Musical Life in Southern Ukraine in the Last Quarter of the 19th Century (Based on Materials from Mykolaiv)
Abstract
The purpose of the research paper is to deliver a comprehensive study of musical life in Southern Ukraine during the last quarter of the 19th century, drawing on materials from Mykolaiv. The study aims to elucidate the features of its emergence and development, identify key avenues of musical activity, and evaluate the role of cultural and educational institutions, public associations, theatres, and musical societies in shaping the city’s musical culture. Furthermore, it establishes the position of Mykolaiv within the broader cultural landscape of Southern Ukraine.
The scientific novelty resides in executing a comprehensive historical analysis of Mykolaiv’s musical life in the last quarter of the 19th century as an integrated sociocultural phenomenon within the development of Southern Ukraine. The study reconstructs the formation of the city’s musical environment and determines the influence of the Naval Department, musical societies, theatres, educational institutions, military bands, church choirs, and public organizations on cultural growth. Additionally, it clarifies the specific features surrounding the emergence of professional music education, concert performance, and musical institutions in Mykolaiv at the close of the 19th century.
Conclusions. Musical life in Mykolaiv during the last quarter of the 19th century was shaped by a combination of socio-economic, cultural, and administrative factors, among which the city’s naval status played a decisive role. The activities of the Naval Department, the multi-ethnic composition of the population, and the expansion of theatrical arts, concert performance, and public initiatives established the prerequisites for a flourishing musical environment. Unlike many other urban centers in Southern Ukraine, Mykolaiv’s musical culture evolved largely through dynamic interaction among military, civic, and public institutions.
The study establishes that musical societies played a pivotal role in professionalizing local musical life. Their activities facilitated a transition from amateur music-making to the systematic organization of concert work, laid the groundwork for professional music education, prompted the establishment of music classes and a college of music, and fostered a permanent performing community. Simultaneously, key cultural centers included the Naval Assembly and City Assembly, local theatres, educational institutions, military bands, and church choirs, all of which engaged the broader public and promoted the dissemination of an academic repertoire.
Ultimately, the research demonstrates that by the late 19th century, Mykolaiv had evolved into a major musical hub in Southern Ukraine. Vibrant concert activity, tours by leading musicians, the expansion of music education, the operation of professional and amateur ensembles, the contributions of local composers and educators, and the synergy among cultural institutions collectively secured the formation of a sustainable musical space within the city.
References
Avramenko, S. (1993). The national foundations of M.M. Arkas’s opera Kateryna. In Abstracts of Papers: ‘Dzherela dukhovnosti. Naukovo-praktychna konferentsiia do 140-richchia M.M. Arkasa’, (pp. 14-17). Mykolaiv [in Ukrainian].
Berezovska, T. (2013). Mykola Arkas between professionalism and patriotism. Kraieznavstvo, 1, 55-60 [in Ukrainian].
Chistov, V.P. (1999). Popov Dmitrii Vasilevich. In Nikolaevtsy. Entsiklopedicheskii slovar (p. 270) Nikolaev: Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii [in Russian].
Chistov, V.P. (1999). Zeltser Solomon Isaakovich. In Nikolaevtsy. Entsiklopedicheskii slovar (p. 146) Nikolaev: Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii [in Russian].
Feferboim, I. (Comp.). (1891). Nikolaev calendar and reference book for the leap year 1892. Nikolaev: Russkaia tipo-litografiia [in Russian].
Ge, G.N. (1890). A historical sketch of the century-long existence of the city of Nikolaev at the mouth of the Inhul (1790-1890). Nikolaev: Russkaia tipo-litografiia [in Russian].
Goiko, L.V. (1997). The theatrical and musical life of Nikolaev in the 1860s-1890s. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 124-131). Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Russian].
Kartuzov, K. (2026). The theatrical life of Mykolaiv in the 19th century in the documents of the Chancellery of the Mykolaiv Military Governor. Kraieznavstvo, 1, 230-240. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15407/kraieznavstvo2026.01.230 [in Ukrainian].
Kaufman, L. (1958). M.M. Arkas: Essays on his life and work. Kyiv: Obrazotvorche mystetstvo [in Ukrainian].
Kovalev, P.A. (Comp.). (1899). Address calendar and reference book of the city of Nikolaev (Kherson Gubernia) for 1900. Nikolaev: Tipografiia L.P. Belolipskogo [in Russian].
Kovalova, O.F. (1997). Musical traditions of Nikolaev. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 120-123). Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Russian].
Kovalova, O.F. (1999). Gornik Ivan Karlovich. In Nikolaevtsy. Entsiklopedicheskii slovar (p. 108). Nikolaev: Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii [in Russian].
Kovalova, O.F., & Chistov, V.P. (1999). Shchedrin Leonid Aleksandrovich. In Nikolaevtsy. Entsiklopedicheskii slovar (p. 363). Nikolaev: Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii [in Russian]
Kovalova, O.F., & Chistov, V.P. (2000). An outline of the cultural history of the Southern Buh region (from its origins to the beginning of the 20th century). Book 1: From the cultural past of the Mykolaiv region Nikolaev: Tetra [in Russian].
