11th Biennial Meeting of the International Gynecologic Cancer ...
19th Biennial International Nineteenth-Century …2016/06/23 · Welcome to the Faculty of Music,...
Transcript of 19th Biennial International Nineteenth-Century …2016/06/23 · Welcome to the Faculty of Music,...
19thBiennialInternationalNineteenth-CenturyMusicConference
11-13July2016
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ContentsWelcomeSchedule
11July 12July
13JulyAbstracts 11July 11am-1pm
Session1A:DenisArnoldHall:RethinkingRomanticForm:Mendelssohn’sInstrumentalMusicSession1B:LectureRoomA:TalesoftheVillage:NewPerspectivesontheSourcesandCulturalContextsofAntonínDvořák’soperasJakobínandČertaKáča
Session1C:CommitteeRoom:Transatlantics2pm-4pm
Session2A:DenisArnoldHall:East-West Session2B:LectureRoomA:SongsandStages
Session2C:CommitteeRoom:LibrettiandHistoricism5pm Keynote1:T.S.EliotTheatre,MertonCollege
12July
9.30am-11am Session3A:DenisArnoldHall:Time,Space,Form
Session3B:LectureRoomA:C.1800 Session3C:CommitteeRoom:TheatricalIllumination
11.30am-1pmSession4A:DenisArnoldHall:On(re)hearingDelius:Contexts,Legacies,andTraditions
Session4B:LectureRoomA:Vienna Session4C:CommitteeRoom:FrenchTheatre
2.30pm-4.30pm Session5A:LectureRoomA:OperainTranslation
Session5B:DenisArnoldHall:NewApproachestoOperaandCharacter
Session5C:CommitteeRoom:Historiographies5pm Keynote2:T.S.EliotTheatre,MertonCollege
13July
9.30am-11am
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Session6A:DenisArnoldHall:Recreations Session6B:LectureRoomA:Gender,Identity,Trauma
Session6C:CommitteeRoom:AroundOpera11.30am-1.30pm
Session7A:DenisArnoldHall:OperaandMedicalExperimentationintheNineteenthCentury
Session7B:LectureRoomA:WritingandEncoding Session7C:CommitteeRoom:Class
2.30pm-4.30pm Session8A:DenisArnoldHall:GiuseppeVerdiinContext
Session8B:LectureRoomA:Colonialism Session8C:CommitteeRoom:Morals,Ethics,Physiologies
Usefulinformation Localandemergencycontactnumbers PlacestoeatSponsorsOxfordmap
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Welcomemessage WelcometotheFacultyofMusic,UniversityofOxford.Wearedelightedtobehostingthe19thBiennialInternationalConferenceonNineteenth-CenturyMusic,whichwehopeyouwillfindenjoyableandstimulating,bothacademicallyandsocially.Manythankstothepeoplewhohavehelpedwiththeorganisationoftheconference:theProgrammeCommittee;PhilipBullock,BarbaraEichner,DanielGrimley,AnnaStollKnecht,LauraTunbridge,andBenjaminWalton;CatherineLiebenandChristopherWaitefromtheadministrativeteamattheFacultyofMusic;DanielHulmeandMarioBaptisteforcreatingourwebpageandofferingtechnicalsupport;ourconferenceadministrator,EmilyTan;thestudenthelpers,LaurenBraithwaite,TimothyCoombes,ChristieFranke,EleanorHicks,EmmaKavanagh,DaniellePadley,FrankiePerry,andMauraValenti;MertonCollege,forhostingthekeynotetalks,conferencedinner,andwinereception;A&JCatering;RegencyMarquees;thesessionchairs;andourkeynotespeakers,DanielChuaandJessicaGienow-Hecht.WearealsogratefulforfinancialsupportfromtheFacultyofMusic,JohnFellOxfordUniversityPress(OUP)ResearchFund;StCatherine'sCollegeFellows&Master’sResearchFund;MertonCollege,Oxford;theOxfordSongNetwork(TORCH);TheOperaQuarterly,andtheCentreforNineteenth-CenturyStudiesatDurhamUniversity.
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Monday,11July10am-11am:Registration,FacultyofMusic11am-1pm:Sessions1A-CSession1A,DenisArnoldHallPanel-RethinkingRomanticForm:Mendelssohn’sInstrumentalMusicChair:BenedictTaylor(UniversityofEdinburgh)
BenedictTaylor(UniversityofEdinburgh):MendelssohnandSonataForm:TheCaseofOp.44No.2
JulianHorton(DurhamUniversity):Mendelssohn’sPianoTrioOp.66andtheAnalysisofRomanticForm
StevenVandeMoortele(UniversityofToronto):ExpansionandRecompositioninMendelssohn'sSymphonicForms
ThomasSchmidt(UniversityofManchester):FormthroughSound:KlangfarbeandtextureinMendelssohn'sinstrumentalcompositions
Session1B,LectureRoomAPanel:TalesoftheVillage:NewPerspectivesontheSourcesandCultural
ContextsofAntonínDvořák’soperasJakobínandČertaKáčaChair:TamsinAlexander(Goldsmiths,UniversityofLondon)
EvaMyslivcová(CharlesUniversity,Prague):Dvořák’sKrálauhlířEmmaParker(UniversityofCalifornia,SantaBarbara):DvořákandJakobín’slibrettist,
MarieČervinková-Riegrová.ChristopherBowen(UniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapelHill):Theculturalcontextof
ČertaKáčaEvaBranda(WesternUniversityCanada):DebatingDimitrij:CzechCriticalPerspectives
onDvořákasOperaComposer
Session1C,CommitteeRoomTransatlanticsChair:AlexandraWilson(OxfordBrookesUniversity)
CharlotteBentley(UniversityofCambridge):Thechallengesoftransatlanticopera:theThéâtred’Orléanscompanyinnineteenth-centuryNewOrleans
JoshuaNavon(ColumbiaUniversity,NYC):‘ItisNecessarytogotoEuropeforInstruction’:TransmittingMusicPedagogyfromGermanytotheUS,1840-1875
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CésarLeal(Sewanee:TheUniversityoftheSouth):ConstructingInternationalAesthetic
Identities:Trans-Atlanticculturalexchanges,entrepreneurship,culturalmediation,andJewishsponsorshipinParisduringfin-de-siècle.
JoséManuelIzquierdoKönig(UniversityofCambridge):Theearlynineteenth-centuryLatinAmericansymphony:problemsandperspectivesofanunknownrepertoireandatransatlanticgenre.
1pm-2pm:Lunch
2pm-4pm:Sessions2A-CSession2A,DenisArnoldHallEast-WestChair:PhilipBullock(UniversityofOxford)
MicaelaBaranello(SmithCollege):Zigeuneroperette:Austro-HungarianOperettaandAuthenticityReconsidered
JonathanD.Bellman(UniversityofNorthernColorado):PicturesoftheWest:RobertSchumann’sBilderausOstenReconsidered
AnneMarieWeaver(UniversityofRochester):Glinka’sFarewelltoSt.PetersburgandRussianCosmopolitanism
DavidBrodbeck(UniversityofCalifornia,Irvine):HeimatIsWheretheHeartIs;or,HowHungarianwasGoldmark?
Session2B,LectureRoomASongsandStagesChair:LauraTunbridge(UniversityofOxford)
OskarCox-Jensen(King’sCollege,London):‘TrueCourage’:ASonginStagesKatyHamilton(Independent):NataliaMacfarrenandtheEnglishGermanLiedKatherineGray(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley):Wagner’svocaltechniquesNatashaLoges(RoyalCollegeofMusic):Tellingwomen’sstories,sellingwomen’ssongs:
thecreativerelationshipofPaulHeyseandJohannesBrahms
Session2C,CommitteeRoomLibrettiandhistoricismChair:SusanRutherford(UniversityofManchester)
DaniilZavlunov(StetsonUniversity):Censoringthemuses:operaandcensorshipduringthereignofNicholasI(1825-1855)
EdwardJacobson(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley):Donizetti’sHistoricism
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AlessandraA.Jones(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley):‘TheTheoryoftheDagger’:
Verdi’sUnballoinmascheraandDiscoursesofRegicideClaudioVellutini(UniversityofBritishColumbia,Vancouver):FannyTacchinardi-
Persiani,CarloBalocchino,andItalianOperaBusinessinVienna,Paris,andLondon,1837-1845
4pm-5pm:Tea5pm-6pm:Keynote1,T.S.EliotTheatre,MertonCollege
JessicaGienow-Hecht(FreieUniversitätBerlin):Music&nationbrandingin19th-centuryinternationalrelations
6pm:Winereception,MertonCollegeTuesday,12July9.30am-11am:Sessions3A-CSession3A,DenisArnoldHallTime,Space,FormChair:BenedictTaylor(UniversityofEdinburgh)
CarloCaballero(UniversityofColorado):Chopin’sMeditationonTime:Bells,ClocksandSubjectivityinthePrelude,op.28,inA-flatMajor
ChairatChongvattanakij(UniversityofToronto):InvertingtheSublime:Franck’sVariationssymphoniquesasaComicNarrative
SebastianWedler(UniversityofOxford):TonalPairingasaStrategyofLyricalTime:AntonWebern’sLangsamerSatz(1905)
Session3B,LectureRoomAC.1800Chair:JulianHorton(DurhamUniversity)
ShaenaWeitz(CityUniversity,NewYork):ExcavatingthePotpourriKatherineHambridge(DurhamUniversity):GenreConsciousnessintheNapoleonic
TheatreAnneliesAndries(YaleUniversity):Dreaming"OpéradeLuxe":SpectacleinLeSueur's
Ossianoulesbardes
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Session3C,CommitteeRoomTheatricalIlluminationChair:AdelineMueller(BrownUniversity)
Feng-ShuLee(TunghaiUniversity):IllusoryReality:ShadowinRomanticMusicandArtsTamsinAlexander(Goldsmiths,UniversityofLondon):IlluminatingSpectacle:Lightand
illusioninGustavustheThird(1833)TommasoSabbatini(UniversityofChicago):MusicfortheParisianpopularstage:the
caseof(andthecasefor)latenineteenth-centuryféerie11am-11-30amCoffee
11.30am-1pm:Sessions4A-CSession4A,DenisArnoldHallPanel-On(re)hearingDelius:Contexts,Legacies,andTraditionsChair:BenedictTaylor(UniversityofEdinburgh)
DanielGrimley(UniversityofOxford):‘UntoBriggFair’:Cosmopolitanism,Delius,andtheIdentitiesofPlace
JoannaBullivant(UniversityofOxford):‘“Mymusichasneverbeenplayedaswellbyanyoneelse:”SirThomasBeechamandDeliusinPerformance’
SarahCollins(UniversityofNewSouthWales):‘The“ZarathustraMood”:Delius,anti-intellectualismandtheproblemofmusicalNietzscheism’
Session4B,LectureRoomAViennaChair:SusanWollenberg(UniversityofOxford)
AnneHyland(UniversityofManchester):TheStringQuartetinSchubert’sViennaEricaBuurman(CanterburyChristChurchUniversity):TheVienneseMinuetafter1814SamGirling(UniversityofAuckland):FromtheJanissariesto'WoodenLaughter':the
useofunconventionalpercussioninstrumentsattheViennesecourtduringtheearlynineteenthcentury
Session4C,CommitteeRoomFrenchTheatreChair:LauraProtano-Biggs(JohnHopkinsUniversity)
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SarahHibberd(UniversityofNottingham):‘Strandedinthepresent’:temporalexpressioninRobertlediable
DianaR.Hallman(UniversityofKentucky):AutombeauattheParisOpéra:ExplorationsofTimbreandSpaceinHalévy’sGuidoetGinevra
SarahGutsche-Miller(UniversityofToronto):LiberatedWomenandTravestyFetishes:MixedGenderMessagesinParisianMusic-HallBallet
1pm-2.30pm:Lunch
2.30pm-4pm/4.30pm:Sessions5A-CSession5A,LectureRoomAOperainTranslationChair:MarkEverist(UniversityofSouthampton)
MichelleMeinhart(Durham/MartinMethodistCollege):Wagner,AntebellumNostalgia,andPost-WarGraduation:TheReconstructionoftheSouthernBelleattheAthenaeumGirls’SchoolinColumbia,Tennessee,1865-88
FrancescaVella(UniversityofCambridge):Lohengrin’s1871TourLauraStokes(IndianaUniversity)Prussia,Nationalism,andIntegrationinMeyerbeer’s
EinFeldlagerinSchlesien
Session5B,DenisArnoldHallPanel:NewApproachestoOperaandCharacter
Speakers: KirstenPaige(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)*
DanWang(UniversityofChicago)*NinaPenner(McGillUniversity)JohnKapusta(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)AdelineMueller(MountHolyokeCollege)
*Chairs
Session5C,CommitteeRoomHistoriographiesChair:JonathanD.Bellman(UniversityofNorthernColorado)
KarenLeistra-Jones(Franklin&MarshallCollege):HansvonBülowandtheConfessionalizationofKunstreligion
KatherineFry(King’sCollege,London):MusicalIdealisminVictorianCulture:GeorgeEliotasMusicCriticandTranslator
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JamesGrande(King’sCollege,London):TheNaturalHistoryofGermanMusic:GeorgeEliot,Dissent,Cosmopolitanism
4.30pm-5pm:Tea
5pm-6pm:Keynote2,T.S.EliotTheatre,MertonCollege
DanielChua(UniversityofHongKong):De-secularizingBeethoven
7pm:ConferencedinnerWednesday,13July9.30am-11am:Sessions6A-CSession6A,DenisArnoldHallRecreationsChair:AndrewHolden(OxfordBrookesUniversity)
SarahKirby(UniversityofMelbourne):Songsatthe1851GreatExhibitionIanMaxwell(UniversityofCambridge):TheChamberMusicClubsintheBritish
UniversitiesduringtheNineteenthCenturyErinJohnson-Williams(TrinityLaban):DisciplinesofDevelopment:PhysicalEconomies
ofVictorianMusicandStateEducationSession6B,LectureRoomAGender,Identity,TraumaChair:SarahCollins(UniversityofNewSouthWales)
SarahGerk(BinghamtonUniversity):ASongofFamineandWar:IrishMusicalMethodsofExpressingUSCivilWarTrauma
BrianThompson(TheChineseUniversityofHongKong):TheCritic,thePublicandthe‘Femme’Fatale
MyronGray(HaverfordCollege):TransnationalLocalismintheAnglophoneReceptionofDerFreischütz
Session6C,CommitteeRoomAroundOpera
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Chair:DanielM.Grimley(UniversityofOxford)
LauraProtano-Biggs(JohnsHopkinsUniversity):FalstaffandtheResonantSoundscape:Verdi’sExperimentswithSound
FloraWillson(King’sCollege,London):‘Musiqueduplein-air’?OperaticrealismandCharpentier’sLouise
GabrielleCornish(EastmanSchoolofMusic):Liza'sTransmigration:UrbanDecayandFin-de-SiècleSuicideinChaikovsky'sTheQueenofSpades
11am-11-30amCoffee
11.30am-1pm/1.30pm:Sessions7A-CSession7A,DenisArnoldHallPanel–OperaandMedicalExperimentationintheNineteenthCenturyChair:SarahHibberd(UniversityofNottingham)
CarmelRaz(ColumbiaUniversity):OperaticFantasiesinEarlyNineteenth-CenturyPsychiatry
ChloeValenti(UniversityofCambridge):Pitchedbattles?VocalHealthandtheEnglishPitchDebate
CelineFrigauManning(UniversitéParis-8):Opera,Hypnosis,andAutosuggestion.AMedicalTheorisationofIdentificationfortheActor-Singer
Session7B,LectureRoomAWritingandEncodingChair:ThomasSchmidt
FrederickReece(HarvardUniversity):ForgingSchubert’s‘Gastein’:TheCold-WarQuestforTruthinaRomanticFantasy
JacobOlley(WestfälischeWilhelms-UniversitätMünster):Orality,Historyand(Ethno)Musicology:PreparingaCriticalEditionofNineteenth-CenturyOttomanMusic
RobertEshbach(UniversityofNewHampshire):‘Iwouldliketomakeaviolinconcertoforyou…’:FerdinandDavidandtheMendelssohnViolinConcerto
DitlevRindom(UniversityofCambridge):ListeningwithSchumann:ThePhantasieop.17and1830sSonicCulture
Session7C,CommitteeRoomClassChair:DerekB.Scott(UniversityofLeeds)
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JamesDeaville(CarletonUniversity):TheWell-ManneredAuditor:ListeningintheDomestic-PublicSphereofthe19thCentury
WiebkeRademacher(UniversityofCologne):BeyondConcertHalls.PerformanceandReceptionofClassicalMusicinNon-BourgeoisContexts1860-1914,LondonandBerlin
KatrinaFaulds(UniversityofSouthampton)andPenelopeCave(UniversityofSouthampton):‘MyharppresentsitsbestTonestoyou’:reflectionsonmusicintheJerninghamfamilycorrespondence
1.30pm-2.30pm:Lunch
2.30pm-4pm/4.30pm:Sessions8A-CSession8A,DenisArnoldHall
Panel:GiuseppeVerdiinContextChair:StefanoCastelvecchi(UniversityofCambridge)
HelenGreenwald(NewEnglandConservatory):WhichVerdi,How,andWhy?FrancescoIzzo(UniversityofSouthampton):TheVerdieditionandperiodization:Some
methodologicalquestionsMarkEverist(UniversityofSouthampton):TamingVerdi’sBullLindaB.Fairtile(UniversityofRichmond):EditingLateVerdiandEarlyPuccini:
CorrespondencesandContrastsStefanoCastelvecchi(UniversityofCambridge):RESPONSE
Session8B,LectureRoomAColonialismChair:BenjaminWalton(UniversityofCambridge)
JonathanHicks(King’sCollege,London):PerformingTourismin1850sLondon:AlbertSmith’sAscentofMontBlanc
GavinWilliams(UniversityofCambridge):Sound,Colony,andtheMultinational:TheGramophoneinSingaporeca.1900
KerryMurphy(MelbourneConservatoriumofMusic):HenriKowalski(1841-1916):AFrenchMusicianinColonialAustralia
Session8C,CommitteeRoom
Morals,Ethics,PhysiologiesChair:JamesDavies(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)
BennettZon(DurhamUniversity):AnimalMusicandtheGreatChainofBeing
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MarkA.Pottinger(ManhattanCollege):PhysiologyandtheScienceofHysteriainLuciadiLammermoor
CatherineSchwartz(McGillUniversity):ClaireCroizaandtheArtoftheSelf4.30pm:Endofconference
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MONDAY11JulySession1A
11am-1pm(4panelpapers)
Panel:RethinkingRomanticForm:Mendelssohn'sInstrumentalMusic
BriefOverviewoftheSessionRunning likea red thread throughacenturyandahalfofMendelssohnreception is theimageofthecomposerasa‘classicist’whosemusicwas—forbetterorworse—deeplyrootedinearlierformsandstyles.Thisoldclichégainsnewsignificanceinlightoftherecentforaysmadeintomusicofthenineteenthcenturybythe‘newFormenlehre’—thebranchoftheoryandanalysisinspiredmainlybytheworkofWilliamE.Caplin(1998)andJamesHepokoskiandWarren Darcy (2006). Mendelssohn’s music has become emblematic of that of a wholegeneration: as the first major composer to engage with sonata form in the decadesimmediately following Beethoven his instrumental repertoire assumes fundamentalimportance for any account of the development of sonata form in the Romantic era (cf.Horton and Wingfield 2012). However, Mendelssohn’s major contribution to thedevelopment of Romantic form is still critically unexamined, with little analytical workundertakenevenwithinspecialistMendelssohncircles.Theaimsofthispanelarethustoreviseandrefineourtheoreticalunderstandingoflarge-scale Romantic form in general by examining the specific case of Mendelssohn’s sonatamovements—and as a valuable corollary, to deepen our analytical appreciation ofMendelssohn’s instrumentalmusic.Speaker1’sopeningpaper introduces the topicby re-examiningthesonatamovementconsideredparadigmaticinthemostimportantearlierstudyofMendelssohn’smusic,revisingthereadingofMendelssohn’spracticeinlightofmoderntheoriesandofferinghistoricalreflectionsonthecontingencyofearlieraccountsofhismusic.Analyticalthemesidentifiedherearedeepenedinthesubsequenttwopapers[Speakers2&3].Enteringintocriticaldialoguewithexistingtheoriesofclassicalform,bothpapersexaminein detail how Mendelssohn’s characteristic procedures of phrase expansion, cadentialdeferral and structural elision interact with wider formal issues, thus offering powerfulcorrectivestotheearlierreceivedviewofthiscomposer’sstyle.Finally,Speaker4’spaperopens up thediscussion to include a parameter unusually neglected inmusic theory: theimportance of Klang and sonority in Mendelssohn’s articulation of musical structure,providingstimulatingnewinsightsintothenatureofRomanticform.BenedictTaylor(UniversityofEdinburgh)MendelssohnandSonataForm:TheCaseofOp.44No.2
