S. N. Azbelev — The Researcher of Russian Historical Song (Оn the 100th Anniversary of the Scientist’s Birth)

This article systematizes S. N. Azbelev’s ideas regarding historical song, a genre of Russian folklore. Azbelev’s understanding of historical song is based on his concept of the development of the Russian epic. This concept develops A. N. Veselovsky’s ideas on the stage-bystage nature of epic poetry. Azbelev’s methodology also draws on the tenets of the historical school. Azbelev participated in a discussion on the historicism of bylinas that unfolded in the journal “Russian Literature” in the first half of the 1980s. In it he defended his methodological principles. In his opinion historical song having emerged as a response to specific events, represents an early stage in the development of the epic. The primary form of historical song is the chronicle song. The genesis of historical song is linked to the genres of oral poetry that existed in the era of Ancient Rus’ (and perhaps, as Azbelev admits, even earlier): songs of glory, songs of lamentation, and songs of slander. The scholar records traces of these genres in various texts. Distance from the source event, the erosion of its relevance, tendencies toward generalization, and other processes transform a song into a bylina. Azbelev illustrates the stages of this process with his editions of historical songs about Skopin-Shuisky. Azbelev was involved in preparing collections of Russian historical songs. The selection of songs reflects his understanding of the genre.