Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov (10 August 1865 – 21 March 1936) was a Russian composer of the late Russian Romantic period, music teacher and conductor. He served as director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory between 1905 and 1928 and was also instrumental in the reorganization of the institute into the Petrograd Conservatory, then the Leningrad Conservatory, following the Bolshevik Revolution. He continued heading the Conservatory until 1930, though he had left the Soviet Union in 1928 and did not return. The best known student under his tenure during the early Soviet years was Dmitri Shostakovich.

Glazunov was significant in that he successfully reconciled nationalism and cosmopolitanism in Russian music. While he was the direct successor to Balakirev's nationalism, he tended more towards Borodin's epic grandeur while absorbing a number of other influences. These included Rimsky-Korsakov's orchestral virtuosity, Tchaikovsky's lyricism and Taneyev's contrapuntal skill. His weaknesses were a streak of academicism which sometimes overpowered his inspiration and an eclecticism which could sap the ultimate stamp of originality from his music. Younger composers such as Prokofiev and Shostakovich eventually considered his music old-fashioned while also admitting he remained a composer with an imposing reputation and a stabilizing influence in a time of transition and turmoil.

Biography

Prodigy

Glazunov was born in Saint Petersburg, the son of a wealthy publisher. He began studying piano at age of nine and began composing at 11. Mily Balakirev, former leader of the nationalist group "The Five", recognized Glazunov's talent and brought his work to the attention of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. "Casually Balakirev once brought me the composition of a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old high-school student, Sasha Glazunov", Rimsky-Korsakov remembered. "It was an orchestral score written in childish fashion. The boy's talent was indubitably clear." Balakirev introduced him to Rimsky-Korsakov shortly afterwards, in December 1879. Rimsky-Korsakov premiered this work in 1882, when Glazunov was 16. Borodin and Stasov, among others, lavishly praised both the work and its composer.

Rimsky-Korsakov taught Glazunov as a private student. "His musical development progressed not by the day, but literally by the hour", Rimsky-Korsakov wrote. The nature of their relationship also changed. By the spring of 1881, Rimsky-Korsakov considered Glazunov more of a junior colleague than a student. While part of this development may have been from Rimsky-Korsakov's need to find a spiritual replacement for Modest Mussorgsky, who had died that March, it may have also been from observing his progress on the first of Glazunov's eight symphonies.

Mentored by Belyayev

More important than this praise was that among the work's admirers was a wealthy timber merchant and amateur musician, Mitrofan Belyayev. Belyayev was introduced to Glazunov's music by Anatoly Lyadov and would take a keen interest in the teenager's musical future, then extend that interest to an entire group of nationalist composers. Belyayev took Glazunov on a trip to Western Europe in 1884. Glazunov met Liszt in Weimar, where Glazunov's First Symphony was performed.

Also in 1884, Belyayev rented out a hall and hired an orchestra to play Glazunov's First Symphony plus an orchestral suite Glazunov had just composed. Buoyed by the success of the rehearsal, Belyayev decided the following season to give a public concert of works by Glazunov and other composers. This project grew into the Russian Symphony Concerts, which were inaugurated during the 1886–1887 season.

In 1885 Belyayev started his own publishing house in Leipzig, Germany, initially publishing music by Glazunov, Lyadov, Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin at his own expense. Young composers started appealing for his help. To help select from their offerings, Belyayev asked Glazunov to serve with Rimsky-Korsakov and Lyadov on an advisory council. The group of composers that formed eventually became known at the Belyayev Circle.

Fame

Glazunov soon enjoyed international acclaim. Nevertheless, he experienced a creative crisis in 1890–1891. He came out of this period with a new maturity. During the 1890s he wrote three symphonies, two string quartets and the ballet ''Raymonda''. By the time he was elected director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in 1905, he was at the height of his creative powers. His best works from this period are considered his Eighth Symphony and Violin Concerto. This was also the time of his greatest international acclaim. He conducted the last of the Russian Historical Concerts in Paris on 17 May 1907 and received honorary Doctor of Music degrees from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. There were also cycles of all-Glazunov concerts in Saint Petersburg and Moscow to celebrate his 25th anniversary as a composer.

