Abstract: The object of this study is the initial period of activity of the Saratov Conservatory; the subject can be called the pedagogical priorities of vocal teachers of this period under consideration. In the article, based on rare archival data, surviving printed evidence, and student memoirs, an attempt is made to restore the pedagogical priorities of the most famous and influential in the musical circles of Moscow and St. Petersburg, active participants in concert events of the Imperial Russian Musical Society: Mikhail Efimovich Medvedev - the first performer of the role of Lensky in the opera P. I. Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" and Alevtina Mikhailovna Paskhalova, who embodied the image of the Snow Maiden in the opera of the same name by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. The scientific novelty of the study includes the fact that the author identifies and for the first time introduces into scientific circulation data on the pedagogical priorities of the most prominent vocal teachers who have made a significant contribution to improving the educational process of the department of academic singing. It is revealed that the pedagogical priorities of M. E. Medvedev and A. M. Paskhalova include: a fairly low type of breathing, increased attention to developing a sense of support for sound, a cautious attitude towards the development of the full range of the voice, the development of clear diction, evenness of sound production, smoothness of register transitions; soft sound attack; the ability to qualitatively vocalize various dynamic gradations of sound; the use of the “concentric” teaching method in the pedagogical process, increased attention to the education of the emotional and dramatic component of the performer’s personality. The analysis also showed that the features that distinguish the pedagogical views of the professors of the initial period of the Saratov Conservatory include the use of the repertoire of Russian composers in class work with a beginning singer.

Keywords: vocalization, romances, arias, repertoire of Russian composers, pedagogical views, methodical work, vocal and pedagogical traditions, student's memories, Saratov Conservatory, dramatic talent

Abstract: The article explores the genre of string quartet on the example of Beethoven and Shostakovich in the aspect of intonation and thematic connections, as well as the parallels of creativity of both composers. The author gives examples of thematic, interval, intonation and textural-melodic quoting of Beethoven's works in Shostakovich's quartets. Russian culture and Beethoven's influence is revealed, in particular, in relation to working with the material of Russian songs in quartets written by order of Count Razumovsky. The author reveals Shostakovich's attraction to Beethoven's work, the closeness of his compositional style and ideas in terms of conceptuality, architectonics, the use of musical and expressive means and a tendency to dynamic onslaught. The methodology of the research is based on the analysis of historical materials, musical articles, concepts of outstanding historians and music theorists. The main contribution of this study is the identification of thematic and semantic connections between the quartets of Beethoven and Shostakovich. The author concludes that Shostakovich often turned to Beethoven's work, used his methods and techniques of working with the material, the structure of the cycle, included allusions to themes, intonations in his quartets, and even used whole textured excerpts from Beethoven's music – and he made it through the prism of his creative style. The novelty of the article lies in the identification of the connection between Beethoven's work and Russian music, the composer's use of melodies of Russian songs in "Russian Quartets", as well as intonation-thematic parallels between the quartets of Beethoven and Shostakovich. In addition, the article reveals the special role of the performer in the work on the quartet of both Beethoven and Shostakovich.

Keywords: Borodin Quartet, Beethoven Quartet, Russian quartet, chamber performance, semantic parallels, thematic connections, genre, string quartet, Shostakovich, Beethoven

Abstract: The subject of the article is the socio-cultural and religious-philosophical views of the greatest French tenor of the XIX century, Adolphe Nurrit (1802-1839). His stage work was carried out at the Paris Opéra, and during the July Revolution of 1830 he performed revolutionary songs, supporting and inspiring compatriots to fight for freedom. Considering Nurrit's creative portrait and revolutionary agitator activity in the 1830s, the author focuses on his commitment to the ideas of sentimonism, in particular, on the desire to deepen the religious and moral role of theater in society. The singer's spiritual quest can be characterized by relying on various historical evidence – doctrinal positions of the sentimonists, comments from eyewitnesses, articles in newspapers, letters from Nurrit himself. The methodological strategy of the research is based on socio-historical and socio-cultural approaches.  A large array of historical sources attracted by the author consists of literature in foreign languages, work with which involves linguistic research methods. The combination of different approaches and reliance on reliable historical sources makes it possible to achieve scientific novelty: Nurrit was first described as a singer of the Revolution, which left a deep imprint on his artistic appearance, religious and moral views and plans for practical implementation. The presented portrait of Nurri as an adept of the sentimonistic idea of the sacred mission of the artist and the religious and educational function of the theater is new for musicology. As a result of the undertaken research, Nurrit's deep involvement in the socio-cultural life of France becomes obvious, and his artistry stands out as a special artistic phenomenon due to the unprecedented emotional impact of the artist on his contemporaries. The materials, observations and conclusions presented in the article will find application in historical musicology and will be useful to modern opera performers.

