COMPOSITIONAL PRACTICE IN THE POLISH-LITHUANIAN COMMONWEALTH DURING XVI TH AND XVII TH CENTURIES: INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORKS, STYLISTICS, AND CULTURAL INTERACTION

Abstract

The article examines compositional practice in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth during the 16th–17th centuries within the context of institutional conditions, stylistic developments, and cultural interaction. Special attention is given to the activities of Sebastian z Felsztyna, Marcin Leopolita, and Wojciech Wesołowski, whose works reflect key trends in the musical development of the period. The stylistic features of their compositions are analyzed in the context of the reception of Western European-primarily Italian-musical influences, the adaptation of Renaissance polyphony, and the introduction of early Baroque elements. The interaction between the Latin liturgical tradition and local musical practices, which contributed to the formation of a synthetic style, is highlighted, as well as the significance of cultural contacts and the mobility of musicians for the development of Ukrainian-Polish connections and the circulation of musical ideas. The study is based on a comparative analysis of musical works and printed sources, as well as on methods of stylistic analysis, historical-cultural reconstruction, and historical interpretation. This approach allows tracing mechanisms of musical influence and stylistic transformation. On the basis of source analysis, it is concluded that compositional activity in the Commonwealth developed as a dynamic system in which institutional conditions, stylistic practice, and intercultural interaction were interconnected and shaped the evolution of musical tradition. Cultural interference is evident: Italian and Netherlandish polyphony was transmitted through manuscripts and the training of foreign musicians, German Kapellmeisters refined existing methods, and Latin served as a unifying communicative code. Although the musical space of the Commonwealth was not as powerful as Rome or Paris, it provided conditions for the reception, adaptation, and diffusion of Western European traditions within a local multiethnic environment. The composers’ works demonstrate different paths of integration into institutional frameworks, emphasizing the institutional and stylistic role of the composer rather than ethnic or national identity. Their Ukrainian origins and activity in the Commonwealth testify to the universality of art, its ability to combine diverse cultural vectors, and to create new syntheses that influenced the development of both Ukrainian and Polish musical traditions and remain relevant for subsequent generations.