This is an original scholarly monograph about the life and work of the Russian composer and critic Alexander Serov (1820-1871), studied through the lens of his understanding of modernity as it developed in Russia in the mid nineteenth century. This research monograph is first full-length biography of Alexander Serov in English utilizing original records and archive sand the first in any language since 1985. It will use the life of the composer/critic as a tool for understanding Russian conceptions and misconceptions of modernity. An introduction and conclusion will bracket five chapters defined by major periods in Alex. Serov's life. Chapter I focuses on his youth and education from 1820 to 1840. Chapter II studies his young adulthood as a judicial bureaucrat with artistic aspirations, from 1840 to 1850. Chapter III focuses on Serov's criticism, which he did from his departure from state service in 1850 until he turned to composition a decade later. A fourth chapter will examine the remaining 11 years of his life, from 1860 to 1871, during which he briefly reigned as Russia's leading composer while still contributing to the national cultural debate as a critic. The last chapter will present his legacy and contributions, which are much overlooked by Russian cultural historians and critics as well as by many Western researchers, with a view of stating a case for Serov's cultural importance in the silver age and in the revolutions to come.
Paul du Quenoy is Associate Professor of History at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, where he specializes in Russia and Modern Europe. He also offers humanities courses on such topics as Decadence, Folly, and Absurdity and teaches in AUB's Fine Arts Department. Before AUB he taught history at Georgetown University, USA, and the American University in Cairo, Egypt. Twice a Fulbright scholar in Russia, he has also been a fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, DC, USA. He serves on the organizing committee of Washington's annual Russian New Years' Ball and belongs to the city's Cosmos and University Clubs. He holds a Ph.D. (with distinction) from Georgetown University, USA.
"Du Quenoy's rendering of Serov's life is ably written, balanced, highly detailed, and documented with care, and as such it outdoes existing Russian efforts... This study, therefore, must definitely be counted as a welcome contribution to the literature on the Russian musical life of this period." - Music & Letters, 98.3.
