The Opera "The Dawns Here Are Quiet" by Kirill Vladimirovich Molchanov as a Lyrical-Documentary Interpretation of War

This article is devoted to the study of Kirill Molchanov’s opera "The Dawns Here Are Quiet" (1973) as a musical and dramatic representation of the Great Patriotic War. The research focuses on the opera’s musical text, based on Boris Vasilyev’s novella of the same name, as well as the system of characters and their vocal expressions. The subject of the analysis is the means of musical expressiveness used by the composer to construct the images of female heroism, collective memory, and emotional truth. The opera is considered not only as a theatrical work, but also as a cultural form of historical representation and a musical space of remembrance for the generation that survived the war. The work of Vladimir Molchanov is of particular scientific interest as a striking example of artistic understanding of the military theme in the context of Russian and Chinese musical traditions of the late 20th - early 21st centuries.The study applies methods of comprehensive artistic analysis, including musical-stylistic, structural-dramaturgical, and intonational approaches. A comparative method is also used to examine both the Russian version of the opera and its Chinese interpretation, revealing national and cultural differences in the portrayal of war. The study integrates interdisciplinary tools from cultural studies, music semiotics, and memory theory.The scientific novelty lies in the interpretation of K.V. Molchanov’s opera as a lyrical and documentary statement, where the traditional model of heroic pathos is replaced by emotionally authentic, confessional expression. For the first time, the article analyzes the vocal scenes of Vaskov, Zhenya, and Rita, as well as choral fragments, as artistic markers of collective memory. It is shown that the use of speech intonation, polystylism, montage dramaturgy, and the absence of classical aria structures bring the opera closer to cinematic language. The author concludes that The Dawns Here Are Quiet functions as a musical requiem, in which sounding intonation becomes a bearer of historical truth and a vehicle for intergenerational memory. This study opens up new perspectives in the field of contemporary music.

opera, Kirill Molchanov, theatre, female heroism, musical memory, intonation, recitative, polystylism, dramaturgy, cultural memory