2010 Recipient

The University of Southern California Book Prize in Literary and Cultural Studies, established in 2009 and sponsored by the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of Southern California, is awarded annually for an outstanding monograph published on Russia, Eastern Europe, or Eurasia in the fields of literary and cultural studies in the previous calendar year.

Winner: Claudia R. Jensen
Title: Musical Cultures in Seventeenth-Century Russia (Indiana University Press)

Jensen uses a seemingly small topic – the music and musical practices of the upper echelons of the ruling class – to elucidate what she calls “a multiplicity of worlds of Muscovite music making.” With music as a focal point, Jensen investigates social and cultural practices in the Muscovite court, in taverns, at weddings, and in other settings. Her research both reveals new sources and casts a new light on familiar historical documents. Her capacious and scrupulous research, and her ability to put her work into a context that draws in even those who are not specialists in her area, make Musical Cultures in Seventeenth-Century Russia a truly outstanding contribution to the field.