Amateur symphonic performance in an educational environment: the student orchestra of Kharkiv University in the 1880s — 1890s
Authors: Zhang Lichuan 
Published: December 2023

The purpose of the publication is to determine the specifics of the functioning of the student orchestra of Kharkiv University in the 1880s — 1890s in the context of amateur symphonic performance.

The methodology. In the process of studying the activity of the orchestra of Kharkiv University, the approach of comparative analysis was applied, thanks to which the peculiarities of developing the repertoire and concert practice of the team were revealed. Determination of the specifics of work with the team of orchestra leaders was carried out within the framework of the application of the systematicity principle.

The results. Based on the analysis of the materials of the Kharkiv press of the 1880s — early 1900s, the specifics of the functioning of the Kharkiv University student orchestra, led by prominent professional musicians S. Nemetz, A. von Glen and S. Dochevskyi, is investigated. It was determined that the performance activity of the amateur orchestra was influenced by the specifics of the educational process at the university, which caused both the annual renewal of a certain percentage of orchestra members and long breaks in the rehearsal process. During the leadership of S. Nemetz (1881–1885) and A. von Glen (1889–1900), the university music collective met the standards of the instrumental composition of a symphony orchestra; the quality of music reproduction was ensured by inviting professional orchestra performers of Kharkiv theaters and local amateur musicians. The level of performance of the orchestra of that period made it possible to successfully perform symphonic music by L. Beethoven, K. M. Weber, F. Mendelssohn, R. Wagner, etc. at leading concert venues in Kharkiv. During the leadership of the university orchestra by S. Dochevskyi (1890s — 1900s), the concert activity gradually reduced, being limited to episodic participation in university celebrations and charity events organized by students of the educational institution.

The scientific novelty. It has been proven that the specificity of the functioning of the amateur symphony orchestra of Kharkiv University during the 1880s and 1890s under the leadership of musicians educated on the aesthetic principles of academic musical art is determined by the quality of their performance of the bandmaster functions. S. Nemetz and A. von Glen, who sought to make up an orchestra that meets academic standards of a musical team, provided a symphonic instrumental composition and performance quality, involving professional musicians into concert performances. The limitation of concert practice of the student orchestra during the leadership of S. Dochevskyi to university events led to a gradual decrease in the level of performance skills and orientation in the process of providing the instrumental composition purely to amateur students.

The practical significance. Prospects for further research are related to the study of the specifics of the functioning of amateur orchestra groups in the cultural centers of Ukraine in the second half of the XIX century.