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Amateur Piano Music-Making and the Ufa Section of the Imperial Russian Musical Society // ICONI, 2019

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Amateur Piano Music-Making and the Ufa Section of the Imperial Russian Musical Society // ICONI, 2019 2019, № 1 К юбилею Русского музыкального общества (РМО, ИРМО) ISSN 2658-4824 UDC 78.074 DOI: 10.33779/2658-4824.2019.1.073-082 NINEL F. GARIPOVA Н. Ф. ГАРИПОВА Ufa State Institute of Arts Уфимский государственный институт named after Zagir Ismagilov искусств имени Загира Исмагилова Ufa, Russia г. Уфа, Россия ORCID: 0000-0001-5425-6229 ORCID: 0000-0001-5425-6229 [email protected] [email protected] Amateur Piano Music-Making Любительское фортепианное and the Ufa Section музицирование и Уфимское of the Imperial Russian отделение Императорского Musical Society* Русского музыкального общества The geographic position of Ufa, which Географическое положение Уфы, одного in the early 19th century was a deep province, из крупных городов России, являющейся was not conducive to the development в начале XIX века глубокой провинцией, of musical culture. However, we must consider долгое время не способствовало развитию as an important element in its formation музыкальной культуры. Однако важным the active spread of household music-making явлением для её становления следует and the wish of amateurs to participate in the считать активное распространение city’s concert life. The “Society for Singing, домашнего музицирования и желание Music and the Art of Drama” was founded любителей участвовать в концертной in 1885 in Ufa following the wishes of the city жизни города. В 1885 году в Уфе по просьбе residents. горожан было открыто «Общество пения, The twenty-year-long existence of the музыки и драматического искусства». Society has left a considerable trace in the Двадцатилетнее существование development of musical education and the Общества оставило значительный след в exposure of the public to the academic genres развитии музыкального просветительства of the art of piano performance; it played и в приобщении публики к академическим a signifi cant role in the development жанрам фортепианного искусства: of musical literacy and the musical hearing были апробированы новые концертные of the residents of Ufa. формы, способствовавшие развитию In virtue of a number of existing social музыкального вкуса горожан. В силу reasons the Society was closed down, but ряда сложившихся социальных причин following the request of the most educated Общество вскоре было закрыто, но по part of the local nobility and intelligentsia the просьбе передовой части населения Ufa Section of the Imperial Russian Musical было открыто Уфимское отделение Society (IRMS). Having existed for only a few Императорского Русского музыкального years, until the revolution of 1917, it was able общества (ИРМО). Просуществовав to lead the art of music to a new, higher level. всего несколько лет, до революции Professionals with a higher musical education 1917 года, оно смогло вывести культуру were conducive to the further expansion Уфы на новый, более высокий уровень. * Translated by Anton Rovner. 73 Towards the Anniversary of the Russian Musical Society (RMS, IRMS) 2019, № 1 of promotion of music with their concert Приехавшие в республику профессионалы performances and teaching lessons in the с высшим музыкальным образованием musical classes and enhanced the development своими концертными выступлениями и of the art of professional music in Bashkiria. педагогической работой способствовали дальнейшему расширению любительского музицирования и содействовали развитию профессионального музыкального искусства Башкирии. Keywords: Ключевые слова: Ufa, music lovers, salon music-making, Уфа, любители музыки, салонное Society for “Singing, Music and the Art музицирование, Общество «Пения, of Drama,” Imperial Russia Musical Society музыки и драматического искусства», (IRMS). Императорское Русское музыкальное общество (ИРМО). For citation / Для цитирования: Garipova N.F. Amateur Piano Music-making and the Ufa Section of the Imperial Russian Musical Society // ICONI, 2019. No. 1, pp. 73 – 82. DOI: 10.33779/2658-4824.2019.1.073-082. he path towards professionalism cultures: the unique national monody culture traversed by the Bashkir musical art of the Bashkirs, presented exclusively by Tof piano performance turned out to the art of the oral village tradition, and the be lengthy and unique in its essence. The traditions of household music-making in formation of the musical traditions of Ufa the Russian urban milieu. In virtue of these took place in the context of complex social- circumstances the formation of the culture historical, religious and political conditions. and the art of music took place slowly, while Ufa, which appeared on the map of Russia the period of accumulation of the premises in the second half of the 16th century amidst for their development will extend for almost the virgin steppes and forests of the Ural three centuries. Mountains, with a dearth of connections Also noteworthy is that the formation with the civilized world in many ways of the art of music in Ufa in the 18th and determined this specifi c character. 