Page 119 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2019. Vloga nacionalnih opernih gledališč v 20. in 21. stoletju - The Role of National Opera Houses in the 20th and 21st Centuries. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 3
P. 119
oi: https://doi.org/10.26493/978-961-7055-50-4.117-128
Opera and national culture in Latvia:
the centenary balance
Lauma Mellēna-Bartkeviča
Univerza v Latviji
University of Latvia
On the eve of the centenary of Latvia as a national state in 2018 and the cen-
tenary of the Latvian National Opera in 2019, it seems important to reflect
on the relationship between opera and national culture throughout histo-
ry. Standing at the crossroads between Russian and German political and
cultural influences, since the first Latvian opera troupe founded by Pāvuls
Jurjāns in 1912 opera has been one of the cultural cornerstones leading to
creation of the national state. The features of the Latvian national identity
on an opera stage appear long before the proclamation of a national state.
He Latvian National Opera was one of the pillars of Latvian culture both
institutionally and artistically during the first Republic (1918—1939), dur-
ing two world wars and the following Soviet occupation (1940—1991). The
first original Latvian operas – “Baniuta” by Alfrēds Kalniņš and “Fire and
Night” by Jānis Mediņš in the early twenties of the 20th century marked the
endeavour to put Latvian national music and drama on the level of Euro-
pean elite culture. The article outlines the role of the Latvian National Op-
era as an institution and opera as a genre in the context of Latvian national
culture. Through the Latvian example, the article aims to open the discus-
sion on the positioning of the opera genre in the context of national cul-
tures throughout Europe, in particular, in Central and Eastern European
countries.
Opera has always been considered an elitist art form, especially in
Central and Eastern European countries that cannot boast centuries-long
117
Opera and national culture in Latvia:
the centenary balance
Lauma Mellēna-Bartkeviča
Univerza v Latviji
University of Latvia
On the eve of the centenary of Latvia as a national state in 2018 and the cen-
tenary of the Latvian National Opera in 2019, it seems important to reflect
on the relationship between opera and national culture throughout histo-
ry. Standing at the crossroads between Russian and German political and
cultural influences, since the first Latvian opera troupe founded by Pāvuls
Jurjāns in 1912 opera has been one of the cultural cornerstones leading to
creation of the national state. The features of the Latvian national identity
on an opera stage appear long before the proclamation of a national state.
He Latvian National Opera was one of the pillars of Latvian culture both
institutionally and artistically during the first Republic (1918—1939), dur-
ing two world wars and the following Soviet occupation (1940—1991). The
first original Latvian operas – “Baniuta” by Alfrēds Kalniņš and “Fire and
Night” by Jānis Mediņš in the early twenties of the 20th century marked the
endeavour to put Latvian national music and drama on the level of Euro-
pean elite culture. The article outlines the role of the Latvian National Op-
era as an institution and opera as a genre in the context of Latvian national
culture. Through the Latvian example, the article aims to open the discus-
sion on the positioning of the opera genre in the context of national cul-
tures throughout Europe, in particular, in Central and Eastern European
countries.
Opera has always been considered an elitist art form, especially in
Central and Eastern European countries that cannot boast centuries-long
117