InagroundbreakingpaperpublishedinCarlDahlhaus’s1974DasProblemMendelssohn,theGerman musicologist Friedhelm Krummacher offered a series of ‘theses’ concerningMendelssohn’smaturesonatastyle,usingtheopeningmovementoftheStringQuartetinEminor,Op.44No.2 (1837),ashisparadigmaticexample. ForKrummacher,Op.44No.2exemplifiedtheessenceofMendelssohn’smaturesonataidiomandwasthusaperfectsourcefor offering a revisionist perspective on the composer’s misunderstood later music. In a
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succession of detailed analytical points, Krummacher took issuewith earlier, often highlysuperficialcharacterisationsofMendelssohn’ssonatapractice,reflectingtheauthor’sdeepknowledgeofMendelssohn’schambermusicandworkingmethods.YetforallKrummacher’srevisionaryzealandundoubtedscholarlyacumen,whatismostconspicuousonrereadinghispapertodayishowthoseelementsthatwouldappeartomanymodern Anglo-American theorists as crucial to this movement’s design—the continualharmonic duplicity over the move to the secondary theme and the harmonically andthematically desynchronised point of recapitulation—are passed over with little or noconsideration.Suchaturnofeventsmightcauseustoreflectonthehistoricalcontingencyofnotjustourownbutanyanalysisthatmightbegiventotheseworks.InthispaperIofferbothaconcisenewanalysisofMendelssohn’sparadigmaticquartetmovementandaself-reflexivecritiqueofthehistoricalcontingencyofthemethodsofanysuchanalyticalmethodin trying to come to an understanding of this composer’smusic. The concluding sectionoffers, in turn, my own brief latter-day theses concerningMendelssohn’s mature sonatapractice,foreshadowingthefollowingpapersinthesession.Ultimately,Iargueforthefutureneed forscholars toproduceanewaccountofMendelssohn’s instrumentalmusic for thetwenty-firstcentury.JulianHorton(DurhamUniversity)Mendelssohn'sPianoTrioOp.66andtheAnalysisofRomanticForm
OfMendelssohn’stwopianotrios,Op.66haslivedintheshadowofitseldersiblingOp.49formuch of its reception history. The lion’s share of analytical attention thatOp. 49 hasgarnered(asarecentexampleseeSchmalfeldt2011)hasperhapscausedscholarstooverlooktheattractionsofOp.66,especiallyasavehicleforformalanalysis (asoneexception,seeWingfieldandHorton2012).Payingcloseattentiontothe firstmovementandFinale, thispaperdevelopstheclaimthatMendelssohn’spivotalinnovationintherealmofinstrumentalformliesinhisstrikinglypost-classicalresponsetotherelationshipbetweenformandsyntax.Opus 66 reveals a rich array of syntactic habits, which depart fundamentally from high-classical precedent. Expositionalmain-themegroupsbetray ‘loosening’ techniques (Caplin1998 and 2013), which greatly enlarge their dimensions; conversely, main-themerecapitulations are subjected to rigorous truncation. In between, functional elisions andcadentialdeferrals,achievedbythemaintenanceofactivebassprogressionsacrossformaldivisions,promoteadegreeofcontinuitythatproblematizeslate-eighteenth-centurynotionsofformaldemarcation.ThesetechniquesunseatMendelssohn’sregressivelyclassicistimage:inOp.66, themusic’sMozartian facilitymasksa technical radicalism,which isoneof thedefiningcontributionstothedevelopmentofRomanticform.StevenVandeMoortele(UniversityofToronto)ExpansionandRecompositioninMendelssohn'sSymphonicForms
Sincecurrent theoriesofmusical formarebasedonmusic in theVienneseClassical style,using them to analyze instrumental music of the post-Beethovenian nineteenth centuryunavoidablymeansmeasuringthatmusicagainst(andthussuggestingadependenceon)theconventionsandexpectationsofarepertoirethatisexternaltoit.Thediscourseofclassical‘norm’ and romantic ‘deformation’ is a hallmark of Hepokoski and Darcy’s sonata theory
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(2006),butitisequallyimportant(althoughlessexplicit)inSchmalfeldt’sadaptation(2011)ofCaplin’stheoryofformalfunctionsfornineteenth-centurymusic.InthispaperIrethinkMendelssohn’spositionvis-à-visthenewFormenlehrebyfocusingonstructuralexpansionandrecompositioninthesubordinatethemegroupsofhissymphonicsonataforms.ArecurringstrategyMendelssohnusesintheexpositionoftheseworksistopresent a short and tight-knit theme that is then repeated and progressively expanded,significantlydelayingthearrivalofthecadencethatconcludesthesubordinatethemegroup.This process of expansion in the exposition subsequently forms the startingpoint for therecomposition of the subordinate theme group in the recapitulation. The individualtechniquesMendelssohnusestoexpandhisthemesarerarelynew;inthatsense,itwouldbemisguidedtoignoretheextenttowhichhismusicis“indialogue”withaspectsoftheclassicalstyle.Atthesametime,thespecificconstellationsinwhichthesetechniquesappear,andtheway inwhich they forge connectionsbetween theexpositionand recapitulation, is highlycharacteristic of Mendelssohn’s symphonic style. Drawing examples from the firstmovementsofthe‘Reformation’andthe‘Italian’SymphoniesaswellasfromtheoverturesDieHebridenandRuyBlas,mypapernotonlyseekstoofferamorebalancedaccountoftherelationbetweentheoldandthenewinMendelssohn’ssymphonicmusic,butalsotousethat music as a locus of theory formation—rather than just an object of analysis—thatcontributestoadefinitionofwhatconstitutes‘romantic’form.ThomasSchmidt(UniversityofManchester)FormthroughSound:KlangfarbeandtextureinMendelssohn'sinstrumentalcompositions
Mendelssohn’spioneeringroleinexploringinstrumentalcoloursandtextureshasneverbeenindoubt.However,theseaspectsofhiscompositionalpracticehavenotundergoneanalyticalscrutinyinthestrictsense,ratherhavingbeenreadfromanaestheticorprogrammaticpointofview:asamanifestationof thecomposer’spenchant forevocativemoodpainting.The‘elfintone’ofthescherzosfromMidsummerNight’sDreamandtheOctetcometomindaswellasthe‘Nordictone’oftheHebridesOvertureorthe‘Scottish’Symphony.ButthereismoretoMendelssohn’sgeniusinwritingforinstrumentsthanindividualisedtopicsdeployedwith poetic intent. As much as and perhaps more so than in many other 19th-centurycomposers, his ‘sound’ is unmistakeable across all genres, whether piano, chamber ororchestral. This paper forms the first attempt to analyse in a systematic way howMendelssohnactuallyachievesthis‘sound’(orthese‘sounds’)—howdoeshemanage,byandlargeonthesamematerialbasisandusingthesameensembletypesashiscontemporaries,to create something that sounds so unmistakeably his own? In a second step, Iwill thendemonstratehowthecomposer,ratherthandeployingdevicesoftextureandKlangfarbeaslocalised programmatic devices, uses them to articulate or indeed generate instrumentalform—thusprovidingyetmoreevidencehowMendelssohnpursuedanalternative to thefamiliarBeethovenianteleologicalparadigm.
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Session1B
11am-1pm(3panelpapers+1individual)
Panel:TalesoftheVillage:NewPerspectivesontheSourcesandCulturalContextsofAntonínDvořák’sOperasTheruralvillagewasacentralfixtureoftheculturalandartisticlandscapeofBohemia,especiallyinthelaternineteenthcentury.Operasofthistimefrequentlydrewonimageryandthemesassociatedwithvillagelife,andwhileBedřichSmetana’sProdanánevěstamaybythedominantexample,othercomposersattemptedtoforgenewpathstodepictingtheBohemiancountrysideontheoperaticstage.AntonínDvořákwasnoexceptiontothis,andhisoperasKrálauhlíř,JakobínandČertaKáčadrawonthetraditionofusingruralimagerybutalsoexpanditininnovativeways.Usingwide-rangingsourcesandmethodologies,thispanelpresentsnewperspectivesonthesourcesoftheseoperas,therelationshipsbetweenthecomposerandhislibrettists,andtheculturalcontextoftheseoperasinlatenineteenth-centuryPrague.TheideaoftheruralvillagewasnotonlyrelevanttooperaticlifeinPrague,butinawholehostofEuropeancitiesinthelaternineteenthcentury,asisevidentfrom,amongotherthings,theinternationalpopularityofverismo.Byfocusingonrareandunderutilizedarchivalsources,thispanelexpandsnotonlydiscussionsofAntonínDvořák’sfrequentlyoverlookedcontributionstotheoperaticrepertoire,butalsocontextualizesCzechoperawithinitswiderEuropeanmilieu.Insodoingitdeemphasizesthenationalistparticularityof“Czechopera”asatermandfocusesontheconnectionsoflargertransnationalnetworksofoperaticproduction,whichhadadecisivebearingbothonthecompositionsofDvořákandontheliteraryworkofhislibrettists.EvaMyslivcová(CharlesUniversity,Prague)Dvořák’sKrálauhlířInvestigatesthesourcessurroundingDvořák’sKrálauhlíř(KingandCharcoalBurner),especiallyintermsofitsgenesisthroughvariousrevisionsandversions.Thispaperthusplacestheprocessoftheopera’scompositioninthecontextofDvořák’slifeandwork.EmmaParker(UniversityofCalifornia,SantaBarbara)DvořákandJakobín’slibrettist,MarieČervinková-Riegrová
Examines the relationship between Dvořák and Jakobín’s librettist, Marie Červinková-Riegrová.Indoingsoitexploresthesourcesfortheopera,theirrelationshiptothelargerideaofthevillage,andthegenderimplicationsofthecomposer-librettistdynamic.ChristopherBowen(UniversityofNorthCarolinaatChapelHill)TheculturalcontextofČertaKáča
AnalyzestheculturalcontextofČertaKáčaandhowitincorporatesvillageimageryalongside
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elements of fairy tale. This investigation speaks to the issues of post-Wagnerianopera inEuropemorebroadlyandthegenderedexpectationsofvillageoperas.
EvaBranda(WesternUniversity,Canada)CzechCriticalPerspectivesonDvořákThe Cunning Peasant’s disastrous showing at the Vienna Hofopera in 1885 reinvigorateddebates in theCzechpress aboutAntonínDvořákasopera composer.WhileCzech criticsreferred to the event as an obvious case of Viennese prejudice, many of them werenonethelessconvincedthatthescandalmighthavebeenprevented,ifDvořák’smorerecentoperaDimitrij had been performed instead. “[Dimitrij] would have surprised [audiences],giventheimmensepovertyofoperaproduction[intheAustriancapital],”statesonewriterfor the newspaper Národní Listy, “and from Vienna, it would have made its way to allEuropeanstages,pushingDvořáktothefirstranksofoperaticcomposers.”Indeed, during the 1880s,Dimitrij was quickly becoming one of the most frequentlyperformed non-comic Czech operas in Prague (Smaczny, 2003). Undoubtedly, EduardHanslick’searlypraiseof theworkboosted its reputation,and itwasselectedasoneofahandful of representative “Czech” operas to be showcased by members of the PragueNationalTheatreattheInternationaleAusstellunginViennain1892(Brodbeck,2009).Yet,criticalopinionsonDimitrijwerenotunanimousinPrague.Infact,OtakarHostinský,whosetthecity’saestheticagenda,consideredthisoperatobeDvořák’sweakest,anditlayatthecentreofHostinský’scontroversial1901article,whicheffectivelykick-startedtheinfamous“Dvořakbattles”oftheearlytwentiethcentury.This paper investigates the complex Czech reception of Dimitrij, demonstrating thatcompetingpressures frommultiplecriticsultimatelyhelpedDvořákclarifyhisownartisticvisionintherealmofopera.
Session1C
11am-1pm(4individualpapers)
Translatlantics
CharlotteBentley(UniversityofCambridge)Thechallengesoftransatlanticopera:theThéâtred’Orléanscompanyinnineteenth-centuryNewOrleansFrom1819until1859,theThéâtred’Orléanswasatthecentreofsociallifeforawidecross-sectionofNewOrleans’spopulation.Itwaswellknownforthegenerallyhighqualityofitsoperaticproductions,itsunusuallywell-behavedaudiences,andforthefactthatitstroupewasrecruitedfromEuropeeachyear.Itwasthefirst(and,foralongtime,theonly)permanentoperacompanyinNorthAmerica,anditsinfluencewaswideranging.Throughaseriesofsummertours,thecompanyplayeda
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keyroleintransmittingFrenchoperatotheeasternseaboardoftheUnitedStates.Existingscholarship,however,hastypicallyobservedonlythatthecompanybrought itsmusicandperformersfromParis,withoutgivingfurtherthoughttothedetailsorwiderimplicationsofthisprocessorthewaysinwhichnewaudiencesunderstoodFrenchopera.My paper will, therefore, take a closer look at the processes of cultural transfer in themovementofFrenchoperafromEuropetoNewOrleans.Itwillexplorethevitalroleofhumanagency inoperaticglobalisation, inordertoarguethatthenetworksofpeopleandplaceswerebynomeansasstraightforwardastypicallyassumed.Nor, Iwillsuggest,weretheseprocessesofculturaltransferasunidirectionalasgenerallyportrayed. Instead, Iwillarguethatsuchastudycompelsustore-evaluateaspectsoftheEuropeanoperaticindustry,andrevealsanentanglementoflocal,nationalandtransnationalconcernsthatwasvitaltothedevelopmentofaglobaloperaticculture.JoshuaNavon(Columbia,NYC)“ItisNecessarytogotoEuropeforInstruction”:TransmittingMusicPedagogyfromGermanytotheUS,1840-1875
During the mid-nineteenth century, a flurry of discourse appeared in American musicperiodicalsconcerningthecontrastingpedagogicalapparatusesoftheUSandGermany.Aselite musicians like Lowell Mason perceived, there were no significant sites for theinstitutionalizedtrainingofmusiciansintheUS,whileinGermany,prominentconservatoriesalready existed in Leipzig, Berlin, and elsewhere. In this paper, I trace several shifts inAmerican musical discourse on this transatlantic relationship. Publishing especially inDwight’sJournalofMusic,AmericanmusiciansinitiallypraisedGermanconservatories,evenencouragingyoungAmericanstudentstoattendthemforstudy.Later,however,theybegantoquestionGermany’shegemonyoverinstitutionalizedmusicaltraining,incitingcallsfortheestablishmentoftheirownmusic-educationalinstitutions.
RecentscholarshiponthespreadofGermanmusicalKulturacross theAtlantichasfocused on the roles of German immigrants, “emotional crossings,” and processes ofcanonization(Gienow-Hecht2009).Takingadifferentpath,andechoingmyhistoricalactors,Isuggestthatthewestwarddisseminationofmusic-pedagogicaltechniques—onesnecessarytotheproductionofwidespreadculturesofmusicalexpertise—formsacrucialandunchartedroute in this transatlantic history. Such a pedagogical perspective encourages us to lookbeyondthecirculationofpersons,discourses,andmusicalworks,andtowardthemeansoftransmittingmusicaldispositionsandskillsthatmakeuptheday-to-daypracticesofexpertmusicians.Concludingbroadly,Ioutlinehowconceptualizingpedagogyasintegraltomusicalpracticemayopennovelavenuesofinquiryforthehistoriographyofnineteenth-centuryartmusic.
CésarLeal(Sewanee:TheUniversityoftheSouth)ConstructingInternationalAestheticIdentities:Trans-Atlanticculturalexchanges,entrepreneurship,culturalmediation,andJewishsponsorshipinParisduringfin-de-siècle.
ThroughthestudyoftheactivitiesofParisianJewishimpresarioGabrielAstruc(1864-1938)asartist’smanagerandentrepreneur,thispaperexaminestheimpactofsponsorshipand
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culturalmediationontheestablishmentoftheinternationalmusicalculturallandscapeofthefin-de-siècle.
ThemajorityAstruc’ssponsorsweremembersoftheParisianJewishupperclass.FamiliessuchastheCamondo,Rothschild,andVanderbilt,becamesteadysupportersformostofAstruc’slarge-scaleprojectssuchasthecommissionandpublicationofnumerousworks,theconstructionoftheTheatredesChamps-Élysées,andalltheartisticeventsoflaGrandeSaisondeParis.
Buildingonunstudiedarchivaldocuments(ArchivesCamondoandFondsGabrielAstruc)andexistingworkbyscholarsoffin-de-siècleculturallife,suchasHuebner,Pasler,andFauser,thepresentstudyexploresthemechanismsthoroughwhichAstrucobtainedandmaintainedthesupportoftheJewisheliteinParisandabroad.ItfocusesonAstruc’sroleastheEuropeanrepresentativeandmanageroftheMetropolitanOperaCompanyanditsactivitiesinculturalcapitalssuchasNewYork,Philadelphia,BuenosAires,andParis.Itemphasizestheprocessofdevelopinganewsenseofglobalaestheticidentitywithinthecontextofactivephilanthropyandmultipleinternationalculturalexchanges.
ThispaperprovidesanewcontrastingviewofParisianculturallifeanditsinteractionwithculturallifeinotherculturalcapitalsaroundtheglobe.UnlikeearlierstudiesonTrans-Atlanticconnections,thisdocumentaddressesmultipleissues,rangingfromrepertoireandlarge-scaleproductionstomodernsystemsofpatronagefromAstruc’sunifyingperspective.
JoséManuelIzquierdoKönig(UniversityofCambridge)Theearlynineteenth-centuryLatinAmericansymphony:problemsandperspectivesofanunknownrepertoireandatransatlanticgenre.