19th centuries was connected with amateur Local history expert Alexander Gulyayev music-making, primarily by pianists. In the wrote in 1914: “This was a comparatively 19th century this style of pastime for the small town, similarly to a military outpost, nobility in the capital cities began to spread raised far from the boundary of the area along the various regions and cities of the settled by Russians and standing at a rather country. It started being cultivated much isolated position from it. Onward from Ufa earlier in the Western regions, for example, to Southern Siberia, as well as in the Kyrgyz in the Ukraine — in Kharkov and Odessa. steppes and, generally, in the direction In Ufa the process of generation of towards Central Asia at a distance of many amateur piano music-making began thousand versts there was not a single signifi cantly later: the mid-19th century is Russian person residing” [4, p. 87]. characterized merely by the appearance A specific and decisive factor in the of its rudiments. Similar tendencies can be formation of this process could be seen, noticed in the cities of Siberia and the Far fi rst of all, in the parallel existence of two East — for example, in Tomsk, Irkutsk and 74 2019, № 1 К юбилею Русского музыкального общества (РМО, ИРМО) Photo 1. Inscription under the Photograph: “The Death of Sussanin. The role of Sussanin is performed by Timokhov”2 Tobolsk, where the formation of the piano fi rst concert organization which included performance school began to emerge only membership of regular performers. At in the 1820s and 1830s. their fi rst stages, as a rule, such artistic As in a number of other regions, the communities had mixed type of membership. formation of the art of music in Ufa passed They were headed by people who possessed through the stage of the creation of a regional certain definite skills and abilities and musical society. The end of the 19th century even the corresponding education. They, witnessed the gradual formation of a milieu in particular, formed around themselves ready to join forces for the sake of combined a circle of amateur musicians, striving for organized music-making. In 1885 upon the a high-quality performance of musical initiative of the head of the Ufa Gubernia compositions acceptable for the perception Dmitri Volkov a circle of the most musically of outsiders. In this connection the creative advanced city dwellers gathered together collaboration of the Ufa-based musicians with the aim of establishing a permanent at that time may be regarded as activity society of lovers of music and drama.1 with elements of mandatory performance On the example of the organization of this conditions. It must be noticed that work on society it becomes possible to observe how rehearsals was carried out from the musical at the end of the 19th century a new form of scores. performers’ community begins to emerge, The amateur level of the overwhelming which would replace the salon-chamber number of performers led to the fl ourishing type of music-making — essentially, the of ensemble music-making. Analysis of the 75 Towards the Anniversary of the Russian Musical Society (RMS, IRMS) 2019, № 1 Photo 2. Inscription under the Photograph: “Soloists: I. Sussanin — Bulykin II. Sobinin — Abramov III. Sussanin — Tilyukov IV. Sobinin — Yeverestov V. Vanya — Baboshina VI. Antonida — Stepanova 7. Vanya — Glatsinova” programs of the musical evenings has made Towards the early 20th century the it possible to ascertain that the piano held “Society of Lovers of Singing, Music and the the steadfast position of an indispensable Art of Drama” undergoes a period of decline. participant.3 Among the immutable numbers The directorate makes the attempt to save in the programs, among the solo pieces, were the organization from disintegration, making the four- and eight-hand piano compositions. the decision to accustom the musicians who An extremely significant form of could perform technically diffi cult repertoire presenting academic classical music — to work. The leader in piano performance namely, the public concert — begins to be during the course of several years was formed. The concert evenings in Ufa became Varvara Dmitrievna Parshina, a pianist entrenched into the everyday life of the city and vocalist who possessed a professional as an indispensable part of the culture. Their musical education, a graduate of the St. organization was regulated by a system Petersburg Conservatory, where she studied of perception about the arrangement of piano and voice. In the article “Obshchestvo life of the city’s population and aroused lyubiteley iskusstva” [“Society of Art
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