Musical intention of Oswald Spengler

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Institute of Arts of Borys Grinchenko Kyiv University

MUSICAL INTENTION OF OSWALD SPENGLER

Kablova Tetiana

PhD in Arts, associate professor

of academic and variety singing

Annotation

music spengler art philosophical

The purpose of the work. The article is devoted to the problems of determination of dimension of existence of music in philosophical and aesthetic views on art. The main theme of research is consideration of Oswald Spengler musical intentions in relation to the ethos of culture. The research deals with his main views of music and draws parallel with the concept of ethos of culture. There are central notions of Spengler's philosophy on the implementation of culture styles in music and the presence of faustian and apolonian in art. Methodology of the research consists of application of comparative and historical-logical methods as well as contextual and systematic methods. The above methodological approach allows to reveal and to analyze artistic phenomena as a part of cultural process. In addition, we used in our research cultural method. This approach allows us to consider all parts and cultural layers in their relationship. Scientific novelty lies in expanding notions of ethos of music as a manifestation of a dialogue between culture and music, as well as classification of definite views of Oswald Spengler on music art in the context of development of cultures and civilizations. The important factor in today's integrative art process is an emphasis on the identifying by philosopher "inner form speech" of art, which actually refers to the ethos as the spirit of culture. Conclusions. The appeals to music in Spengler's heritage is based on his affirmation about the spirit of music as the spirit of era. This in its turn goes to the ethos of music as the organic embodiment of the spirit of culture. In this context, ornamental ethos acts as a set of basic intentions of the current era and universal logical system that unites us with many cultures.

Keywords: spirit of culture, ethos, metaphysical essence of music.

Анотація

Каблова Тетяна Борисівна, кандидат мистецтвознавства, доцент кафедри академічного та естрадного вокалу Інституту мистецтв Київського університету ім. Бориса Грінченка

Музичні інтенції Освальда Шпенглера

Мета роботи. Стаття приcвяченa проблемам визнaчення виміру icнувaння музики в філософськоестетичних поглядaх Ha мистецтво. Центрaльною темою стає розгляд музичних інтенцій Оcвaльдa IHneHrnepa у співвідношенні до етосу культури. Здійснено огляд основних поглядів фiлоcофa нa музику та проведено пaрaлелi з поняттям етосу культури. Нaведено центрaльнi поняття філософії О. Шпенглерa щодо втілення в музиці стилів культури та наявності фаустовського та аполонійського в мистецтві. Методологія дослідження полягає в застосуванні компаративного, історико-логічного методів. Також варто відмітити контекстний та системний методи, що уможливлюють дослідження художніх феноменів у їхньому безпосередньому включенні у цілісність культури, в систему її органічних взаємозв'язків. Окрім того, було використано культурологічний метод, який передбачає цілісний підхід до феномена культури, виокремлення у ньому сутнісних шарів та аспектів, що органічно перетинаються один з одним. Наукова новизна роботи полягає в розширенні уявлень про етос музики як прояв діалогу між культурою та музикою, а також у систематизації певних поглядів Освальда Шпенглера на мистецтво музики в контексті розвитку культур та цивілізацій. Важливим в сьогоденному інтегративному мистецькому процесі є акцент на визначенні філософом "внутрішньої мови форми" мистецтва, яка й співвідноситься з етосом як духом культури. Висновки. Звернення до музики в спадщині О. Шпенглера базується на його твердженні про дух музики як дух епохи. Це, в свою чергу, спрямовує до розуміння етосу музики як органічного втілення духу культури. В такому контексті етос виступає як орнаментальна сукупність основних інтенцій епохи та універсальна логічна система, що об'єднує нас з багатьма культурами.

Ключові слова: дух культури, етос, метафізична сутність музики, О.Шпенглер, інтенція.

Аннотация

Каблова Татьяна Борисовна, кандидат искусствоведения, доцент кафедры академического и эстрадного вокала Института искусств Киевского университета им. Бориса Гоинченко

Музыкальные интенции Освальда Шпенглера

Цель работы. Статья посвящена проблемам определения роли и места музыки в философскоэстетических взглядах на искусство. Центральной темой становится рассмотрение музыкальных интенций Освальда Шпенглера в соотношение к этосу культуры. Осуществлен обзор основных взглядов философа на музыку и проведены параллели с понятием этоса культуры. Приведены центральные понятия философии О. Шпенглера по воплощению в музыке стилей культуры и наличии фаустовского и аполлонийского духа в искусстве. Методология исследования заключается в применении сравнительного, историко-логического методов, также следует отметить контекстный и системный методы, дающие возможность исследования художественных феноменов в их непосредственном включении в целостность культуры, в систему ее органических взаимосвязей. Кроме того, был использован культурологический метод, который предусматривает целостный подход к феномену культуры, выделение в нем сущностных слоев и аспектов, которые органично пересекаются друг с другом. Научная новизна работы заключается в расширении представлений о этосе музыки как проявлении диалога между культурой и музыкой, а также в систематизации определенных взглядов Освальда Шпенглера на искусство музыки в контексте развития культур и цивилизаций. В сегодняшнем интегративном художественном процессе важно акцентировать внимание на определении философом "внутренней речи формы" искусства, которая, собственно, и соотносится с этосом как духом культуры. Выводы. Следовательно, обращение к музыке в наследии О. Шпенглера базируется на его утверждении о духе музыки как духе эпохи. Это, в свою очередь, направляет к пониманию этоса музыки как органического воплощения духа культуры. В таком контексте этос выступает как орнаментальная совокупность основных интенций эпохи и универсальная логическая система, объединяющая нас со многими культурами.

