St Petersburg: A Cultural History by Solomon Volkov (PDF)

Description

Long considered to be the mad dream of an imperious autocrat—the “Venice of the North,” conceived in a setting of malarial swamps—St. Petersburg was built in 1703 by Peter the Great as Russia’s gateway to the West. For almost 300 years this splendid city has survived the most extreme attempts of man and nature to extinguish it, from flood, famine, and disease to civil war, Stalinist purges, and the epic 900-day siege by Hitler’s armies. It has even been renamed twice, and became St. Petersburg again only in 1991. Yet not only has it retained its special, almost mystical identity as the schizophrenic soul of modern Russia, but it remains one of the most beautiful and alluring cities in the world. Now Solomon Volkov, a Russian emigre and acclaimed cultural historian, has written the definitive cultural biography of this city and its transcendent artistic and spiritual legacy. For Pushkin, Gogol, and Dostoyevsky, Petersburg was a spectral city that symbolized the near-apocalyptic conflicts of imperial Russia. As the monarchy declined, allowing intellectuals and artists to flourish, Petersburg became a center of avant-garde experiment and flamboyant bohemian challenge to the dominating power of the state, first czarist and then communist. The names of the Russian modern masters who found expression in St. Petersburg still resonate powerfully in every field of art: in music, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich; in literature, Akhmatova, Blok, Mandelstam, Nabokov, and Brodsky; in dance, Diaghilev, Nijinsky, and Balanchine; in theater, Meyerhold; in painting, Chagall and Malevich; and many others, whose works are now part of the permanent fabric of Western civilization. Yet no comprehensive portrait of this thriving distinctive, and highly influential cosmopolitan culture, and the city that inspired it, has previously been attempted.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: About the Author Solomon Moiseyevich Volkov is a journalist and musicologist.

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐In this extremely detailed cultural history of St. Petersburg Volkov succeeds in filling what he sees as a deficiency in histories written about the world’s great cities. And by exploring St Petersburg’s cultural history, Volkov has also written a history of Russia over the past three centuries. The book focuses mainly on literature, music, theater, and ballet. And in doing so, Volkov shows how the arts in St. Petersburg affected all of Russia and in turn, at least during the pre-Soviet period, the rest of Europe and then affected the United States later on during the Soviet period.This book rewards those who already have some familiarity with Russian history. And there are even more rewards if you have read a lot of the authors discussed and listened to a lot of the classical music composers the author discussed as well. It’s a good idea, for the music anyway, to listen to some of the pieces while reading the book.The book is quite long and extremely dense. Know what you’re getting into when picking up this book.

⭐Anyone interested in Russian culture or urban culture in general will find this book rewarding. Petersburg is an interesting city in its own right but its impact on literature and music cannot be underestimated. The author is remarkably knowledgable and deeply serious about his subject as well as articulate and engaging. I really learned a lot from this book and highly recommend it.

⭐A novel brilliant concept of relating history through the telling of its artistic heritage; captivatingly written.

⭐This video is beautifully done and demonstrates why we love Kultur Films (Except “Versailles” See my review of that disaster. We have many Kultur DVDs. Charming entertainment.

⭐I found this book very boring to read and it didn’t give the history in a way that made any sense. Mostly the author wrote about various artists, writers, actors, etc. I was visiting St Petersburg and wanted to know the history of the land and the people. I do not recommend this book for that purpose.

⭐Great Book

⭐Fascinating!

⭐ideal for any visitor to St Petersburg interested in its history, art and cultureits Anglophone author was visiting professor for some years at the University of St Petersburg, teaching in Russian

⭐A bit too much for me but a good an informative read

⭐EXCELLENT BOOK

⭐Was what was said in the description.

⭐Sono ancora in fase di lettura ma il libro mi ha affascinato fin dalla prefazione. Tutta la storia di questa intrigante città viene rivissuta attraverso le esperienze, a volte felici a volte tragiche, dei suoi illustri abitanti. Si impara a conoscere la città e si impara anche a capire meglio le opere dei grandi scrittori e artisti che qui sono nati e vissuti o che hanno dovuto lasciarla ma non hanno mai smesso di amarla. Lo consiglio a tutti coloro che hanno interessi letterari ma non solo. Anche prima di un viaggio a San Pietroburgo sarebbe il modo migliore per entrare nel suo spirito.

⭐

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