Josif Marinković


Josif Marinković was a Serbian composer and choral director. Like his younger contemporary Stevan St. Mokranjac, he was devoted to mainly vocal genres—lied and choral. Marinković was a romanticist with a pronounced affinity for melodic expression. He invested exceptional attention to the text declamation, which represented a rather novel quality in Serbian music at the time.

Biography

Marinković graduated at the Prague Organ School and attended specialized studies in Vienna. He acted as choral director of the Belgrade Singing Society, Academic Singing Society Obilić, as well as other choral ensembles. He also taught music at the Serbian Orthodox Seminary, Teachers’ Preparatory School, and The Second Men's Gymnasium. Marinković was inducted into the Serbian Royal Academy in 1907.
As a composer of a distinct romanticist expression, Marinković often utilized folk melodies. He composed patriotic songs for men's choir, the most popular among them being The People’s assembly of an upbeat, march-like character, thus considered a symbol of the feisty spirit of Serbian people, With a song to the heart, and Slavia ; lyrical pieces for mixed choir and compositions for children's choir, among others. Marinković composed eleven Kolos, based on a mosaic-like assemblage of folk tunes. Among piano-accompanied choral works similar to cantatas, significant are A Content river and The Water mill, of lyrical character, both written after the text by Jovan Milenko Grčić, and also a patriotic choral work On Good Friday. In his lieder, Marinković paid closed attention to the correct diction, lilting melody, and expressive piano accompaniment with which he depicted certain desired atmosphere. He composed lieder after the lyrics of Serbian poets Jovan Jovanović Zmaj, J. Grčić Milenko, and Vojislav Ilić, The Parting, The stream gurgles, Oh, How the sun shines, Prayer, A Shrub. In his church works, Marinković was inspired by Serbian Church chanting and influences of Russian Church music, O, Heavenly King. Marinković often reworked his pieces, thus they exist in several versions.

Works

Lieder

Lieder, composed after the lyrics by romanticist poets and folk motives, occupy the most significant place in Marinković's oeuvre. He is considered the founder of this genre in Serbian music. The most compelling are lieder composed upon art poetry lyrics. In his lieder, Marinković achieved a broad range of moods—hearty lyricism, romanticist warmth, melodic breadth, and drama. He arranged many of his songs in several versions and provided an insight into his creative evolution and development toward a seasoned compositional and technical mastery. Marinković exhibits the ability of deep delving into the meaning and mood of selected lyrics, following the correct diction, with inventive, broad melodies, and an overall direct expression. Melody represents his primary tool; although in his later works noticeable is a rather elaborated piano part and somewhat free harmonic language, within the realm of the late romanticist means of expression.
Marinković also found his inspiration in the texts close to folk songs and composed in the manner close to folk, establishing in Serbian art music a popular sevdalinka genre. He also continued and preserved the tradition of rearranging the folk tunes.

Choral music: secular works

Marinković composed pieces for men's, mixed, women's, and children's choirs, but particularly nurtured the genre of choral pieces with piano accompaniment. His eleven kolos —wreaths of adapted folk tunes for men's and mixed choirs, are considered precursors of S. St. Mokranjac's Song Wreaths. Utilizing a large number of songs lacking a more complex adaptation, Marinković failed to reach a well rounded and complex form later manifested in Mokranjac's works, but however, anticipated some of Mokranjac's procedures. The actual selection of the kolo songs does not demonstrate the level of fastidiousness and cogitation in the scope the works’ entirety, so representative for Mokranjac, while the developing procedures are mainly restrained, but still refreshing and uplifting. In the later kolos, Marinković achieved a higher formal conciseness, better choral texture, contrasts of solo and tutti parts, and bolder harmonic solutions. The three kolos are named after Branko Radičević since they are composed after this poet's lyrics entitled The School friends’ parting and are only indirectly folk-inspired.
Much like his contemporaries, Marinković composed works upon patriotic poetry lyrics, some of which became rather popular, such as The People’s assembly famous for its opening verse, as well as the song Hey, Trumpeter. As one of the most popular Marinković's songs, it was the Obilić anthem for many years.
Marinković established a piano accompanied choral genre in Serbian music. By their broadness and complexity of the piano accompaniment, some of these works confirm that the piano was in fact used as an orchestra substitute.

Choral music: sacred works

In 1935, Kosta Manojlović reconstructed certain movements he found in Marinković's legacy collection into the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom. Among the Liturgy movements particularly expressive and inspiring is Our Father, considered one of the master pieces of choral literature.

Instrumental and stage music

Among instrumental pieces, Marinković composed Sonatina for piano in four hands, and Two Serbian dances, Fantasia, and Nocturne for violin. His stage music includes plays Suđaje by Lj. Petrović.

Selected works