Conductor

Glazunov made his conducting debut in 1888. The following year, he conducted his Second Symphony in Paris at the World Exhibition. He was appointed conductor for the Russian Symphony Concerts in 1896. In March of that year he conducted the posthumous premiere of Tchaikovsky's student overture ''The Storm''. In 1897, he led the disastrous premiere of Rachmaninoff's Symphony No 1. The composer's wife later claimed that Glazunov seemed to be drunk at the time. While this assertion cannot be confirmed, it is not implausible for a man who, according to Shostakovich, kept a bottle of alcohol hidden behind his desk and sipped it through a tube during lessons.

Drunk or not, Glazunov had insufficient rehearsal time with the symphony and, while he loved the art of conducting, he never fully mastered it. From time to time he conducted his own compositions, especially the ballet ''Raymonda'', even though he may have known he had no talent for it. He would sometimes joke, "You can criticize my compositions, but you can't deny that I am a good conductor and a remarkable conservatory Director."

Despite the hardships he suffered during World War I and the ensuing Russian Civil War, Glazunov remained active as a conductor. He conducted concerts in factories, clubs and Red Army posts. He played a prominent part in the Russian observation in 1927 of the centenary of Beethoven's death, as both speaker and conductor. After he left Russia, he conducted an evening of his works in Paris in 1928. This was followed by engagements in Portugal, Spain, France, England, Czechoslovakia, Poland, the Netherlands, and the United States.

Conservatory

In 1899, Glazunov became a professor at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. In the wake of the 1905 Russian Revolution and firing, then re-hiring of Rimsky-Korsakov that year, Glazunov became its director. He remained so until the revolutionary events of 1917, which culminated on 7 November. His Piano Concerto No. 2 in B minor, Op. 100, which he conducted, was premiered at the first concert held in Petrograd after that date. After the end of World War I, he was instrumental in the reorganization of the Conservatory—this may, in fact, have been the main reason he waited so long to go into exile.

While Glazunov's sobriety could be questioned, his prestige was not. Because of his reputation, the Conservatory received special status among institutions of higher learning in the aftermath of the October Revolution. Glazunov established a sound working relationship with the Bolshevik regime, especially with Anatoly Lunacharsky, the minister of education. Nevertheless, Glazunov's conservatism was attacked within the Conservatory. Increasingly, professors demanded more progressive methods, and students wanted greater rights. Glazunov saw these demands as both destructive and unjust. Tired of the Conservatory, he took advantage of the opportunity to go abroad in 1928 for the Schubert centenary celebrations in Vienna. He did not return. Maximilian Steinberg ran the Conservatory in his absence until Glazunov finally resigned in 1930. and settled in Paris by 1929. He always claimed that the reason for his continued absence from Russia was "ill health"; this enabled him to remain a respected composer in the Soviet Union, unlike Stravinsky and Rachmaninoff, who had left for other reasons. In 1929, he conducted an orchestra of Parisian musicians in the first complete electrical recording of ''The Seasons''. In 1934, he wrote his Saxophone Concerto, a virtuoso and lyrical work for the alto saxophone.

Married life

In 1929, at age 64, Glazunov married the 54-year-old Olga Nikolayevna Gavrilova (1875–1968). The previous year, Olga's daughter Elena Gavrilova had been the soloist in the first Paris performance of his Piano Concerto No. 2 in B major, Op. 100. He subsequently adopted Elena (she is sometimes referred to as his stepdaughter), and she then used the name Elena Glazunova. In 1928, Elena had married the pianist Sergei Tarnowsky, who managed Glazunov's professional and business affairs in Paris, such as negotiating his United States appearances with Sol Hurok. Elena later appeared as Elena Gunther-Glazunova after her second marriage, to Herbert Gunther (1906–1978).

Death

Glazunov died in Neuilly-sur-Seine (near Paris) at the age of 70 in 1936. The announcement of his death shocked many. They had long associated Glazunov with the music of the past rather than of the present, so they thought he had already been dead for many years.

In 1972 his remains were reinterred in Leningrad.

Works and influence

Phenomenal memory

Glazunov was acknowledged as a great prodigy in his field and, with the help of his mentor and friend Rimsky-Korsakov, finished some of Alexander Borodin's great works, the most famous being the Third Symphony and the opera ''Prince Igor'', including the popular ''Polovtsian Dances''. He reconstructed the overture from memory, having heard it played on the piano only once. Shostakovich reports, however, that Glazunov told him when drunk that his "reconstruction" of Borodin's overture was actually original work; Glazunov chose to give full credit to Borodin for the composition which he, Glazunov, wrote. Glazunov's ability to perfectly mimic Borodin's style is a tribute to his musical creativity. His giving the credit to Borodin, Shostakovich felt, said much for Glazunov's character. "It doesn't happen often that a man composes excellent music for another composer and doesn't advertise it (to talk while drinking doesn't count). It's usually the other way around—a man steals an idea or even a considerable piece of music and passes it off as his own."