Keywords: July Revolution, Saint-Simonianism, theater, actor, singer, voice, Adolphe Nourrit, revolutionary ideals, Emile Barrault, Edouard Charton

Abstract: The object of research of this work is the creative and pedagogical activity of the Dutch conductor, composer and teacher Pierre van Hauwe (1920-2009). The subject of the study is the conceptual foundations of his pedagogical theory of "Playing with Music", which has become widespread not only in European countries, but also in South America, Africa and Asia. The authors of the article consider in detail the features of P. van Hauwe's concept, the foundations of which are based on the elements of the Zoltan Kodai system, which became widespread in Hungary, and the method of musical education of Karl Orff, whom P. van Hauwe met in Salzburg. Special attention is paid to the methodical publication "Playing with Music" ("Spielen mit Musik"), where P. van Hauwe outlined his concept step by step, accompanied by specific recommendations for teachers. The research used theoretical (analysis, synthesis, etc.) and empirical (comparative-historical, structural-typological) research methods. The main conclusions of the study: P. van Hauwe's pedagogical activity had a great impact on the development of music education not only in the Netherlands, but also in other countries of the world. His concept of "Playing with music" ("Spielen mit Musik") combined elements of the educational systems of two outstanding teachers of the twentieth century – Z. Kodai and K. Orff, as a result of which it became a natural continuation of the development of European musical and pedagogical thought. A special contribution of the authors of the article to the study of the topic, reflecting its novelty, was a detailed analysis of the methodological publication "Spielen mit Musik" ("Playing with music"), on the basis of which the essential relationship of the ideas of P. van Hauwe and his predecessors was revealed. Also, for the first time in Russian musicology, the facts of the musician's biography are more fully disclosed.

Keywords: rhythm, Orff instruments, relative solmization, Zoltan Kodaly, Playing with music, Orff pedagogy, music pedagogy, Pierre van Hauwe, Delft School, Shulwerk

Abstract: The object of the study is the works of the famous Saratov musicologist, professor, Doctor of Art History A.I. Demchenko, published in 2022 and 2023. Monographs devoted to the legacy of Russian composers of the XIX–XX centuries demonstrate an integrative approach characteristic of many publications of this author. The creative figures of M.I. Glinka, S.V. Rachmaninoff, I.F. Stravinsky, S.S. Prokofiev, R.K. Shchedrin, A.G. Schnittke correlate with the historical and cultural context of the epoch, ideas realized in different types of art. This method helps to identify, first of all, ideological aspects in each of the author's systems under consideration. With varying degrees of detail, a wide range of musical works is considered, including textbook ones. The presentation of the material as a whole is subject to chronological order. The principle of semantic dominance, implemented in research, assumes the presence of a fundamental attitude in each composer's style, which ensures its uniqueness. A. Demchenko's works are of undoubted interest, first of all, from the standpoint of the author's approach, since the focus is not on narrow theoretical problems, but on the semantic essence, the conceptual and content base of the considered artistic heritage. Reliance on the method of "conceptual analysis" - as the scientist himself defines it in earlier works - provides for the subordination of all technological observations, historical information to the task of revealing cultural, universal meanings. Some decisions of the author of the monographs are questionable. The issue of foreign influences on Glinka's style seems insufficiently developed; the role of urban associations in Stravinsky's "Sacred Spring", on the contrary, seems somewhat exaggerated. The comments made do not prevent us from making a general conclusion about the productivity of the proposed approaches and the potential relevance of the submitted works in scientific and educational practice.

Keywords: semantic concept, integrative method, Schnittke, Shchedrin, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Rachmaninov, Glinka, monographs by Demchenko, classics of Russian music