Vocal pieces by Myaskovsky with poems by K. Balmont: synthesis of poetic and musical culture in the context of the beginning of XX century

This article analyzes vocal pieces by Nikolay Myaskovsy, which have been poorly explored until now and which he composed in the early period of his work. Myaskovsky's interest in symbolism in the first decade of the twentieth century ed him to composition of remarkable amount of romances with poems by Kontantin Balmont. This attention to the symbolists' poetry is typical for the musical culture in the beginning of the twentieth century. The research object encompasses two early vocal cycles by Myaskovsky with poems by K. Balmont: These are “From the youth time” piece two (1903—1906) and vocal suite “Madrigal” piece 7 (1908—1909). The analysis of these cycles considers special tendencies in the musical art in the beginning of the twentieth century. A special attention is paid to the issues of cycles' organization. In addition, this article explores the features of Balmont's poetic style, which served as an impulse attracting many composers to his verses in the first half of the twentieth century.