Shostakovich mentioned in ''Testimony'' that there were many similar stories about Glazunov's memory. One of the more famous ones, he recalled, was when Sergei Taneyev came to Saint Petersburg with a new symphony. The person whom Taneyev was visiting hid the teenage Glazunov in the next room. Taneyev played his symphony on the piano for the host. The other guests praised and congratulated him. The host then told Taneyev, "I'd like you to meet a talented young man. He's also written a symphony." He brought Glazunov in from the next room. The host said, "Sasha, show your symphony to our dear guest." Glazunov sat down at the piano and played Taneyev's symphony from beginning to end, after hearing it only once and through a closed door.

Age did not weaken Glazunov's memory. Another story Shostakovich relayed was of an "eternal student" applying to enter the composition department at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. The applicant played a piano sonata he had written. Glazunov listened. When the applicant had finished, Glazunov said, "If I'm not mistaken, you applied a few years ago. Then, in another sonata, you had quite a good secondary theme." Glazunov sat down at the keyboard and played a large segment of the old sonata. "The secondary theme was rubbish, of course", Shostakovich said, "but the effect was enormous."

Compositions

Glazunov's most popular works nowadays are his ballets ''The Seasons'' and ''Raymonda'', some of his later symphonies, particularly the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth, the Polonaise from ''Les Sylphides'', and his two Concert Waltzes. His Violin Concerto, which was a favorite vehicle for Jascha Heifetz, is still sometimes played and recorded. His last work, the Saxophone Concerto (1934), showed his ability to adapt to Western fashions in music at that time. The earlier rebellions of the experimental, serialist and minimalist movements passed him by and he never shied away from the polished manner he had perfected at the turn of the century.

Glazunov's musical development was paradoxical. He was adopted as an idol by nationalist composers who had been largely self-taught and, apart from Rimsky-Korsakov, deeply distrustful of academic technique. Glazunov's first two symphonies could be seen as an anthology of nationalist techniques as practiced by Balakirev and Borodin; the same could be said for his symphonic poem ''Stenka Razin'' with its use of the folk song "Volga Boatmen" and orientalist practices much like those employed by The Five. By his early 20's he realized the polemic battles between academicism and nationalism were no longer valid. Although he based his compositions on Russian popular music, Glazunov's technical mastery allowed him to write in a sophisticated, cultured idiom. With his Third Symphony, he consciously attempted to internationalize his music in a manner similar to Tchaikovsky, to whom the piece is dedicated.

The Third Symphony was a transitional work. Glazunov admitted its composition caused him a great deal of trouble. With the Fourth Symphony, he came into his mature style. Dedicated to Anton Rubinstein, the Fourth was written as a deliberately cosmopolitan work by a Russian looking outward to the West, yet it remained unmistakably Russian in tone. He continued to synthesize nationalist tradition and Western technique in the Fifth Symphony. By the time Glazunov wrote his Seventh Symphony, his duties at the Conservatory had slowed his rate of composition. After his Eighth Symphony, his heavy drinking may have started taking a toll on his creativity, as well. He sketched one movement of a Ninth Symphony but left the work unfinished.

Glazunov wrote three ballets; eight symphonies and many other orchestral works; five concertos (2 for piano; 1 for violin; 1 for cello; 1 for saxophone); seven string quartets; two piano sonatas and other piano pieces; miscellaneous instrumental pieces; and some songs. He worked together with the choreographer Michel Fokine to create the ballet ''Les Sylphides''. It was a collection of piano works by Frédéric Chopin, orchestrated by Glazunov. He was also given the opportunity by Serge Diaghilev to write music to ''The Firebird'' after Lyadov had failed to do so. Glazunov refused. Eventually, Diaghilev sought out the then-unknown Igor Stravinsky, who wrote the music.

Ironically, both Glazunov and Rachmaninoff, whose first symphony Glazunov supposedly had conducted so poorly at its premiere (according to the composer), were considered "old-fashioned" in their later years. In recent years, Glazunov's musical gifts have been more fully appreciated, thanks to extensive recordings of his complete orchestral works.

