Musical amateur performance in Ukraine of the 1930s as the manifestation of Soviet totalitarian ideology

Abstract

The article comprehensively examines antinomies of the amateur performance development in Ukraine of 1930s. The factual basis of the research is the materials of the newspapers, magazines, and musical journals of this period. It is proved that the phenomenon of amateur performance, as one of the most significant phenomena of totalitarian society’s mass culture, consists in its contradictory nature: on the one hand, mass artistic movement, population’s sincere faith and enthusiasm, and on the other, politicization, ideological engagement, fear of physical destruction. The actions of the Soviet authorities in the one of most dramatic periods of the last century for Ukraine – the 1930s – regarding the dissemination and support of musical amateur music are analyzed (for example, regular financial support, awarding of bonuses, patronage, organization of public events, set-up of publishing activities, training systems for amateur performance leaders, which, in general, contributed to raising musical amateur movement in Ukraine to a professional level). At the same time, it is found that amateur performance was one of the tools for shaping the ideology of a totalitarian society.