Belyayev Circle - Influence

Influence

The musical scene in St. Petersburg came to be dominated by the Belyayev circle since Rimsky-Korsakov had taught many of its members at the Conservatory there. Since Glazunov, Lyadov and Rimsky-Korsakov acted in an advisory capacity to the Belyayev enterprises, and thus became channels of Belyayev's largesse, composers who wished to be part of this circle and who desired Belyayev's patronage had to write in a musical style approved by these three men. Because of this stricture, Rimsky-Korsakov's style became the preferred academic style—one that young composers had to follow if they hoped to have any sort of career. In this sense, the Belyayev circle acted as a compositional guild. The beter pupils from the St. Petersburg Conservatory received initiation by their invitation to the "quartet Fridays", and admission to the circle "guaranteed well renumerated publication by Edition Belieff, Leipzig, and performance in the Russian Symphony Concert programs". Thus, the Belyayev circle "set up an establilshment that governed all aspects of musical creation, education and performance".