Glazunov and Stravinsky

In his ''Chronicle'', Stravinsky admitted that, as a young man, he greatly admired Glazunov's perfection of musical form, purity of counterpoint and ease and assurance of his writing. At 15, Stravinsky transcribed one of Glazunov's string quartets for piano solo. He also deliberately modeled his Symphony in E-flat, Op. 1, on Glazunov's symphonies, which were then in vogue. He used Glazunov's Eighth Symphony, Op. 83, which was written in the same key as his, as a pattern on which to base corrections to his symphony.

This attitude changed over time. In his ''Memoirs'' Stravinsky called Glazunov one of the most disagreeable men he had ever met, adding that the only bad omen he had experienced about the initial (private) performance of his symphony was Glazunov having come to him afterwards saying, "Very nice, very nice." Later, Stravinsky amended his recollection of this incident, adding that when Glazunov passed him in the aisle after the performance, he told Stravinsky, "Rather heavy instrumentation for such music."

For his part, Glazunov was not supportive of the modern direction Stravinsky's music took. He was not alone in this prejudice—their mutual teacher Rimsky-Korsakov was as profoundly conservative by the end of his life, wedded to the academic process he helped instill at the Conservatory. Unlike Rimsky-Korsakov, Glazunov was not anxious about the potential dead-end Russian music might take by following academia strictly, nor did he share Rimsky-Korsakov's grudging respect for new ideas and techniques.

Chances are that Glazunov treated Stravinsky with reserve, certainly not with open rudeness. His opinion of Stravinsky's music in the presence of others was another matter. At the performance of (''Fireworks''), he reportedly made the comment, "Kein talent, nur Dissonanz." (Also in the audience was Sergei Diaghilev, who on the strength of this music sought out the young composer for the Ballets Russes.) Glazunov eventually considered Stravinsky merely an expert orchestrator. In 1912 he told Vladimir Telyakovsky, "''Petrushka'' is not music, but is excellently and skillfully orchestrated."

In 1962, when Stravinsky returned to the Soviet Union to celebrate his 80th birthday, he visited the Leningrad conservatory and, according to his associate Robert Craft, moaned and said "Glazunov!" when he saw a photograph of the composer on display.

Glazunov and modernism

Igor Stravinsky was not the only composer whose modernist tendencies Glazunov disliked. Shostakovich mentioned Glazunov's attacks against the "recherché cacophonists"—the elder composer's term for the newer generation of Western composers, beginning with Debussy. When Franz Schreker's opera ''Der ferne Klang'' was staged in Leningrad, Glazunov pronounced the opera "Schreckliche Musik!" He also may have wondered occasionally whether he had played a role in spawning musical chaos. Once, while looking a score of Debussy's ''Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune'', he commented, "It's orchestrated with great taste.... And he knows his work.... Could it be that Rimsky and I influenced the orchestration of all these contemporary degenerates?"

To Glazunov's credit, however, even after he had consigned a piece of music to be "cacophonic", he did not stop listening to it. Instead, he would continue listening in an effort to comprehend it. He "penetrated" Wagner's music in this way; he understood nothing about ''Die Walküre'' the first time he heard it—or the second, third, or fourth. On the tenth hearing, he finally understood the opera and liked it very much. When Shostakovich was one of his students, Glazunov was attempting to do the same with Richard Strauss's ''Salome''—"getting used to it, penetrating it, studying it", Shostakovich said.

Glazunov and Shostakovich

Shostakovich entered the Petrograd Conservatory at age 13, becoming the youngest student there. He studied piano with Leonid Nikolayev and composition with Rimsky-Korsakov's son-in-law Maximilian Steinberg. He proved to be a disciplined, hard-working student. Glazunov may have recognized in Shostakovich an echo of his younger self. He carefully monitored his progress in Steinberg's class and, in awarding him his doctorate, recommended Shostakovich for a higher degree which normally would have led to a professorship. Due to his family's financial hardship, Shostakovich was not able to take advantage of this opportunity. Glazunov also arranged for the premiere of Shostakovich's First Symphony, which took place on 12 March 1926 with the Leningrad Philharmonic under Nikolai Malko. This was 44 years after Glazunov's First Symphony had first been presented in the same hall. In another instance of ''déjà vu'' with Glazunov's early life, the symphony caused almost as much of a sensation as the appearance of the young Shostakovich on the stage awkwardly taking his bow.

