Viktor Belyayev

Viktor Mikhailovich Belyayev was a distinguished Russian and Soviet musicologist and one of the most significant ethnomusicologists of the 20th century. Born in Uralsk, he completed his studies at the Petrograd Conservatory in 1914, where he was a pupil of Jāzeps Vītols, Alexander Glazunov, and Anatoly Lyadov. He pursued a long academic career, teaching music theory and history at both the Petrograd (later Leningrad) Conservatory and the Moscow Conservatory, holding professorships at both institutions.

Belyayev was a versatile scholar with a wide range of interests, though his primary focus remained musical folklore. Starting in the late 1920s, he conducted extensive research into the music of the peoples of the USSR, including Azerbaijani, Armenian, Belarusian, Tajik, and Turkmen traditions, as well as the music of the Middle East, including Afghan, Persian, and Turkish styles. He also made significant contributions to the study of Russian folk music and Old Russian church music, working on the deciphering of ancient musical notations and chants from the 11th and 12th centuries.

In addition to his ethnomusicological work, Belyayev was deeply involved in the contemporary music scene of his time. He was an active member of the Association for Contemporary Music (ASM) from its inception until its dissolution. He authored numerous brochures and articles on contemporary composers such as Nikolai Myaskovsky, Sergei Prokofiev, and Paul Hindemith. His theoretical work extended to organology, acoustics, and the analysis of modal systems in Eastern music. His close professional relationship with Nikolai Myaskovsky led the composer to dedicate his Fifth Symphony to Belyayev.

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