Miklina, N. N. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Martin Heidegger: Co-Existence of Personalities, Nations and Cultures

Abstract: The research subject is the co-existence of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Martin Heidegger in an integrated world where, according to Martin Heidegger and Russian religious philosophers, time and being, space and time, being and mind, being and human, all kinds of individualities are one of the kind even though each of them has their own peculiarities. This co-existence fulfils the idea of the all-encompassing unity and contains the mystery of the ‘world historical event’ that encompasses the past, the present and the future. The purpose of the article is to discover similar and different features in lives, creative works and worldviews of a Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844 – 1908) and a German philosopher Martin Heidegger (1889 – 1976). The research methods include the following: the comparative analytical method with the elements of the biographical method, philosophical analysis of Martin Heidegger’s writings and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s compositions with the use of explicit and implicit data of the metapoetical approach and the generalization method. The novelty of the research is caused by the following: 1) the author summarizes Martin Heidegger’s views on ‘co-existence’ and performs the comparative analysis of Rimsky-Korsakov and Heidegger; 2) the author describes similarities and differences in attitudes of the Russian composer and German philosopher to their homeland, nature, their own work and eternal problems of existence; 3) the author discovers the importance of the natural environment in formation of Rimsky-Korsakov’s and Heidegger’s world views, creative methods and results of their life; 4) the author describes similarities and differences in their traditional and poetic aspirations, attitudes to the idea of statehood, people and God. The author shows that those attitudes and aspirations were influenced not only by natural, geographical and individual features but also national, ethnic, social and historical factors as well peculiarities of their art style and logic. Conclusions: the virtual dialogue between the artist and the philosopher is a free expression, interaction and complementarity of their souls. According to the author, we are witnessing the true co-existence of the two personalities, nations and cultures. This makes us think that the positive development of relations between Russia and Germany is quite possible just like between other countries of the world.

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