Liberating from the ‘Russian World’: Decolonization in Musical Creation in Ukraine after 2022

• In Event: Subalterns That Sing: Fighting the War, Overcoming Peripheriality in Central Europe

Abstract

The aim of this research is to interrogate how contemporary Ukrainian musicians and musical community integrate the logic of decolonization in their discourses, in their practices and their works in terms of aesthetic. The process of cultural decolonization is presented as necessary by Ukrainian artists and musicians. First and foremost, it involves the rediscovery of Ukrainian creators or those considered Soviet, but whose Ukrainian identity must now be considered and valorized, as in the case of Malevič or Roslavec. Moreover, this desire to liberate form the ‘Russian world’, analyzed as the continuation of colonial domination, opened up a broader process of cultural and intellectual re-elaboration. We discuss this idea with two manifestos that embody this reflection on the role of music in times of conflict, and that demonstrate these committed and militant discourses, which are not so common for musicians.
Secondly, this liberation, which for musicians also involves a rejection of the Russian language, this disinvisibilization, is achieved by highlighting contemporary Ukrainian creation. This period of new independence, without occupation by an outside country, has opened up new possibilities for Ukrainian society and the arts, despite the difficulties of war. The last two years have seen the creation of specific ensembles, legitimized by criteria such as national affiliation, repertoire or genre.
Finally, composers integrate these reflections into their creative processes and their works: explicit references to the Russian invasion are visible and asserted (contemporary creations, pieces by Nova Opera or in another register the performances by the DakhaBrakha group).

Author

• Louisa Martin-Chevalier, Sorbonne U (France)