{"id":7649,"date":"2018-01-07T22:50:59","date_gmt":"2018-01-07T22:50:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/?p=7649"},"modified":"2018-05-07T05:03:34","modified_gmt":"2018-05-07T05:03:34","slug":"stolyarov-symphony-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/blog\/2018\/01\/stolyarov-symphony-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Symphony No. 1, Op. 86 \u2013 \u201cThe Contemporary World\u201d (2017-2018) \u2013 G. Stolyarov II"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align: center;\">\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/tophatwhitesm.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-4311\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/tophatwhitesm.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/tophatwhitesm.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/tophatwhitesm-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><span style=\"color: #000080;\"><strong><big><big>G. Stolyarov II<br \/>\n<\/big><\/big><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><big><span style=\"color: #000080;\">January 7, 2018<\/span><br \/>\n<\/big><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">******************************<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6V42kdj7DCc\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Symphony No. 1, Op. 86, was composed by Gennady Stolyarov II between June 2017 and January 2018 and is subtitled \u201cThe Contemporary World\u201d. Mr. Stolyarov intended this symphony to be a commentary on the world and U.S. events of 2016-2017, during which civilization was severely tested. Each of the first three movements depicts the epistemic, political, and material crises which befell much of the world during this time period and threatened to undo much of the progress that civilization achieved up to that time. The choice to have the fourth movement be about <em>preserving<\/em> the good aspects of historical and contemporary life was motivated by the observation that, although severely strained and beset by setbacks from both nature and society, our civilization did not ultimately collapse during 2017, and we have made it thus far. Watch a video version of the entire symphony on YouTube <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=6V42kdj7DCc\"><strong>here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Movement 1 \u2013 Uncertainty \u2013 <\/strong><em>Length: 6:51<\/em><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/JgSeWA98HIw\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The main melody is at once ominous and much more restrained than it could be \u2013 evoking an individual seeking to focus and chart a path through an environment where little is predictable and previous understandings of the terrain he navigated have shown to be faulty. What can he hope to achieve, what can he rely upon, and whom can he trust? Various other themes in this movement show elements of longing for a bygone (though relatively recent) time, determination, and hope (though will it be disappointed hope?) \u2013 although in the background there is a certain din of uncertainty that leads each melody to be a bit less free-flowing or expressive than it would be if composed during a calmer era. This movement poses the question, \u201cWhat will become of our world, and what will this era do to each of our lives?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Download the MP3 file for Movement 1 here: <a href=\"http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_1.mp3\"><strong>http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_1.mp3<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Movement 2 \u2013 Politics \u2013 <\/strong><em>Length: 10:31<\/em><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bDtnIKMm5iU\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>This movement displays the cyclical and protracted struggle between two colossal forces, neither of them benign. Both of them actually resemble one another in substance (although they are in different keys \u2013 A minor and C minor \u2013 but which of these represents the Right and which represents the Left, and does it make any difference?). There are segments in which the keys are mixed \u2013 representing one force seeking to wrest power from the other \u2013 with the ultimate outcome being the same melody in a different key. This pattern continues over the course of multiple variations and orchestrations.<\/p>\n<p>Download the MP3 file for Movement 2 here: <a href=\"http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_2.mp3\"><strong>http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_2.mp3<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Movement 3 \u2013 The Fragility of Civilization \u2013 <\/strong><em>Length: 5:19<\/em><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SRdA9JsJ6KM\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Composed in 3\/4 meter and following a \u201ctheme and variations\u201d format, this movement actually encompasses all of the minor keys. The underlying structure and the systematic progression of the keys from one variation to the next represent the fabric of human civilization, which, in recent years, has been continually challenged by the forces of ruin \u2013 including violent conflict, irrationality, natural disasters, political folly, institutional breakdown, and disintegrating standards of behavior \u2013 along with the still-present age-old perils of disease and death. This piece can be perceived as a grimly determined waltz, danced on the edge of calamity \u2013 but as long as the forward motion within the structure continues, no matter what content the contemporary world throws at it, civilization has a fighting chance. For those who listen through to the ending, there is a glimmer of hope \u2013 perhaps appended in a \u201cdeus ex machina\u201d fashion, but there is a purpose to it, especially when considered in light of what it leads to in Movement 4.<\/p>\n<p>Download the MP3 file for Movement 3 here: <a href=\"http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_3.mp3\"><strong>http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_3.mp3<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Movement 4 \u2013 Preservation \u2013 <\/strong><em>Length: 9:51<\/em><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ZwvHq23R4o4\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The first melody in this movement is the \u201cpreservation\u201d theme, which is repeated under many different arrangements and frames the significantly re-orchestrated versions of segments from six of Mr. Stolyarov\u2019s marches \u2013 Marches #1, 2, 8, 9, 11, and 12 \u2013 composed between 2000 and 2014. This is intended to communicate several insights: (i) at a time of great macro-scale uncertainty, only the efforts of the individual \u2013 each in their own way \u2013 can preserve what is good about civilization; (ii) one should cherish the accomplishments of one\u2019s past and build upon them, integrating them with the present and future \u2013 because, no matter what happens, past achievements are irreversible gains; (iii) in building a brighter future, we should hearken back to the good aspects of life and human creation that were achieved prior to 2016. It is not possible for humankind to begin anew; one cannot rebuild the world, or any subset thereof, from scratch \u2013 but it is possible to undo the damage of the recent chaos by reasserting and re-instantiating the values, ideas, objects, and infrastructures that make life decent and progress possible.<\/p>\n<p>A better future can only be achieved by holding onto and building upon the best aspects of the past \u2013 both personally and for humankind as a whole.<\/p>\n<p>Download the MP3 file for Movement 4 here:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_4.mp3\">http:\/\/rationalargumentator.com\/music_stolyarov\/Stolyarov_Symphony_1_Movt_4.mp3<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Symphony No. 1, Op. 86, is made available pursuant to the<\/strong><\/em> <strong><em><a href=\"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License<\/a>, which requires that credit be given to the author, Gennady Stolyarov II (G. Stolyarov II). Learn more about Mr. Stolyarov <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/about-mr-stolyarov\/\">here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> \u00a0<strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0G. Stolyarov II January 7, 2018 ****************************** Symphony No. 1, Op. 86, was composed by Gennady Stolyarov II between June 2017 and January 2018 and is subtitled \u201cThe Contemporary World\u201d. Mr. Stolyarov intended this symphony to be a commentary on the world and U.S. events of 2016-2017, during which civilization was severely tested. Each of the first three movements depicts the epistemic, political, and material crises which befell much of the world during this time period and threatened to undo&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/blog\/2018\/01\/stolyarov-symphony-1\/\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[114,396,277,397,2021,314,315,40,794,5422,38,5423,1581,5420,105,1908,5421],"class_list":["post-7649","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-music","tag-civilization","tag-classical","tag-composition","tag-contemporary","tag-contemporary-classical","tag-future","tag-futurism","tag-g-stolyarov-ii","tag-movement","tag-musical-commentary","tag-politics-2","tag-present","tag-preservation","tag-symphony","tag-transhumanism-2","tag-uncertainty","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7649","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7649"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7649\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7714,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7649\/revisions\/7714"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rationalargumentator.com\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}