Konius, Georgii Eduardovich

Born Oct. 1 (13), 1862, in Moscow; died there Aug. 28, 1933. Soviet music theorist and composer; Honored Art Worker of the RSFSR (1927).

Konius graduated in 1889 from the Moscow Conservatory in A. S. Arenskii’s composition course (he also studied with S. I. Taneev); he was a teacher there (1891–99) and a professor and dean of the research and composition faculty (1920–33). His students included S. N. Vasilenko, A. F. Gedike, R. M. Gliere, N. K. Metner, and A. N. Scriabin. He created the theory of metrotechtonism (Metrotechtonic Study of the Musical Form, Moscow, 1933), attempting to establish a general abstract principle of musical composition for all works of music (the so-called law of balance of temporal values). Konius wrote textbooks and educational manuals on music theory, harmony, and instrumentation. His compositions include the ballet Daita (1896) and the symphonic poem The Rustling Forest (1890).