Schnittke's musical style and viola concerto

Alfred Schnitke's life involved many big obstacles that caused him to struggle both to live and create an identity of a composer which became an idol for musicians thanks to his character that made him go down in history. World War II that he witnessed and experienced, difficult political situation of the time period, cerebral hemorrhages were never enough to change his path and he became the inventor of polystylistic movement as an avangart composer who became one of the best known composers of the 20th century. His life and musical understanding, importance and evaluation of his music for the 20th century, observation of the concerto in terms of form and interpreting are such chapters of this study, which aim to create a source for string department, especially for students and teachers of the viola discipline who could wish to consult to get information and ideas. At the last chapter of this study, Schnitke's viola concerto is analyzed in details from the point of view of a performer and a teacher, both musically in general and also oriented for performans. Schnitke's viola concert, acknowledged as one of the most important work of contemporary viola repertoire involves many different styles, as it is written in polystylist approach. It also changes over such styles such as march and waltz. As being as one of the most important viola performers in the history, Yuri Bashmet is the person to whom this concerto was dedicated. The most important theme of the concerto consists of the letters of this performer: "B-a-s-c-h-(m)-e-(t)". Keywords: Schnitke, viola, concerto, strings, Bashmet