WhileresearchoncolonialLatinAmericanmusichasgrownenormouslyinthelastdecades,muchisstillunknownaboutmusicoftheearlyrepublicanperiod,inthefirstdecadesofthenineteenth-century.Thelackofsourcesofsecularmusic,aswellasanenvironmentwheremostprofessionalcomposersdedicatedthemselvestochurchmusic,haslargelytransmittedtheimpressiontoscholarsthattherewasnosymphonicorinstrumentalmusicwritteninLatinAmericaduringtheperiod.However,increasedresourcesforarchivesandlibrarieshasmeantthatmoreandmorepiecesarebeingdiscovered,andthatthelandscapeofmusicduringthisperiodisnotasdryaswethought.Thispaperwillexplorehowoftherapidchangesinculturalvaluesafterindependence,inparticular in the1820sand thirties, gave rise toa generationof composersof symphonicmusic in LatinAmerica. Ina culturalworlddevoidof affordablemusicalprintingandpaidpublicconcerts,composerstryingtowritesymphonieshadtoreinventthemselves–andthesocialvalueofthesymphonicgenre-tobeabletocomposetheirmusic,whichcertainlydidn’tgrant any economic returns.While symphonieswere performedonly at a local level, thesimilaritiesofideas,proceduresandaestheticsamongcomposersthatdidn’tkneweachotheracrossahugeregion(fromGuatemalatoBolivia),revealshowmuchthesymphonybecameasymbolofanewculturalparadigm,onethatcannotsimplybecomparedtocontemporaryEuropeanpracticestobeunderstood.
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Session2A
2pm-4pm(4individualpapers)
East/West
MicaelaBaranello(SmithCollege)Zigeuneroperette:Austro-HungarianOperettaandAuthenticityReconsidered
VienneseoperettaoftenseemstoreduceHungarytogypsies,uncontrolledpassion,andatimeless,mythiclandscape.ScholarssuchasMoritzCsáky,CamilleCrittenden,andJonathanBellmanhavedebatedwhethertheseconstructionsregisterasauthenticrepresentationsofHungariannationalismandmusic,butallsharethepremisethat“gypsyoperetta”attemptedtorepresentHungarianidentity.InthispaperIexaminethegypsyoperettabeginningwithJohannStraussII’sDerZigeunerbaron(1885).Inclosereadingsoftwolaterworks,FranzLehár’sZigeunerliebe(1909)andEmmerichKálmán’sDerZigeunerprimas(1912),Iarguethatgypsyoperetta,particularlyinitstwentieth-centuryincarnations,wasrarelyintendedorreceivedasanauthenticHungarianculturalartifactbutratherasahighlyself-consciousanti-modernistfantasy.GypsyoperettasconformedtomanyofthedescriptionsofHungaryintheempire’sofficialethnography.Criticswereaware,however,thatactualHungarianoperettasgenerallydidnot.InDerZigeunerprimas,hisfirstworkfortheViennesestage,theHungarianKálmánputgypsyclichésfrontandcenterandhisworkwasmarketedasauthenticallyHungarian.Yettheoperetta’sworkingmusiciancharacters,likeKálmánhimself,self-consciouslyassumeRomagarbandmusicalstyletomakealiving.Lehár’sZigeunerliebesimilarlycouchesitsromanticgypsyadventuresasadreamsequencesplitfrommodernreality.Bothworkslargelyexcludethearistocracyanddirectreferencetoimperialpolitics.Inanerawhenoperettawasbecomingincreasinglycosmopolitan,theHungarianlandscapeseemedtoofferahumbleyetromanticescape—butoneacutelyawareofamoreambivalentreality.JonathanD.Bellman(UniversityofNorthernColorado)PicturesoftheWest:RobertSchumann’sBilderausOstenReconsidered
RobertSchumann’sBilderausOsten(ImagesoftheEast),Op.66,forpianoduethasreceivedlittlescholarlyattention;colorfullytitledmusicinacompletelydomesticgenrewouldcertainlyseemtobelittlemorethanlight,entertainingephemera,andthuseasytooverlook.Inhisintroduction,Schumannwrote(somewhattantalizingly)thatthesixpieceswereinspiredbyFriedrichRückert’seditionoftheMakamat(scenes,ortales)ofthemedievalArabicwriterAl-HarīrīofBasra,andformedan“intimatewhole.”Onlythelastpiecehadaspecificassociation,however:Harīrī’sfinalscene,inwhichtheagingadventurer-poetAbuSeidal-Serugruestheschemesandexcessesofhisyouth.Despitetheunansweredquestions,scholarshavealmostneverlookedmoreclosely.
Acloseanalysisofthegenres,styles,andevenindividualmusicalgesturesoftheothernumbersinthesetsuggestsnotHarīrī’slinguisticvirtuosityorAbuSeid’smischievousclevernessbutratherawhollywesternadventure-tale.Theindividualnumbers—which
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includebattlepieces,anorientale,andatheatricalfarewelllamentwithtwodistinctvoices—evokethepredictableepisodesofsuchatale:sallyingforth,heroisminbattle,morethanonelady-love,andasober,moralizingpostscript.TheresultthusapproximatesLudwigTieck’sstoryofthebeautifulMagelone,latersetbyBrahms;indeed,Op.66showsitsimprintonBrahms’smusicinavarietyofdifferentways.Insum,Schumann’sImagesoftheEastisaverywesterntale,witheasterncoloringandstagesceneryonly.
AnneMarieWeaver(UniversityofRochester)Glinka’sFarewelltoSt.PetersburgandRussianCosmopolitanism
AlthoughweoftenassociateMikhailGlinka’smusicwiththedevelopmentofRussiannationalism,thatearlyformofnationalismincludedasignificantamountofcosmopolitanism.Nowhereisthatmoreapparentthaninhis1840collectionofsongs,FarewelltoSt.Petersburg.Thisgroupliesontheblurredborderofthesong-cyclegenre,anditmay(ormaynot)tellthestoryofahero,asVeraVasina-Grossmanarguedin1956.Indeed,Ifindamorecompellingargumentforitsstatusasacycleintheverydiversityofitsmusicalcontents:thissetcontainsatruemicrocosmofEuropeansongtypes,includingsuchnumbersasafierybolero,anoperaticcavatina,asensuousbarcarolle,adramaticballade-likefantasia,andalullabythatmergesaspectsoffolk-songwithelementsmoretypicaloftheGermantraditionofcomposedWiegenlieder.
WhetherornotGlinkaintendedthiscollectiontostandasacycle,however,itsrealimportanceliesinitsformidableinfluenceonsubsequentRussiansongcomposers.ThedifferentgenerictypesrepresentedinAFarewelltoSt.PetersburgcontinuedtoappearinRussiansongsthroughoutthenineteenthcentury,andasawholethepervasivecosmopolitanismwecanobserveintheset(asinGlinka’slargercareer)essentiallysetaprecedentforsongcomposers.InadditiontodiscussingthecontentsofGlinka’sset,mypresentationwillalsoshowhowBalakirev,inparticular,modeledhisearlysongcompositionsonGlinka’sexample,thusreinforcingtheperceptionofGlinkaasthefatherofRussianmusic.
DavidBrodbeck(UniversityofCalifornia,Irvine)HeimatIsWheretheHeartIs;or,HowHungarianwasGoldmark?
Onehundredyearsago,onJanuary2,1915,CarlGoldmarkdiedinViennaattheageof84.IntheVienneseobituariesthisHungarian-bornJewwhohadacculturatedasGermanandachievedaplaceofeminenceinthesocioculturalmilieuofLiberalViennawasrememberedasa“greatcomposerandAustrian”whohadbroughthonortothe“fatherland.”IntheobituariesthatappearedinBudapest,bycontrast,thelatecomposerwashailedasaHungarianand“apowerfulpillarinthebuildingofHungary’sartisticfame,”eventhoughhehadneverlearnedtospeakthelanguageandlivednearlyhisentireadultlifeinAustria.Here,ineffect,thetwohalvesoftheAustro-Hungarianmonarchywerefightingoverthesameman’slegacy.
TheHungarians’claimonGoldmarkwasofrelativelyrecentorigin.UnlikeLiszt,henevermadeanefforttocultivateaMagyaridentity,avirtualrequirementforfullmembershipinamagyarnemzet(theHungariannation),astheethnonationalistsunderstoodit.BasedonevidencefoundintheBudapestpress,IarguethattheseactivistsembracedGoldmarkasa
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fellowHungarianonlywhen,neartheendofthecentury,atthestartofHungary’sso-calledGoldenAge,theydeterminedthattheculturalprestigehecouldbestowonthenationtrumpedhislackofMagyarcredentials.IconcludebyconsideringwhatGoldmarkmeanttosayabouthisidentityorself-perceptionwhen,inhisunfinishedmemoirsandalittleknownessayfrom1911,heinvokedthedistinctlyGermanideaofHeimat(home).
Session2B
2pm-4pm(4individualpapers)
SongsandStages
OskarCox-Jensen(King’sCollege,London)‘TrueCourage’:ASonginStages
ThispaperfollowstheearlyhistoryofasingleEnglishsong,fromits1798composition,toitsperformanceintheSansSoucitheatreandonregionaltours,toitsnationaldisseminationinpiratedbroadsides,totracesofitswiderculturalimpact.ThesongisCharlesDibdintheElder’s‘TrueCourage’,asentimentalpaeantocompassioncombinedwithextollingtherough,rudevirtuesoftheBritishsailor.‘TrueCourage’isexceptionalintheamountofextantsourcematerialsurroundingit.Butitismorebroadlyrepresentativeofawholegenreofsongwritingthathasbeenlongneglectedbymusicologists,literaryscholars,andhistoriansalike.
Inreconstructingthesuccessivestagesof‘TrueCourage’,Iammostinterestedinassessingtheinfluenceofthisbourgeoissongcultureuponthewidernation–and,chiastically,inhowwiderconcernsofconversation,politics,morality,andmilitarismwereboundupintheatricalrepresentation.Abriefreadingofthesongistiedtoitschronologicalcontextsofcreation,performance,reception,dissemination,andappropriation,informedbythephilosophy,politics,andculturalpracticesofthoseinvolved.Theprocessisreciprocal:asasocialobject,thesongshedsnewlightonthementalitiesandhabitsofitsday.Inpursuingthisnoveltakeonthecasestudy,Iaimtoexploreaninterdisciplinarymodelofcontextualclosereading,moreappropriateforthisrepertoirethantraditionalmusicalanalysis,informedbytheburgeoninginterestofotherdisciplinesinpopularformsofsongculture.
KatyHamilton(Independent)NataliaMacfarrenandtheEnglishGermanLied
Inthesecondhalfofthenineteenthcentury,German-bornsingerNataliaMacfarren(1827-1916)producedanextraordinarynumberofEnglish-languagetranslationsofsongandopera.ForNovello’soperaticvocalscoreseries,shetranslatedworksbyMozart,Beethoven,Weber,Auber,Bellini,Donizetti,VerdiandWagner.Inaddition,shewasaprolifictranslatorofLieder,providingEnglishversionsofsongsbySchumann,Mendelssohn,Franz,WeyrauchandBrahms.
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AlthoughseveralofMacfarren’stranslationsarestillinprint,thereispreciouslittlescholarlyresearchintoherwork–eitherbymusicresearchers(forwhomsheisperhapsmorefamiliarasthewifeofcomposerGeorgeAlexanderMacfarren)orlinguistsandliteraryexperts.YethertextsprovideanimportantinsightintotheEnglishperformanceofLiederfromc.1860-1890(includingsubtlechangestothemeaningoftheoriginalpoemsthroughlinguistic‘interpretation’),particularlyamongamateurperformerswhopreferredtosingintheirownlanguage.ThispaperprovidesanoverviewofMacfarren’swork,andherattitudesandapproachestotranslation,usingspecificcasestudies.Hercontributionwillalsobediscussedinlightoftwenty-first-centuryattitudestoLiederinEnglish,inconnectionwithseveralrecentperformances:inIainBurnside’splayWhyMusttheQueenDie?(2014),andrecitalsofSchubert’sDieschöneMüllerininJeremySams’snewtranslation,byTobySpenceandChristopherGlynn.ItishopedthatinterviewswiththeseperformerswillshedfurtherlightonthisrecentreappearanceoftheEnglishGermanLied.
KatherineGray(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)Wagner’svocaltechniques
TheargumentofthispaperisthattheWagnerianparametersofHauptmotivandVersmelodiecannotbecomprehendedmerelybystudyingunmarkedscoresorurtexteditions,isolatedfromconsiderationofthehistoricalcontingenciesofoperaticperformance;Wagner’sconceptionsofvocalexpressionwereessentialtohiscompositionalidioms.Suchidioms,Iargue,weredependentuponprevailingpracticesofdramaticsongthatgovernedtheemergenceofhisaesthetics.Wagner’ssingersplayedmajorrolesinconstructingboththeideologicalandmaterialfeaturesofwhathetermed“musicdramas.”
AninstructiveglimpseofWagner’svocalworldistobefoundinascorethatbelongedtoMaryBurrell(1850-1898),recentlyacquiredbytheHargrovelibraryatUCBerkeley.Burrell’sscoresubstantiatestherelationshipbetweenhisso-calledMusikDramaandthevocaltechniquesassociatedwithit.Burrell’sannotationsfromalessonwithWagner’sniece,JohannaJachmann-Wagner(1826-1894)shednewlightontheconceptualgenesisofMusikDrama.TheseindicatethatWagner’ssingerswereresponsibleforthecommunicationofotherwiselatentcompositionalstructures.Jachmann-WagnerwashighlyacclaimedintheroleofOrtrudbyaudiences,pedagogues,and“UncleRichard”himself.Burrell’seditionofLohengrinprovidesausefullexiconfortheimmersivestudyofWagneriancomposition,performancepractices,andreception.NatashaLoges(RoyalCollegeofMusic)Tellingwomen’sstories,sellingwomen’ssongs:thecreativerelationshipofPaulHeyseandJohannesBrahms
BrahmswasatremendousfanofthenovelistandpoetPaulHeyse(1830–1914),declaringthat‘anewnovellabyHeysealwaysmeansadayofcelebrationforme.Idon’treadthemjustonce;Ikeepthemnearmeforweeksandreadthemrepeatedly’(Heuberger,1976).EduardHanslickalsowrotetoHeysethathecouldnot‘imaginethetimeinwhichyourstorieswillnolongerberead’(Moisy,1981).Indeed,Heyseenjoyedenormouspopularitythroughoutthesecondhalfofthenineteenthcentury.Today,heismostlyrememberedastheauthorofthe46poemssetbyHugoWolfintheItalienischesLiederbuch(1891,1896).
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BrahmscomposedtwelvesettingsofHeyse’spoetrybetween1859and1888,nearlyallofwhichwereforwomensingingeithersoloorinsmallensembles.ThispaperwillexplorehowHeyse–andbyassociationBrahms–balancedtheneedtohavepopularappealwithadesiretopushtheboundariesofacceptabilityinworkstargetedatthemiddle-class,educatedwomenoftheirday.TheBalticwriterLauraMarholm(1854-1928)rejoicedinthenumerousintellectuallyandsexuallyconfidentfemalecharactersHeysepresented,andchampionedhimasan‘awakener’ofwomen(Marholm,1896).Despiterecentscholarship(Gerards,2010),Brahms’sowncontributiontothismovementhasbarelybeenrecognised.Thepaperwillexaminethethree-wayrelationshipbetweenHeyse,Brahmsandtheirtargetaudienceusingthe‘Mädchenlied’Op.95no.6asacase-study.
Session2C
2pm-4pm(4individualpapers)
LibrettiandHistoricisim
DaniilZavlunov(StetsonUniversity)Censoringthemuses:operaandcensorshipduringthereignofNicholasI(1825-1855)Itishardlynewsthatinnineteenth-centuryEuropecensorshipshapedoperainwayslargeandsmall.Surprisingly,censorship—asaninstitution,anetworkofindividualcensors,aprocess,anideologicaltool,andsomuchelse—hasneverbecomearegularpartofthehistoriographyofnineteenth-centuryRussianmusic.ThispaperbeginstorectifythesituationbyfocusingontheverycomplexrelationshipbetweencensorshipandoperainRussiaduringthereignofNicholasI.Traditionally,operaandcensorshipduringthistimehavebeenexaminedinscholarshipexclusivelythroughtheprismofprintedlibrettos.Inreality,theprintedlibrettoandthesunglibrettoofthesameoperaweretworatherdifferentproducts,censoredindiscreetgovernmentagencies,byverydifferentpeople.LibrettosasperformedwerecensoredbytheThirdDivision(thepolice),librettosasprintedwerereviewedbytheMinistryofPeople’sEnlightenment,andalllibrettosthatmentionedanythingecclesiasticalhadtobepresentedtotheHolySynod.Buthowdidtheprocessactuallywork?Whowerethecensors?Howwerethesecensorsthinkingaboutthetextsandwhy?Inansweringthesequestions,thepaperintegratesdifferentfacetsofoperacensorshipintoaholisticnarrative.Itdrawsheavilyonavarietyofnewlyuncovereddocuments—censor’sreports,censor-annotatedmanuscriptandprintedlibrettos,censorshiplogs,andNicholas’spersonalnotes—fromseveralarchivalcollectionsinRussia,andfocusesonahandfulofoperalibrettos(includingALifefortheTsar,AnnaBolena,andLesHuguenots),tracingtheseworksthroughtheprocessofsterilization.EdwardJacobson(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)Donizetti’sHistoricism
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PerusingItalianoperalibrettiprintedinthefirstdecadesofthenineteenthcenturyrevealstwosignificantandinterconnectedtrends:anincreaseinhistoricalsubjectsandinpara-textualmaterial(suchaslibrettists’prefaces,historicalintroductions,extendedscenicdescriptions,anthropologicalfootnotes,andevenbibliographies).Thisproliferationofprintedmaterialsintendedtoberead—ratherthanenactedonstage—atteststotherisingimportanceofreadingaspartoftheprimoottocentoopera-goingexperience.Notonlywereaudienceslookingattheirprintedlibretti,whichconditionedthemtoinvesttheoperaticactionwithanauraofauthenticity,butthecharactersonstageoftenmodeledreadingasapractice,guidingaudiencestowardacanonofItalianliteraryworks.Giventhisemphasisonwrittenhistory,inthispaperIarguethatreadingduringtheoperawasanindispensableelementofRomanticoperatichistoricism.
Ishowhowboththeliterarypretensionsofottocentolibrettistsandtherelatedphenomenonofreadinginoperarevealtheinextricablelinkbetweenhistoryandliteraturethathasbeenfrequentlystressedbyhistoriansofpost-Napoleonichistoricalconsciousness.ThesepracticesconvergeinDonizetti’s1833TorquatoTasso,aworkforwhichthelibrettist,JacopoFerretti,providedanextendedhistoricalintroductioncontainingabibliography,referencestoarchivaldocuments,aspirationsto“storicaverità,”andquotesfromTassohimself.Combinedwiththeopera’sdramatizedreadingofGerusalemmeliberata,suchprefatorymaterialsdemonstratetheintermedialaspectsofoperatichistoricism,onethatnecessarilyinvitesaudiencestosupplementoperaticspectaclewithcarefullycuratedhistory.
AlessandraA.Jones(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)‘TheTheoryoftheDagger’:Verdi’sUnballoinmascheraandDiscoursesofRegicide
WhentheunpopularDukeofParmawasassassinatedin1854,blamefellonAntonioCarra,whohadreportedlyvolunteeredforthetaskonbehalfofGiuseppeMazzini’snationalistgroup,GiovaneItalia,becausetheDukehadseducedhislover.Twoyearslater,statesmanDanieleManinpublishedanopenletterdenouncingassassinationas“thegreatenemyofItaly,”whichpromptedanimpassionedresponseindefenseofviolencefromMazzini.Thispaperexploreshowthesehigh-profiledebatesaboutpoliticalassassinationinflectedtheconceptionandreceptionofthefinalsceneofVerdi’sUnballoinmaschera,inwhichajealoushusbandassassinatesthekingwhohasseducedhiswife.
