Key facts

Type	Weekly Classes
Location	Gerrards Cross
Address	Gerrards Cross Memorial Centre East Common Gerrards Cross Bucks SL9 7AD
Dates	Mon 15 Apr to Mon 1 Jul 2013 Day: Monday Time of meeting: 10.30am-12.30pm Number of meetings: 10
Subject area(s)	Music
CATS points	10
Fees	From £145.00
Application status	Course cancelled
Course code	E12P574MSW
Course contact	If you have any questions about this course, please email ppweekly@conted.ox.ac.uk.

Overview

This course will reveal the deep connection between Russian literature and Russian music which has existed since the early nineteenth century. The works of Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy are seen as the source of some of Russia’s greatest operas.

Description

Russian literature and Russian music are closely connected, the works of Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy all providing sources of inspiration. The beauty and elegance of Pushkin’s language engendered some of the greatest Russian operas, including Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila, Musorgsky’s Boris Godunov, Tchaikovsky’s Evgeny Onegin, and Rachmaninov’s Aleko. Gogol’s love of folklore and vivid characterization are seen in Tchaikovsky’s Cherevichki and Shostakovich’s The Nose. Prokofiev’s The Gambler and his War and Peace are both based on novels by Dostoevsky and Tolstoy respectively. This informative and richly illustrated course provides a wealth of information about Russian culture.

Programme details

Week 1:
Brief outline of Russian literature; life and work of Alexander Pushkin; significance of Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila.

Week 2:
Critical examination of Pushkin’s Evgeny Onegin and its operatic adaptation by Tchaikovsky.
Week 3:
Discussion of Pushkin’s The Queen of Spades and its setting by Tchaikovsky.

Week 4:
The significance of Pushkin’s Boris Godunov as the source of Musorgsky’s Boris Godunov.

Week 5:
Comparison between Pushkin’s Mazeppa and its setting by Tchaikovsky.

Week 6:
Discussion of Pushkin’s The Golden Cockerel and Rimsky-Korsakov’s eponymous opera.

Week 7:
Rachmaninov’s indebtedness to Pushkin in his Aleko.

Week 8:
Outline of Gogol and his work; Gogol’s influence on Russian opera as seen in Tchaikovsky’s Cherevichki and Shostakovich’s The Nose.

Week 9:
Outline of Dostoevsky and his work; Prokofiev’s indebtedness to Dostoevsky in The Gambler.

Week 10:
Outline of Tolstoy and his work; War and Peace as the source of Prokofiev’s epic opera

Staff

Course aims

Course Aim:
The aim of the course is to reveal the deep connection between Russian literature and Russian music which has existed since the early nineteenth century. The works of Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy are seen as the source of some of Russia’s greatest operas.

Course Objectives:
1. To trace the relationship between Russian literature and music.
2. To show how operas by leading Russian composers were indebted to Russian writers.
3. To examine how literary works were transformed in the hands of Russian composers.

Assessment methods

The preferred method of assessing student achievement is by means of a 1000-word essay to be completed before the end of the course. A wide choice of topics will be offered.

Teaching methods

The purpose of this course is to show the strong links between Russian literature and Russian music. During the course, although ability to read music is not essential, scores of different works will be made available for analysis. Group discussion will be encouraged after hearing specific works. Musical scores will be made available wherever possible, the works then being played on CD.

Teaching outcomes

By the end of the course students will be expected to:
1. Have a greater understanding of Russian literature..
2. Have a deeper insight into operas by specific composers.
3. Understand better the links between Russian literature and music.

Fee options

Programme Fee

EU Fee: £145.00

Non-EU Fee: £145.00

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