Genre and stylistic typology of the preludes from V. Zaderatsky’s cycle “24 Preludes and Fugues”

Abstract

Statement of the problem. Small cycles from “24 Preludes and Fugues” (1937–1939) by V. P. Zaderatsky (1891–1953) represent an original compositional and dramaturgical phenomenon. Often it is the preludes that are the bearers of the most vivid, relief themes and images and determine the content-semantic dominance of the small and large polyphonic cycle as a whole, while the fugues are dramaturgically weaker and complement or shade the preludes. This allows us to hypothesize about the important role of preludes in the polyphonic cycle of V. P. Zaderatsky. Recent research and publications. The latest studies demonstrate a significant interest in Ukrainian polyphonic music, as evidenced by the recently defended dissertations by L. Tsyganyuk (2023), S. Postovoitova (2024) on the material of the polyphonic cycles of V. Bibik, A. Karamanov, M. Skoryk, O. Yakovchuk, I. Pyaskovskyi, B. Stronko, V. Zaderatsky. O. Ostapchuk (2023), and S. Postovoitova (2024) are currently showing interest in “24 Preludes and Fugues” by V. Zaderatsky, whose work is returning “from oblivion” (Ostapchuk, 2023). In S. Postovoitova’s dissertation, the large polyphonic cycle is studied from the aspect of compositional and dramaturgical unity, while the fugue itself is considered as the conceptual center of the small and large polyphonic cycles. With a comprehensive disclosure of the features of fugues, much less attention is paid to the preludes, although they can often be considered as carriers of the leading images of the cycle. Objectives, methods, and novelty of the research. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the creation of a genre-stylistic typology of the preludes of the large polyphonic cycle of V. Zaderatsky, which led to the setting of the main purpose – to identify the genre-stylistic affiliation of the preludes of the cycle to a certain stable type. This led to the involvement of the following methods: structural-functional; genre-stylistic analysis; typological; comparative. Results and conclusions. The analysis has shown that the most important group of preludes demonstrates mixed genre parameters (toccata, scherzo, etude), among others – groups of lyricalnocturne, pastoral, scherzo-fairytale (with a hidden plot), gloomy impromptu, etude preludes. All of them illustrate the composer’s attraction to rationalistic structures: whole-tone scales, polymetry (different meters in the left-hand and right-hand parts), complex polyrhythms, which testify to the clearly constructive nature of the design of most of the Preludes.