Social and Cultural Engagement of Dragutin Gostuški

Even before he gradually faded out his compositional and scientific activities in the 1960s and the beginning of the 1970s, Dr Dragutin Gostuški, composer, musicologist, music critic, and an important figure of Serbian and Yugoslav culture in general, was very active in different cultural and social activities of the broadest spectrum. His interest in music and aesthetics, as well as his position as a social commentator and a favourite intellectual, which he built over the years, went hand in hand with participating in different local and international professional bodies, commissions, and boards. In the 1970s, he reached the “zenith of his career”, as musicologist Katarina Tomašević put it, and was highly involved in the establishment of many festivals and manifestations, in the organization of popular scientific events and discussions, and without reserve, served as an advisor on many occasions and for different institutions. In this chapter, I dealt with Gostuški’s work that can be considered applied, as it overcomes the boundaries of scientific musicological work, composition, and music and art criticism. Focusing on his public appearances, but primarily on his work around the “Conversations about Science and Art” (1974–1980), organization of the First International Colloquium on the Semiotics of Music in Belgrade (1973), art and organizational boards of the BEMUS festival in Belgrade, the Yugoslav Choir Festivities in Niš, and the Belgrade Jazz Festival. Thus, by honouring Gostuški’s ambitious but cautious enthusiasm revealed in this facet of his professional activities, this paper contributes to completing the puzzle of this eminent figure of the Serbian and Yugoslav culture in the 20th century.