EARLY (AVANT-GARDE) SYMPHONIES BY VALENTIN SILVESTROV AS A SOUND UNIVERSE

Authors

  • Liudmyla SHAPOVALOVA Dr. habil. in Art Studies, Full Professor, Head of the Department of Interpretology and Music Analysis at Kharkiv I.P. Kotlyarevsky National University of Arts, Ukraine. E-mail: refleksia@ukr.net. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9407-7337. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9407-7337
  • Іryna ROMANIUK Ph.D. in Art, Assistant Professor of the Department of Interpretology and Music Analysis at Kharkiv I.P. Kotlyarevsky National University of Arts, Ukraine. E-mail: yarka_lviv@ukr.net
  • Marianna CHERNYAVSKA PhD in Arts, Рrofessor of the Department of Special Piano at Kharkiv I.P. Kotlyarevsky National University of Arts, Ukraine. E-mail: pianokisa@gmail.com https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8379-5536
  • Svitlana SHCHELKANOVA Master of Music, Postgraduate Student at I.P. Kotlyarevsky National University of Arts, Ukraine. E-mail: cvetlanakabasova@gmail.com

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24193/subbmusica.2021.1.21

Keywords:

V. Silvestrov's early symphonies, evolution of style, worldview, Musica Mundana, monodrama

Abstract

In the article under consideration are the ways of symphony genre transformation in the early works of Valentin Silvestrov (Ukraine). For the first time, the First, Second, Third, and Fourth symphonies by the genius composers of the 20th century are analyzed as a certain stylistic system. These compositions are endowed with the features of avant-garde poetics, and as a subject of musicological reflection, they are associated with a rethinking of the semantic paradigm of the genre. V. Silvestrov's early symphonies stand out from the classical practice of European symphonies. Scientific awareness of their phenomenal nature necessitated a methodological choice aimed at the most accurate identification of the philosophical concept of the new sound universum of V. Silvestrov's music. Deep correlation of the image of a human being as a factor of the symphony poetics (the influence of philosophical concepts of human ontology in the 20th century with the transformation of the genre canon) is considered. This refers to the nonmusical dimension of the genre semantics. The study of V. Silvestrov's early symphonies reveal a new philosophy of music through gradual movement – modulation: from the neo-baroque First Symphony and "cosmic pastorals" Musica Mundana of the Second Symphony through the history anthropologisation in the Third Symphony "Eschatology" to the monodrama Musica Humana in the Fourth Symphony. The dichotomy of Musica Mundana – Musica Humana is not accidental: in V. Silvestrov's creative method, remains relevant, which is confirmed by the dramaturgy of his latest work – the Ninth symphony (2019).

Rezumat. SIMFONII TIMPURII (AVANTGARDISTE) DE VALENTIN SILVESTROV CA UN UNIVERS SONOR. Articolul de față prezintă căile de transformare a genului simfonic în lucrările timpurii ale lui Valentin Silvestrov (Ucraina). În primul rând sunt analizate într-un anumit sistem stilistic, prima, a doua, a treia și a patra simfonie a compozitorului genial al secolului XX. Aceste compoziții sunt dotate cu trăsături ale poeticii avangardiste și, ca subiect de reflecție muzicologică, sunt asociate cu o regândire a paradigmei semantice ale genului. Simfoniile timpurii ale lui V. Silvestrov se deosebesc de practica clasică a simfoniilor europene. Conștientizarea științifică a naturii lor fenomenale a necesitat o alegere metodologică menită să identifice cât mai exact conceptul filosofic al noului univers sonor al muzicii lui V. Silvestrov. Se are în vedere corelarea profundă a imaginii unei ființe umane ca factor al poeticii simfonice (influența conceptelor filosofice ale ontologiei umane în secolul al XX-lea cu transformarea canonului de gen). Aceasta se referă la dimensiunea non-muzicală a semanticii genului. Studiul primelor simfonii ale lui V. Silvestrov relevă o nouă filozofie a muzicii prin mișcare treptată - modulație: de la prima lui simfonie neobarocă și „pastoralele cosmice” Musica Mundana a celei de-a doua simfonii prin antropologizarea istoriei în a treia simfonie „Escatologie” la monodrama Musica Humana în a patra simfonie. Dicotomia Musica Mundana - Musica Humana nu este întâmplătoare: în metoda creativă a lui V. Silvestrov, rămâne relevantă, lucru confirmat de dramaturgia ultimei sale lucrări - a noua simfonie (2019).

Cuvinte cheie: Simfoniile timpurii ale lui V. Silvestrov, evoluția stilului, viziunea asupra lumii, Musica Mundana, monodrama

References

Aranovskiy, Mark. The Symphonic search. The Problem of genre of symphony in the soviet music 1960's - 1975's. Leningrad: Sov. Kompozitor, 1979. [In Russian].

Heidegger, Martin. & Grene, Marjorie. The Age of the World View. Boundary 2, 4(2), 1976, p. 341-355. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/302139

Jaspers, Karl. Philosophy: Philosophical world orientation (Vol.1). Moscow: Kanon+, 2012. [In Russian].

Langford, Jeffrey. A History of the Symphony: The Grand Genre (1st ed.). Routledge, 2019. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351125246

Romaniuk, Iryna. “The World-View” in the system of music analysis categories (on examples of the Ukrainian musical culture). (Ph.D. dissertation in Arts). Kharkiv, 2009. [In Ukrainian].

Silvestrov, Valentin. Symphony No. 1 for large symphony orchestra (1963/1974). Full Score. Frankfurt/M.: M. P. Belaieff, 2001

Wittgenstein, Ludwig. Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus: German and English (1st ed.), 1981. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203819807

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Published

2021-06-30

How to Cite

SHAPOVALOVA, L., ROMANIUK І., CHERNYAVSKA, M., & SHCHELKANOVA, S. (2021). EARLY (AVANT-GARDE) SYMPHONIES BY VALENTIN SILVESTROV AS A SOUND UNIVERSE. Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Musica, 66(1), 329–343. https://doi.org/10.24193/subbmusica.2021.1.21

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