Sergei Diaghilev, Impresario

Russian Art Critic, Founder and Director of Ballets Russes, Patron

Nov 4, 2007

Brief biography of Russian impressario Sergei Diaghilev (Sergey Pavlovich Diagilev), famous for ballets "The Rite of Spring" and "The Firebird."

Russian impresario, patron and art critic Sergei Diaghilev founded and directed the popular Ballets Russes that produced famous choreographers and dancers. He had strong associations with famous composers including Stravinsky, Debussy and Ravel.

Early Life of Sergei Diaghilev

Born to a wealthy family, Sergei Siaghilev (or Sergey Pavlovich), was born in Novrogod, Russian, on March 31, 1872. He completed Perm Gymnasium and studied law at St. Petersburg University while also enrolled in music and singing at the Conservatory of Music. One of his music professors was Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. He was primarily aided by Alexandre Benois in belonging to the influential circle of artists and in focusing to develop Western and Russian Art. Initially, his dream was to become a composer.

Associations and Collaborations

With strong support from influential associates including Alexandre Benois and Leon Bakst, he published an important art periodical Mir Iskusstva (The World of Art) in St. Petersburg and mounted a massive exhibition of historical portraits. From Russia, he travelled to the West – first in Paris, with an exhibition of Russian painting, concerts of Russian music, and the first production outside Russia, of Modest Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov with Challapin.

Diagilev's success was founded on an inspired collaboration with leading composers at that time - Eric Satie, Sergey Prokofiev and Manuel de Falla. He also formed a close relationship with artists such as Picasso, Rouault and Bakst and choreographers Fokin, Balanchin, Massin and Nizhinsky.

Career and Ballets Russes

After a performance of Boris Godunov in Paris, Diaghilev presented his first Ballets Russes season. Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé was performed in 1912 and Debussy's Jeux the following year. An association with Igor Stravinsky began with the commissioning of The Firebird for and continued for 18 years until 1928, with Apollo.

Later, new and exotic ballets by Fokine, with Benois and Bakst as designers, were followed by Nijinsky' modern works. Stravinsky's The Firebird, Petrushka and The Rite of Spring, and Ravel's Daphnis and Chloé rank among the most important musical scores commissioned by Diaghilev.

Diaghilev's Achievements and Legacy

Through ballet, Sergei Diaghilev found an art form which combined the disciplines of choreography, music and painting: his passion for experiment along with patronage of artists in these fields produced numerous 20th-century masterpieces. Ballets Russes had a profound influence on Europe's cultural life. He died aged 57. Diaghilev's enormous achievement can be measured by the range of artists he employed and often 'discovered':

Choreography

Music

Design

Dancers

There were numerous dancers to mention. After Diaghilev's death in 1929, many of them and choreographers founded their own ballet schools and companies throughout the West.

Sources:

The Grove Concise Dictionary of Music, edited by Stanley Sadie, MacMillan (1994)

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