Ключевые слова: дух культуры, этос, метафизическая сущность музыки, О. Шпенглер, интенция.

Main text

Measurement of the existence in modern condition of culture-forming makes it necessary to turn to the philosophical and aesthetic views on art. The role of the music in this context is out of historical context. Music exists as a separate dimension, but is implicitly linked to cosmos. The real, meaningful and contextual human existence is impossible without the whole picture of Life, in which a human can see total combined vision and understanding of the historical process of spiritual intentions of his time. In this process there is expressed commitment of Human to implement his will, desires, needs and moving towards to a new action with the purpose to overcome suffering in spiritual activities. Musical culture is a true prototype of cultural and philosophical idea range. Such ideas are characteristic of understanding, interpretation and demonstration of the socio-historical paradigm of culture. However, human existence is impossible without socio-historical context, where the total vision of the historical process and understanding of spiritual situation of the time are combined. The complex processes of civilizational humankind development are aimed at the creation a global paradigm of processes of mastering of cultural environment formation, which sometimes leads to leveling of the spiritual and aesthetic diversity in culture, which at the same time diversifies and standardizes. Against this background, the need for understanding cultural and historical processes is forming, аnd their new creative implementation in certain constants that can serve as a method of study human existence, which context coincides with a culture of human existence. It makes possible to return to the concept of cultural creativity as an existential and contextual human self-awareness, that gets a spiritually and aesthetically defined shape in specific kinds of art.

Music is a specific kind of cognition and expression of the world. It, according to T. Adorno, writes out a seismogram of reality. At the same time, there is music that creates an illusory world that has nothing to do with reality. Such music is removed into a special sphere from empirical reality, from all the traces of the real in musical expression to such extent that it seems as if it has nothing to do with any human content. The main task of such music is not to embody the worldview of the epoch, but to release people from the strain of routine life, to cause hallucination entertaining or relaxation effects.

Contradictory position of music in the system of spiritual culture is caused primarily, by its duality: music is an element of culture and, at the same time, is outside of it.

Music is also an attempt to express the very essence of the world to all and over all cultural interpretations, music expresses the will itself (A.Shopengauer), in music there is the voice of being (M.Haidegger), music is the unconscious metaphysical exercise of the soul that does not know that it philosophizes (G. Leibniz). The element of music sounding conceals the element of being and the fundamental principle of culture. Through the modeling of musical art, not only the soul's cognition occurs, but the harmony of life is perceived more deeply, as the most accurate and direct expression of our being.

There is a string passing from Plato to Rousseau, from Nietzsche to Adorno, a string of consistent and contradictory reflections on the origin of music, its impact on society and culture in general. Such researchers as M. Groth, A. Lynchenko F. Paulsen, Ivan Sirko, I. Sechin and S. Thomas studied of the role and place of music in the context of culture of epoch, considering the aesthetic essence of the world and the correlation of music. The questions of ontology, epistemology, anthropology and interpretation of music are studied in the works of G. Makarenko, V. Lychkovaha, Mikhailova, Yu Shabanovoy, B. Khazanov and G. Eyhsa.

However, while Spengler's ideological concept is studied enough, the issue of music as a part of culture is not sufficiently covered in the works of musicologists.

The immanent connection of art with cultural and historical continuum perception of the world always proposes the question of emancipation of artistic phenomena and art works subjectivity. However, the embodiment of human development is dynamics of the inner world, which implicitly embodies existing cultural space and finds the real material way out in creative and artistic objects, filled with spiritual content of era. As pointed out by Vladimir Lychkovah the objective spirit is a creative factor of the artist's activity, only because through the objectification of epoch spirit aesthetic expression in art is possible, and the art makes objective spirit available for immediate contemplation and deep experience.[5, 8-9]. It directs us to the concept of Oswald Spengler, who positioned art in the system of cultural and historical cycle as a significant factor, which serves as a prime exponent of spiritual values and the symbolic nature of this culture [1, 128].

Oswald Spengler talks about the history of humanity as "a set of enormous ways of life", and as "drama, which involves a range of powerful cultures" [7, 262-264]. In this context, culture appears almost as a homogeneous substance, where internal forms' unity of thinking and creativity combined with forms' unity of social, spiritual, religious and artistic life. This unity is defined as "soul" and "great symbol" of culture as the idea of existence, accumulating irrefutable era values and gives her dynamics of development. This "great symbol" is at the heart of every culture. It is a real spirit of the epoch, in which encoded the current culture encoded. In other words according to Spengler this epoch spirit is the key for understanding the morphology of culture, which allows us to understand the uniqueness of each culture and ensure the originality of its soul. This is the basic concept of cultural and historical development - morphology of the world history.

