The classical deformation theory of Lie algebras involves different kinds of Massey products of cohomology classes. Even the condition of extendibility of an infinitesimal deformation to a formal one-parameter deformation of a Lie algebra involves Massey powers of two dimensional cohomology classes which are not powers in the usual definition of Massey products in the cohomology of a differential graded Lie algebra. In the case of deformations with other local bases, one deals with other, more specific Massey products. In the present work a construction of generalized Massey products is given, depending on an arbitrary graded commutative, associative algebra. In terms of these products, the above condition of extendibility is generalized to deformations with arbitrary local bases. Dually, a construction of generalized Massey products on the cohomology of a differential graded commutative associative algebra depends on a nilpotent graded Lie algebra. For example, the classical Massey products correspond to the Lie algebra of strictly upper triangular matrices, while the matric Massey products correspond to the Lie algebra of block strictly upper triangular matrices.

We prove that the maximal nilpotent subalgebra of a Kac-Moody Lie algebra has an (essentially unique) Euclidean metric with respect to which the Laplace operator in the chain complex is scalar on each component of a given degree. Moreover, both the Lie algebra structure and the metric are uniquely determined by this property.

We prove an explicit formula for a projection of singular vectors in the Verma module over a rank 2 Kac-Moody Lie algebra onto the universal enveloping algebra of the Heisenberg Lie algebra and of $sl_{2}$ (Theorem 3). The formula is derived from a more general but less explicit formula due to Feigin, Fuchs and Malikov [Funct. Anal. Appl. 20 (1986), no. 2, 103-113]. In the simpler case of $A_{1}^{1}$ the formula was obtained in [Fuchs D., Funct. Anal. Appl. 23 (1989), no. 2, 154-156].

We consider generalizations of the Vieta formula (relating the coefficients of an algebraic equation to the roots) to the case of equations whose coefficients are order-$k$ matrices. Specifically, we prove that if $X_1,\dots ,X_n$ are solutions of an algebraic matrix equation $X^n+A_1X^{n-1}+\dots +A_n=0,$ independent in the sense that they determine the coefficients $A_1,\dots ,A_n$, then the trace of $A_1$ is the sum of the traces of the $X_i$, and the determinant of $A_n$ is, up to a sign, the product of the determinants of the $X_i$. We generalize this to arbitrary rings with appropriate structures. This result is related to and motivated by some constructions in non-commutative geometry.

We show that the p-operator in the Witt algebra (the restricted Lie algebra of derivations of the quotient of the polynomial algebra over a field of characteristic p by the ideal generated by the p-th power of the indeterminant) is given by multiplication by a scalar.