Commentary on Sergey Slonimsky’s essay “An Unwilling Scandalmonger: A Chronicle of Chronic Stress – 1943-1971” from the Book “Notes in the Margin of a Music Score”

The study aims to provide commentary on the second part of S. M. Slonimsky’s “Notes in the Margin of a Music Score”, written in 2002. The second essay from the author’s book “An Unwilling Scandalmonger: A Chronicle of Chronic Stress – 1943-1971” is published and commented on. The first essay was published in the previous issue of the journal: Slonimskaya R. N. Commentary on Sergey Slonimsky’s essay “Myths and Reality: On False Reputations” from the book “Notes in the Margin of a Music Score” // Pan-Art. 2024. Vol. 4. Iss. 3. The author’s second essay focuses on the themes of moral and ethical issues within the composer’s society. These themes are explored in a different light – in direct connection with the life of the composer S. M. Slonimsky in chronological order. Due to space limitations, the essay’s content is roughly divided into three parts: the first part covers the post-war period of Slonimsky’s life until the early 1970s; the second one explores events of the last quarter of the 20th century, 1972-1991; and the third one focuses on the “scandals” of the last decade of the 20th century and the early 21st century, 1992-2002. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that this is the first commentary on the essay from the composer’s personal archive, which has become available to a wide audience. The writing of this commentary is motivated by the intensification of the crisis of moral values in contemporary society. As a result of the study, Slonimsky’s unwavering commitment to the established moral and ethical order and his uncompromising stance against manifestations of evil, envy, and betrayal in the composers’ milieu and music teaching have been identified and confirmed.