The Pushkin Anniversary of 1937 and Russian Art-Song in the Soviet Union

Abstract

This article considers the renaissance of Russian art-song in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, especially around the time of the Pushkin anniversary celebrations of 1937. The lyric — as a poetic and musical form — had enjoyed an uncertain reputation since the October Revolution. In the light of the Pushkin centenary, however, it proved to be a convenient way for composers to participate in the official celebrations. Moreover, the foundation of a Soviet lyric repertoire was an important element in raising the cultural aspirations of the Soviet audience. Equally, the establishment of a Soviet repertoire would suggest that the Soviet Union had matched the cultural achievements of the past. Explicit parallels were made with the musical culture of Pushkin's age, and the composers of the 1820s and 1830s were rehabilitated as models of the kind of accessible repertoire that the new era demanded. However, the ambitions of the time were realized only in part. Many composers stuck to tried-and-tested love lyrics, rather than Pushkin's more ambitious civic and philosophical lyrics. Moreover, the invocation of the music of the 1820s and 1830s encouraged composers to engage in often characterless stylization. Finally, the fetishization of Pushkin meant that contemporary poets were neglected; the establishment of a truly Soviet art-song repertoire was delayed for several decades.