Page 398 - Weiss, Jernej, ur. 2020. Konservatoriji: profesionalizacija in specializacija glasbenega dela ▪︎ The conservatories: professionalisation and specialisation of musical activity. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 4
P. 398
konservator iji: profesionalizacija in specializacija glasbenega dela
had to be relaxed during the German occupation of Belgrade, due to the
damage made to the building during the bombing in the spring of 1941; the
exile or imprisonment of some professors and students; the refusal of the
Ministry of Education to pay remuneration to honorary professors (some of
whom continued to work for free); the lack of heating in the building; fre-
quent epidemics of contagious diseases such as diphtheria; not to mention
that the German forces seized some pianos for their own needs.39 Neverthe-
less, the Ministry of Education and the directorium of the Academy agreed
that this institution should continue its work and play an active role in the
artistic life of the occupied country and its capital city.
As testified by Dušan Trbojević, who would join the piano department
in the late 1940s, the requirements for the entrance exam were relaxed af-
ter World War II, in order to stimulate the prospective students to apply in
greater numbers, which was in line with the communists’ desire to make
music education accessible to all social strata. Trbojević also recalled that
prof. Hajek was still the indisputed authority, who ruled the piano depart-
ment with an iron hand.40
Conclusion
This brief overview of the early days of the Belgrade piano department
shows that the pianistic education at the tertiary level in Serbia was not au-
tochthonous, but eclectic, absorbing the legacies of many schools. The be-
ginning of the piano department was very ambitious, which can be de-
ducted both from the high standards for the entrance exams, the effort of
the Academy to obtain first-rate instruments that the students could play
and practice on, as well as the highly reputable professors hired to teach
this instrument both at the secondary and tertiary levels. As summed up
by Dubravka Jovičić, an acclaimed pianist and former Dean of the Facul-
ty of Music:
The historical development before the foundation of the Acad-
emy showed that our country, hungry for knowledge in the field
of art, has always been a fertile soil for the genuine, honest and
well-intended seed of knowledge coming from other cultures. Many
‘schools’ which are sometimes fundamentally different with respect
39 See Perković, “Dva početka. Godine 1937–1957,” 30–32.
40 Cf. Dragoljub – Dragan Šobajić, Dušan Trbojević – Portret umetnika [Dušan Trboje-
vić – Portrait of an Artist] (Novi Sad: Matica srpska, 2003), 29–30.
396
had to be relaxed during the German occupation of Belgrade, due to the
damage made to the building during the bombing in the spring of 1941; the
exile or imprisonment of some professors and students; the refusal of the
Ministry of Education to pay remuneration to honorary professors (some of
whom continued to work for free); the lack of heating in the building; fre-
quent epidemics of contagious diseases such as diphtheria; not to mention
that the German forces seized some pianos for their own needs.39 Neverthe-
less, the Ministry of Education and the directorium of the Academy agreed
that this institution should continue its work and play an active role in the
artistic life of the occupied country and its capital city.
As testified by Dušan Trbojević, who would join the piano department
in the late 1940s, the requirements for the entrance exam were relaxed af-
ter World War II, in order to stimulate the prospective students to apply in
greater numbers, which was in line with the communists’ desire to make
music education accessible to all social strata. Trbojević also recalled that
prof. Hajek was still the indisputed authority, who ruled the piano depart-
ment with an iron hand.40
Conclusion
This brief overview of the early days of the Belgrade piano department
shows that the pianistic education at the tertiary level in Serbia was not au-
tochthonous, but eclectic, absorbing the legacies of many schools. The be-
ginning of the piano department was very ambitious, which can be de-
ducted both from the high standards for the entrance exams, the effort of
the Academy to obtain first-rate instruments that the students could play
and practice on, as well as the highly reputable professors hired to teach
this instrument both at the secondary and tertiary levels. As summed up
by Dubravka Jovičić, an acclaimed pianist and former Dean of the Facul-
ty of Music:
The historical development before the foundation of the Acad-
emy showed that our country, hungry for knowledge in the field
of art, has always been a fertile soil for the genuine, honest and
well-intended seed of knowledge coming from other cultures. Many
‘schools’ which are sometimes fundamentally different with respect
39 See Perković, “Dva početka. Godine 1937–1957,” 30–32.
40 Cf. Dragoljub – Dragan Šobajić, Dušan Trbojević – Portret umetnika [Dušan Trboje-
vić – Portrait of an Artist] (Novi Sad: Matica srpska, 2003), 29–30.
396