Kovalova, O.F., & Chistov, V.P. (2002). An outline of the cultural history of the Southern Buh region (from its origins to the beginning of the 20th century). Book 3: Musical and artistic culture. Urban planning. Museums and monuments. Printing. Nikolaev: Tetra [in Russian].
Kryzhanovska, N.Ye. (2009). History of choral art in the Mykolaiv region from the end of the 18th to the beginning of the 21st century (Candidate’s dissertation). Mykolaiv [in Ukrainian].
Kyryienko, S.I. (2002). Musical-ethnographic recordings and scholarly studies of the folklore of the Northern Black Sea region (late 19th – 20th centuries) (Candidate’s dissertation). Kyiv [in Ukrainian].
Lekhmus, I. (1999). The development of Mykolaiv’s musical culture in the 19th century. In Proceedings of the Conference: Istoriia Pivdnia Ukrainy vid naidavnishykh chasiv do suchasnosti: problemy natsionalnoho, politychnoho, sotsialnoho, ekonomichnoho, tekhnichnoho, pravovoho, relihiinoho ta kulturnoho rozvytku (Part 2, pp. 110-115). Mykolaiv-Odesa [in Ukrainian].
Lekhmus, I.P. (1997). The influence of outstanding composers and performers on the development of the musical culture of the Mykolaiv region. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 18-20)ю Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Ukrainian].
Makarenko, O. (1989). From the history of the musical culture of the Mykolaiv region. In Proceedings of the Conference: IV Respublikanska naukova konferentsiia z istorychnoho kraieznavstva, (pp. 633-634). Kyiv [in Ukrainian].
Makarenko, O. (1996). The musical panorama of the Mykolaiv region: Collection of articles. Mykolaiv: Typohrafiia AO ‘Vyahro’ [in Ukrainian].
Pavlyk, I.S. (Ed.). (1997). Education in the Mykolaiv region in the 19th – 20th centuries (Historical essays). Mykolaiv: Vydavnytstvo UDMTU [in Ukrainian].
Petrenko, O.N. (1997). Recorded in the chronicle of the city. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 20-22). Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Russian].
Petrenko, O. (2019). Culturological contexts of musical art in education in the Mykolaiv region. In Proceedings of the Conference: V Mizhnarodna naukovo-praktychna konferentsiya ‘Stan ta perspektyvy rozvytku kulturolohichnoi nauky’, (Part 1, pp. 126-129). Mykolaiv: VP ‘Mykolaivska filiia KNUKiM’ [in Ukrainian].
Ponomarenko, N. (2013, December 9). A brass band is playing in the city garden… On N.A. Rimskiy-Korsakov’s stay in Nikolaev. Nikolaevskii bazar. Retrieved from https://cutt.ly/VyyTuvqy [in Russian].
Revenko, N. (1997). The formation of the musical views of the young M. Arkas. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 6-8). Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Ukrainian].
Ruzhynska, Ya. (n.d.). Monte Theatre. Arkhitektura Mykolaieva. Retrieved from http://archmykolaiv.com/teatr-monte/ [in Ukrainian].
Rybalko, T.O. (2011). Activities of the Mykolaiv branch of the Imperial Russian Musical Society in the context of the cultural development of Southern Ukraine. Mystetstvoznavchi zapysky, 20, 94-100 [in Ukrainian].
Sarafonova, L. (2021). Main trends in the development of sacred (church) music in Mykolaiv during the second half of the 19th – early 20th century. In Proceedings of the Conference: XII Mykolaivska oblasna kraieznavcha konferentsiya ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Mykolaiv, 21-22 zhovtnia 2021 roku), (pp. 103-105). Mykolaiv: Dyzain ta Polihrafiia [in Ukrainian].
Shevchuk, O.V. (2020). Musical branches of the Imperial Russian Musical Society in Ukraine. In Dziuba, I.M. et al. (Eds.). Entsyklopediia Suchasnoi Ukrainy. Kyiv: Instytut entsyklopedychnykh doslidzhen NAN Ukrainy. Retrieved from https://esu.com.ua/article-69932 [in Ukrainian].
Shkvarets, V. (2002). Mykola Mykolaiovych Arkas. Life, creation, and activities. Mykolaiv-Odesa: Tetra [in Ukrainian].
Shreier-Tkachenko, O. (1969). History of Ukrainian (pre-October) music. Kyiv: Muzychna Ukraina [in Ukrainian].
Shytiuk, M. (2013). Complete collection of scholarly works. Vol. 25. Mykolaiv: Vydavnytstvo Iryny Hudym [in Ukrainian].
Soloviova, L.K. (1997). The influence of M.A. Rimskiy-Korsakov’s activities on the development of the musical culture of the Mykolaiv region. In Proceedings of the Conference: Materialy II-yi Mykolaivskoi oblasnoi kraieznavchoi konferentsii ‘Istoriia. Etnohrafiia. Kultura. Novi doslidzhennia’ (Vol. 2, pp. 24-26). Mykolaiv: MP ‘Vozmozhnosti Kimmerii’ [in Ukrainian].
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
