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Sheremetev Palace — Museum of Music
(34 Fontanka emb. Ticket-office phone: 272 44 41)
Branch of St Petersburg State Museum of Theatre and Music
March 13 — May 16, 2010
Vernisage: March 12, 2 p.m.
 This joint project of several museums attempts to rediscover the role of music in Masonry and to examine how their ideology and rite influenced the art. Only a few know that such great musicians as the founder of Impressionism in music C. Debussy, one of the creators of Russian national opera V. Pashkevich, M. Glinka’s friend and sponsor M. Viyel’gorsky, the outstanding virtuoso violinists N. Paganini and L. Spohr (the founder of German violin school of 19th century who introduced the baton in conducting) and O. Bull (the founder of the first Norwegian theatre and the national school of composition) were strong freemasons. They took freemasonry absolutely seriously, not for amusement or for making their careers.
The exhibition offers facts telling that music was very important for freemasonry being an integral part of their ceremonies and vice versa, that Masonic ideology and rite obviously influenced the art of music. It easily can be seen in the composers’ choice of themes and subjects for their creations, in the genre structure and special features of their music idiom.
There are many a unique items at the exhibition, and some of them were never displayed before: a number of engravings from early 19th century depicting music performances in the Craft, the Organist’ Masonic sign, programs for recitals to take place in the Craft, theatre programme for «Die Zauberflöte» first night (Vienna, 1791), the journals and ceremonials of the Crafts confirming that music was played when Brother’s were at work, the rarest Bible from late 18th century in hardcover adorned with Masonic symbolic, rare music editions and autographs, the unique Western European collections of Masonic hymns and songs from 18th century etc.
This exhibition is rather educating than entertaining. It helps to shed a new light on the commonly known compositions familiar to every cultured person, to reconsider biographies of great musicians. A multimedia program specially created for the exhibition helps to discover the musicians close to Freemasonry and to hear their music.
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