Glazunov and the Conservatory

Dmitri Shostakovich admitted that while there was much about Glazunov that he found incomprehensible, even laughable, Glazunov willingly sacrificed his time, his peace of mind and his creativity for the Conservatory. He spent practically all his time there. He became calm and firm in dealing with the authorities. When asked before the Revolution how many Jews were enrolled, Glazunov sent the reply, "We don't keep count here." In 1922, the government decided to give Glazunov living conditions that would facilitate his creativity and be commensurate with his achievements. Glazunov, who had lost a tremendous amount of weight and was living as hard a life as many in that time, asked instead that the government send firewood to the Conservatory so the students could study more easily. The firewood was delivered.

He gave away a tremendous amount of his salary to needy students out of compassion for them. He wrote countless letters of recommendation, writing what he really thought about the person and giving praise with justification. Sometimes he went to government officials to plead their case. Jewish musicians knew he would see the authorities to get them permission to live in Petrograd. Thanks to him, Jascha Heifetz, Nathan Milstein and Mischa Elman, among others, were able to come and study. Shostakovich claimed Glazunov never asked these musicians to play for him; he felt everyone had a right to live where they pleased and art would not suffer as a result. Most importantly to Shostakovich, Glazunov did not call attention to his efforts in this regard. "He didn't demonstrate his high principles when it came to small and pathetic people. He saved this for more important people and more important incidents."

Sources

Ossovsky, Alexander, ''Aleksandr Konstantinovich Glazunov: His life and creative work''; Sanct-Petersburg, Alexander Siloti Concerts Publishing House, 1907.

Figes, Orlando, ''Natasha's Dance: A Cultural History of Russia'' (New York: Metropolitan Books, 2002). ISBN 0-8050-5783-8 (hc.).

Huth, Andrew, Notes for Warner 61434, ''Glazunov: Symphony No. 5; The Seasons''; Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by José Serebrier.

Huth, Andrew, Notes for Warner 61939, ''Glazunov: Symphony No. 8; Raymonda''; Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by José Serebrier.

Huth, Andrew, Notes for Warner 63236, ''Glazunov: Symphonies Nos. 4 and 7''; Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by José Serebrier.

MacDonald, Ian, ''The New Shostakovich'' (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1990). ISBN 1-55553-089-3.* Rimsky-Korsakov, Nikolai, ''Letoppis Moyey Muzykalnoy Zhizni'' (Saint Petersburg, 1909), published in English as ''My Musical Life'' (New York: Knopf, 1925, 3rd ed. 1942). ISBN n/a.

Norris, Geoffrey and Marina Frolova-Walker, "Glazunov, Aleksandr Konstantinovich" in ''New Grove''

Schwarz, Boris, "Glazunov, Aleksandr Konstantinovich" in ''New Grove''

Taylor, Philip, Notes for Chandos 9751, ''Glazunov: Symphony No. 1, "Slavyanskaya"; Violin Concerto''; Julie Krasko, violin; Russian State Symphony Orchestra conducted by Valery Polyansky.

Volkov, Solomon, tr. Bouis, Antonina W., ''Testimony: The Memoirs of Dmitri Shostakovich'' (New York: The Free Press, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1995). ISBN 0-02-874052-1.

Volkov, Solomon, tr. Bouis, Antonina W., ''Saint Petersburg: A Cultural History'' (New York: Harper & Row, 1979). ISBN 0-06-014476-9.

Walsh, Stephen, ''Stravinsky, A Creative Spring: Russia and France, 1882–1934'' (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999). ISBN 0-679-41484-3.

White, Eric Walter, ''Stravinsky: The Man and His Works'' (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1966). Library of Congress Card Captalog Number 66-27667.

References

External links

More Complete List of Works

Free scores at the Mutopia Project

''Chant du ménestrel'', Op. 71 recording from Musopen.

Quinteto AMIZADE first recording of Glazunov's original ''Oriental Reverie''.

