Soviet Music “Outside the Box”: from 1917 until the Death of Stalin

Well, what don’t we know about our Soviet past? For a start, that it has never been the past actually: its problems, its achievements and catastrophes are still in the air: Lenin monuments are getting demolished and repaired today; Soviet legacy appears to inspire for the most prominent video games; the music of Soviet composers still occupies the apex in the world of classical music of the 20th Century. But how did Soviet leaders manage to produce so much great music; and why did they try to rule the country by means of the arts? Should it be defined and limited by only its propaganda value; and if not, how can we bring Lenin and Stalin ideals, the aesthetics and outcomes of Socialist Realism to the future?

The course is constructed partly as an overview of music history that aims to identify the most significant hallmarks of the time-period that was absolutely crucial in creating Soviet civilization: from 1917 Bolshevik revolution until the end of Stalin’s 25 years rein. At the same time, instead of purely academic focusing on these scholarly questions of history and culture, we will have to pursue another goal of crafting our own perception and interpretation of this highly controversial and polyphonic era, enjoying music masterpieces altogether. The works of Prokofiev and Shostakovich, sound experiments of Mosolov and Avraamov, songs, operas, and film soundtracks will be studied within the interdisciplinary frame of historical, cultural and musicological approaches.