AntonioSomma’slibrettoandVerdi’smusicforthescenesendconflictingmessages:thechorusdenouncestheregicide,buttheheavenlychorusthataccompaniestheking’sdeathringsfalseinthefaceofhissins.Andatleastsomecontemporaryspectatorsunderstoodtheassassin,Renato,tobealignedwithMazzini’ssympatheticportrayalofamanprovokedtomurder.TheGazzettamusicalediMilano,forinstance,heard“amostnaturalpsychologicaleffect”whenRenatoshiftedbetweenboilingangerandsentimentalremembrances.ThecriticoftheNewYorkTimesbelievedthat,inBallo,Verdi“attemptsmorevehementlythanheretofore…theportrayalofdramaticpassion.”HistoricalattentiontothepoliticalandtopicalresonancesofBallohasfocusedoncensorship,butthispaperwillshowthattheoperaparticipatedinamuchmoreimmediatewayindiscoursesaboutpoliticalpower,legality,andviolentresistance.
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ClaudioVellutini(UniversityofBritishColumbia,Vancouver)FannyTacchinardi-Persiani,CarloBalocchino,andItalianOperaBusinessinVienna,Paris,andLondon,1837-1845Among19th-centuryItalianprimadonnas,FannyTacchinardi-PersianihascomedowninhistoryasthefirstinterpreterofDonizetti’sLuciadiLammermoor(1835).Herinternationalcareer,however,hasreceivedlittleattentionbyoperascholars.DespitePaolaCiarlantini’s1988biographyofthesinger,however,herinternationalactivityhasreceivedlittleattentionbyoperascholars.Recentdevelopmentsinoperastudies,aswellaspreviouslyoverlookedarchivalmaterials,nowprovideenhancedcriticaltoolstoshedlightonTacchinardi-Persiani’scontributiontotheproduction,circulation,andreceptionofItalianoperasinatransnationalcontext.Inthispaper,Ifocusonthehithertolittle-knowncorrespondencebetweentheprimadonnaandCarloBalocchino,impresariooftheKärntnertortheaterinVienna,asawindowontheeconomic,social,andculturaldynamicsoftheoperaticnetworksbetweentheItalianStates,Vienna,Paris,andLondon.Thisbodyofdocuments,currentlyhousedintheViennaCityLibrary,comprisessomefortyletterswrittenbetween1836and1845.HereTacchinardi-Persianistrategicallyconstructsherimageasaself-madewomanvis-à-visherrivalrywithsopranoGiuliaGrisi,herrepertorychoices,herneedtoprovideanincometoherfamily,andherresponsibilitiesasamother.Byrevealingthefluidityofpowerdynamicsbetweenoperaimpresarios,performers,andcomposersduringthe1830sand1840s,theselettersofferafreshlookattheroleofprimadonnas’agencyinthedisseminationandestablishmentofaninternationalcanonofItalianoperas.Keynote1JessicaGienow-HechtMusic&nationbrandingin19th-centuryinternationalrelationsThetalkwill,first,makeanumberofobservationsontheintersectionofmusicandinternationalhistoryincurrentscholarship.Second,itwillelaborateononeofthecentralquestionshistorianshavebeenponderinginregardtothe19thcentury:howtoreconcilevisionsofextremenationalism,simultaneously,andinternationalism.Thepresentationwillprobetheargumentthatlookingatmusicandpoliticsintandemmighthelpusaddressthatquestion.Asatool,thepresentationconsiderswhatJessicaGienow-Hechthascometolabel“musicalnationbranding”forresearchersinbothfields.
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TUESDAY12July
Session3A
9.30am-11am(3individualpapers)
Time,Space,Form
CarloCaballero(UniversityofColorado)Chopin’sMeditationonTime:Bells,ClocksandSubjectivityinthePrelude,op.28,inA-flatMajor
PaderewskioncerecalledthatCamilleDubois,astudentofChopin’s,insistedthatthetollingtonicbassnotesinthelastsectionofChopin’sPreludeinA-flatMajormustalwaysbestruckwiththesamestrength,despitethesottovoceexpressionoftheuppervoices,because“theideaofthatPreludeisbasedonthesoundofanoldclock,”and“theclockknowsnodiminuendo.”Paderewski’srecollectionofDubois’sadviceprovidesaprovocativeinterpretativedirection,butalsoopensthisunusualpiecetohermeneuticobservationsofwidersignificance.IarguethatthisPreludemovinglydevelopsandintertwinestwo(ormore)differentexperiencesoftime.Thecircularnatureofthework,suggestingeternity,isuniqueinChopin’spreludes:itbeginsandendswithpulsingtonicchordsinexactlythesamedisposition,whereaspreludesnormallybeginandendindifferentregistralandfiguralpositions.Withintheframeoftheeternal,the“action”ofthePreludeofferstwoalternatives:mechanicaltime(thetimeofclocksandbells,pulsingchordsandtollingbassnotes)andhumantime(constantagogicchallengestomechanicaltime,harmonicdivagations,andquickeningharmonicrhythm).Theformofthepiecesuggeststwopresentationsofhumanandmechanicaltimeindialogue,eachfollowedbya“protest”againsttheinevitabilityofclocktime.Theclockalwaysreturns,andinthefinalsectionseemstosounditsbellindependentlyofanysentimentalresistanceonthepartofthepianist-protagonist.Yetaftertheninthstroke,Chopinallowsthepianisttotakeconcessionsfromtheclock,expandingtimelikearesistantdreamer.Thepieceends,thanksto“innervoices,”anextendedpedal,andanexquisitelyplacedgracenote,inaspiritofreconciliationratherthanresistance.
ChairatChongvattanakij(UniversityofToronto)InvertingtheSublime:Franck’sVariationssymphoniquesasaComicNarrative
ThefinaleofFranck’sVariationssymphoniquesbaffledeventhemostenthusiasticofhissupporters.Consideringtheseriousnessthatdominatedtheprecedingmusicaldiscourse,thesuddenshifttowardsseeminglysuperficialebulliencestrikesmeasbeing“funny”inbothsensesoftheterm:amusingandstrange.IinvestigatetheincongruouslightheartednessofthisfinalebydiscussingtheclaimthatFranckbasedthemusiconafestivecramignon(atraditionaldancefromLiège),whichservedashiscompositionalpointofdeparture.Therefore,theoverarchingnarrativeofthepiececanbeunderstoodasacomicunveilingofanearthlydance,ratherthantheachievementofupliftingapotheosis;drawingonKantandJeanPaul,Iarguethatthesublimebecomesinverted.First,Iexplore
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theideathatsublimeexperienceenactsamythologicalplotstructureinwhichanepicstruggleeventuallygiveswaytotranscendence.Throughacloseanalysis,IdemonstratethatthenarrativeunfoldingoftheVariationssymphoniquesdepartsfromtheromancearchetypetypicalofsublimeexperiencebecauseinfinitelonging(asconveyedthroughthehistoricalscopeofFranck’svariationtechniquesandthedisorientingchromaticthirdrelationsinthetransitionintothefinale–bothofwhichevokeKant’smathematicalsublime)isultimatelyabandonedforthecelebrationofthefinitudeoflife(asrepresentedbytheunexpectedemergenceofthecramignon).IproposethatthislateworkredeemsFranck’searlybrilliantvariationsetsforthepiano,notbyattainingsublimity,butbyaffirmingtheseriousnessofplay.
SebastianWedler(UniversityofOxford)TonalPairingasaStrategyofLyricalTime:AntonWebern’sLangsamerSatz(1905)
CompletedinJune1905asoneoftheearliestcompositionalstudieswhichAntonWebernproducedunderthetutelageofArnoldSchoenberg,theLangsamerSatzhasbeenmadesubjecttoscholarlyinquiryonlyinasmuchasitprovidesanearlyevidenceofBrahms’sinfluenceuponSchoenberg’smusicalthoughtanddidactics.YettolocatetheimportanceofWebern’sLangsamerSatzonlywithin‘theBrahmsfog’(W.Frisch)wouldbetomisunderstandthework.Rather,asIshallargue,Weberninterpretedthe‘Brahmsiantechniques’thatSchoenberghadintroducedhimto(thetraditionalFormenlehre,functionalharmonyanddevelopingvariation)asexpressivemeansanddevicesbywhichtoreformulatehispre-existingidiosyncraticconcernfor‘lyricaltemporality’.Thestartingpointofmyinterpretationisthework’spairingofCminorandE-flatmajor,setupalreadyinthefirsteightbars,astonicsoperatingonthesamehierarchicallevel.ThroughacombinationofSchenkeriananalysisandNeo-Riemanniantheories,aswellasastudyofthemanuscriptsandsketchesarchivedatthePaulSacherFoundation,IwillexplorethecompositionalstrategiesbywhichWebernaimedatmaintainingthistonalpairingthroughoutthework,incontradistinctiontothemorecommonconceptionoftonalpairingsasinstancesof‘directionaltonality’.Assuch,theLangsamerSatzinvitesusnotonlytoseeWebernenteringintodialoguewith,ratherthan(asiscommonlyheralded)aone-sidedadoptionof,Schoenberg’sideas,butalsoprovesapertinentplacetothinkthrough(withreferencemostnotablytoSchubert,R.Schumann,Brahms,andWagner)someofthecrucialanalyticalproblemsofnineteenthcenturymusicandtheirtemporalimplications.
Session3B
9.30am-11am(3individualpapers)
C.1800
ShaenaWeitz(CityUniversity,NewYork)ExcavatingthePotpourri
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Bythemid-tolate-nineteenthcentury,thegenreofpotpourriwasessentiallyamedleyoftunesfromasinglepopularoperastrungtogether,describedrecentlyas“hackworkfortheamateurorimpoverishedmusician.”ButwhenthepotpourrifirstappearedinFrancearoundtheturnofthenineteenthcentury,itwasunderstoodinthoroughlydifferentterms.Initsoriginalform,thepotpourriwasavehicleforwittymusicalcommentarythroughtheborrowingandjuxtapositionofpassagesfromdiversemusicalgenres.Amongitsmoreunusualuses,onecriticofanineteenth-centurymusicjournalexplainedthatthepotpourriwas“especiallygoodfordenouncingplagiarists”becausemelodiescouldbedeconstructedandplacednexttothemusicfromwhichtheyallegedlyhadbeenstolen.Thistypeofpotpourri,however,wasmadeillegalbyNapoleoniccopyrightlaw.Toopenlyborrowfrommultipleworkstomakeamusicalpointwasbanned;itwasonlypermittedtoreferenceasingleworkatatime.Thepotpourrilanguishedintoashadowofwhatitoncehadbeen.
ThispaperconsiderswaystounderstandtheearlyFrenchpotpourriasawittyorbarbedgenre,andthebarrierstothissortofcomprehensionbyexaminingpotpourrisbyLouisJadin(1768–1853)andDanielSteibelt(1765–1823)andcontemporarywritingsaboutthegenre.Iarguethattheparticularborrowingsfoundintheseearlypotpourrisreflectsomethingfarbeyondtriviality,butprovideawindowintoFrenchmusicallifeandmusic’ssocialcontextinthefirstdecadeofthenineteenthcentury.
KatherineHambridge(DurhamUniversity)GenreConsciousnessintheNapoleonicTheatre
Amongthemanytrendsdated‘c.1800’isthemodernrejectionofthegeneric,exemplifiedbyFriedrichSchlegel'sinsistencethat'everyworkisitsowngenre'.Mypaperrevisitsthiscanonicmomentintheintellectualhistoryofgenrefromanalternativeperspective:theunrulygenerictransformationsandmusicalpracticesinParis'stheatres,thehistoriccentreofgenretheory.Therelaxationoflicencinglawsin1791hadfuelledahugeexpansioninboththenumberoftheatresandtherangeofgenresproducedinthem:theboulevardtheatresinparticularhosteda'genrification'(Senici,2014)andhybridisationofformssuchasvaudeville,mélodrameandpantomime.In1806-7,however,Napoleonre-introducedastrictregulationofthetheatricaleconomybydistributingparticulargenresbetweenonlyeighttheatres;genredivisionswereagainassertedonthebasisofsubjectmatterandtheroleandproportionofspokenwordandmusic.
Usingsurvivingadministrativedocuments,mypaperreconstructsthepoliticalandfinancialmotivationsforthe1806retrenchment,andthebureaucraticprocessofdefininggenrecharacteristics.Takingbothworksanddiscourseintheyearsimmediatelyfollowingthereorganisation—includingaspateofplaysinwhichgenreswerepersonifiedonstage—Iexplorehow,andtowhatextent,categoriesofgenreshapedtheuseandreceptionofmusicasadramaticmedium.Thisapproachshowstheimportance,Ipropose,ofsynthesizingpolitical,institutional,intellectualandreceptionhistory,inordertowriteahistoryofgenre-consciousness,ratherthanofgenre.
AnneliesAndries(YaleUniversity)Dreaming"OpéradeLuxe":SpectacleinLeSueur'sOssianoulesbardes
ParisOpéra,July10,1804:Agiganticaerialpalaceappearsonthestage,forty-fivesingers
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andsixty-fivedancersaccompaniedbytwelveharpslamentOssian’sfate.TheaudienceandcriticsravedabouttheactIVdreamsceneinLeSueur’sOssianoulesbardes,whichwasthemostastoundingvisualandmusicalspectacletheOpérahadeverstaged.Ossian’srelianceonthecombinedeffectofmusic,dance,costumesandstagesetshastraditionallybeenlinkedtoNapoleonicpropagandaandLeSueur’soperaticaestheticsoftenconsideredtoprefigureWagner’sGesamtkunstwerk.
Bycontrast,thispaperdiscussesthe“totalspectacle”inOssianasaquintessentialproductoftheParisOpéra,capitalizingontheinstitution’slongtimereputationforunparalleledmusicalandvisualluxuryanditsambitiontobeacenterforreunitingthefinearts(whichbecametangibleinreorganizationsaround1800thatencouragedthecollaborationbetweentheOpéra’svariousartists).TherichvisualandmusicalworldofMacpherson’sOssianicpoems—theprincipalsourceofOssian’slibretto—formedtheidealsubjecttoreestablishthesplendoroftheOpéra.TransmittingthisworldbecameincreasinglyimportantinconsecutiveversionsofOssian,inparticularofthedreamscene.Whilethisscenewasjudgedthework’smostOssianicpart,itsrepresentationalsobuiltonalonghistoryofFrenchoperaticdreamscenesfamousfortheirluxuriouscombinationofmusic,danceandvisualeffects.LookingattheOpéra’sroleinthecreationofOssian,drawsattentiontotheimportanceofinstitutionalpracticesandtheirreputationinnineteenth-centuryaestheticdevelopments.
Session3C
9.30am-11am(3individualpapers)
TheatricalIllumination
Feng-ShuLee(TunghaiUniversity)IllusoryReality:ShadowinRomanticMusicandArtsTechnologicaladvancesinglassmakingenabled19th-centuryartiststodevelopnewunderstandingsoflightrelativetodarkness,andtheseideaspassedintocontemporaryliterature,music,andphilosophy.ThisisparticularlyclearintheRomantics’conceptionofshadowasametaphorforillusion.TheRomantics’fascinationwithshadowreflectstheirre-assessmentofitsmeaningrelativetoreality.AuthorsusedtheimageofreflectiontochallengetheEnlightenment-erarelationshipbetweenappearanceandreality.Inopticalscience,discussionsofafterimageshowedthepotentiallydeceptivenatureofvision.Whatthehumaneyedoesnotseemaybewherethetruthlies.IarguethatthisvisualphenomenonservedasanimportantinfluenceonRomanticmusic.Examplesaboundintheproductionofoffstagesound,specialtimbres,andscenesofhallucination.Istartwithanoverviewofthechangingvisualperceptionin19th-centuryscience.IproceedwithadiscussionoftheRomantics’perceptionofcorporealityrelativetotheirreadingofshadowinliteratureandarts.IconcludewithaclosereadingofDieFrauohneSchatten,inwhichStraussandHofmannsthaleachhadadifferentapproachtothe
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protagonist’squestforshadow.IwillshowhowStrauss’sreadingconveyedthisimage’smetaphoricalmeaninginaudibleterms,andhowthisreadingderivedfromcontemporaryopticalscience.19th-centurymusicscholarshiphasfocusedontheverbaldimensionofmusicattheexpenseofitsabundantandclearlyvisualcomponents.Byintertwiningviewingandlisteningexperiences,IofferarefreshingperspectivetothenatureofRomanticmusic.TamsinAlexander(Goldsmiths,UniversityofLondon)IlluminatingSpectacle:LightandillusioninGustavustheThird(1833)Ontheeveningof13November1833,thefinalsceneofGustavustheThird–adaptedfromAuber’sGustaveIII–wasrevealedatCoventGardentorapturousapplause.Itwasnotthepresenceofastarsingerordancerthatprovokedthisreaction,northestrainsofAuber’sever-populardancemusic.Whatimpressedtheaudiencewasthevisionofamaskedballilluminatedbychandeliers,lamps,brackets,tripodsandcandelabras.Atfirstglance,thesituationinParishadbeenmuchthesame.PremieredattheOpéralessthanninemonthsearlier,GustaveIIIalsowonaccoladesthankstoitselaboratefinale.Butchangesmadetotheoperainthetransferprocess,combinedwiththedifferingcontextsoflightingandmasqueradinginLondonandParis,meantthatGustaveIIIhadacquirednewsignificationsasGustavus. Investigationsintovisualityinoperahavebecomeincreasinglyprevalentinrecentyears.Few,however,haveconsideredhowtheintroductionofgaslightshapedopera-goingandoperastagings.Toturnto1830sLondonistoexploreatimeandplaceobsessedwithlightingtechnologiesandwithreachingabetterunderstandingtheeye.UsingtheexampleofGustavus,Iexplorehownewdiscussionsaboutlightandvisioninfluencedresponsestoopera,andhowlightcouldbeusedtooverwhelm,distract,promptaudiencestodelightinillusion,wonderattechnology,andbecomesweptupinascene.Bringinglightintothepicturenotonlydrawsuponanelementofurbanlifethatwasconsumingcontemporarydiscourse,therefore,butalsoofferswaystodeepenourunderstandingofhowoperawasexperiencedinearlynineteenth-centuryLondon.TommasoSabbatini(UniversityofChicago)MusicfortheParisianpopularstage:thecaseof(andthecasefor)latenineteenth-centuryféerie
Untilrecently,thescholarlycommunityallbutignoredtheFrenchfairyplay,féerie.Thelastdecadehasseenafewcontributionsinthefieldsoftheatrehistory(notablybyRoxaneMartin)andfilmstudies(byscholarsofGeorgesMéliès),butnomusicologisttothisdayhasengagedwiththegenre.Féerie,though,wasafixtureoftheatricallifeinnineteenth-centuryParis,itreachedexceedinglylargeaudiences,itwaschampionedbyleadingintellectuals,anditreliedheavilyonmusic,evenmoresothanmelodrama.
InthispaperIwillexposethepreliminaryfindingsofmystudyofacorpusofsometwenty-fiveféeriesdatingbetween1870and1900.Farfrombeingatimeofdeclineforféerieascommonlyclaimed,thisperiodwitnesseditsexceptionalvitalityandcapacityforadaptation.Someféeriesabandonedpatchworkscorescompiledbyhouseconductorsin
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favouroffullyoriginalscorescommissionedtowell-knowncomposers(thefirstexampleisVictorienSardou’sLeroiCarotte,settomusicbyOffenbach,1872);somerenouncedthetraditionalfairy-talesubjectsforscientificones(Adolphed’EnneryandJulesVerne’sLetourdumondeen80jours,1874;Offenbach’sLevoyagedanslalune,1875);andfinally,GeorgesMélièstransferredféeriefromthestagetothenewmediumoffilm(Cendrillon,1899).
