Modern Russian Music Bands

Dissent is deeply intertwined with music. Music gives a voice to groups who are silenced by oppression, it gives people a purpose, and it can create political movements. From the Sex Pistols to Bikini Kill, and now more recently Pussy Riot, all of these bands perform as both musicians and as political activists. In the case of Pussy Riot; their disruption of the mundane through their guerilla performances is form of active dissent against the Putinist regime. Following the 2011 protests, Pussy Riot was part of a larger political moment in Russian history as people took to the streets and took to art as a way of voicing their disgust with the corruption in the Duma. Decked out in balaclavas and bright colors, these women follow the punk tradition of protest through disruption and outcry against oppression in their lyrics. Some critics of Pussy Riot, such as the Russian Government, may say that their actions are not protest, but rather “hooliganism” and that their disruptions have no purpose, but Pussy Riot’s lyrics and performances are clear intersections of artistic expressionism, revolting against the Putinist regime, and a call to action.

Music is known to leave its mark on people helping them to overcome challenges in their lives or to give them courage to defy the odds. In one’s daily life, music is normally taken for granted or is seen as nothing special. As ordinary as it may seem, music can convey emotion in times when the body is numb or all hope is lost. Similarly, in The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway, the cello’s music gave people hope and determination to live their lives in spite of the rampant siege around them. Therefore, music very much impacts the lives of the principal characters Dragan, Kenan, and Arrow.

Ossie Davis once said, “Any form of art is a form of power; it has an impact, it can affect change, it can not only move us, it makes us move”. Similarly, The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway tells the story of how three individuals Arrow, Dragan and Kenan suffering from the unrelenting and ruthlessness of war are impacted by one musician’s art. All three characters suffer from the war in different ways, but the art in the form of music finds a way to connect them all. Galloway’s novel illustrates that art helps lessen the suffering of those facing the brutality of war as the cellist’s music provides healing of the spirit, mind, and body. The cellist’s music provides hope and inspiration to the people of Sarajevo that they will be able

Russia has many cultural characteristics that have shaped the country we know today. A nation 's culture can define its actions and make them more predictable as a state on the international level. Understanding a nation’s culture gives great insight into the motives and reasoning behind their aggression or acts of force. Factors such as geography, weather, political landscape, military, and key infrastructure provide a clear understanding of Russian culture and how it has shaped the nation over the past century.

The North and South soldiers marched off to war, taking with them a love of song that divided them. Music brought back memories of home and family and also entertained and comforted, strengthened the bonds between comrades, helped forge new

While I sit amongst the ranks of a stringed beast, my orchestra, I appreciate the small failures made by myself and my fellow musicians as we fly through the twists and turns of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.2, The Little Russian. A missed accidental in measure thirty-one or an unfavorable bowing in need of correction ten measures after G help the ensemble to advance as a whole. My great gratitude for failure did not carry on outside the ranks of a symphony. Failure was the devil in music, a tritone, under my bed. My dad always told me, “Experience is what you have right after you needed it.” I never found the value of a major seventh chord until it was placed within the sheet music of my life.

It is the middle ground of Europe and Asia, and as a result, which cultural aspects to draw from had a great deal of influence over Russian culture. For example, Peter the Great’s transformation of Russia into a more modernized Europeanized nation had some traces of cultural inferiority. The only need to modernize and imitate a nation into a replica of a European state is because there is a sense of loss of identity. This is important to understanding the key similarities and differences that played out when comparing and contrasting Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union.

In their respective songs, “Foreign in My Own Country” and “Adriano (Last Warning),” German musical artists Advanced Chemistry and Brothers Keepers articulate their grievances in the aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany during the late twentieth century. Their lyrics harken back to one of the main questions of this course, who/what is considered German? These songs were penned after multiple insurgencies, riots, and hate-crimes were committed by neo-Nazi and other far-right extremists who target and terrorize foreigners and those that don’t “look German.” Through their music and lyrics Advanced Chemistry and Brothers Keepers voice their outrage towards the violence and terror that has occurred in Germany

After the in the World War II, there was a power division of the world into two axes of power that created the United Soviet Socialist Republics or only the Soviet Union.  The axis of power and the scramble for the control of the world led to the making of the Berlin wall and division of eastern and western Germany each with either ideology. The allies which included the USA, Great Britain and France formed allied forces. Although the cold war was in itself not a war, it was an economic sanction and led to the development of world deadliest weapons. It is also the exodus of the deadly Cuban missile and the rise of China.

Nelson demonstrates that the arguments and statements are highly credible with the use of sources and accurate referencing. She examines the first fifteen years of the Soviet Rule and offers perspective on restrictions imposed and interactions between musicians and politicians. While looking at the social philosophies and the cultural limits of the era that influenced musicians in Russia, particularly Shostakovich and Prokofiev. This book provides in depth explanation and analysis of the restrictions enforced under the Soviet Union and highlights that there was often a difference between the restraints and implementations. It is a highly valuable source to the essay and will be used to provide soluble detail of the restrictions Russian Composers

Those who have had an experience with any Soviet tunes can agree that a particular manner of repletion takes its presence in every ever made Soviet Union song. Therefore, Pete Seeger has succeeded in transferring a morbid sound of the Soviet Union history. Before starting the analysis of the particular lyrics, one should be informed that the lyrics do not rhyme whatsoever, and as previously mentioned, are monotone.

With the arrival of the second half of the 20th century, came the death of Stalin and a new age for not only Russia but the entirety of the Eastern Block as well. Russia, as always, stood in the face of adversity and, instead of crumbling, began to develop and progress in leaps and bounds. In the span of a mere 50 or so years Russia went from one political, social, and economic standing, (Stalinism) to its exact obverse. Despite the obvious changes a switch like this requires there are still some fundamental and intrinsically Russian sentiments and characteristics that were maintained throughout the change.

Soviet Russia was a uniquely difficult culture for artists to not only thrive in, but to survive in as well. The Soviet Era marked one of the few times in history that artists were judged primarily on how well they matched the party’s agenda, rather than on their artistic achievements. Music, for the most part, was not banned entirely, but converted into a propagandist tool used by the government to encourage optimistic feelings toward its own policies. However, musicians who created works that were objectionable to the party, or to Stalin personally, often had their works banned and were exiled to Siberia. Many musicians were even murdered because party leaders did not feel that their music was art for the people. Communist leaders

Soviet rock bands were able to make and release official albums, as well as, to tour across the countries. Rock music has remained popular for around fifty decades, however, in the 2000’s the originality of rock or punk music in Russia started to decline. However, a new spark has been lit and new bands don’t want to be mainstream since it means a censorship of their work. In other words, rock and punk bands in Russia are starting to once again produce music that talks about important issues in their country and the only way not be censored is by breaking away from the

Kate Bush’s “Rocket’s Tail” was made to resemble/portray some aspects of traditional Balkan music. She uses traditional Balkan vocals in the background and fuses her british style with their music/sound. Nazarkhan’s and her international release of “Mogulchai Navo” does kind of the same but in a way in which the scales are flipped. Bush has a more European sounds mixed with some Balkan but, Nazarkhan has Balkan sounds which mix with some british sounds. Additionally, besides the common factor of Balkan and European music mixing to create a fascinating sound, both Bush and Nararkhan seem to incorporate electronic twists to their