«Home Songbooks» by S. Monіuszko and Spiritual and Ethical Aspects of the Biedermeier Culture

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to reveal the genre-stylistic specificity of S. Monіuszko’s cycle “Home Songbooks” in the context of the spiritual and stylistic instructions of Biedermeier’s art, including in his Polish “model”. The methodology of the work is based on general scientific and special methods, among which intonation-stylistic, historical-cultural, genre-stylistic methods in their complex application are essential. The scientific novelty of the work is determined by the fact that it summarises for the first time the genre-stylistic specificity of S. Monіuszko’s “Home Songbooks” cycle in the context of Biedermeier’s typological features and his Polish “hypostasis”. Conclusions. The creativity of S. Monіuszko is an important component of Polish musical culture of the middle of the 19th century, which developed at the intersection of typological signs of romanticism and Biedermeier. The specificity of the latter, presented in almost all European cultures of the mentioned period, including the Polish one, is focused on the revival of spiritual patriarchal guidelines for human existence, on the reproduction of “life imbued with religiosity”. In the artistic and musical sphere, Biedermeier’s typology appeals to the typical and generally significant, to various forms of amateur music-making or to their stylisation. Within the framework of Polish culture, his instructions interact with the signs of Polish nobility and Sarmatism, as well as with the traditions of the national song and dance culture. The large-scale series “Home Songbooks” by S. Monіuszko was created on the basis of the best examples of Polish (A. Mickiewicz, S. Witvytskyi, J. Chechot, L. Kondratovych, etc.), as well as European poetry of various eras (J. Goethe, H. Heine, V. Hugo, V. Scott, J. Byron, V. Shakespeare). It includes about three hundred songs and is oriented to the artistic demands of a family circle or salon gathering, carries a spiritual and educational burden, reproducing the Polish “image of the world” and its ethical values.

Key words: Polish musical culture of the 19th century, chamber and vocal cycle, chamber and vocal creativity of S. Monyushka, “Home Songbooks” by S. Moniushko, Biedermayer, Sarmatism.