Viacheslav Palkin: the road to success (dedicated to the 85th anniversary of his birth)

Abstract

Problem statement. One of the most important directions of modern choral studies is the research on the life and creative path of outstanding choirmasters, while understanding their performing experience, pedagogical approaches and taking into account their aesthetic and artistic beliefs. One of the most honorable places among artists is occupied by Viacheslav Palkin (1935–2008), who contributed greatly to the development and prosperity of both, the choral culture of Slobozhanshchyna and Ukraine. The relevance of topic lies in the necessity to study the creative experience of the remarkable choral conductor V. S. Palkin, to understand the contribution of the luminary of the Kharkiv conducting and choral school to the development of national art. Theoretical background includes the articles of O. Batovska (2005), H. Parfonova (2008) and the thesis of H. Savelieva (2012), N. Bielik(2007), which examines Palkin’s pedagogical approaches, his achievements as the head of the Choral Conducting Department of the Kharkiv I. P. Kotlyarevsky Institute of Arts, as well as the performing style of the Сhamber Сhoir led by him as an artistic director and choirmaster. Other sources of study embody the materials of the national conference, methodological works and articles by V. S. Palkin collected and published in I. Palkin’s book “Viacheslav Palkin. By the roads of choral art” (2011). The objective of the work is to define a periodization of Palkin’s life and career to identify the stages of his professional growth to the crowning achievements at the height of his creative career. The research methodology lies in the application of the principles of historicism, phenomenological and acmeocentric approaches, biographical method and the method of typological analysis. The periodization of the life and career of the distinguished choral conductor, teacher and educator V. S. Palkin is presented for the first time in art studies. Conclusions. The analysis of V. Palkin’s life and career resulted in the periodization. The following criteria were taken into account: biographical, geographical, evolutionary-performing and age-specific. The first period (1935–1951) covers childhood, the second one (1951–1960) represents his years of education. This period is characterized by his desire to comprehend and embrace all the subtleties of choir conducting. The third stage (1960–1978) is the accumulation of choirmaster, pedagogical, and life experience. The fourth one (1978–2008) is the culmination of the master’s life and career, his finest hour and acme phase, when he created a chamber choir, which reached the highest level of choral art under his leadership. It was established that choirs led by V. Palkin reflect changes in his artistic career path. The four stages reflect the evolution of the artist as a conductorinterpreter, organizer and leader of numerous choral groups, teacher and educator.