Onthebasisofasurveyofbothprintedandarchival(F-Pan,F-Pn,F-Po)sources,Iwilldiscusswiththeeconomy,theideology,andthepoeticsofthegenre,aswellasthechallengesitposestotheatreandmusichistorians.
Session4A
11.30am-1pm(3panelpapers)
Panel:On(re)hearingDelius:Contexts,Legacies,andTraditions
FrederickDelius(1862-1934)wasacomposerofinternationalstature,vision,andinventiveness.Nevertheless,aspectsofhisscholarlyreceptionremainatarelativelyelementarylevelincomparisonwiththatofbothBritishcontemporariessuchasElgarandVaughanWilliams,andalsohisEuropeancolleagues(Debussy,Strauss,andSibelius).Criticalappreciationofhismusichasoftenbeenshapedbyaseriesofassumptions:thathewasameremusicalrhapsodistwithonlyarudimentarygraspoflarge-scalemusicalform,orthathisrichlylate-romanticharmonicsyntaxwasanachronisticandoutofkilterwithmoreprogressivestrandsofcomposition.Takingadvantageoftheupsurgeofinterestinthecomposerinthewakeofhis2012anniversary(notablyJohnBridcut’sBBC4film,Delius:Composer,Lover,Enigma)andthelaunchoftheAHRC-fundedproject‘Delius,Modernism,andtheSoundofPlace’in2015,thispanelpresentsnewscholarlyperspectivesonthecomposerandhismusic.GrimleywillanalyzetheambivalenceofDelius’useofplace,andtheproblemssurroundingattemptstomarkthecomposeraseither‘English’or‘cosmopolitan’.BullivantoutlinesnewusesofdigitaltechnologytoclarifyDelius’compositionalprocessesandperformancehistory,withparticularreferencetotheworkofhisgreatadvocate(andlatertrustee)ThomasBeecham.CollinswillassesstheinfluenceofNietzscheonthecomposer,andhisimmersioninthephilosopher’swidercriticalthought,inthecontextoflatenineteenth-centuryNietzscheanisminBritishintellectualcirclesanditsproblematiclegacy.Insum,thepanelwillprovideinsightsintoawholesalereappraisalofthecomposer,withimplicationsforscholars,performersandlisteners.DanielGrimley(UniversityofOxford)‘UntoBriggFair’:Cosmopolitanism,Delius,andtheIdentitiesofPlaceCosmopolitanismhasbeenaprominentterminthereceptionofFrederickDelius’smusiceversincethepublicationofChristopherPalmer’s1976widely-readmonographonthecomposer.ForPalmerandothers,resistingthenegativetoneofmuchwritingonDelius
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aftertheSecondWorldWar,thetermisfrequentlyinflectedwithpositivevalue,suggestingopenness,liberation,andaprogressiveworldview,ratherthansignalingcriticalapprobation.BuildingontherecentworkofBruceRobbins,AmandaAnderson,andSarahCollins,however,Ishallarguethatthecategoryisfarmoredestabilizingandopaquethanitsappropriationfrequentlysuggests,andthatitsvalenceinDeliusstudiesisespeciallyproblematic.Delius’s1907-8tonepoemBriggFair,subtitled‘AnEnglishRhapsody’,isanindicativecasestudy.BasedonamelodycollectedbyPercyGraingerinNorthLincolnshirein1905andlaterarrangedforunaccompaniedchoir,Delius’ssetoforchestralvariationsoffersatransformativevisionofthemusic,whosearch-likeexpressivetrajectoryisconsistentwithlatenineteenth-centuryaesthetics.Closerattentiontothescore,andtoitsgenesisandreception,however,suggestsamorecomplexreadingofthework’smultiplepointsofstylisticreference.Cosmopolitanismheremightserveasastraightforwardregisterofthemusic’slayeredevocationsofplace,or,morepointedly,asacritiqueofthework’sthinlyveiledcolonialism.Attemptingtoresolvethesetensions,Iwillconclude,promptsrenewedreflectionabouttheideologicalassociationsoftheterminamusic-historicalcontextanditsusefulnessasaninterpretativeframe.JoannaBullivant(UniversityofOxford)‘“Mymusichasneverbeenplayedaswellbyanyoneelse:”SirThomasBeechamandDeliusinPerformance’NofigurehashadagreaterimpactonDelius’legacythanSirThomasBeecham.AswellasestablishingaperformancetraditionforDelius’works,Beechamwaseditor-in-chiefoftheDeliuscollectededitionproject.Beecham’sinterpretationscarryenormousweight,bothbecauseofthecomposer’sstronglyarticulatedapprovalthereof(asquotedinthetitleofthispaper),andduetothewidespreadsuggestionthatDelius,unlikeStrauss,MahlerorElgar,wasnotaninterpreterofhisownworks,andleftworksthatwerean‘emptyhouse’requiringextensiveediting.Morerecently,however,Beecham’sinterpretationshavebeenquestioned,forexamplebySirMarkElder,speakinginJohnBridcut’s2012filmaboutthecomposer.ThereisalsothematterofBeecham’seffortstoestablishDeliusasadefinitivelyBritishcomposer,despiteevidenceofhiscosmopolitanism.WhiletherearedangersinprivilegingamoderninterpretationoverBeecham’s,orinseekingaprelapsarianUrtext,itiscertainlythecasethatattemptstofindalternativestoBeecham’sinterpretationsdemandapreciseunderstandingoftheextentofhisinfluence,aswellasthatofDelius’othereditorsandamanuenses.ThispaperwilldiscusshowthecreationoftheDeliusOnlineCatalogue(DOC),usingtheMusicEncodingInitiative(MEI),hascreatednewpossibilitiesfortracingthecompositionalandeditingprocessofDelius’worksanddisseminatingthisknowledgetoperformers.Inadditiontopresentingthehistoryofworksinanaccessiblemanner,MEIraisesthepossibilityofdigitaleditionswhichlaybaretheinfluenceofdifferenthandsandeditorsincreatingthework.
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SarahCollins(UniversityofNewSouthWales)‘The“ZarathustraMood”:Delius,anti-intellectualismandtheproblemofmusicalNietzscheism’Delius’identificationwithNietzsche’swritingsiswelldocumented—hewasamilitantadvocateofNietzsche’stextsamongfriendsandacquaintances;hisfamiliaritywithNietzsche’swritingswassuchthathisdailyconversationwassaidtohavebeenpepperedwithNietzscheanquotations;andofcoursehealsosetNietzsche’spoetrytomusicinanumberofworksbetween1898and1916.Nevertheless,therehasbeenapersistentskepticismaboutthedegreetowhichDeliusengagedwithNietzsche’ssubstantivephilosophy,suchasitwas.WhenaskedtowriteaprogrammenoteforthepremiereofDelius’AMassofLife,forexample,FritzCassirer—whohadhelpedselectthetextofthework,drawnfromNietzsche’sThusSpakeZarathustra—notedhowDelius’‘artisticaimistherenderingoftheZarathustramood,andnothingmore’.OthercommentatorshaveaffirmedthisviewinanattempttodistanceDeliusfromnationalistpolitics,claimingthatDelius’s‘anti-intellectualism’inthisregardallowedhimtoescapethepoliticalimplicationsofidentifyingwithNietzsche’sZarathustraintheleaduptoWorldWarI. Thispaperwillshowthatwhatwasatstakeintheseclaims,aswellasinbroaderdiscussionsof‘musicalNietzscheism’,wasanabidingconcernabouttherelationshipbetweenaestheticsandpolitics,whichwasexpressedthroughdebatesabouttheabilityofmusictoconveynon-musicalideas.Further,itwillarguethatunderstandingthetensionbetweenNietzsche’scritiqueofWagnerontheonehand,andpost-WagneriandebatesconcerningtheuseofexcerptsfromNietzsche’stextsinmusicontheother,canilluminatetheconflictingaestheticandphilosophicalideasatplayinadvocatingautonomyattheturnofthetwentiethcentury.
Session4B
11.30am-1pm(3individualpapers)
Vienna
AnneHyland(UniversityofManchester)TheStringQuartetinSchubert’sViennaThetendencytounderstandSchubert’slarge-scaleinstrumentalpracticeswithinthecontextofBeethoven’sstructuralprocedureshashadtwomajorramifications.First,traditionalapplicationsoftonaltheoryhavereadSchubert’sinstrumentalmusicasnon-systematic,assessingitslyricallyconceivedparataxis(Mak,2004)negativelyagainstanunsuitableBeethovenianprecedentofhypotaxis.Second,fromtheperspectiveofmusichistory,theimmediatecontextofSchubert’smusicallifeinViennaanditspotentialinfluenceonhisstylehashithertobeenoverlooked.Whiletheformerisaddressedbytherecentdevelopmentofnewharmonictheoriesandgeometricmodels(Cohn,1999;Clark,2011),thelargerhistoricalpictureremainsincomplete.Thisismostapparentinthe
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treatmentofforminthestringquartets,agenrewhichoccupiedSchubertforhisentirecompositionalcareerandwhichwascentraltoViennesemusicallifeduringhisformativeyears.ThispaperaddressesthisissuebyexcavatingthehistoricalhinterlandtoSchubert’squartetswiththeaimofsituatingtheirformalpracticesmoreclearlywithintheiroriginatingcircumstances.Tothatend,itconsiderstherangeofstring-quartetperformanceinViennainthefirsttwodecadesofthenineteenthcentury,andengagesanalyticallywitharepresentativecorpusofquartetspublishedtherebetween1810and1828.Inparticular,itinvestigatesfirst-movementforminthequartetsofAndreasRomberg,FranzKrommer,PeterHänsel,LouisSpohrandJosephMayseder,therebyreappraisingSchubert’spracticesagainstcontemporaneousprocedures.Insodoing,itdevelopsanhistoricistapproachtoanalysis,andchallengesthecontinueduseofBeethovenasamodelforthisrepertoire.
EricaBuurman(CanterburyChristChurchUniversity)TheVienneseMinuetafter1814BytheendoftheEighteenthCenturytheminuetwasstillinwidespreadcurrencyinEuropeanballrooms,despitehavingbeenoneofthemostimportantdancesoftheancientrégimeformorethanacentury;asEricMcKee(2014)writes:‘theminuetwasbothacurrentdanceandahistoricaldance.’BytheearlydecadesoftheNineteenthCentury,however,theminuetwaslargelysupersededbynewerdancessuchasthewaltz,thequadrilleandthegalop.ThewaltzinparticularcametodominateinthewakeoftheCongressofVienna,wherethecrazeforwaltzingfamouslyledPrincedeLignetoquipthat‘LeCongrèsnemarchepas,ildanse’.
YetwhereasthewaltzhadfirmlytakenholdinVienna’ssuburbanballrooms,thereisevidencethattheminuetcontinuedtobedancedintheVienneseimperialballroomslongaftertheCongressofVienna.TheannualballsoftheVienneseFineArtists’PensionSociety,whichhadtakenplaceintheimperialpalacesince1792,continuedtofeatureminuetsandGermandancesbyGyrowetz,Eyblerandotherlocalcomposersuntilatleast1829.InVienneseartmusic,bycontrast,theminuethadlargelybeenreplacedwiththescherzoandotherdancetopicsbyaround1800.DrawingoninformationfromthearchivesoftheVienneseFineArtists’PensionSociety,thispaperexaminesthecontinuedpresenceoftheminuetintheimperialballroomsduringandaftertheCongressofVienna,andconsiderswhatthissuggestsabouttheminuetasatopicinViennesemusicanddanceintheearlyNineteenthCentury.SamGirling(UniversityofAuckland)FromtheJanissariesto'WoodenLaughter':theuseofunconventionalpercussioninstrumentsattheViennesecourtduringtheearlynineteenthcenturyThelateeighteenthcenturysawtheheightoftheTurkish"craze"inEurope,andthisexistedmostprominently inVienna. ComposerssuchasGluck,MozartandHaydnused Janissarypercussion in orchestral or operatic works, whilst early nineteenth-century pianomanufacturerssuchasJohannAndreasSteinandFranzMarschikdevelopedtheJanissarystop
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toallowthesesoundstoberecreatedindomestic,salonandcourtperformances.Mypaperdiscusses how toy instrumentswere also used in compositions as substitutes for Turkishinstruments due to their noisy nature and ease to manufacture and play, a topic whichconventionalmusichistoriesbyandlargeignore.OneexampleofsuchworksistheMassinCbythecourtcomposerPaulWranitzky,performedfortheEmpressMarieThereseon28February1802,whichusestoyhornsandtrumpets,glasses,bells,cuckoo,quail,tambourineandrattlesthatareknownasBerchtesgadnerInstrumente.InadditiontothetoyandJanissarypercussion,myrecentresearchsuggeststhatthecourtofEmperor Franz II and Marie Therese also seemingly had an interest in a small, peasantxylophone instrument known as the 'hölzernes gelächter' (literally translates as 'woodenlaughter'). Worksforthis instrumentbycomposerssuchas IgnazSchweiglandFerdinandKauercanbefoundintheimperialmusiccollection,indicatingthatthetastefortheexoticextendedtoincludenotonlyTurkish,orTurkish-sounding,percussionbutalsopeasant,folk-likeinstrumentsthatwouldperhapscontributetotheappearanceoftraditionalfolkmelodiesincentralEuropeanorchestralmusiclaterinthenineteenthcentury.Session4C
11.30am-1pm(3individualpapers)
FrenchTheatre
SarahHibberd(UniversityofNottingham)‘Strandedinthepresent’:temporalexpressioninRobertlediableWehavetendedtoappreciateMeyerbeer’sRobertlediable(1831)foritssensational,Faustiansubjectmatterandpleasinglyshockingballetratherthanforitsdepictionofhistoricalexperience.However,thenostalgicpulloftheActVtrio,invitesustoconsidertheworkinadifferentlight.Wefindourheroparalysedbyindecision:whethertoabandonthisworldandfollowhisnew-found,charismaticfatherBertramtotheunderworld,ortoheedhismother’swarningfrombeyondthegraveandtoembracethisworldandthefuture.Thearrestingsoundoftwotrompettesàclef(new,keyedbugles)frombelowtheprompter’sbox,evokingthevoiceofRobert’smotherashereadsherwill,injectapowerfulsenseofyearning,ofnostalgia,intothescene,TakingmycuefromthehistorianPeterFritzsche,Ifocusonthewayinwhichtheoperadramatisesboththeirretrievabilityofthepastandthedesiretoconstructthefuture.Thetensionbetweenthesetwopositionswasattheheartofmuchhistoriographyofthe1820sand30s,and–Isuggest–underpinstheemotionalpowerofthetrio.Thearrestingtrompettesàcleferuptoutoftime,buttheyalsoencourageustothinkmoredeeplyaboutthewaysinwhichMeyerbeer’shistoricalsensibilitycanbefeltinhismusic,andaboutthevarietyofwaysinwhichhemovedhisaudiencesbothemotionallyandthroughtimeandspace.
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DianaR.Hallman(UniversityofKentucky)AutombeauattheParisOpéra:ExplorationsofTimbreandSpaceinHalévy’sGuidoetGinevraAlthoughscholarshavelongrecognizedthecomplexityoforchestrationandtimbralexperimentationinFrenchgrandoperascores,particularlythoseofGiacomoMeyerbeer,morestudyisneededoftheinterrelationshipbetweencomposers’musicalchoicesandthevisualanddramaticelementsofthemise-en-scène.InthiscasestudyofGuidoetGinevra,aFrenchgrandoperabyFromentalHalévyandEugèneScribeinspiredbyShakespeare’sRomeoetJulietteandproducedattheParisOpérain1838,IwillexamineHalévy’sexploitationoftimbreandspaceinthedepictionsofdeath,mourning,andresurrectioninthetombscenesofActIII.InconsiderationofphysicalconfigurationsoftheSalleLePeletierandincorrespondencewiththe1838split-stagedesignbyRenéPhilastreandCharlesCambon,whichoffersastarkvisual-spatialdividebetweenthelight-filledcathedralofFlorenceandthedark,chiaroscuro-touchedcryptbelow,linkswillbemadetotheenhancingcontrastsbetweensoundandsilence,distantvoicesandinstrumentssurlethéâtre,lowvs.highregisters,celestialtimbresanddeath-signifyingtrombonesandophicleide,andothersonicrepresentationsofthecoldanddarksurroundingtheentombedGinevra.Musical-visualcomparisonstotomb/resurrectionscenesinMeyerbeer’sRobertleDiable(1831),Adam’sballetGiselle(1841),andHérold’sLasomnambule(1827),aswellasspeculationsaboutpossibleinfluencesonthefinalsceneofVerdi’sAïdaanditsstaginginCairoandParis,willbemade.Primarysourcesincludemusic,libretto,andstagingsourcesattheBibliothèqueNationale,Bibliothèquedel’Arsenal,andArchivesNationales.SarahGutsche-Miller(UniversityofToronto)LiberatedWomenandTravestyFetishes:MixedGenderMessagesinParisianMusic-HallBalletMusic-Hallballetswereallaboutwomen.Womenperformedmostprincipalandsupportingroles(includingtravesty),andtheypopulatedtheentireballetcorps.Theyplayedstarry-eyedingénuesandprincesses,teachers,students,andathletes,strong-willedgirls,independent-mindedwives,andevenapresident.Fictitiousleadingladiescouldflirtwithimpunity,girlscouldmarrytheloversoftheirchoice,andthemodern,chicParisiennepresidedoverthecityofLightandLove.Thewaysinwhichthesewomenweredepictedwerenot,however,alwaysneutralorstraightforward.Independentwomenostensiblyincontroloftheirdestinieswereattimesthebuttofparodies,andmanywerecastasseductressesorfemmesfatales.Thedancersthemselvesweretreatedasdecorativeobjects,minimallydressed,posedinalluringstances,andaskedtoperformsensuousdances.Critics,inturn,lovedtocommentontheirphysiques,andposterartistsdepictedtheminsuggestiveposeswearingaslittleaspossible. Mypaperexploresthemultipleandoftencontradictoryrepresentationsofwomeninmusic-hallballetsstagedattheturnofthetwentiethcenturyasreflectionsofshiftingconceptionsofwomen’ssocialrolesinfin-de-siècleFrance.Music-hallballetsmirroredboththebroadeningofgendernormsandthesocietalfearswhichaccompaniedthesechangingsocialmores;theyhelpedreinforceshiftingperceptionsofwomenwhilesimultaneouslyunderminingthem.Createdatarateofsixorsevenperyearforfun-lovingsocialites,music-
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hallproductionswereasup-to-dateastheywereephemeral,servingasanunusuallydirecttheatricalbarometerofmiddle-andupper-classParisians’tastesandvalues.
Session5A
2.30pm-4.30pm(4individualpapers)
OperainTranslation
MichelleMeinhart(Durham/MartinMethodistCollege)Wagner,AntebellumNostalgia,andPost-WarGraduation:TheReconstructionoftheSouthernBelleattheAthenaeumGirls’SchoolinColumbia,Tennessee,1865-88
ABoardingandDaySchoolforteenagegirlsfrom1851to1904,theAthenaeuminColumbia,Tennesseeofferedinstructioninsubjectsessentialtogenteelladies’upbringing,includingmusic.ButaftertheCivilWar,duringwhichtheschoolhousedbothYankeeandConfederatesoldiers,thegoalsofthismusicinstructionchanged.Formerlyfosteringthemiddlingmusicalaccomplishmentinyoungladiessuitablefordomestic,privateperformance,afterthewartheschoolimplementedamorerigorouscurriculumthatincludedpublic,communityperformancesforitsstudents.Asthispaperwillshow,re-workingsofcontemporaryEuropeanoperachorusesmadebytheschool’smusicmaster,FranklinHarrisonSmith,between1868and1888,shedlightonmusic’sroleinreconstructingashatteredruralcommunityaftertheWar.
