Nikolai Ovsianiko-Kulikovski

Nikolay Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky (1768–1846) was a Ukrainian composer, founder and conductor of an orchestra of serfs. The orchestra had been performing at the Odessa Theater since 1810, and Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky passed it as a gift to the city government ten years later. Nikolay's only surviving work is a symphony On The Opening Of Odessa Opera House (1809). The manuscript was discovered in 1948, and published in 1951 in Moscow. Considered as one of the prime examples of the early Ukrainian symphonism, this Symphony in four parts is based on the Ukrainian folk melodies, and showcases the high level of orchestral and composition virtuosity. Articles like that appeared in various Soviet encyclopedias. In reality, Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky was a fictional character, subject of a famous musical hoax. In 1948, composer and violinist Mikhail Emmanuilovich Goldstein (1917–1989), brother of the prominent violinist Busya Goldstein, got deeply offended by a critic who savaged Goldstein for his use of Ukrainian themes in one of the compositions, claiming that a Jew could never understand Ukrainian culture and have no right to use it. When Misha replied that Beethoven also used Ukrainian themes in his Razumovsky Quartets, the aforementioned critic said bluntly that 'Beethoven was not a Jew.' To prove that a "Jew" can indeed write "Ukrainian" music, Goldstein composed a symphony and decided to publish it under the pseudonym, as suggested by one of his friends. Misha created a whole background story for Ovsianniko-Kulikovsky. Supposedly a native of Kherson Oblast, Nikolay Dmitrievich was a landowner and patron of the arts from aristocratic family, a grandfather of linguist and critic Dmitri Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky (1853–1920). In 1809, Nikolay Ovsianniko-Kulikovsky wrote a Symphony No. 21 in G-minor, with an inscription "for the dedication of Odessa Theater." Goldstein announced the discovery of a manuscript by the previously unknown composer Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky in the Odessa Theater archives. The mysterious symphony caused a great deal of excitement in Soviet musical circles, for it was seen as a proof that Ukraine was able to produce a composer comparable to Joseph Haydn. Furthermore, the symphony contained Ukrainian folk songs and ended with a Cossack dance. The symphony was performed in Odessa and Kiev in 1949, and published in 1951. Soon after, Evgeny Mravinsky recorded the piece with Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra, and it was released by Melodiya. Nikolay Ovsianniko-Kulikovsky quickly rose to nationwide fame, with many Soviet orchestras performing Symphony No. 21. A short biography of the composer, which Goldstein produced upon the request of a musicologist from Leningrad, was included in the 2nd edition of Great Soviet Encyclopedia, apparently without any fact checking. A few critics wrote their theses on the mysterious composer and his Symphony. Shocked that his hoax went unrevealed so far, Mikhail Goldstein came forward and stated that the symphony was in fact his own work. He never intended this composition as a full-blown mystification, so it contained some elements obviously not belonging in the XIX century, and Ukrainian folk motives were quoted rather coarsely. The initial reaction was even more shocking – no one believed him. Symphony No. 21 was analyzed by two Soviet musicologists, including Gleb Taranov, a composer and reputable professor at the Kiev Conservatory. Upon completing his examination, Taranov concluded that neither Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky nor Goldstein had written the symphony. In 1959, after a proper police investigation, it was finally confirmed that Mikhail in fact composed the piece and organized the hoax. Literaturnaya Gazeta published a satirical article Genius or Villain? about Goldstein, a.k.a. Ovsianniko-Kulikovsky, and he was practically condemned and ostracized by Soviet music officials (without any legal repercussions). In 1963, Mikhail submitted his compositions under different pseudonyms to the All-Union Composers' Competition, and won three prizes. After the author was uncovered, this incident only increased Goldstein's career difficulties. In 1964, Mikhail took a teaching position in East Berlin. He relocated to Vienna and Jerusalem in 1967, moved to London one year later, and finally settled in Hamburg. In Germany, Goldstein had been giving concerts with Galina Kowal and Michael Minsky. By far his most famous hoax, Mykola Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky was not the first mystification for Goldstein. He also composed a faux Impromptu by Mily Balakirev, Albumblatt (Листок из Альбома) by Alexander Glazunov, and Viola Concerto in C Major by Ivan Khandoshkin in 1947.