Category:1865 births Category:1936 deaths Category:People from Saint Petersburg Category:20th-century classical composers Category:Romantic composers Category:Russian composers Category:Russian conductors (music) Category:Ballet composers Category:Honorary Members of the Royal Philharmonic Society

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Name	Bob Livingston
Image name	BobLivingston.jpg
State	Louisiana
District	1st
Party	Republican
Term	August 27, 1977 – March 1, 1999
Preceded	Richard Alvin Tonry
Succeeded	David Vitter
Birth date	April 30, 1943
Birth place	Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S.
Spouse	Bonnie Livingston
alma mater	Tulane University
Profession	Lobbyist; Lawyer
Religion	Roman Catholic
Branch	United States Navy
Footnotes	}}

Robert Linlithgow "Bob" Livingston Jr. (born April 30, 1943) is a Washington, D.C.-based lobbyist and a former Republican U.S. Representative from Louisiana. He was Chairman of the Appropriations Committee from 1995–99, and he was chosen as Newt Gingrich's successor as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives late in 1998 but chose to withdraw and retire after an extramarital affair was discovered.

Family

Livingston is a descendant of Robert Livingston (via Henry W. Livingston), the elder brother of Philip Livingston, one of the signers of the United States Declaration of Independence. One of his ancestors in New York State (Henry Livingston) was probably the (then anonymous) author of the poem, ''The Night Before Christmas".

Livingston is married to the former Bonnie Robichaux (also born 1943), a native of Raceland in Lafourche Parish and niece of former United States Senator Allen J. Ellender. Raised as an Episcopalian, he converted to his wife's religion of Roman Catholicism. The Livingstons had a son named Richard, who died in July 2006, while trimming a tree and being electrocuted by a live wire.

Early career

Out of college, he joined the law practice of David C. Treen, who would become Louisiana's first Republican congressman and governor since Reconstruction. Treen had been an active Republican back in the days when the party barely existed in Louisiana, and this connection allowed Livingston to make valuable contacts in GOP circles. He was a delegate to all Republican conventions between 1976 and 2000. Livingston later worked for the U.S. attorney for Louisiana's Eastern District, the Orleans Parish district attorney's office, and the Louisiana state attorney general, the Democrat William J. "Billy" Guste, Jr.

Career in Congress

Livingston resigned his position as head of the state attorney general's organized crime unit in 1976 when he won the Republican nomination for Louisiana's 1st Congressional District, based in the New Orleans suburbs and including a large part of the city itself. The seat had opened up when 36-year incumbent Democrat and former House Armed Services Committee chairman F. Edward Hébert retired. Although the seat had been trending Republican for some time, Livingston narrowly lost to one-term state legislator Richard Tonry. Livingston was denied victory by the third-party candidacy of former Sixth District Congressman John Rarick of St. Francisville, the seat of West Feliciana Parish. Rarick, who had been one of the most conservative Democrats in Congress during his tenure, presumably siphoned off enough votes from Livingston to allow Tonry to win.

Allegations, however, surfaced of "tombstone" votes for Tonry in both the primary and general election. Tonry was forced to resign in May 1977 and lost the Democratic nomination for the special election in August to State Representative Ron Faucheux. Faucheux also faced an independent challenge from the left. Livingston took advantage of the split in liberal ranks to become the first Republican to represent New Orleans in Congress since Reconstruction. Livingston was aided by a cadre of dedicated Republican volunteers, including the newly-installed National Committeewoman Virginia Martinez of Kenner. In 1978, Livingston won a full term with 86 percent of the vote. He was reelected eleven times, the last nine of those times unopposed. His district became even more Republican after the 1980s round of redistricting. Most of the district's share of New Orleans was shifted to the 2nd District and was replaced with some heavily Republican territory in Jefferson Parish. After the 1990 census, Livingston's district gained copacetic Washington Parish and Tangipahoa Parish from Louisiana's 6th congressional district while relinquishing equally conservative Saint Bernard Parish to Louisiana's 3rd congressional district.

Although well known in Louisiana, Livingston was a relatively low-key congressman for his first eighteen years in Washington but he managed early in his career to land a spot on the Appropriations Committee. This, along with his conservative stances on most issues, made him popular with his constituents, most of whom had never been previously represented by a Republican.

Livingston ran for governor in 1987 but finished third, behind fellow Congressman Buddy Roemer of the Sixth District and Edwin Edwards in a field of nine, ten points short of gaining a berth in the runoff, officially the Louisiana general election. Two other major candidates finished behind Livingston: then Democratic Congressman Billy Tauzin, of the neighboring Third District and outgoing Secretary of State James H. "Jim" Brown.

Livingston endorsed his House colleague Roemer, then a Democrat, after the primary, but the runoff election was canceled because Edwards conceded the race to Roemer. It was said that then Edwards wanted to face Livingston in a general election (or would not have bowed out if the opponent had been a Republican), but Edwards pulled out of the second round of balloting to prevent Roemer from consolidating majority support.