ThesearrangementscultivatedamusicalskillandtasteincontemporaryEuropeanmusic,particularlyGermanmusic,whichwasnewtotheschoolandtheruralSouth.Marginaliaonthescoresindicatethismusic’spurposeasnotonlypedagogical,butalsoitsuseatpubliccommunityconcertsandschooleventslikegraduation—performancesthatwouldhavebeenimproperpriortotheWar.Schoolrecords,concertprograms,printedsheetmusic,andlifewritingoftheSmithfamilyfurthersupportmyunderstandingofmusicallifeattheschoolandinPostbellumColumbia.Inadditiontoexhibitingwomen’sgrowingmusicalpresencewithinthepublicsphereaftertheWar,Smith’smusicaladaptationsandtheirre-envisioningoftheSouthernbelleultimatelydemonstratehowre-configuredcontemporaryEuropeanartmusicaidedinrural,middleTennessee’sreconstruction.
FrancescaVella(UniversityofCambridge)Lohengrin’s1871Tour
On1November1871,Lohengrin—thefirstofWagner’sworkstobestagedinItaly—premieredamidmuchlocalbuzzatBologna’sTeatroComunale.Fiveweekslater,theentireproductionwasexportedtoFlorence’sTeatroPagliano.Cast,chorus,orchestra,staff,sets,costumesandstagemachinerywereallrelocatedbytrain—anundertakingthatreportedly
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requiredthetransportationofbetween300and400people.Historiansandoperascholarshavedirectedtheirattentionunevenlytothisseriesofevents.WhiletheBolognaperformanceshavebecomeastapleinaccountsofthecity’slate-nineteenth-centuryestablishmentastheItaliancapitalofWagnerism,thetransfertoFlorencehasremainedlargelyunexplored.Inthispaper,Ire-examinethe1871Lohengrinmomentbyfocusingonsomeofthehistoriographicalimplicationsofthisoperatictransplantation. Althoughtouringoperahadexistedforcenturies,therelocationoftheBolognaLohengrinproductiontoFlorenceraisesprovocativequestionsconcerningbothcontemporaryculturalpoliticsandtheatricalpractices.Connectionsbetweenthetwocities’stagesinthe1870ssuggestthatoperawastightlyboundupintrans-municipalrelationsevenduringanageofmuch-hypedcivicculturalcompetition.Whatismore,anexusoftechnological,institutionalandhumanfactorsplayedintothe1871transfer,whichwasunprecedentedinitsscope.WellpriortoAngeloNeumann’s1882-83Ringtours,thistransferpointedtoaconceptionofoperainwhichthestagingisintegraltocollectivearticulationsofaestheticandpolitical-culturalexperiences.LauraStokes(IndianaUniversity)Prussia,Nationalism,andIntegrationinMeyerbeer’sEinFeldlagerinSchlesien
GiacomoMeyerbeer’sSingspielEinFeldlagerinSchlesien,althoughlargelyforgottentoday,wasastapleoftheBerlinRoyalOperarepertoirefromits1844premiereintothe1890s.ThisworkfeaturesmanyelementsthatwerespecifictothelocalenvironmentinBerlinforwhichitwaswritten:itincludesaplotthatcentersonFredericktheGreat,adepictionofaPrussianmilitarycamp,andnumerousquotationsfrommusicassociatedwithPrussiannationalsentiment.ThisSingspiel,however,alsoincludesaperspectiveonethnicandsocialintegrationthatisfoundedonEnlightenmentideals,andwhichsuggestsMeyerbeer’sinclusive,ratherthanexclusive,conceptofPrussianidentity.
MeyerbeerselectedtheperformersforthisSingspielfromaninternationalperspective.TheleadroleofVielkawaswrittennotforaBerlinsinger(althoughitwas,intheend,premieredbyone),butratherfortherisingstarJennyLind.LindlaterplayedaroleinbringingsomeofFeldlager’smusictovenuesoutsideofBerlin.InVienna,FeldlagerwastransformedintoVielka,andPrussianelementswereexcisedfromthework.IntheUnitedStates,LindincludedexcerptsfromFeldlagerinherconcertrepertoire,butthecontextoftheoriginalSingspielwasabsent.Indeed,inthesenewvenues,theworkwastransformedinawaythatmaskedtheinclusivephilosophyoftheoriginal,renderingFeldlager’spoliticalandsocialsignificancenolongerapparentinitsreceptionoutsideofBerlin.
Session5B
2.30pm-4.30pm(5panelpapers)
Panel:NewApproachestoOperaandCharacter
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Speakers: KirstenPaige(UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley)*DanWang(UniversityofChicago)*NinaPenner(McGillUniversity)JohnKapusta(UniversityofCaliforniaBerkeley)AdelineMueller(MountHolyokeCollege)
*Chairs
InThe Economy of Character (1998), Deirdre Lynch argues that the study of character inliterature either addresses the qualities of an ‘inward’ self or the violent application of‘characteristics’fromexternalsources.Whilethisdichotomyfindssignificantparallelsinthestudyofopera,itsboundarieshavenotbeensystematicallyexploredinmusicologysincethedebatesinvolvingEdwardT.Cone,PeterKivy,CarolynAbbate,andCharlesRosentwodecadesago. This panel seeks to reopen the debate by engaging conference attendees in a livelydiscussion about the terms and stakes of ‘character’ in opera. Drawn from a variety ofmethodologies,thepapers investigatehowtheconceptofcharactercoalesces indifferentoperaticpractices,andhowthisconceptinturnsubtendsparticularkindsoffictionalworlds.Character,itturnsout,cangeneratenewinsightintothenatureofoperaticspectatorshipandabsorption, opera’s thematization of climate, opera’s relation to narrative and to theemerging ‘bourgeoisbody’ofnineteenth-century literature,andmuchmore.Amid recentworkintheHumanitiesonthewaysthatsubjectsandenvironmentsconstituteeachother,thispaneloffersnewmethodsandstrategiesforconceptualizinghumansubjectsinoperaticspace.Webeginwithtwopapersthatask,fromtheperspectivesofanalyticphilosophyandaffecttheory,whatconstitutesanoperatic(asopposedtoatheatricalorliterary)utterance.Thenexttwopaperschasedownapairof“unruly”characterarchetypesandtheireffects:thefirst,theelusive“baryton-Martin”voicetypeaselaboratedinRavel’sL’heureespagnole,thesecond, theoperaticvillainess inearlynineteenth-centuryrevivalsofMozart’s Idomeneo.OurfinalpaperdevelopsatheoryofWagnerianenvironmentalspacebytakingusonawalk,withTannhäuserandParsifal,throughnaturalzonesthatrevealcorrelationsbetweenspaceandsubjectivity.Session5C
2.30pm-4pm(3individualpapers)
Historiographies
KarenLeistra-Jones(Franklin&MarshallCollege)HansvonBülowandtheConfessionalizationofKunstreligion
HansvonBülow’saphorismsareubiquitousinthemusicologicallexicon.Bestknown,perhaps,ishisanointingofthe“threeB’s”:Bach,Beethoven,andBrahms.Complementing
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this,however,werenumerousotherstatementsthatemployedpointedlyreligiousrhetoric:“IbelieveinBachtheFather,BeethoventheSon,andinBrahmstheHolyGhostofmusic”wasjustoneexample.ThesetypesofpronouncementsbecameanimportantaspectofBülow’spublicimage,andbeginninginthe1870s,hisrhetoricwasmirroredinthecriticalreceptionofhisperformances.Criticsoftendescribedhisconcertsasakindofpreaching,proclaimingofthemusical“gospel,”orscripturalexegesis.
Suchresponsesparticipatedinthewell-documentedelevationofmusictothestatusofKunstreligion.YettheymovedbeyondtheideaofpietisticcontemplationcharacteristicofearlyRomanticism,andavoidedcallingtheperformera“priest,”anepithetthatwascommoninmid-centurymusiccriticism.Instead,BülowandhiscriticssituatedhisrolewithinamoretraditionalGermanProtestantismbyemphasizingthedidacticnatureofhisperformances,theirfocusonastrict“gospel”ofcanonicworks,andtheiraffinitywithpreachingandbiblicalinterpretation.
Thispaperlocatesthisdevelopmentwithinthe“reconfessionalization”ofGermanpubliclifeinthenineteenthcentury,andspecificallywithinattemptstoconstructaProtestantnationalcultureinthenewKaiserreichofthe1870sand1880s.Inthiscontext,Bülowwasabletoinvesttheroleoftheperformerwithanewauthority,onethatdrewdeliberatelyfromexperiences,practices,andlanguageassociatedwithreligion.
KatherineFry(King’sCollege,London)MusicalIdealisminVictorianCulture:GeorgeEliotasMusicCriticandTranslator
ScholarshavelongrecognisedtheimportanceofmusictoGeorgeEliot’slifeandworks.Musicologistshaveexaminedissuesofmusichistoriographyandsubjectivityinher1876novelDanielDeronda,whileliterarycriticshaverecentlycontextualisedherfictionwithinabroaderVictorianmusicalcultureor‘soundscape’.Literarydiscussionsofthiskindtend,understandably,totreatideasofmusicandsoundasaculturalbackdropforrenewedreadingsofhermajornovels.Departingfromtheseaccounts,thispaperfocusesonGeorgeEliot’smusicaltravelwritingsandtranslationsfromhertimeaseditoroftheWestminsterReviewduringthe1850s.ItexploresthewidersignificanceofherwritingsforthereceptionofGermanmusicalaestheticsinnineteenth-centuryBritain.ThefirstpartofthepaperrelateshertranslationsofGermanphilosophy(LudwigFeuerbachinparticular)tothelargerdiscourseofidealisminVictorianthought,adiscoursethatimpactedonperceptionsofmusicalvalue.ThesecondpartdiscussesheressaysonRichardWagner,FranzLisztandWeimarculture,situatinghermusicaltravelswithinthecontextofBritishmusiccriticismandEuropeanWagnerismcirca1855.Insodoing,thepaperseekstocomplicateourunderstandingofVictorianmusicalcultureandEuropeanmodernism.HowdoGeorgeEliot’scriticismscontributetocontemporarydebatesaboutmusic,culturalexchangeandtransnationalism?Furthermore,howmightherwritingsilluminatebroadertheoreticalconcernsaboutmusic’srelationshipwithlanguageandcriticismwithinandbeyondthenineteenthcentury?
JamesGrande(King’sCollege,London)TheNaturalHistoryofGermanMusic:GeorgeEliot,Dissent,Cosmopolitanism
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GeorgeEliot’sessay‘Liszt,WagnerandWeimar’,publishedinFraser’sMagazineinJuly1855,givesanequivocalresponsetoWagnerianopera,recognisingitasanimportantdevelopmentinthe‘lyricdrama’whileregrettingtheabsenceofrecognisablemelody:‘Wearebutin“themorningofthetimes”,andmustlearntothinkofourselvesastadpolesunprescientofthefuturefrog.Stillthetadpoleislimitedtotadpolepleasures;andso,inourstateofdevelopment,weareswayedbymelody’.ABeethovenquartetafterLohengrinis–inarecognisablyWordsworthianidiom–‘likereturningtothepregnantspeechofmenafterasojournamongglumsandgowries’.ThispaperwillexploreEliot’sresponsestoGermanmusicinhernovelsandessaysinthecontextofherbackgroundinreligiousnonconformityandherreadingofGermanphilosophy;inparticular,thewritingsofLudwigFeuerbach.InTheEssenceofChristianity,Feuerbachwrites(inEliot’stranslation),‘Whohasnotexperiencedtheoverwhelmingpowerofmelody?Andwhatelseisthepowerofmelodybutthepoweroffeeling?’ButFeuerbachwasprofoundlysuspiciousabouttheplacethattheearoccupieswithinthereligioussensorium:‘Theonlyfearful,mystical,andpioussenseisthatofhearing’.Musicoccupiesanequivocalplaceinrelationtotherealistnovelandreligiousscepticism;however,thispaperarguesthattheseanxietiesareinextricablefromamucholdersetofconcernsabouttheplaceofmusicinDissentingculture.
Keynote2DanielChua(UniversityofHongKong)De-secularisingBeethoven:IsBeethovenaSacredComposer?IsthesecularBeethovenanecessarymythinthemusicologicalnarrativeofwesternmusic?ThispaperexploresthenarrativetensionsinvolvedintheclassificationofBeethoven'sacredmusicandtheideologicalstakesinvolvedintheclaimsofboththeintellectualandlocalhistoriesthatgiveBeethovenhisEnlightenmentcredentials.Iftheclaimsaresuspect,doesthismerelyimplyareversalthatturnsBeethovenintoareactionaryfigurethateradicatesmuchofthereceivedwisdomofmusicologicalscholarship?Oristhereanotherwayforward?
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WEDNESDAY13July
Session6A
9.30am-11am(3individualpapers)
Recreations
SarahKirby(UniversityofMelbourne)Songsatthe1851GreatExhibition
The1851GreatExhibitionoftheIndustryofAllNationshasreceivedanalmostoverwhelmingamountofscholarlyattentioninfieldsasdiverseashistory,science,economicsandaesthetics.Music,however,hasreceivedcomparativelylittleconsideration.Inonesense,thisisunsurprising:asMichaelMusgravestates,inTheMusicalLifeoftheCrystalPalace,thatwiththeexceptionoftheceremonialactivitiesoftheopening,‘musicalperformanceonabroaderscalehadnoplaceassuchintheExhibition’.However,themusicalworlddoesnotexistonlywithinthesphereofpublicperformance.Thispaperarguesthat,whilemusicalperformancewithintheHydeParkbuildingwaslimited,musicrelatingtotheExhibition,andperformanceofthismusicinwidersocietyflourished.PublishedsheetmusicofsongsandpianoworkscomposedindirectresponsetotheGreatExhibitionofferedamaterialwayinwhichtheeventcouldbebroughtdirectlyintothehomesofthepublic.
ThispapersarguesthatthesesongsandpianopiecesofferavaluableavenueforstudyingthereceptionoftheExhibitionitself.Throughmusicalandtext-basedanalysis,thesecompositionsrevealfurtherchannelsthroughwhichimperialistrhetoricandtheconcurrent,populistconstructionsofclassandracecouldbeeitherextendedorchallenged.
IanMaxwell(UniversityofCambridge)TheChamberMusicClubsintheBritishUniversitiesduringtheNineteenthCentury
InthearchivesofthelibrariesofbothOxfordandCambridgeUniversitiesisatreasuretroveofmaterial,documentingtheactivitiesovermorethanonehundredyearsofstudentChamberMusicClubs.Therearemembershiplists,recitalandconcertprogrammes,daytodaybusinessrecordsandminutesofcommitteemeetings.Thenumeroussuchclubs,includingtheOxfordWartimeMusicalClubandtheOxfordLadies'MusicalSociety,andcollege-basedclubs–suchastheBalliolCollegeMusicalSocietyinOxford,allhadasimilarmainpurpose–toencourageandfacilitatetheplayingofchambermusic.Laterinthenineteenthcentury,similarclubswereformedattheotherBritishUniversities–includingEdinburghandTrinityCollegeDublin.Thedatathatcanbeobtainedfromtheserecordsprovidesaninsightintotheearlyactivitiesofmanymusiciansthatlaterbecameeminent–includingrecordsofearlierfirstperformancesandhithertounsuspectedmusicalaccomplishments.Beginningwiththe
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CambridgeUniversityMusicalSocietyin1843andtheOxfordUniversityMusicalSocietyin1867,chambermusicmakingbecameanintegralpartofuniversitylifefromthemiddleofthenineteenthcentury.Thenamesofmemberscomprisea“Who’sWho”ofBritishMusic–suchasR.R.Terry,H.WalfordDavies,RalphVaughanWilliamsandcountlessothers.Thispaperintroducesthecommonhistoryoftheclubsandpresentsthelatestresultsofhowacontinuingextensiveexaminationofthesearchivesisuncoveringapreviouslylittleknownaspectofmusic-makinginBritain.ErinJohnson-Williams(TrinityLaban)DisciplinesofDevelopment:PhysicalEconomiesofVictorianMusicandStateEducationLateVictorianBritainwitnessedtheunprecedentedgrowthofstate-sponsoredinitiativesforfreemusiceducation.AsisincreasinglyseenintheproceedingsoftheLondonSchoolBoardduringthe1880sand1890s,thesechangeswereoftenintroducedintheformofdrillexercisesthattookplaceaspartofphysicaleducationclasses,ratherthanthroughspecificformsof‘music’educationperse.AfterthegradualschoolreformsthatfollowedtheEducationActof1870,theintroductionofmusicintoVictorianstateschoolsthroughchoreographed‘drill’exercisesresultedinnewformsofeducationthatwereintroducedaspartofwiderpedagogicaleffortstodisciplinechildren,andtoaidandpromotetheevolutionarydevelopmentofthechild’sbodyintothatofahealthyBritishcitizen.Consequently,theoriginsofstatemusiceducationinVictorianBritain,onamassscale,weretransformedintonationalpageantrythroughboththemasculinizationofmusicanditslinktophysicaldevelopment–and,byextension,totheinternationalevolutionoftheEmpire.Throughawidearrayofinterdisciplinaryprimarysourcematerialfromlatenineteenth-centuryBritain,thispaperproposesthatthemomentatwhichchoreographed,rhythmicalexercisefirstbecomesastandardisedschoolactivityispreciselythejunctureatwhichmusicbecomesinterlinkedwiththenotionofimperialmobilityinthephysicalbodyoftheVictorianchild.
