ABSTRACT
In his monumental study Scenarios of Power, historian Richard Wortman argues that Western symbols of monarchic power formed an important complement to social, political, and military reforms adopted by Russian rulers in the eighteenth century. This chapter explores is the transformations of stylistic register that European topics underwent in their incorporation into Russian operatic contexts. Western topics interact in Russian opera with domestic and folk music traditions in a manner that redefines their typical stylistic correlations onto high, middle, and low social registers. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the sonic world of the Russian court and urban centers transformed along with increasingly westernized etiquette, rituals, and pastimes. As a preliminary to topical identification and interpretation in Russian operatic contexts, one must first investigate the familiarity of Russian audiences with the functional referents of topics. The unique rituals of the Russian court chip away at the decorum and social signification of courtly dances and the minuet in particular.
