The object of study in this article is one of the late works of the German romantic composer Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy – Trio No. 2 for violin, cello and piano. The relevance of the stated topic is caused, firstly, by the growing research interest in the composer’s work in recent years, and secondly, by the neo-baroque trends that have unfolded in modern music, associated with the use of instrumental opuses of choral chants as thematic material. The novelty of the worklies in the fact that for the first time it considers the thematic process in the chamber composition of Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, based on the Protestant chorale.The study of the function of the chorale in the Trio is preceded by the rationale for the choice of Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, the founder of the trend towards the revival of baroque genres in the era of romanticism. The author of the article gives examples of the use of the Protestant chorale in the works of MendelssohnBartholdy and his contemporaries, observing the formation, transformation and dramatic functions of the theme of the chorale “Gelobet seist…”.

In the culture of the XX century tango is recognized as an absolute idol and widely demanded genre of music, dance and concert performance art. Information about the Argentine phenomenon seems to be all-encompassing and exhaustive, but most of the information is mostly of a popular and informative nature. In the research works of Russian and foreign authors there is a discrepancy of opinions about many issues, such as etymology of the term, history and geographical origins, boundaries of the stages of development and diversity of the Tango genre. The aim of this paper is to clarify (on the basis of information from domestic and foreign publications) the existing periodization of the history of tango and to show stylistic features of two types – Creole and Argentine – of tango at the stage of formation and stabilization of the genre. The material of the analysis is exemplary works such as “El entrerriano” by R. Mendizabal, “El Choclo” by A. Villoldo and “El amanecer” by R. Firpo.

In the second half of the 20th and early 21st centuries, the genre of passions is experiencing a revival. Composers implement its new implementation by updating its compositional structure. To compositions, illnesses with an original approach to the genre, transport “Matthew Passion” by the Danish composer Bent Sørensen, the world premiere took place in Oslo in 2021. The article reveals the specifics of the artistic concept of the work, analyzes its figurative sphere, compositional and dramatic features. The idea is based on a pilgrimage, a journey into the past, to the crucifixion, and gaining faith. The specificity of the work is determined by the dramatic duality, which is realized at different levels: in the libretto – through the arrangement of spiritual and secular texts in Latin and English; in the figurative sphere – through the presence of two thematiclines (spiritual and sensuallove) and two times (past and present); in the musicallanguage – by combining different compositional techniques (tonality and sonorics) and heterogeneous stylistic material (one’s own and someone else’s). As a result, Sorensen’s work appears as a multi-component artistic whole, in which the divine and human, personal and universal are reflected through the prism of time and the dialogue of cultures.

The history of the genre of children’s opera in Russia is one of the topical topics of modern domestic music. At the same time, many works by composers who made the most important contribution to the formation and development of the genre in the first decades of the 20th century have not yet received a detailed understanding in scientific literature. This article is devoted to the unexplored children’s opera-fairy tale by C.A. Cui “The Snow Bogatyr” (1905), which represents the genre in the composer’s work. The authors of the work focus on thelibretto and composition of “The Snow Bogatyr”, considered in relation to the structural-genre patterns of the tale. As the study showed, thelibretto of the opera, created by M.S. Paul, demonstrates a collaboration of different plot and figurative-semantic motifs that create rich intertextual connections with the world fund of fairy tales, epics, legends, traditions; in the plot-compositional logic of “The Snow Bogatyr”, a model of a fairy tale is consistently implemented.

Chinese folk wind music is not only an essential part of Chinese culture, but also the pearl of the world musical art as a whole. To date, this is a fairlylargescale artistic system, it satisfies a wide variety of practical and artistic and aesthetic needs both in the composing tradition and in performing practice. The history of Chinese folk wind instruments goes back to ancient times. They have achieved great success in their development and are an important component of a large family of instruments of different peoples, which is based on flute and tongue types of sound formation. The author of the article attempts to analyze the functional features of some Chinese folk wind instruments of this type from the point of view of the history of their development and distribution, classification, external characteristics and ways of playing based on the study and systematization of Chinese studies. The introduction into scientific use of foreign-language sources that have not yet been translated into Russian made it possible to supplement the material with new, previously unknown facts, that expand the understanding of China’s performing culture of the past and present.

