A New Study of the Musical Culture of Belarus: Originality and Discussion

This review analyses Musical Culture of Belarus: Historical Fate and Creative Connections, a monograph by O. V. Dadiomova, a Belarusian musicologist. The book is a collection of the author’s works related to the history of the professional musical culture of Belarus from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century. Based on historical, cultural, and comparative methods, the author reveals the processes behind the formation of musical art, the influences it has experienced throughout the centuries, undergoing the impact of different cultures and peoples. According to the reviewer, the second part of the monograph, which presents the interrelations of Belarusian musicians with the greatest creators of musical culture of different Slavic nations, is original. The article points out the controversial aspects of the study and concludes that the book makes a significant contribution to the holistic philosophical understanding of the history of musical culture of Belarus.