Session6B
9.30am-10.30am(3individualpapers)
Gender,Identity,Trauma
SarahGerk(BinghamtonUniversity)ASongofFamineandWar:IrishMusicalMethodsofExpressingUSCivilWarTraumaBetween1845and1851inIreland,anestimated1in8peoplediedinoneofmodernhistory’smostdevastatingfamines.Thosewhosurvivedneverthelesssufferedimmensetraumafromstarvation,disease,andlossoflovedones.ManyIrishfaminesurvivorsemigrated,precipitatingoneofthefirstgreatwavesofimmigrationtotheUnitedStates.In
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theNewWorld,thedrumsofcivilwarsoundedscantmorethanadecadelater.Inbothofthesedisasters,musicservedasacrucialtoolforcopingwithtrauma.Inthispaper,IsuggestthatthemusicalmechanismsfordealingwiththetraumaoffamineinIrelandwereadoptedintheUnitedStatesandappliedtosomeofthemostdifficultcollectiveexperiencesofAmericanhistory.Usingcriticalframeworksfromtraumastudies,IcomparesongsofthefaminewiththosepopularintheUnitedStatesduringsubsequentdecades.“KathleenMavourneen,”forinstance,addressesexperiencesofgriefanddisplacementsufferedbyfamineimmigrants,andbecameoneofthemostsignificantsongsoftheAmericanCivilWar.Acollationofsheetmusicexamplesrevealsthatsomethematictropesfromthefamine,suchasstarvationanddisplacement,retainedpopularityinmusicoftheCivilWar,eventhoughsuchexperienceslostrelevanceincomparisontomilitaristicviolence.ThepaperalsoincorporatesprimaryaccountsfromthediariesofIrishAmericansintheCivilWar,showingthatsomepeopledirectlyappliedexpresslyIrishmusicalpracticewithinAmericanwartimecontextstodealwithtrauma.BrianThompson(TheChineseUniversityofHongKong)TheCritic,thePublicandthe‘Femme’Fatale
Inthespringof1861,thetwenty-five-year-oldEugened’Ameli(knownsimplyasEugene)wasacelebrityinNewYorkandtheleadingfemaleimpersonatorofhistimeintheUS.Despitethis,whenthewarbeganhedidwhatmanyotherperformersweredoing:hefledtoBritain.HearrivedinEnglandcompletelyunknowntothepublic,butwithinayearhadestablishedhimselfintheprovincesandinLondon.AftertwoyearsasastarattractioninLondonmusicalhalls,heacceptedapositionwithChristy’sMinstrels,inLiverpool,andforthenextfouryearsledthatcompany’sproductionsofburlesquesofLucreziaBorgia,Ernani,FraDiavolo,andotherpopularoperas.ThroughacloseexaminationoftheBritishpress,thispaperexplorestheroleofthefemaleimpersonatorinBritishminstrelsyand,moregenerally,theplaceofoperainBritishpopularcultureofthe1860s.HavingbeenimportedfromtheUSalongwithotherelementsoftheminstrelshow,femaleimpersonatorsandburlesqueoperawereacceptedandclearlyappreciatedbyBritishaudiences.GiventhepopularityofEugeneandotherimpersonators,asignificantbodyofliteratureexiststhatscholarshaveyettomine.Thispaperillustratesthatwhilereviewspublishedinnewspaperswereoftenlimitedindetail,theyprovidesignificantevidenceonthereceptionofimpersonators,andmorebroadlyonattitudestowardsrace,gender,andsexualorientation.MyronGray(HaverfordCollege)TransnationalLocalismintheAnglophoneReceptionofDerFreischütz
HailedbysomeasanarchetypalGermanopera,CarlMariavonWeber’sDerFreischützneverthelessappealedtoaninternationalaudience.Intheyearsfollowingits1821Berlinpremiere,itwasperformedfromLondonandParistoNewYorkandNewOrleans.AccordingtoMichaelTusa,thecosmopolitanismofearly-nineteenth-centuryGermannationalidentityaccountsfortheinfluenceofforeigntraditionsonthisself-consciouslyGermanwork,alongwithitspopularityabroad.
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YetscholarshavesaidlittleaboutwhattheforeignconsumptionofDerFreischützactuallylookedlike.ThispaperinvestigatesWeber’sreceptionintheEnglish-speakingworldbyconsideringarrangementsofmusicfromtheopera,alongwithnewlycomposedinterpolations,thatappearedinDublinandNewYorkinthelate1820s.ThesedocumentsimplicateWeber’smusicintheevolutionofAnglophonenationalidentitiesandinthesimultaneousformationofatransatlanticmusicalculture.Forinstance,theAmericancomposerCharlesGilfertwrote“TheHornofChace”forinclusioninDerFreischütz,althoughaDublineditionfraudulentlycreditedthissongto“CarlvonGilfertofPrague.”CitingtherelatedconcealmentofAmericanauthorshipinLondonnewspapers,aJuly1825articleintheNew-YorkEveningPostinterpretedthismisattributionasareactiontotherisingglobalinfluenceoftheUnitedStates.AU.S.adaptationoftheFreischützoverture,publishedinNewYorkasan“AmericanSerenade,”similarlyassertedculturalsovereigntybyfalsifyingtheoriginofitsmusic.Suchexamplessuggestthatmusicaltransnationalismfedtheexpressionofcompeting,localidentities.
Session6C
9.30am-11am(3individualpapers)
AroundOpera
LauraProtano-Biggs(JohnsHopkinsUniversity)FalstaffandtheResonantSoundscape:Verdi’sExperimentswithSound
In1893hundredsofcriticscametoMilanfromalloverEuropetohearaworkthatshimmeredwithasounduntilnowneverassociatedwithitscomposer.GiuseppeVerdi’scomicoperaFalstaffstimulatedtalkofinnovationfromtheoutset:criticsremarkedthatithadinfusedtheItalianmusicalscenewithanewbrilliance,andwasevenan“isolatedmonumentinthehistoryofart”.Recentcriticismtoohasdetachedthisworkfromitscontemporaneousmusicallandscape;afetishizedanomaly,ithasbeendescribedas“almostafreak”and“musicallyanddramaticallyeccentric”.
Consideringtheoperafromtheperspectiveofsoundstudies,mypaperrepositionsthis“eccentric”worksquarelywithinanexusoffinesecolooperasthatreconfiguredtherelationshipbetweensound,audience,andstageaction.WhileVerdidistancedhimselffromthe1890sverismooperasofMascagniandLeoncavallo—andscholarshavecontinuedtoreinforcethatdistance—Falstaff’sshiftingacousticplanesrevealanuntolddebttothesecomposers.
AtfirstblushtheideaofVerdiasadeliberatemanipulatorofacousticplanesseemsanachronistic,andsoundstudiesameresubstituteformorefamiliardiscoursesaboutthenoumenalandphenomenal.ButfocusonacousticparametersenablesustoarticulatewhatmakesFalstaffdistinctiveinVerdi’soeuvrewithaprecisionandconcretenesswhichotherapproacheslack.The1890s’Italianoperaticsceneisbestunderstoodnotintermsof
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discretemusicalinitiativesbutabroaderexperimentwithsoundinwhichVerdi,muchastheveristi,hadastake.
FloraWillson(King’sCollege,London)‘Musiqueduplein-air’?OperaticrealismandCharpentier’sLouise
PremieredatParis’sOpéra-ComiqueinFebruary1900,GustaveCharpentier’sLouiseisanoperawhoseearlysuccesshingedonitscomplexrelationshipwithrealism.Theworkwasdescribedubiquitouslyasrealistbyitsfirstcritics,withCharpentierhailed‘thecreatorofmusiqueduplein-air’.Scholarssincehavelargelyaddressedthesamesupposedlyrealisttraits:thecomposer’sgenericdesignationofLouiseasaromanmusical;its‘sociallyrelevant’,free-love-infusedplot;itsrepresentationsofthestreetsofcontemporaryParis.Yetcommentatorshavealsorecognisedastrongsymbolicelementintheopera.IndeedLouise’slyricism–itsclearoperaticgenealogy–hasproveddifficulttoincorporateintoanycasemadeforitasarealistworkakintothoseofCourbetorManet,ZolaorFlaubert.
InthispaperIuseLouisetoaskhowusefulthenotionof‘realism’mightbeforoperatichistoriography.Inparticular,IinterrogateaspectsofLouisethatseemtoresistcategorisationasrealist:theserecalcitranttraitscanstimulatebroaderreflectionsonwhetheroperaanditsslipperyepistemologiesmighthavedistinctivecontributionstomakeinthelarger,longer-establisheddiscoursesaboutrealisminliterarystudiesandarthistory(workbyLindaNochlin,PeterBrooksand,mostrecently,FredricJamesonisespeciallysignificanthere).Readingtheoperathroughitsearlyreceptionandviathecomposer’sownlateradaptationsfora1935gramophonerecordingandAbelGance’s1938soundfilm,IamconcernedultimatelywithhowLouise–andoperamoregenerally–mightofferproductiveinsightsintotheafterlifeofaonce-radicalartisticmovement.
GabrielleCornish(EastmanSchoolofMusic)Liza'sTransmigration:UrbanDecayandFin-de-SiècleSuicideinChaikovsky'sTheQueenofSpades
Pushkin’s“QueenofSpades”(1833)haslongbeenlinkedtotheso-called“mythofSt.Petersburg”—theparadoxicalnatureofthecityasbothPeter’sutopian“windowtothewest”andthedecayingmetropolisthatinspiredliterarydepictionsofthecity’sdegeneracyandmaudlingloom.Writtenin1890,Chaikovsky’soperamakesseveralmajoralterationstoPushkin’sstorythatreflectthemyth’stransformation.OnesuchchangeishisadditionofLiza’ssuicide:ratherthanleaveHermannandmarryanotherman,shetakesherownlife.ScholarshaveheretoforeattributedLiza’ssuicidetotheoperaticconvention,butthis,however,overlookstheopera’swideraestheticasanembodimentofandreactiontoanxietiestowardmodernityinfin-de-siècleSt.Petersburg. Chaikovsky’sQueenofSpadesismorethanjustwhatscholarshavecalled“thefirstsymbolistopera.”ItanticipatesthecomingsymbolistmovementinmusicwhilesimultaneouslycritiquingmodernpsychologyinlateImperialRussiaandSt.Petersburg.ThispaperarguesthatweshouldreadLiza’ssuicidenotmerelyasoperaticconvention,butratherassignificanttotheopera’sdepictionofmodernurbandecay.Todoso,IincorporatepreviousworkbyMarkSteinbergandSusanMorrisseyonsuicideasaphenomenonofandreactiontomodernityinfin-de-siècleSt.Petersburg.Similarly,Ipostulateatheorizationof
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thecanalinthecontextofWalterBenjamin’smetropolis.BydrowningherselfspecificallyintheNevskyRiver,Lizaisbothfigurativelyandliterallykilledbythemoderncity—anoperaticspectacleinitself.
Session7A
11.30am-1pm(3panelpapers)
Panel:OperaandMedicalExperimentationintheNineteenthCentury
Chair:SarahHibberd(UniversityofNottingham)
The opera singer was a patient of choice and an object of study for nineteenth-centurymedicine.Avarietyofinterpretativeframeworkswereusedbycritics,spectators,anddoctorsofvariousschoolsinordertoexplainsingers’constitutionsorpathologies,andtodevelopandmaintaintheirhealth.Butsingersthemselvesalsomadeuseoflong-establishedmodels(ofthe humours, climates, physiognomony ormechanicism), andmore recent ones (such asphrenology,worksonelectricityorthenervoussystem)inordertointerrogatetheirart.Towhatextentwasthemedicalisationofoperaanditssingersnotmerelytheworkofdoctors,butalsoofthesingersthemselves?Howmayopera–asaworldofreferences,practices,andperformativity–haveinformedandstimulatedmedicalexperimentationoutsideoftheoperahouse?
Thispanelwillexaminevariousscenesofmedical investigation:thetherapeuticscenestagedbyDr.Schneiderin1835totreatmentalillness,theprivatehousewherethebaritoneMaurel experimentedwith hypnosis, and the journalistic sphere as a soundboard for the1860sdebateconcerningpitch, initiatedbysingersseekingtoprotecttheirvoice. Inthesecontexts,operaandmedicinesharedcommonground,inwhichinstancesofcrisisandexcessappearedbothaspathological,andascatharticresolutions.Operaisconsideredherenotonlyfor its general effects, or as a terrain of application for specific medical procedures andtechniques: it is a petri dish of experimentation which gives rise to new, often detailedmedicalandartisticapproachestothebody,performativity,andthemoralself.CarmelRaz(ColumbiaUniversity)OperaticFantasiesinEarlyNineteenth-CenturyPsychiatry
In System einer medizinischen Musik (1835), Dr. Peter Joseph Schneider provides a
detailedreportofhistreatmentofLina,ayoungDutchgirlwhohadfallenintoaprofoundmelancholy following the death of her lover Antonio two years previously. Schneider’stherapyconsistsofthewatercureregimenfollowedbyameticulouslystagedmusicalcrisis.HidingfamilymembersandmusicalfriendsoutofLina’ssight,heassignstheroleof“Antonio”toheruncle,andproceedstoconductachoraleperformance,inwhich“Antonio”takesthetenorleadsupportedbyachoirandharmonium.Thistreatmentworks,inthatLinabelieves
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thatAntonioisspeakingtoher,andburstsintotears,acatharticreactionthatheraldshereventualrecovery.
Schneider is exceptionally explicit about the deployment of certain repertoires, vocalqualities,andmusicalkeysinhismedicalcures,correlatingdifferentinstrumentaltexturestomaterialchangesinthenervesandanimalspirits.However,thisparticulartreatmentsharesmany features with other contemporaneous accounts of music therapy, not least in theselectionoftheinstrumentusedandtheageandgenderofthepatient.Thispaperexploreshowideas,sounds,andrepertoireassociatedwiththeworldofoperainformedthetreatmentofmentalillness,andhowtheseinturnmayhavecirculatedbacktoinfluencecomposersandlibrettists. Examiningreferencestospecificcomposers,works,andtimbreswithinmedicalreports,Iarguethatthestagingofmedicalcuresoftenmirrorsdramaticscenariosfamiliarfromtheoperastage.
ChloeValenti(UniversityofCambridge)Pitchedbattles?VocalHealthandtheEnglishPitchDebate
Inthe1860s,thetenorSimsReeves,supportedbyAdelinaPattiandChristineNilsson,startedacampaigntolowerEnglishconcertpitch.PitchinEnglandwasconsiderablyhigherthan inotherpartsof thecontinent,andsingerswerestraining theirvoices todangerouslevels as a result.Whilst they received support fromdoctors, singing teachers and critics,MichaelCostaresistedthechanges,andothernotablefigures intheBritishmusicalworldwerenoticeablyabsentfromthedebate.
Theproblemsofpitchanditsimpactonsingers’healthinevitablytappedintoarangeofotherconcerns.ForeignsingersperforminginEnglandwerecompelledtosingfamiliarworksataconsiderablyhigherpitchthantheywereaccustomedto.Somecriticsarguedthatworksshouldbeperformedatthepitchthecomposerintended,yetthepracticeoftransposingariasfor the comfort of the singerswaswidespread, if increasingly criticised for damaging theharmonicunityofthework.Someblamedthepublicforprizingentertainmentoverthehealthoftheperformers,whileothersbelievedthatthedesireofsingerstodisplaytheirvoicesmadethem complicit in the climb in pitch. Comparisons with practices on the continent wereinevitable,andthemixedresultsofexperimentswithpitchinvenuesabroadwerefollowedwithinterestbytheBritishpress.Attheheartofthedebatewasthequestionofthesinger’sautonomyovertheirowninstrument,whethermedicalissuesoverrodeaestheticvalues,andultimatelywhetherthevoiceshouldbeconsideredpublicorprivateproperty.CelineFrigauManning(UniversitéParis-8)Opera,Hypnosis,andAutosuggestion.AMedicalTheorisationofIdentificationfortheActor-Singer
In his Cours d’esthétique vocale et scénique, Victor Maurel develops a theory ofidentificationbasedonhisartasanactor-singerandonhisexperiencewithhypnosis.Whenone ofMaurel’s friends brings to him Lina de Ferkel – a subject forDe Rochas’ hypnosissessions–MaurelgoesbeyondtheusualmusicalthemesplayedonthepianoandsingsEralanottefromVerdi’sOtello.Verylikelychosenbecauseofthebaritone’srelationshipwiththerole of Iago, but also because of its musical rhetoric of persuasion, the piece musicallyparallelsthesituationofhypnosis:whileIagolullstosleepOtello’sfacultyforreasoning,andsimultaneously awakens his suspicions,Maurel, in “restricting [himself] frommaking any
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gesture”,claimstoarouseinLina“someofthegestureswhich[hehimself]usedinthisfamouspiece.”Tohim, thisproves that “objectivation”,definedas theexteriorisationofpassionsthroughexpressionsandgestures,comesfromtheunknown,fromtheinvisible.
Maurel’sapproachwillbecomparedwithothercontemporaneousmedicaltheoriesinorder to explore the link, establishedbyproponentsof hypnosis, between interiority andidentification. Ina renewedapproach toacting, autosuggestionallows theactor-singer todraw on his profound interiority, and to bring back to the corporal surface a range of“natural”,transhistoricalgestures.Moreover,suchgesturesaremorethansimplesignsofanaffectwhichcaptures–orhypnotises–thesoul:theyaretrulypartofthisaffect,allowingthesingertouseinteriorityasaspaceforcreatingartificialbuttrueemotionalstates.
Session7B
11.30am-1.30pm(4individualpapers)
WritingandEncoding
FrederickReece(HarvardUniversity)ForgingSchubert’s“Gastein”:TheCold-WarQuestforTruthinaRomanticFantasy
Forwelloveracentury,Schubert’s“Gastein”symphonywasthegreatwhitewhaleofnineteenth-centurymusic.ThemystiquesurroundingthismissingcompositionbeganwhenJosephvonSpaunassertedintheViennesepressthathisailingfriendhadwritten“agreatsymphonyatGasteinintheyear1825”which—althoughunknowntoaudiences—rightfully“belongsamongstthegreatestworksofthelastcentury.”Inthe143yearsthatfollowed,the“Gastein”becameaculturalobsession.SirGeorgeGroveurgedarchivistsacrossEuropetosearcheverycupboardforthelostmasterpiecewhiletheColumbiaPhonographCompanyoffereda$1,500rewardforitsrecovery.Yetitwasnotuntil1971thatasetofantiqueorchestralpartsmatchingeveryspecificationforSchubert’s“Gastein”emergedfromanatticinEastBerlin.Orsoitseemed.
Thispapertellsthestoryofhowthe“rediscovered”symphonyrangfalse.Nowuniversallyconsideredacompositionalforgery,inthe1970sand‘80stheworkwasvehementlyupheldasauthenticbyscholarsinEastGermanyincludingHarryGoldschmidt.Westernmusicologists,meanwhile,soughttousestylisticandmaterialmethodologiestorepudiatenotonlythecomposition,butalsotheauthorityofthoseintheEastwhoclaimedthatitwaslegitimate.DrawingonmyownstylisticanalysisofthesymphonyalongsideoriginalarchivalsourcesfromtheBundesarchivandStaatsbibliothekinBerlin,Isituatethiscold-warforgeryasakeypointofconflictinthestruggletocontroltheauthenticmusicalpastofafracturedAustro-Germanculture.
JacobOlley(WestfälischeWilhelms-UniversitätMünster)Orality,Historyand(Ethno)Musicology:PreparingaCriticalEditionof
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Nineteenth-CenturyOttomanMusic
Criticaleditionsarecentraltothedisciplineofmusicology,bothintermsofthematerialtheymakeavailableforresearchandperformance,andtherolethattheyplayindevelopingnormsofscholarlymethodology.Bycontrast,thecriticaleditionofmusicaltextshasplayedafarmoremarginalroleinethnomusicology,oftenattributedtothefactthatoraltransmissionismoreprevalentinnon-Europeanmusics.However,thereisawealthofnotatedsourcesrecordingtheurbanmusicoftheOttomanEmpire,thevastmajorityofwhichareunpublished.TheGermanResearchCouncil(DFG)hasthereforerecentlyagreedtofunda12-yearresearchprojectentitled“CorpusMusicaeOttomanicae:CriticalEditionsofNearEasternMusicManuscripts”,basedatWestfälischeWilhelms-UniversitätinMünster.Theinitialaimoftheprojectistocreateanonline,open-accessresourcecontainingcriticaleditionsofOttomanmusicthatwillbeusedbybothscholarsandperformers.TheoriginalsourcesdatepredominantlyfromthenineteenthcenturyandarewritteninmodernArmenianchurchnotation,necessitatingtheirtranscriptionintomodifiedstaffnotation.AsaresearchassociateontheCMOproject,Iwilloutlineitsgoalsandprocedures,consideringhowtheserelatetoexistingmethodologiesinhistoricalmusicologyandotherdisciplines,andwhattheimplicationsoftheprojectmightbeforfuturescholarship.Inparticular,Iarguethattheprojectcanprovideanewperspectiveontherelationshipbetween“text”and“work”,andoffersanopportunitytofurthertheongoingdialoguebetweenhistoricalandanthropologicalbranchesofmusicstudies.