The article is devoted to identifying the features of the performing interpretation of Maurice Ravel’s choreographic poem “Waltz” for solo piano. Against the background of the vast Russian raveliana, this particular topic did not receive detailed coverage. The author identifies a number of problematic aspects that arise before the performer of “Waltz”, and considers them based on his own concert experience and in comparison with the interpretations of famous modern pianists Wang Yujia and Beatrice Rana, who differ in individual style. It is noted that the performing concept is built on the basis of an understanding of the composer’s idea, ideological and figurative content, genre specifics, textural solutions and knowledge of the orchestral score of the poem. During the performance analysis, special attention is paid to some details (polyrhythmy, arpeggio, agogic techniques, chromatic passages), fragments of a three-line clavier, which in the practice of pianists receive various reading options. In conclusion, conclusions are drawn about the ambiguity of the musical and semantic content of the “Waltz”, the variability of interpretation proposed by Ravel, but the inadmissibility of simplification and distortion of the artistic idea. Ravel’s unique synthesis of choreography, theatricality and symphonism gives reason to recommend pianists to perform “Waltz” as a timbre-colorful, spatially visible, piano-stage picture.

The article deals with one of the aspects of the first national Chinese opera “The Gray-haired Girl”, associated with the image of the main character Cier. First staged in 1945, this opera marked a new stage in the development of the genre in the People’s Republic of China and reflected the characteristic features of the epoch. For almost 80 years, this work has been a success with the public and presents a certain difficulty for artists. Special attention is paid to the interpretation of Lei Jia, a well–known representative of the modern opera art of China. It organically combines the song and dance traditions of the Yangae genre, the Huagu opera and the Italian bel canto. Three arias of the main character, which are of key importance in the dramaturgy of the opera, are considered in detail. The specific features of the interpretation of the image of Cier performed by Lei Jia, as well as harmonic, intonation, rhythmic features of the numbers are revealed.

The song folklore of Russian old-timers in the Transbaikal region is heterogeneous. In addition to the “Semeiskie” chant, covered in researchliterature, ritual and non-ritual songs by immigrants from different regions of Russia, as well as songs by the Transbaikal Cossacks, were recorded here. There is still a problem of publishing expedition notes, taken down from the Transbaikal Cossacks and old-timers. Currently, there are no works analyzing these songs in terms of music style: rhythmic structure, mode, a polyphony type. The present paper addresses the tunes published in the book “Russian Songs of Eastern Siberia”. It includes expedition materials collected by V.P. Zinoviev and his students in the Transbaikal and Irkutsk regions since 1969. The only edition that does not include records from the “Semeiskie” contains thelargest number of tunes by the Transbaikal Cossacks and old-timers. The analysis of these melodies enables a conclusion on belonging of the Transbaikal old-timer folklore to the so-called “common style of Russian old-timers in Siberia”.

The article is devoted to the musical and pedagogical system of the famous Chinese pianist, composer and teacher Zhao Xiaosheng. He was educated in the “cradle of Chinese pianists” – the Shanghai Conservatory under the representative of the first generation of Chinese teachers of the institution Ding Shangde. His teacher, in turn, studied performing skills with the Russian musician Boris Zakharov, head of the piano department at the conservatory. Zhao Xiaosheng is the creator of the composition system and the author of his own piano technique. And if the provisions of the first are covered in domestic musicological science, then the content and experience of understanding its pedagogical system have not yet received proper coverage. The purpose of this work is to identify the main pedagogical principles of Zhao Xiaosheng in the field of piano methodology. Based on his book “The Way of Playing the Piano”, the authors of the article reveal the meaning of the six main provisions. A connection is found between some of the foundations of Taoist philosophy, Qigong breathing practice and the content of the author’s methodological guidelines.

Shamanism for many peoples of northeastern China is an official religion with along history and rich cultural connotation. Shamanism can also be called a determining factor for the visual arts of many nationalities living in this territory. This article examines the influence of this belief on the culture of the population of the NorthEast of the PRC. The proposed angle has not yet received an exhaustive understanding in art science, which determines the relevance and scientific novelty of this study. The author’s focus is on identifying the relationships between shamanism and the visual arts of northeastern China using the example of the work of contemporary artists Guangsen and Sun Jiapin. It is determined that works (picturesque, graphic), which are based on the spiritual attitudes of shamanism, are distinguished by natural themes, ethnic motives, the atmosphere of the presence of otherworldly forces through the prism of the authors capturing ritual symbols, religious images, etc.

This article presents a study of counterculture in the arts of the traditional state of Iran. The dominant culture of the Islamic republic is based on religious laws, the observance of which is a requirement in almost all spheres of society. Art in Iran has to reckon not only with the religious norms of the country, but also with the censorship by the secular authorities, because it is the most vivid transmitter of thoughts and ideas, including those of the counterculture. With the help of philosophical and semiotic analysis two films by Iranian director Asghar Farhadi were examined “Beautiful City” (2004) and “Divorce of Nader and Simin” (2011), which are vivid representations of countercultural ideas in Iranian cinema. An analysis of the artistic techniques and themes that the director presented in his films demonstrates protest and unwillingness to follow state and spiritual prohibitions and norms. In these representations Asghar Farhadi reflected a number of social problems of society, which are disapproved and silenced by the dominant culture of Iran.