This book explores the complex development of Russian musical life during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It focuses on the Russian Musical Society, which was both unique as a driving force behind the institutionalization of musical life and representative of the growing importance of voluntary associations in public life. Sustained by both private initiative and cooperative relationships with the state, the Russian Musical Society played a key role in the creation of Russia's infrastructure for music and music education. The book's exploration of the broad scope of musical life, ... More

This book explores the complex development of Russian musical life during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It focuses on the Russian Musical Society, which was both unique as a driving force behind the institutionalization of musical life and representative of the growing importance of voluntary associations in public life. Sustained by both private initiative and cooperative relationships with the state, the Russian Musical Society played a key role in the creation of Russia's infrastructure for music and music education. The book's exploration of the broad scope of musical life, including not only the “leading lights” of the era but also rank‐and‐file musicians, teachers, and students, prompts a consideration of the fluid nature of Russian social identity. Although Russian musicians longed for a secure place within the new hierarchy of professions, their social status remained ambiguous throughout the nineteenth century; the traditional reliance on serf musicians and foreigners left lasting scars that drove musicians' efforts to secure both legal rights and social respectability. The increasing visibility of women in musical life provoked acrimonious debates that were, at heart, efforts by male musicians to strengthen their claims to professional status by denying the legitimacy of female participation. At the same time, the successful development of a Russian musical infrastructure salved persistent anxieties about Russia's place vis‐à‐vis its European cultural competitors. Remarkably, the institutions developed by the Russian Musical Society survived the upheavals of war and revolution to become the foundation for the Soviet musical system.