Serbian and anti-Serbian positions in the Magazine Zvuk: Jugoslovenska muzička revija - on the self-denying spirit in the field of musical art

Based on the material of the first and only professional music periodical published after World War II - Zvuk: Jugoslovenska muzička revija, in its “Belgrade” phase, when the position of editor-in-chief was held by the musicologist Stana Đurić Klajn (1955-1966) - this study isolates and analytically examines the interplay of themes and narratives articulated by Serbian authors, as well as by contributors from other republics of the former Yugoslav federation. The status of Serbian music within the Yugoslav platform - the absence or the blurring of its immediate national identification, on the one hand, and the transparent national orientation of the articles dealing with other national musical traditions, on the other - is presented in connection with numerous figures and events that have shaped the Yugoslav musical sphere. The thesis concerning the porous character of the Yugoslav platform - advocated primarily from Serbia - and, conversely, its distinctly national interpretation, often marked by an explicit animosity toward the “Serbian” element in the contributions of authors from the rest of the country, is likewise documented. The self-denying spirit evident in the attitudes and actions of the majority of Serbian musical workers is further demonstrated through examples drawn from the field of church music - both Serbian and Byzantine - as well as from sacred musical traditions and practices of Western provenance.