Abstract
In the context of this year's centenary of World War I, the focus of this text is the music activities of the Serbian army in North Africa (1916-1918), where they recuperated from their retreat across the mountains of Albania. This paper is a result of an extensive archival research of the National Library of Serbia's collections and periodicals published during the Great War in North Africa. The daily news bulletin Napred/En avant published during the war in Africa deserves special attention, along with the personal archives of conductor and Serbian army captain Dragutin F. Pokorni (1868-1956). The paper sheds light on the work of a Serbian military orchestra, officially called the Band of the Cavalry Division (BCD, in Serbian: Muzika Konjičke divizije) and their leader Pokorni, hitherto little known in Serbian musicology. More importantly, the paper critiques official Serbian historiography and its primary concern with glorifying the 'heroism' and sacrifice of Serbian soldiers, whilst keeping silent on the 'quiet African episodes' in the activities of the Serbian army from January 1916 to December 1918. This paper also highlights key points in the fruitful encounter between Serbian military musicians and the multi-layered cultures of the Maghreb and examines the importance of the BCD's promotion of Serbian culture overseas as a type of cultural diplomacy. By placing the activities of this Serbian military orchestra in the broader context of Serbian cultural diplomacy in the Great War, this paper offers an answer to the current debates in the humanities regarding new approaches to, and interpretations of, this year's global anniversary, mentioned above.
Highlights
In the context of this year’s centenary of World War I, the focus of this text is the music activities of the Serbian army in North Africa (1916−1918), where they recuperated from their retreat across the mountains of Albania
By placing the activities of this Serbian military orchestra in the broader context of Serbian cultural diplomacy in the Great War, this paper offers an answer to the current debates in the humanities regarding new approaches to, and interpretations of, this year’s global anniversary, mentioned above
The first step in initiating the reader into the subject matter of this paper is to indicate the key points of the present historical discourse on the Great War.[6]
Summary
From their regular concerts given in Bizerte, the activities of the BCD evolved into concert tours across the Maghreb, assuming the form of “cultural diplomacy”. Most of the credit for the dynamics of their wartime musical activities in North Africa goes to Dragutin Pokorni, whose life was marked by his continual efforts for the sake of the professionalization of military music in Serbia. In this short two-year period, Pokorni and his colleagues, especially Víćeslav Rendla, managed to transform these exhausted young soldier-musicians into a well-rehearsed ensemble, which performed symphonic pieces varying in character, length, and difficulty, and to appear as soloists and adjust to the needs of their military amateur theatre. Albeit a military formation, the BCD may be considered an agent of ‘cultural diplomacy’ in the Great War
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