St. Petersburg: A Cultural History

by Solomon Volkov

Book Overview

Long considered to be the mad dream of an imperious autocrat--the "Venice of the North," conceived in a setting of malarial swamps--St. Petersburg was built in 1703 by Peter the Great as Russia's... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0028740521
• ISBN13: 9780028740522
• Release Date: November 1995
• Publisher: Free Press
• Length: 624 Pages
• Weight: 2.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Letter to the author

This was a magical book that brought St. Petersburg to vivid life. But a statements made on pages 258-259 literally made my eyes grow wide. The first statementa concerns Marius Petipa's ballet "Don Quixote". Petipa was teh renowned Premier Maître de Ballet of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, who is perhaps the most influential Balletmaster that has ever lived. Volkov explains that the critic Gaevsky considered the so-called "Dream Scene" from Petipa's "Don Quixote" to be a "veiled portrait of the Russian Capital". If Volkov researched just a little further, he would know that the "Dream Scene" as it is danced today in Russia is actually the work of Alexander Gorsky, who revised "Don Quixote" extensively in Moscow in 1900 and later staged his version for the Imperial Ballet in 1902. In the book Volkov discusses Petipa final ballet, "The Magic Mirror", which failed miserably upon its 1903 premiere. Volkov discusses an accident at the general rehearsal of the ballet, which the aged Balletmaster viewed as a bad omen. He then goes onto quote a passage from Petipa's diaries, written a short time prior to the incident, in which the Balletmaster discusses his wishes for his funeral. Volkov then writes, quote: "The sense of change characteristic of fin-de-siècle St. Petersburg and the hovering expectation of doom did not leave Petipa. This was undoubtedly one of the reasons for his love for Tcahikovsky, who worked, we could say, on the same psychological wavelength. Petipa could have easily remained with the music of Cesare Pugni, Ludwig Minkus, or Riccardo Drigo-after all, some of his biggest successes were collaboration with those minor composers." The view that Petipa preferred to collaborate with Tchaikovsky is FAR from the truth. It is a common misconception that Petipa was on some mission to "improve" the quality of ballet music. Although he did hold Tchaikovsky in high regard, Petipa's preferred collaborator during the late 19th century was no doubt Riccardo Drigo, and the light, melodious ballet music of the specialist was what Petipa really preferred. There is, however, no direct statement made by Petipa to support this, but one needs only to review the way Petipa handled the scores provided him by the composers of the post-Minkus era to see what his tates truely were. It was the director of the Imperial Theatres, Vsevolozhsky, who abolished Ludwig Minkus's post of "Official Ballet Composer" in 1886, and subsequently the director brought several "symphonic" composers to the table to collaborate with Petipa. Tchaikovsky came in 1889, composing the magnificent "Sleeping Beauty" that premiered in 1890, followed by "Nutcracker" in 1892. It is significant to note that in 1891, between "Sleeping Beauty" and "Nutcracker", Petipa requested that Minkus supply the music for his ballet "Kalkabrino". Afterward Vsevolozhsky commissioned several "symphonic" composers to collaborate with Petipa, but the Balletmaster nevertheless often supplemented

Volkov bares the Soul of St.Petersburg in this work.

Solomon Volkov is a sorcerer. He will have you chuckling out loud one minute & weeping the next! In the pages of this book, you will come to know the people of St. Petersburg; their glory, their sorrow, their passion, their genius. Volkov has brought this immortal city across the ocean and planted it firmly in my heart. It has instilled in me a deep appreciation for the talents of those who, in some cases, forfeited theirs lives for the sake of creative freedom.

An enjoyable look at the cultural heart of modern Russia

Not only is the author obviously erudite about his subject matter, he is in love with it, making this book more than just an outsider's account of a city's cultural history. Exploring the 'mythos' of St. Petersburg through the work and lives of many of the creative spirits who either lived here or reflected the city in their works -- Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoyevski, Akhmatova among the better-known -- Volkov brings to life the very streets, houses, and canals of a great city on the border of Russia and Europe. But even more, his reader has the great pleasure of being accompanies on this journey by the very Russian-intellectual thoughtfulness and erudition, 'intelligentnost', of the author. Warmly recommended indeed.

Anyone who has seen "The Nutcracker Ballet" should read this

Solomon Volkov has prepared for Western readers a breathtaking history of St. Petersburg's cultural treasures. Anyone who has seen "The Nutcracker Ballet" should read this book. Volkov brings forth the great ballet artists, classical music composers, painters, and writers who were centered in St. Petersburg, Russia's "window on Europe". Most of these great artists are as familiar to western readers as Tchaikovsky. But we are also introduced to equally great artists, poets, and writers we didn't know before. The introduction is invaluable. Underlying the "stars" of center stage, and running throughout the 300 years of cultural history is a constant reference to the "mythos of St. Petersburg" which Russian emigres worldwide will recognize with longing and affection. It is important to learn of the deeply-felt magical aura this city imposed on the artists and writers who lived there, including on Solomon Volkov himself.