Oswald Spengler identifies three phases of culture's development: early mythos-symbolic culture, metaphysics and religious high culture and later, stiff culture that passed into civilization. Civilization - "decay" of Culture is the fourth phase and it is not a culture. Spengler insisted that the rise to civilization is the fate of every culture [6, 108].

Every epoch creates a faith in the original spirit, the "idea" that acquires and gives meaning and value to this era, and then rises into civilization, which marks the end of epoch. The philosopher distinguishes eight cultures: Egyptian, Indian, Babylonian, Sinic, Classical (Greco-Roman), Magic (Byzantine-Arabic), Mesoamerican (Mayan/Aztec) - the culture of the Maya people - they all had been finished, and Faustian or Western (European/American), is at the final stage of its existence. Each culture provokes the organic development of style. Spengler proposes to consider a history of culture as the history of following one after another "like waves or bumps pulse" great styles. Spengler denies the possibility of coexistence of different styles within a single cultural space: "In general historical picture of any culture could exist only one style - the style of this culture" [7, 373]. Style implicit of culture is a symbol of culture and reflects the essence of microand macrocosm. At the same time, Spengler emphasizes the existence of Faustian culture. This kind of culture acting as the antithesis of poetic and metaphysical-rationalistic in the infinity of space-time being. Faustian worldview is born by the sense of time and logic of epoch formation. Against this background, Spengler introduces the concept of time vector, fate, which opens the irrational world soul. This soul, the spirit of the epoch can be most clearly found in art. That means this soul is a reflection of the basic concept of the worldview of the epoch. It can be adequately conveyed only through art.

For example, Spengler considers sculptural statue of a naked human body the best illustration of the Apollonian soul (which belongs to the ancient culture). Quintessence of Faustian soul (belongs to Western culture) he thinks, is the music of counterpoint and the art of fugue. Temporal or internal, Faustian is opposed to external or corporal. In this way the philosopher sees a new approach to the division of art on kinds and types. He proposed to abandon the definition of art by their appearance and means of perception. "Inner speech of forms should become the main criterion for singling out kinds of art. This is a very important and relevant for the present thesis about integrative processes in modern art, where there are almost no "pure" types or genres. In this sense the possible and necessary analogy between all kinds of art: "In fact, the sound is something extended, similar to the numbers, almost like lines and colors, harmony, melody, rhyme, rhythm, almost like perspective, proportion, shading and outlines" [7, 230].

Central point in these conditions is the fact, that all artistic processes occur in the common space, which connects different aspects (social, political, economic, creative, etc.) of the same epoch into a complicated unity. Art is the expression of ideas, goals of epoch, and its history is soul of culture, its spirit, its ethos like the complex of history of religion, philosophy and even politics and economics. Spengler indicates the ornament and imitation in all cultural epoch. He logically directs us to the nature of music, presented as the most intuitive and irrational kind of art. And this kind of art have a concrete embodiment of the real goal of every cultural and historical continuum. Such dual, metaphysical essence of music embodies a metaphysical nature of existence as well. Based on the fact that the world is presented as the unity and integrity, music operates in our minds as being an echo in authentic form, which varies according to the cosmic harmonic changes in the Universe. The concept of O. Spengler about imitation and ornament is based on it. He considers human needs to seek a link with the world processes organization, in the arts as well, including music. Imitation appears as a form that is aimed at those projects, which attracts internal rhythm and seems harmonious and beautiful. It is the integration of forms and ideas of various components of human existence.

At the same time display, "copying" of the external forms of life is presented as a response to the needs of humanity. This leads to the fact that it loses its main significant art features. The main component is the isolation of the artist from the earthly and worldly to the highest symbols, signs-symulakry of music.

Ornament embodies the spiritual and symbolic content. There is formation of stable motifs and symbols that have significance because at the ornamental work of art we can see the gleaming of sacred causality of macrocosm. At the same time characteristic tendencies, which embody the rules and laws of past of temporary forms, namely sintaksis, interpretation, stylistic, are determined in the ornament. If imitation is implicitly linked with improvisation as a determinant of system of constant changes, ornament declares the spirit of a particular era. Internal Faustian spirit is opposed to Apollonian spirit - external, bodily impression of sensual life.

The important thing is that ornamental forms express the only style that exist in religion, ideology, culture, life and human life. At the same time the personality of the artist does not create a style, rather style creates the artist and appears towards him as alter ego. Art organically and essentially comes into the dimension of existence and makes it possible to bring the music intention of spirit of a particular cultural epoch. Arts for Spengler can be combined with each other not only on the surface, but more likely on spiritual ideas, which enable to imagine the large scale dimension and sense of cultural and historical continuum.

Consequently the art serves as a certain morphological constant, which homologously combines in different coexistence dimensions. Extraction of Music in the fourth part of "The Decline of the Europe", entitled "Music and plastic" affirms it as a real opposition of Apollonian and Faustian in art.

Based on his statement we can say that the birth of spirit in musical art directs to the ethos of music as an organic spirit's embodiment of the culture.

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