This course will examine the literary and musical awakening of Russia in the mid-19th century, a turbulent time when political upheaval created a synergy between the artistic and political spheres. As Russia grew larger and more industrialized, revolutionary movements such as the Decemberists, the Petrashevists, and the Freedom Group challenged czarist rule. Discussions of social issues were often disguised within artistic contexts to avoid censorship. We will consider how composers such as Mussorgsky invented a new and completely Russian idiom, while figures such as Tchaikovsky and Rubinstein reconciled the burgeoning Russian artistic identity with Western practice.