Marco Topchii’s style in the context of modern world guitar performance

Abstract

Statement of the problem. Marko Topchii (1991) is one of the famous Ukrainian guitarists who began to conquer the music world at an early age. Winning in competitions (more than 90 times), performances in the world’s most prestigious concert halls (Carnegie Hall, Corto Hall, conservatories of San Francisco, Madrid, Vienna, Bologna) are the result of immense talent and great professional work. The young guitarist is one of those who expand the guitar repertoire by creating arrangements for guitar, in particular of works by J. S. Bach, M. Ravel, M. Mussorgsky. These facts contribute to the relevance of the topic of the article and create a context for the theoretical research of M. Topchii’s performance principles. Recent research and publications. A number of works are devoted to the theme of musical / composer’s thinking (Dys, 1989; Kotlyarevskiy, 1989; Malyi, 2018), guitar thinking and style (Tkachenko, 2008, 2012; Nikolaievska, 2008), M. Topchii’s performance style (Chechenia, 2021, 2016), “musical interpretation” (Moskalenko, 2013), “performance style” (Martienssen, 1930; Katrich, 2000; Tkach, 2012). The purpose of the study is an attempt to identify the features of M. Topchii’s performance style through the context of shaping his musical thinking, communication, social and cultural paradigm and worldview. The scientific novelty is explained by the lack of study of M. Topchii’s personality in Ukrainian and world musicology. M. Topchii’s performance thinking is revealed on the example of the analysis of his own transcriptions of J. S. Bach’s Choral Prelude “Ich ruf zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ” and M. Mussorgsky’s suite “Pictures from the Exhibition”. The study uses such methods of contemporary cognitivism as historical and cultural (research of the evolution of guitar schools, performance, development of M. Topchii’s style and thinking) and interpretative (identification of principles of performance / interpretation of works); comparative method of analysis of M. Topchii’s style in the context of guitar performance. Results and conclusion. M. Topchii’s style is a concentrated combination of the best achievements of guitar performance schools, which originate from A. Segovia and F. Tarrega. In the context of guitar art, M. Topchii is a unique performer, which is due not only to the number of victories in international competitions and performances on the world’s most prestigious stages, but also to the fact that M. Topchii demonstrates original interpretation of musical works, depth of understanding of the composer’ idea and high technical level of playing the instrument. These qualities make up his unique performance style – emotional, monolithic, crystallized.