THE PROBLEMATICS OF MUSICAL RESEARCH AS A KEY TO UNDERSTANDING THE TYPOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GENRE

Abstract

The musical is one of the emblematic genres of modernity, characterized by dynamic development while simultaneously avoiding a radical departure from the primary generic model established at the initial stage of its evolution. Scholarly interest in this phenomenon arises primarily from the aspiration to comprehend the artistic potential embedded within it. The emergence of numerous variations of the genre is determined above all by the expressive capacity and stylistic diversity employed by its creators. Research conducted in both Ukrainian and international academic contexts – focusing on the general and specific regularities of the genre, on individual works, and on localized tendencies (notably those rooted in Broadway traditions) – has provided a basis for evaluating the precision of typological characteristics attributed to the genre and the terminological formulations underlying them. The significance of this stage in accumulating theoretical data for further study lies not only in the search for terminological adequacy in relation to the genre’s specificity and authors’ intentions, but also in the identification of deeper structural layers of dramaturgy and expressive means within each work. These structures enable us to interpret musicals not solely as representatives of “popular culture,” but also as substantial foundations of contemporary synthetic genres, capable of constructing meaning through the manipulation of widely recognizable elements and symbols across diverse cultural contexts. A survey of the issues addressed in various studies of the genre has likewise underscored the necessity of a more profound exploration of both stage and screen forms of the musical, with the aim of clarifying their typological parameters and revealing potential differences in the semantic space of these variants in relation to the invariant generic model. In the conditions of the ontological orientation of contemporary art, the reconfiguration of research vectors facilitates a more profound comprehension of meanings, discourses, and paradigms. Thus, by rejecting oversimplifications and conventional stereotypes, a more comprehensive and multifaceted perception of the world becomes possible. The aim of this article is to substantiate appropriate approaches to understanding the typological characteristics of the musical by examining the directions outlined in published research regarding the study of this genre and its typological features. The methodology of the study is based on the analysis of similarities and differences in the application of systembased methods typical for a particular domain, while simultaneously exploring approaches to interpreting contextual projections as they manifest in specific expressions of genre or style. The scientific novelty of the proposed research lies in introducing the aspect of artistic significance into the scholarly discourse on the musical, as well as in substantiating the potential for theoretical emphasis on studying the genre not only as a representative of “popular culture” but also as a manifestation of contemporary understandings of genre synthesis. The conclusions highlight the possibility of drawing attention to the relationship between invariants and the specific features of genre variants. The musical, as a genre offering a variable «worldview» within thematically characteristic domains, reveals a distinctly conceptual dimension in its development. At the same time, a promising direction for further inquiry remains the search for and substantiation of criteria for systematizing musicals.