Current Problems of Art History
28 Dec 2023
Musical Traditions of the Southern Urals: Common and Special
The article considers the musical traditions of the South Urals in the context of common and special on the historical material. Based on the methodology "region through cities", the author considers Magnitogorsk as a type of industrial single-industry town characteristic of the region. Specific features of the mentality of the South Urals areal are conditioned by a highly specialized economy, concentration of urban life around the city-forming enterprise and secondary interest in artistic culture. The article shows that in the existing historical and cultural circumstances there is a lack of musical traditions and, at the same time, their forced formation. It is postulated that the simultaneous construction of the city in the material and artistic senses, which determined the specific relationship between urban society and art. The author finds a correlation between the mono-specificity of the city and its musical culture. In his opinion, the mono-city identity paradoxically allows to make music a generally accessible, rather than segmented type of leisure activity, since the cohesion of urban society makes any event a city-wide event. The author shows the contiguity and autonomy of the traditions of amateur and professional creativity, which feed each other, but do not directly determine each other. The author pays special attention to musical and educational institutions, showing the history of their formation and their important role in the development of the musical space of the region. The author concludes that the musical and educational institutions of the region are the most important for the development of music in the region. The conclusion is that musical traditions provide the South Urals with the image of a Eurasian platform of musical life and the potential for development based on modern cultural strategies.
28 Dec 2023
Operas on Biblical Subjects in the Musical Theater of France during the Consulate and the First Empire
The article highlights the history of the revival of opera based on the biblical plot in the French musical theater of the early 19th century. Special attention is paid to the socio-political context of the period of the Great Bourgeois Revolution (1789–1799), which plunged the country into atheistic views. Thus, the author examines the reasons that provoked the persecution of Christianity and the prohibition of worship, identifies the factors that contributed to the formation of the so-called “religion of patriotism”, highlights the repertoire of the opera house, reflecting the revolutionary aspirations of that time. The author analyzes the activities of Napoleon Bonaparte related to the restoration of Catholicism in official rights. The work notes that the signing of the Concordat contributed to the active support of Napoleon and giving him a special status – church leaders saw the consul and the emperor as a messenger of God sent to save France from “wickedness”. The author also reveals Napoleon's attitude to the staging of the plots of the Holy Scriptures in the opera house. The article provides an overview of opera compositions on biblical themes created during the reign of Napoleon – these are the operas “Joseph in Egypt” by E. Megulya, “The Death of Adam” by J. Lesueur, “The Death of Abel” by R. Kreutzer and “The Oath of Jephthah” by J. Meyerbeer. The author provides information about the premiere staging of works, analyzes the interpretation of Old Testament plots and the genre designation of operas used by the author. In conclusion, conclusions are drawn about the features of these works and their anticipation of the principles of lyrical opera.
31 Aug 2023
Development of Improvisation in the Context of the Evolution of Jazz Styles
The article is devoted to the consideration of improvisation as the main constant of modern jazz art. Despite the changing functions and views associated with the phenomenon of improvisation, it is identified in almost every jazz composition, acting as a core element of the individual performing style of musicians. The key idea is the need to study the phenomenon of improvisation in the historical dynamics of the development of jazz styles. Special consideration is given to the actual works of domestic and foreign researchers, revealing the content specifics and structural features of both the basic and advanced functionality of the construction of an improvisational utterance. According to the author, improvisation is one of the foundations of jazz performance, the analysis of which provides opportunities for detailed disclosure of individual styles of jazz musicians. Artistic transformations affecting the semantics and structurality of improvisation are dictated by the general evolution of jazz styles and trends. The changes in the functions of thematic and improvisational material traced in jazz performance in the second half of the XX – beginning of the XXI centuries indicate the process of evolution of views and artistic representations of the professional jazz environment. The comparative element of the article is based on the study of interpretations of J. Gershwin's theme «Summertime», diverse in their aesthetic meaning, made by performers belonging to significant periods of jazz history. The analysis of these interpretations also confirms the important influence of improvisation on the evolution of jazz composition.
28 Jul 2023
Musical Content of the Wedding Ritual in the Khutor Kubansky of the Belorechensky District of the Krasnodar Region
This article explores samples of the wedding musical folklore of the Kubansky khutor of Belorechensky district of the Krasnodar Region in a ritual context. The khutor is located in the transkuban region, which is characterized by a complex ethnic pattern. Kuban is one of the settlements representing the traditions of the Line Cossacks. Their Don metropolitan origins are obvious. The central part of the article represents a structured description of the wedding ceremony of the khutor, including fragments of ritual poetic texts.
28 Jul 2023
The Inner Side of Culture: The German Trace in the Conceptual Theories of Romanticism and Neo-Romanticism
The purpose of this article can be considered the study, analysis and generalization of issues related to the shadow side of consciousness in European culture. In the pan-European cultural field, German culture stands out as initially inclined to analyze the inner side of being. Using the methods of systemic and typological approaches aimed at obtaining theoretical knowledge, the author shows that the attitude to the internal in culture within the framework of modern science is rooted in the specifics of the German linguistic consciousness, which, in turn, goes back to the German national culture.
30 Dec 2021
The Symbolic Portrait in the Works of Orest Kiprensky
The article considers three portraits by Orest Kiprensky painted in the 1820s: of Ekaterina Avdulina, of Alexander Golitsyn, and of Alexander Pushkin. The author analyzes their content and formal features. Taking into account the figurative complexity of these works, which differ from most portraits of that time, the author suggests that these portraits should be considered symbolic. The difference between allegory and symbol in the romantic era is briefly considered. The author tries to decipher the ideas of these works, identifies possible sources that influenced the creation of the portrait images.
06 Nov 2021
Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov’s Activities in the Reflection of the National Culture the Turn of the 20th Century
22 Jul 2021
Interdisciplinary Synthesis of Theory and Practice in the Moulage Modeling of Costumes
The relevance of the topic lies in the importance of the skill of costume modeling, which contributes to the expansion of the boundaries of creative consciousness, the formation of the design conception, develops an understanding of form and space, a good eye and dexterity in creating elegant lines, fancy details and products. The authors conducted a study of the complex shape and cut of the dress from the Alexander McQueen collection by the moulage method of modeling on a mannequin.
26 Dec 2020
Sound as a Dramatic Factor in the Film Interpretation of Anton Chekhov’s Story “The Black Monk” (USSR, Germany, 1988, Directed by Ivan Dykhovichny).
Based on the analysis of the feature film The Black Monk (directed by Ivan Dykhovichny, music by Temur Bakuradze), the article discusses the role of sound represented by music and noise effects in revealing the concept of the film interpretation of the same name story by Anton Chekhov.
