Имагинарни музеј Мокрањчевих дела: снимци световне хорске музике

Abstract

Five years ago (2009), Radio Belgrade and the Institute of Musicology SASA initiated a joint project entitled Archives Awakened. The main intention of the experts of both institutions was to present the public with the most valuable recordings of Serbian music, which are kept in the Radio Belgrade Phono-archive, the largest audio collections in the region. Consequently, the associates of the Institute of Musicology were given the opportunity to familiarise themselves with an extensive music treasury, preserved despite various decades long periods of adversity, and to draw attention to the valuable recordings. Fortunately, numerous rare recordings of exceptional value have resisted the ravages of time. What are of a particular importance among them are those containing works of Serbian composers, performed by some outstanding musicians. The editions of the Archives Awakened series are envisaged to present thematic entities (selected by an expert panel, from the available material) which will arouse the interest of both professional musicians and a wider audience. Thus far, two albums have been released in this series, each comprising two compact discs and a programme booklet edited by Dr Danica Petrović, the then Director of the Institute of Musicol ogy SASA. In 2010, an album containing works of Stanojlo Rajičić – the opera Simonida and a cycle of songs for bass and orchestra On Lipar 6 was released followed, in 2012, by an album containing works of Petar Konjović – the operas The Wedding of Miloš and The Peasants. These editions were prepared by Dr Katarina Tomašević and Dr Melita Milin, both associates of the Institute of Musicology SASA. The Serbian State Publisher of Textbooks was a co-publisher of these albums. In the joint project of digitalisation of the archival recordings containing Mokranjac’s music, the Institute of Musicology SASA and Radio Belgrade continue their tradition of cooperation with a third double album, entitled The Imaginary Museum of Mokranjac’s Works. This edition, prepared by Biljana Milanović MA, also an associate of the Institute of Musicology SASA, provides an opportunity to hear the selected recordings of secular works by the most famous Serbian composer, being performed by the Radio Television Belgrade Choir. With this new album in the Archives Awakened series, we join in the centennial commemoration of the death of Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac and the celebration of the ninetieth anniversary of Radio Belgrade. Belgrade, October 2014 Melita Milin