G. V. Sviridov and A. А. Blok: thoughts about Russia

For many years Georgy Sviridov with exceptional consistency turned to the musical embodiment and disclosure of poetic images of Alexander Blok. In the article it is shown that the first poet of Russia of the 20th century was close to the composer in such moments as arrangement of soul, consonance of thoughts, similarity of the artistic method and civil positions, and their parallelism of destinies. If A. Blok was a witness and chronicler of the historical drama of Russia in the early 20th century, Sviridov was a witness of its end. They both survived two historical shocks, when the question of the very existence of our country was put: Blok — in 1917, Sviridov — in 1991. Both sought and comprehended the origins and outcomes of these upheavals. Particular attention is paid in the article to the similar conclusions of the poet and composer on the actual problems of the relations between the intelligentsia and the people, the intelligentsia and the revolution, the intelligentsia and Russia. The roots of the spiritual crisis of the “elected” representatives of society and culture, both Blok and Sviridov, saw a deviation from the religious foundations of life and art and stay on the “inaccessible” dividing line with the people. Both artists on the difficult paths of their own life and creative experience approved the possibility of choosing a fundamentally different position and indicated the direction of the way out of the crisis.