The Composer-Philosopher as a Key Figure of Musical Aesthetics (by the Example of Tchaikovsky’s Spiritual Endeavor)

Abstract

The focus of the authors’ scholarly interest is turned to composers-philosophers and philosophers-composers as the crucial figures of musical aesthetics realized in the space of phenomenology. The attention bestowed on such artists makes it possible to approach the understanding of music as an endeavor of transcending, which forms by itself the highest value. Neglecting the latter in the process of mastery of the art of music leads people to “one-dimensionality,” making them admittedly on the decline. When immersing in the inner world of the composer-philosopher or the philosopher-composer, the recipient, essentially, studies the depths of his or her own self, actualizing the dialogue of the artist and the valuator. The criteria for the genuine character of such a dialogue is formed particularly by the process of transcending, under the sign of which music appears in the guise of a meta-philosophical genre. When mastering the dialectics of being realized by musical means of expression, the human being acquires a unity of essence and existence. The authors turn to the personality of Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, considering it appropriate to examine him as a composer-philosopher. Constructing a system of argumentation, they turn their attention towards the great musician’s reading circle, his cultural preferences and antipathies, his students, who manifested themselves in the sphere of philosophical knowledge and in the sphere of the art of music, as well as the musical compositions which have reflected the master’s philosophical ideas. In conclusion, it is emphasized that the study of the musical legacy of the composers-philosophers and the philosophers-composers would help overcome the discontinuity between life and art, when music, remaining aside from the everyday realities experienced by the human being, turn out to be incapable of inspiring him to spiritual wakefulness. As a result, its mission is narrowed down to adornment of everyday life, which inevitably leads to the primitivization of music itself and of the individuals consuming it. Turning to the experience of being of the composers-philosophers would make it possible to overcome this vicious circle.

Keywords: composer-philosopher, philosopher-composer, musical aesthetics, phenomenology of music, Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky