poem-edited-by-rimsky-korsakov-mc0002369147

Thorough list of when Night on Bald Mountain was used in specific recordings.