Despite his showing in the gubernatorial race, Livingston remained popular in his district and went on to win easy re-elections as he moved up the leadership ladder in the House.

Chairman, House Appropriations Committee

Livingston first came to national attention in 1995, when he was named chairman of the Appropriations Committee after the Republican takeover of the House. This instantly made him one of the most powerful members of Congress. During one committee session, he brandished a machete to demonstrate his seriousness as a budget-cutter.

During the Monica Lewinsky scandals, Livingston was one of many Republicans who demanded President Bill Clinton's resignation, and later impeachment, for perjury. After Newt Gingrich resigned as Speaker in part because of Republican losses in the 1998 elections, majority leader Dick Armey and majority whip Tom DeLay had opted not to contest the Speaker's chair. Livingston announced that he was running for Speaker and had lined up enough support to win. Livingston was nominated as the Republican candidate for Speaker without opposition, and since the party still retained a narrow majority in the House, this effectively made him Speaker-elect.

Resignation

During debate over the impeachment of Bill Clinton on December 19, 1998, Hustler Magazine Publisher Larry Flynt offered one million dollars for each unflattering sexual story about Republican members of congress. After one such story was made public about him by Flynt, Livingston acknowledged that he had had an affair and resigned as Speaker-elect. He challenged President Bill Clinton to resign as well. Livingston then announced he would resign from the House in May 1999. This was despite support from the Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of the Democrats who had agreed to work with Livingston had Livingston assumed the Speaker's office and not make a continued issue of Livingston's affair. Indeed, had Livingston become Speaker as originally intended, this would have made it much more difficult for the Republicans to carry out impeachment proceedings.

Livingston was succeeded by David Vitter, who later went on to become the first popularly elected Republican Senator from Louisiana, and Bobby Jindal, who later became Governor of Louisiana. The District is currently represented by Steve Scalise of Metairie, Louisiana.

Subsequent career

Livingston Group

Soon after retiring from public life he founded The Livingston Group, one of many lobbying groups in the nation's capital. Noted accomplishments include Congressional approval of a US-Moroccan Free Trade Agreement and Congressional normalization of relations between the US and Libya following the Libyan abdication of nuclear technology and settlement of claims by family members for people killed in Pan Am Flight 103 and other violent incidents in the 1980s.

Clients

The Livingston Group's clients include "the Cities of New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Northrop Grumman, the New Orleans Business Council, Rolls-Royce, and Verizon." Another important client was the Republic of Turkey, on whose behalf the Group lobbied to maintain and improve US relations as they pertained to international and historical issues affecting the Republic of Turkey. Critics contend that this lobbying was a form of genocide denial, as Turkey does not recognize the slaughter of up to 1.5 million Armenians as a genocide, and does not want the American Government to recognize these events as genocide either.

The Livingston Group has also represented the government of Egypt. Acting as lobbyist for Egypt Livingston "helped stall a Senate bill that called on Egypt to curtail human rights abuses" in 2010. His stated role is to enhance relations between the United States and the Republic of Egypt, which he perceives as critical to a resolution of tension in the Middle East.

Other work

Livingston, considered a formidable lobbyist, was identified by Jonathan Tilove of the New Orleans ''Times-Picayune'' as supporting U.S. Representative Anh "Joseph" Cao.

In 2003, Livingston was inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield.

Livingston testified in the 2009 trial of Mose Jefferson, who was convicted on four counts related to bribery.

In 2011, Livingston became Treasurer of the Louisiana Republican Party. "Livingston said taking the fundraising assignment for the Louisiana GOP would not in any way undermine the work of The Livingston Group."

Livingston is also a member of the board of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, a non-profit involved in international elections, and he is a Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. He is also close personal friends with Dan Negrea, who is also a knight of Malta.

See also

Notes

References

Retrieved on June 17, 2010

A Livingston Legacy Revised

External links

New York Times Article

Category:1943 births Category:Living people Category:American lobbyists Category:American prosecutors Category:American Roman Catholics Category:Converts to Roman Catholicism from Anglicanism Category:Livingston family Category:Louisiana lawyers Category:Louisiana Republicans Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana Category:People from New Orleans, Louisiana Category:Tulane University alumni Category:Tulane University Law School alumni Category:United States Navy sailors

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