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Music Censored by Stalin
**one more classical highlight from CURS***
Cambridge University Russian Society is proud to invite you to our concert, on which many obscure compositions of the Soviet composers will be premiered. Our programme embraces works created by composers both faithful to the regime, and persecuted. Young and distinguished musicians will introduce great and unique art of the Soviet Russia, which does not leave anybody indifferent, irrespective of personal political views and musical tastes.
Dedicated to the 800th Anniversary of the University of Cambridge
Graciously supported by the Jewish Music Institute
WHEN: 28 November, 6:30 pm (reception) 7pm (the concert)
WHERE: Queen’s Theatre, Emmanuel College, Cambridge, map
TICKETS: £5 (CURS & TCRS members), £6 students, £7 (CamRuss members), £10 all other guests
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Programme
Jacob Polferov. “Melodeclamations” [in Russian] *UK Premiere* (Vladimir Orlov, reciting; Yulia Vorontsova, pianoforte)
Mieczysław Weinberg. “Trio for violin, cello, and pianoforte” (Eugene Feygelson, violin; Rebecca Herman, cello; Malcolm Miller, pianoforte)
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Vano Muradeli. “Great Friendship” (Fragment from the opera) *UK Premiere* (Julia Traustadottir, soprano; Nicholas Morrell, tenor; Kate Whitley, pianoforte)
Mieczysław Weinberg. “Moldavian Rhapsody” (Eugene Feygelson; Malcolm Miller)
Sergei Prokofiev. “Three Russian Folk Songs” (Svetlana Savenko, soprano)
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The genre of Melodeclamation (reciting of the verses in time of the music playing) is inherited by Soviet composers from pre-Revolutionary Russian musical culture, which highly valued stanza’s beauty and musical intonation of Russian poetry. Brought ‘to the masses’ by Revolutionary culture, melodeclamations were turned into a part of agitculture (‘agitiskusstovo’), performed by artists in workers’ clubs by the unprofessional artists. Melodeclamations by forgotten composer Jacob Polferov (1891 – 1966) dedicated to Lenin’s death genuinely depict the mental “shock of the human masses,” their funeral mood, which is gradually transferred into victorious feeling of ‘bellicose optimism,’ and will to win. (“Lenin is alive! Lenin – is our immortality!”)
Life and oeuvre of Mieczysław Weinberg (1919 – 1996) were not bestowed with the due attention of musicians and researchers both in Russia and all over the world. Artistic distinctions of his music, however, are appreciated by many, – even in comparison with Prokofiev and Shostakovich in the level of dramatic tension, technique, and resourcefulness of musical vocabulary. Weinberg’s Piano trio demonstrates all these characteristics; finished in 1945, it is dedicated to Natalia Vovsi, his wife – who was the daughter of Solomon Mikhoels, an actor, whose murder, organised by NKVD preceded gross anti-Semitic campaign in 1948. Weinberg would also be arrested in 1953, but released due to intercession by Shostakovich.
Paradoxically as it is, Stalin’s Moloch devoured not only its enemies, but the most faithful servants, which is brightly demonstrated by Vano Muradeli’s opera Great Friendship (1947). The most significant composition in the entire oeuvre of an ardent Stalinist (who intentionally changed his name from ‘Muradov’ on ‘Muradeli,’ in order to make it resembling Stalin’s real name ‘Dzhugashvili’) was bestowed with the most savage castigation ever known in the history of the Soviet music. The biggest irony of the event is that there is hardly anything more than a couple of lines said about Muradeli’s opera in the “Party Decree About Muradeli’s Opera Great Friendship” (1948); the highest purpose of the imposed ‘criticism’ was to denounce such composers as Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and others, later known as ‘Soviet classics.’ Muradeli’s opera (which most probably was used as only a ‘pretext’ for an ‘anti-formalist’ incursion) was not considered by the later generations, grossly influenced by anti-Stalinist spirits. We were surprised to discover so many beautiful melodies in the score of the opera, fetched by us from the Russian libraries. The content in the opera to the greatest extent is evolved around love, not policy or the same repulsive; it’s main collision, alike in classic drama, is the confrontation of love and duty: Lezghin Murtaz must carry out an assassination in order to gain hand and heart of his lady-love, who belongs to the enemy clan. But instead of committing a crime, the hero sacrifices himself – leaving his mistress forever alone. Passionate love duo, thirty minutes scene of two main heroes, Galina and Murtaz – outset of the drama – the moment of conception of their mutual love in the atmosphere of hostility surrounding them – will be presented on our concert.
Mentioned Decree of 1948 made an especially severe blow on Prokofiev – who lost his government subsidy, whose life and creative powers was dramatically shortened. Many his compositions, including his Arrangements of Folk Songs (1941) were denounced later as ‘formalist.’ The songs Green Grove and Dream were included by him in the opera Story of a Real Man (1948), brutally castigated and banned by the governments.
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