Music transcends
borders and has a way of speaking to everyone across the globe in some way.
Many composers over the past centuries, however, have found inspiration within
their homeland. Whether that inspiration stems from racial tensions within
their society or nationalistic pride for the country, these composers found a
way to pull from ethnic influences when writing their music.
Today, let’s look
at a 19th-century Russian composer who allowed nationalism to
influence his work. Alexander Borodin is one of the members of what has been
dubbed “The Mighty Five,” a group of composers living and working within 19th-century
Russia who were enthusiastic about the progression they witnessed within the
Western music world. Using progressive ideas in their own music, they sought to
incorporate Russian folk music amongst other elements in their work. Besides
Borodin, the group also consisted of Balakirev, Cui, Mussorgsky, and
Rimsky-Korsakov (who we will discuss further during my next post!)
Though holding a
career as a chemist, Alexander Borodin somehow still managed to successfully
find time to compose. One of his famous, though unfinished, works is his opera Prince Igor. The work was later finished
by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov following Borodin’s death. The opera tells the
story of Prince Igor and his son who go on military campaign against nomadic
Polovtsi tribe. They end up captured but are treated surprisingly well by the
nomads. Later in the opera, Prince Igor escapes, leaving behind his son who has
fallen in love with a girl from the tribe. In order to prepare for this
composition, Borodin actually researched the folk music of Russian nomadic
tribes! You can hear the “Polovstian Dances” from Prince Igor below. Listen for the robust rhythms and the
Russian-folk feel in the video clip below. Do you find this piece to exhibit
Russian nationalism?
