Beethoven in Russia

How did Ludwig van Beethoven help overthrow a tsarist regime? With the establishment of the Russian Musical Society, Beethoven's music reached substantially larger audiences. As Frederick W. Skinner contends, leading critics of the regime began hearing Beethoven's dramatic works as nothing less than a call to revolution. Beethoven in Russia deftly explores the interface between music and politics in Russia by examining the reception of Beethoven's works from the late 18th century to the present. In part 1, Skinner's clear and sweeping review examines the role of Beethoven's more dramatic works in the revolutionary struggle that culminated in the 1917 overthrow. In part 2, Skinner reveals how this same power was again harnessed to promote Stalin's campaign of rapid industrialization. The appropriation of Beethoven and his music to serve the interests of the state remained the hallmark of Soviet Beethoven reception until the end of communist rule. With interdisciplinary appeal, Beethoven in Russia exposes how Beethoven's music was both a call to action for citizens and weaponized state propaganda in the great political struggles in Russian history.