The Effects of the Second World War on Soviet Classical Music
Ezgi Nihan UzunonatThe hardships World War II brought to the Soviet Union affected the working conditions of musicians and led to a decline in musical activity, forcing many composers to contend with the effects of the war. On the other hand, the conditions the war created also caused many composers to compose works that involved the destruction of war and people’s suffering and victories. One of the best examples of this is Dmitri Shostakovich’s 7th Symphony, also known as the Leningrad Symphony, which he composed during the siege of Leningrad and is considered to be a musical reflection of the difficult conditions that were experienced. Sergei Prokofiev’s War Sonatas deal with the themes of the destructiveness of war, human drama, and the loss of human values between the conflicting parties and are among the works cited as an example. The research discusses the events that developed in Soviet Russia between the October Revolution to the post-war period by making an introduction to World War II. At the same time, the article explains the lives and works of two important composers of Soviet Russia, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, and mentions their lives and compositions during the war. Two objectives of this research are to eliminate the lack of information in the literature about the contributions of classical music and its use in World War II and to provide information about the subject by examining the perspectives of governments on music at that time.
İkinci Dünya Savaşı’nın Sovyet Klasik Müziği’ne Etkileri
Ezgi Nihan Uzunonatİkinci Dünya Savaşı’nın Sovyetler Birliği’ne getirdiği zorluklar, müzisyenlerin çalışma koşullarını etkiledi, müzik etkinliklerinin azalmasına neden oldu ve birçok besteci savaşın etkileriyle mücadele etmek zorunda kaldı. Ancak, bir yandan da savaşın yarattığı koşullar, birçok bestecinin eserlerinde savaşın yıkıcılığına, insanların acılarına ve zaferlerine yer veren besteler yapmalarına sebep oldu. Bunun en iyi örneklerden biri, Dmitri Shostakovich’in Leningrad kuşatması sırasında bestelediği ve yaşanan zorlu koşulların müzikal bir yansıması olarak kabul edilen 7. Senfonisi, diğer adıyla Leningrad Senfonisi’dir. Sergei Prokofiev’in savaşın yıkıcılığına ve insanlık dramına dair bir temayı işlediği ve çatışma halinde olan taraflar arasındaki insanlık değerlerinin kaybolmasını anlattığı War Sonatas adlı eseri de buna örnek olarak verilen eserler arasındadır. Araştırmada, İkinci Dünya Savaşı ile ilgili bir giriş yapılarak Ekim Devrimi’nden savaş sonrasına kadar olan dönemde Sovyet Rusya’da klasik müzikte gelişen olaylar ele alınmıştır. Aynı zamanda Sovyet Rusya’nın iki önemli bestecisi Prokofiev ve Shostakovich’in hayatları ve eserleri anlatılarak, savaş sırasındaki yaşantı ve bestelerinden de ayrıca bahsedilmiştir. İkinci Dünya Savaşında Klasik müzik ve kullanımının literatüre katkı sağlamasıyla ilgili bilgi eksikliğinin giderilmesi, o dönemdeki hükümetlerin müziğe bakış açılarını inceleyerek konuyla ilgili bilgi sahibi olunması, bu araştırmanın hedeflerinden biridir.
The Soviet Union entered the war with Operation Barbarossa, which was launched by Germany in 1941. This operation opened the Eastern Front of World War II and has been described as the largest military operation ever. The Soviets suffered significant territorial losses early in the war, Germany advanced as far as Moscow and besieged Leningrad. After the start of the operation, Josef Stalin as the leader of the Soviet Union launched a homeland defense movement throughout the country, with the battles of Kursk, Stalingrad, and Moscow being fought under the propaganda of this movement. The clashes with German soldiers were quite heavy, and the Soviet soldiers showed great resistance and heroism. About 27 million Soviet and 11 million German soldiers died during the war. The Soviet Union became one of the most important powers of the war, which greatly affected the structure and course of World War II and resulted in Germany’s defeat on the eastern front. The Siege of Leningrad was one of the longest and most destructive sieges and resulted in the heaviest losses in modern history. Although Hitler failed to take the city, the two-and-a-half-year siege resulted in great loss of life.
The Soviet Union was a country dominated by communist ideology, and this ideology also had an impact on Soviet culture and art. Soviet music was under the control of the Soviet government and used as a tool to reflect the state’s ideological goals and policies.
The hardships World War II brought to the Soviet Union affected the working conditions of musicians and led to a decline in musical activity, forcing many composers to contend with the effects of the war. Many Soviet composers and musicians died or left their country during the war. On the other hand, the conditions the war created also caused many composers to create works that involved the destruction of war and the suffering and victories of the people. One of the best examples of this is Dmitri Shostakovich’s 7th Symphony, also known as the Leningrad Symphony. He composed it during the siege of Leningrad, and it is considered to be a musical reflection of the difficult conditions that were experienced. Sergei Prokofiev’s War Sonatas deal with the themes of the destructiveness of war, human drama, and the loss of human values between the conflicting parties and is among the works cited this article cites as an example. Prokofiev and Shostakovich are undoubtedly the names most mentioned in the criticisms of 1934 and 1948. Although they reflected different musical cultures, they were tried together many times, with most of their works being written under the supervision and pressure of the state yet also were sometimes subject to bans. However, both composers based their works on historical events, opposed the state authority from time to time, and wrote more intense symphonic works rather than simple works.
The Soviet government under the Stalin regime viewed nationalism as a political tool within the framework of culture and music for bringing the Russian people together. With the Soviet regime that followed the tsarist system, Russia tried to understand socialism. While it focused on the concepts of right and freedom, no defined policy was present regarding the field of art. With the leadership of Stalin and the occurrence of World War II, expectations from composers increased, and they were put under serious pressure to provide morale to the public with their music. Despite the devastating effects of the war, Soviet classical music continued to evolve and develop both during and after the war. The Soviet music education system trained valuable composers who would shape Soviet classical music for many years.
The use of classical music as a propaganda tool during World War II also affected the Soviet people. Two composers of Soviet Russia, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, were among the names that had been greatly influenced by this period. Shostakovich’s tendency to use a certain musical language in his compositions made him a political target in this environment, one of these being Shostakovich’s 7th Symphony, which he had dedicated to Leningrad. The work was written during the siege of Leningrad in World War II, with Shostakovich refusing to leave his country. Great efforts were made under the difficult conditions of the war to have this piece be heard. Rehearsals were held during bombings, and musicians were found who’d died of starvation. Despite everything, however, the concert took place on August 9, 1942 in Leningrad.
This research discusses the events that developed in Soviet Russia between the October Revolution and the post-war period by making an introduction to World War II. At the same time, the article explains the lives and works of two important composers of Soviet Russia, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, and mentions their lives and the compositions they wrote during the war. Two objectives of this research are to eliminate the lack of information in the literature about the contributions of classical music and its use in World War II and to provide information about the subject by examining the perspectives of the governments on music at that time.
This qualitative research was written using the method of descriptive analysis. In order to determine the method, the article first searched the literature on the subject to determine the relevant sources and limit itself to the composers Prokofiev and Shostakovich. The article examines the lives and works of the composers and the effects the difficulties they experienced during the war had on the musical structure of their compositions. The study’s analyses take into consideration the effects the composers’ political environment and their relations with the government had on their works.
Shostakovich and Prokofiev lived during the Soviet Russia period and were composers whose works dealt with social and intellectual events. The ideas and musical styles they described in their works were sometimes criticized and other times awarded. When considering that they were trying to survive under political pressure, they can be said to have had to act politically in order to survive as composers. Of course, this situation was reflected in their compositions, which this article addresses while providing information about their works.
