Leontovich, Mikola (Dmitrovich)

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Leontovich, Mikola (Dmitrovich)

Leontovich, Mikola (Dmitrovich), prominent Ukrainian composer and teacher; b. Monastïryok, Podolia, Dec. 13, 1877; d. Markovka, near Tulchin, Jan. 25, 1921. He was educated at the seminaries in Star-gorod and Kamenets-Podolsky. Although he lacked formal training in music, he was active as a singing teacher in various schools and as a conductor of amateur choirs and orchs. After completing sessions as an external student of the St. Petersburg court chapel choir (1904), he worked with Yavorsky (1909–14); in 1918, became a teacher at the Lissenko Music and Drama Inst. He also was active with various Ukrainian musical organizations. Leontovich possessed a remarkable talent for arranging Ukrainian folk songs for unaccompanied choral groups. Among his own works were several major unaccompanied choral works, instrumental pieces, and an unfinished opera. A number of collections of his works were publ., as were a vol. of his writings (Kiev, 1947).

Bibliography

V. Diachenko, M.D. L. (Kharkov, 1941); M. Gordi-chuk, M.D. L. (Kiev, 1972).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire