Title: Two Sonnets by Shakespeare in Reflection of Symphonic Allegory. The Fifth Symphony of Alexander Lokshin
Abstract:The article is devoted to the musical legacy of 20th century Russian composer Alexander Lazarevich Lokshin (1920–1987). At the focus of the article’s attention is the composer’s Fifth Symphony “Shakes...The article is devoted to the musical legacy of 20th century Russian composer Alexander Lazarevich Lokshin (1920–1987). At the focus of the article’s attention is the composer’s Fifth Symphony “Shakespeare’s Sonnets” for string orchestra and baritone (1969). Lokshin’s symphony, which continues the Shakespearean line in Russian music of the past few centuries, may be placed on the same level with the outstanding works of the composers of the 1960s. Presenting a unique specimen of a “bilingual” (English and Russian) musical manifestation of Shakespeare’s world famous sonnets, this composition also demonstrates an example of the post-modernist double coding, where beyond the primary layer of the poetry of the British classic it is possible to decipher the symphonic allegory of Lokshin the composer. Lokshin attempted to avoid reducing the all-embracing meaning of the philosophical lyrics to mere subjective categories. By emphasizing in the allegory a concrete plan, he brought out the instrumental image of the friend to whom the composition is addressed and, singling out the viola part in the string section of the orchestra, he ascribed to it an important role in the dramaturgy of the symphony. In the context of the intensive search for a new image of Russian symphony-drama, Lokshin’s musical score presents a unique example of interpretation of large-scale conceptual form. Keywords: Alexander Lokshin, William Shakespeare, Boris Pasternak, sonnet, chamber symphony, Rudolf Barshai, viola, “Hamlet.”Read More