Mikhail (Mikhail Xaverius Sigizmund) Jelski, a violinist-performer, composer, and musical publicist of the 19th century, representative of the Late Romantic movement in European music made a significant contribution to the development of musical art in Belarus. His 190th anniversary will be celebrated in 2021.
He was born on 8 (according to other sources, on 5) October 1831 into a noble family in the Dudzichy estate in the Ihumen district of Minsk province (now a village in the Pukhavichy district of the Minsk region). He received his first musical knowledge from his father, a well-educated man, an amateur musician of the old Jelski family, whose house was often a gathering place for writers and artists. In 1845‒1847, Mikhail studied at a German gymnasium in Lasdehnen (now Krasnoznamensk, Russia), where he simultaneously took private lessons from the violinist Endom. Later he perfected his skills under the guidance of experienced Minsk composer, teacher and singer K. Krzyzanowski and Vilnia virtuoso violinist Bankevich, and began to participate in public performances. After graduating from the Vilnia Institute for Nobles (1849), he attended lectures on jurisprudence at Kyiv University as a free listener, and for some time worked as a lawyer in court.
Leaving legal service, Jelski took up professional composing and performing activities. He took part in concerts in Kyiv and Minsk, worked a lot to expand his concert repertoire. He played mainly violin works by Bach, Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, as well as his own compositions. The excellent classical style of performance was well received by the audience and noted by critics. In 1852, Jelski's Violin Miniatures were published in Kyiv. Since the late 1850s, the composer traveled a lot. He visited musical centres in Europe, took lessons from the renowned violinists of that time – K. Lipinski, A. Vietton, I. Lachner, gave concerts with great success in Krakow, Wroclaw, Paris, Frankfurt am Main, Munich, Berlin, Dresden and other cities.
After returning in 1862 to the native land, Jelski settled in Dudzichy. He was busy dealing with the economic affairs of his estates, took an active part in the public life of the Minsk province and was one of the initiators of the foundation of the Minsk Musical and Literary Society in 1880. The composer worked on his pieces, participated in many charitable concerts at home and abroad, collected musical folklore, was engaged in journalism.
During more than 50 years of his career, he composed around 100 pieces, including two violin concertos, the fantasy "Spring", concert mazurkas "Memories of Kyiv", "Memories of Vilnia", "Dance of the Spirits", piano and violin miniatures among others. Characteristic features of his music, according to researchers, were the organic combination of romantic and classical styles, virtuosity, the use of various methods of violin technique, depth, expressiveness of melodic language, its connection with the Belarusian folk melody.
M.K. Jelski combined composing with an active collection of musical folklore. The only surviving work by him is "Folk Dances of Minsk Province", a manuscript containing records of old local dances and information on Belarusian folk instrumental music.
Jelski was also a music journalist. He published a number of articles and essays on composers and musicians, facts about the history of music in many periodicals. The composer presented his views on music as a genre of art in his "Studya myzuczne" (Study of Music), published in Minsk in 1899. Jelski's works (sheet music, sound recordings), as well as pieces about his life and activities, are represented in the collections of the National Library of Belarus.
Mikhail Jelski died in January 1904 in the estate of his daughter Sophia and son-in-law Janush Unichouski in the village of Rusinovichy (now Samakhvalavichy village, Minsk district) and was buried in the Unichouski family chapel (not preserved).
The work of M.K. Jelski as a composer made a significant contribution to the musical culture of Belarus. His works are currently being reissued, and some of them are included in the repertoire of contemporary musicians and performed by the National Academic Concert Orchestra of the Republic of Belarus under the direction of Mikhail Finbierh. An international bowed string competition was founded in Minsk in honour of the composer.
Information on the composer's life and work is available in the online encyclopaedia "Belarus in Persons and Events". You are also invited to take a look at the virtual project "Stanislau Maniushka: Musical Romantic from Minsk Region" dedicated to M. Jelski's contemporary and fellow countryman.
Bibliology Research Department