RobertEshbach(UniversityofNewHampshire)“Iwouldliketomakeaviolinconcertoforyou…”:FerdinandDavidandtheMendelssohnViolinConcerto
On30July1838,FelixMendelssohnwrotetoFerdinandDavidfromBerlinofhisintentiontowriteaviolinconcertoforhimforthefollowingwinter:“oneineminorsticksinmyhead,thebeginningofwhichgivesmenopeace.”Theconcertowasnotcompletedbythefollowingwinterbuttooksixyearstowrite,muchofitdoneinconsultationwithDavid.Today,themanuscriptofthatconcerto,asitwaspremieredattheLeipzigGewandhauson13March1845,residesintheBibliotekaJagiellońskainKraków.Mypaperwillconcernitselfwiththatscore,whichinsignificantwaysdiffersfromthefinalpublishedversion.IwillspeakofthewaysinwhichtheconcertomayindeedhavebeenwrittenwithDavid’stechniqueandmusicianshipinmind(includingitsuseofBaroqueandearlyClassicaltechniques,andapparentborrowingsfromDavid’sHoheSchuledesViolinspiels—worksbyVitali,Mestrino,etal.),andofthewaysinwhichDavidmayhaveinfluenceditsfinalform.AsideinterestmaybetheinfluenceofMendelssohn’sprotégé,theyoungJosephJoachim,whosevirtuositywasalsoonMendelssohn’smindatthetimeoftheconcerto’s“making.”
DitlevRindom(UniversityofCambridge)ListeningwithSchumann:ThePhantasieop.17and1830sSonicCulture
TheepigraphfromSchlegelwhichprefacesRobertSchumann'sPhantasieop.17haslongbeencharacterisedasaclassicdescriptionofromanticlistening:aformofintenseacousticengagementthroughwhichtheauditoraccessesarealitybeyondtimeandspace.Scholarlystudiesofthemusicalwork's"romanticdistance"haveconcentratedprimarilyuponthe
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Phantasie'sformalfragmentation,disregardingthemusic'smaterialityinfavourofdisembodiedanalysisand"structural"listening.Withinthisframework,thework'sallusiontoBeethovenhasbeeninterpretedasbothapublicandprivatemonument,articulatingasenseoflossthatispartiallyredeemedthroughsound.
ThispaperwillinsteadexaminethePhantasieasaworkpreoccupiedwithsonorityandtheprocessoflisteningitself.DrawinguponrecentworkbyVeitErlmannandEmilyDolanwhichhasstressedtheconstitutiveroleoftheearinmodernrationalityandthecentralityoftimbretoEnlightenmentaesthetics,thispaperarguesthatthePhantasieisadocumentofchanginglisteningpractices.ProceedingfromSchlegel'spoem,thepaperoffersatimbralanalysisofthefirstmovementandproposesthattheworkstagesaphenomenologicaljourneyfromimmediatesensationtoremotetone,inturninvestigatingtheshiftingmeaningsofmusicallisteningin1830sGermany.Thepaperaddressestheoverlappingtemporalitiesbetweenthemonument,18th-centuryfantasiaandmusicalworktoarguethatthePhantasieisasoundingmonumenttoBeethoven,inwhichthekeyboardfunctionsasatechnologythatmediatesbetweendifferentformsofperception.
Session7C
11.30am-1.30pm(2individualpapers+lecture-recital)
Class
JamesDeaville(CarletonUniversity)TheWell-ManneredAuditor:ListeningintheDomestic-PublicSphereofthe19thCentury
19th-centuryetiquettebooksinEnglishincludedinstructiononhowthe“well-mannered”(bourgeois)personshouldbehaveaturbandomestic-publicfunctions(McKee2005),i.e.invitedsocialeventsinprivateresidences.Themanualstherebyparticipatedinproducingthe“docilebodies”thatFoucaultidentifiedasendemictomodernsocietyandthatresultfromtheexerciseof(self-)discipliningpower(Foucault1975).Thebooks’prescriptionstypicallyextendedtomannersduringtheimpromptumusicalentertainmentsatteas,eveningparties,andmusicales,whentheinvitedguestswererequestedtoperform.Theimposedauditorypracticesforguestsduringinformalmusic-makingrevealhowtongueandearweresubjectedtothenormalizingdisciplinarypowerFoucaultproposes.
Behindtherulesforbehaviorwithinthesonicdomainhoveredthechallengetoordercreatedbythesocietalmovetowardthemodern“crisisofattention”(Crary1999).Intheevermoreconfusing,distractingmodernsoundscape,theguidebooksperformedastabilizingfunctionbyattemptingtoregulatethebodies(andears)ofmiddle-classsubjects(Morgan2012).Indeed,issuesofattentiontomusicandspeechatsocialeventsplaycrucialrolesinthesources,whichcanbestudiedbymappingtheevents’zonesofacousticspace(Born2013),bothformusicalperformanceandconversation.Auditorydisruptionsbyguestsincreasinglyoccurredwithinandbetweenthesespaces;theresultantinattentionledto
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greaterrigorinthemanuals’policingofperformedsound.Theirregulationsbespeaksociety’sfearofthelossofcontroloverthebodiesandsoundsofauditors,whichunderminedthediscipliningofbourgeoissubject-listenersinthelater19thcentury.
WiebkeRademacher(UniversityofCologne)BeyondConcertHalls.PerformanceandReceptionofClassicalMusicinNon-BourgeoisContexts1860-1914,LondonandBerlin
The19thcenturyiscommonlyregardedasatimeinwhichtheperformanceandreceptionofclassicalmusicbecameincreasinglyentangledwithbourgeoisideals.Theeffectofthisprocesshasbeenanalysedinnumerousstudies—mostrecently,SvenOliverMüller(2015)hasinvestigatedchangingbehaviouralpatternsof19th-centuryconcertaudiences,FrankHentschel(2006)hasexaminedhowbourgeoisidealshaveinfluencedthedisciplinaryhistoryofmusicology,andMartinTröndle(2011)hasdiscussedtheenduringeffectsof19th-centurybourgeoisidealsonconcertlifetoday.Themajorityofthesestudiesfocusentirelyonmiddleandupperclassaudiences.However,therearemanysourcesthatgiveevidencefortheperformanceandreceptionofclassicalmusicoutsidebourgeoiscontexts.Inconsideringtheseunder-examinedsources,thistalkwilladdressquestionssuchas:WhowenttoMusicHallsinLondon’sEastEndwhereperformancesofHandel’sMessiahstoodnexttoCircusShows?WhydidorchestrasandchoirsinBerlinandotherEuropeancitiesestablish'popularconcerts'intendedforlowerclassaudiences?Inwhichcontextsdidbourgeoisandnon-bourgeoisaudienceshavethechancetointermingle?ByexaminingexamplesfromLondonanBerlin,thispresentationhopestoencourageabroaderunderstandingofnon-bourgeoisperformanceandreceptionpracticesofclassicalmusicinthesecondhalfofthelong19thcentury.KatrinaFaulds(UniversityofSouthampton)PenelopeCave(UniversityofSouthampton)“MyharppresentsitsbestTonestoyou”:reflectionsonmusicintheJerninghamfamilycorrespondence
ThelettersandjournalsoftheJerninghamfamily,locatedprincipallyintheCadburyResearchLibraryattheUniversityofBirminghamandtheStaffordshireRecordOffice,profferarichresourceforstudyingthesignificanceofmusicwithinfamilialcirclesintheearlynineteenthcentury.Spanningmorethanfortyyears,thecorrespondenceisvibrant,lovingandhumorous,andincludesdescriptionsnotjustofpublicmusicallifeinLondon,butalsocommentaryonmusicaleducation,movementofinstrumentsandprivateperformance.Whatemergesisapictureofhowmusicfacilitatedtheprocessesofsharing,communicationandcollaboration,andhowthelettersthemselveshelpedtonurturemusical,socialandculturalnetworks.Practicalmusicalskillbecameasourceoffamilialprideandsocialinclusion;themobilityofinstrumentsandscoresmirroredtheintercourseofexchangethatoccurredinletter-writing;andtheinclusionofmanuscriptmusicembeddedtheprospectofsoundinthecorrespondence.AsscholarlyattentiononmusicintheEnglishcountryhousecontinuestoarticulatebroadlinesofdomesticpractice,itistheindividualityofexperiencethatmaterialisesintheJerninghamcorrespondence.BothmenandwomeninthisCatholicfamilywereoccupiedwithdifferentaspectsofmusickingthat
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extendedbeyondtheconfinesofEngland,highlightinghowmusicaleducationandengagementlinkedprovincialNorfolkwithcontinentalculture.Session8A
2.30pm-4.30pm(5panelpapers)
Panel:TheWorksofGiuseppeVerdiinContext:compositionalpractice,nationaltraditions,andeditorialprinciples
OurpaneladdressesholisticallythechronologicalandsocialframeworkofVerdi’soperasfromaneditorialperspective.Takingintoaccountmusicalrevisionsandissuesofformandgenretiedtocommerceandnationaltraditions,thepanelrevealstheabsenceofeditorialpraxisspecifictoVerdi’sFrenchoperasaswellastheineffectivenessofapplyingaone-size-fits-allapproachtoVerdi’sworks.Papersshowthateditorialprinciplesareevolvingphenomenathattakeintoaccountaesthetic,economic,andstylisticchangesaswellasthecontributionofothercomposerssuchasMeyerbeerandGiacomoPuccini,whoseearlycareercoincideswithVerdi’slateryears.Throughdetaileddiscussionofindividualworks,thepanelconcludesthatcompositionandreception—togetherwiththenationalidiosyncrasiesofoperaproduction(hereFrenchvs.Italian),andthecollectivesourcesleftintheirwake—haveaprofoundeffectoneditorialattitude,practice,anddecision-making.WhilethecommondivisionofVerdi’soperasintothreeperiods(Budden)isusefulfordefiningthechronologyofVerdi’scareer,itcannotbeemployedasatemplateforediting(consider,forexampletwosuccessiveworks:Attila[1846]andMacbeth[1847,rev.1865]).Ourmaintopicsfordiscussionare1.DefinitionofVerdi’soeuvreandcompositionalpractice;2.Periodization;3.Italianvs.Frenchtraditions;4.Sources;5.Theroleofthepublisherinsteeringaworktocompletion.5.OthercomposersandworksinVerdi’sconstellation.Thesessionwillconcludewitharesponse.Briefdescriptionofindividualpresentations:HelenGreenwald(NewEnglandConservatory)WhichVerdi,How,andWhy?ProvidesanoverviewofVerdi’sworks,revealingthatmorethanhalfwererevisedowingasmuchtosocialconditionsastoartisticdecisions.MainfocusonAttila,“theheightofcabalettismo”(Casamorata1847)andMacbeth(1847),thealleged“harbinger”ofVerdi’sso-called“secondmanner”(Ghislanzoni).FrancescoIzzo(UniversityofSouthampton)TheVerdieditionandperiodization:Somemethodologicalquestions
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ShowsVerdi’sworksofthe1840stobeadefinedsubsetofWGV.Exploreselementsofcontinuityandinstabilityofsourcesafteroperas’premieres.FocusonUngiornodiregnoandIdueFoscari.MarkEverist(UniversityofSouthampton)TamingVerdi’sBullFocussesonLesvêpressiciliennes(1855),whichliesattheintersectionoftwodifferentsourcetraditions:Verdi’sItalianworksandParisiangrandopéra.DiscussestheinfluenceofFrenchsystemonVerdi’scompositionalprocessasawholeandidentifiesproblemsforfutureeditionsofJérusalemandDonCarlos.
LindaB.Fairtile(UniversityofRichmond)EditingLateVerdiandEarlyPuccini:CorrespondencesandContrastsShowshowGiulioRicordi’sconcurrentbutdissimilarguidanceofbothGiuseppeVerdi’spenultimateopera,Otello,andGiacomoPuccini’sfirstfull-lengthstagework,Edgar,tocompletionhasrequireddissimilareditorialapproachestotwocontemporaneousworks.Topicsincludeutilityofautographscore,notationalinconsistencies,andrelevanceofterm“non-definitiverevisions”(LawtonandRosen).StefanoCastelvecchi(UniversityofCambridge)RESPONSEDiscusseshowwedeal,theoreticallyandpragmatically(editorially),withthemultiplicityofversionsinopera.Showsthatwecanderivesometoolsfromtheworkofliterarytextualcritics,whileremindingourselvesthateditorialworkthatlooks“objective”comeswithresponsibilitiesthatareoftennotmadeexplicit.Session8B
2.30pm-4pm(3individualpapers)
Colonialism
JonathanHicks(King’sCollege,London)PerformingTourismin1850sLondon:AlbertSmith’sAscentofMontBlanc
An1858issueoftheNewYorkMusicalReviewlists“EuropeanItems”ofinteresttoAmericanreaders:amongannouncementsofaLondonDonGiovanni,aone-actMeyerbeeropera,andaVienneseLohengrin,isamentionofAlbertSmith,who“hasascendedtheMontBlancforthelasttime,afterhavingdoneso(inPiccadilly)abouttwothousandtimes.”Althoughtheoperasinquestionremainfirmlyinthemusicologicalcanon,Smith’shitshowhasreceivedonlypassingattention.Yethisone-manperformanceofAlpinetourism,dubbeda“monopolylogue”inthetraditionofCharlesDibdinandCharlesMatthews,wascentraltotheexhibitioncultureofthemid-centurymetropolis,andprovidesarichcase
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studyoftheusesofmusicinVictorianstageentertainment.Ofcourse,muchoftheinterestwasvisual:thefirstactfeaturedaseriesofpaintingsbyWilliamBeverleydepictingtouristsightsenroutefromLondontoChamonix(adestinationnewlyaccessiblebypassengertrain);thesecondboastedavertically-scrollingbackdropthateffectedtheillusionofascent.ButaudiencesalsoheardSmithaccompanyhimselfincomicsongsatthepiano,withanalpinehornandmulebellsofferedasaudiblemarkersofhismountainjourney.Usingcontemporaryprogrammesandpressreports,IseektorecoverthesonicqualitiesofSmith’sperformance,andthentoconsiderhowmusicinlecturesandexhibitionscontributedtoshapingthepopularimaginationofEuropeantravel.GavinWilliams(UniversityofCambridge)Sound,Colony,andtheMultinational:TheGramophoneinSingaporeca.1900
In1905theBritishGramophoneCompanyreneweditscampaigntoconvinceconsumersthattheirtechnologywasserviceableformusic.Notonlyserviceable:thegramophonewouldallowmusicof‘quality’tobetransportedthroughouttheworld.NewspaperadsprophesiedthatrecordscutinLondonmightbemailed‘tosomefar-awaycorneroftheearthwheremusicneverwasbefore,tokeepthemenwhokeepwatchovertheoutpostsoftheEmpireentertained’(TheTimes1905).YetthebravenewmusicmarketenvisionedbytheGramophoneCompany—anearlyBritishmultinationalcorporation,muchlikeDunlop,orCadbury—wasalreadybeinglivedasarealitybysomeoftheEmpire’sdistantsubjects,andwasalreadypartofatransnationalcommercialenvironment.
Mypaperexaminesthedisconnectbetweenthegramophone’simperialfuturesandeverydayexperiencesofrecordedsoundwithinBritishcolonialsociety.Itakeearly-twentieth-centurySingaporeasacasestudy,andfocusinparticularonthemilitarybandrepertoire.TheserecordswereenthusiasticallyreceivedwithSingapore’selitecolonialsociety.Yetrecordedmusicinteractedwithlonger-standingnetworksofliveperformancewithinthecity’sspaces—spacesthatembracedabroadersocialmilieu.Iconsidertheoutdoorconcertsgivenbythe16thMadrasInfantryBandthattookplace(weatherpermitting)inSingapore’sbotanicalgardensoneveryfullmoon.Theseperformancesinteractedincomplexwayswiththerecordedbandsheardelsewhereinthecity,creatingaprocessofmutualinfluencethatcanilluminateearlygramophoneculture—anditsglobalizingtechniques—asaproducerofurbanspace.
KerryMurphy(MelbourneConservatoriumofMusic)HenriKowalski(1841-1916):AFrenchMusicianinColonialAustralia
FrenchvirtuosopianistandcomposerHenriKowalskivisitedAustraliain1880andthenreturnedin1885whenhesettledinSydneyfortwelveyears.Hewasinsomewaysatypicalnineteenth-centuryEuropeantravellingmusician:acosmopolitanfigure,travellingthecountriesoftheworld,crossingoceansandhemispheres,encounteringunknownlanguagesandsocialcustoms.Kowalskiwasa‘cosmopolitanpatriot’,touseKwameAppiah’susefulphrase,thatis,someonewhois‘attachedtoahomeof…[their]own’buttakes‘pleasurefromother,differentplacesthatarehometotheirdifferentpeople.’Heassumedtheresponsibilityofnurturing‘thecultureofhishome’spreadingandinstillingitsvalueswhile
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atthesametimedocumenting,bothinwordsandmusic,hislifeasaculturaltourist.ThispaperexploreshisintroductionofFrenchrepertoire,institutionalpracticesandmusicalinstrumentstocolonialSydney.Itdemonstratesthatforashortperiodoftimeattheendofthenineteenthcentury,therewasamuchstrongerFrenchpresenceinmusicallifeinAustraliathanhaspreviouslybeenacknowledgedandthatthismayinfluencedtheappointmentofaBelgianmusicianasHeadofthenewSydneyConservatoriumofMusicin1915.Session8C
2.30pm-4pm(3individualpapers)
Morals,Ethics,PhysiologiesBennettZon(DurhamUniversity)AnimalMusicandtheGreatChainofBeing
ClutchingTheOfficeGuidetotheLondonZoologicalGardensavisitortotheLondonZooof1851wouldexpecttofollowapre-determinedpathalongtheexhibitions,fromthelowestinsectstothehighestprimates.Thepathwasnotunique,however;museumsandotherexhibitionspacesalloverBritainfollowedthesameevolutionaryroute–aroutefixedbytheprinciplesoftheGreatChainofBeing,animmutablehierarchyconnectingtheordersofnaturefromthemostrudimentaryprotozoatothemostadvancedmammal,man.
TheGreatChainofBeingpre-occupiedtheVictorianimagination,influencingeveryaspectofitsculture.Zoologywasnoexception,oftenmirroringhumansocialorderintheanimalkingdom.AsHarrietRitvosuggestsVictorianzoology‘workedtocreateandreinforcearangeofparallelpatternsofhumanhierarchy.’(VictorianScienceinContext).Yetbecause‘animalsneverexemplifiedthebesthumantypes’(AnimalEstate)–civilizedEuropeanman–theywerewidelyconsideredunabletomakemusic.
Darwin,JamesSullyandotherevolutionistswouldchangeallthat,counter-arguingthatnotonlydoallanimalscreatemusic,allmusicisafunctionofnature’smostsociallyequalizingforce,sexualselection.Musicdemocratizednature,provingthattheGreatChainwasascientificfraud.ThispaperusesanimalmusictoexplorethedemiseoftheGreatChain,drawingfrompre-andpostDarwinianzoologicalscience.ItcontextualizestheGreatChainwithVictorianculture;examinesanimalmusicinpopularandexperimentalscience;andinconclusionoffersnewinsightsintokeyDarwiniantextsconcerningmusic.
MarkA.Pottinger(ManhattanCollege)PhysiologyandtheScienceofHysteriainLuciadiLammermoor
ThroughouttheoperaLuciadiLammermoor(1835)Luciaisaidedinherdesiretobewiththemanshelovesthroughvisionsofadeadrelative,whoisseeninthewaterofan
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ancestralfountain.Curiously,Luciaistheonlyoneintheoperawhoisabletoseetheghostandthuspresentsattheendoftheoperaavocalcommunionwiththedead.Toeveryonewhohearsherintheopera,Luciaismadandthevictimofgriefandhysteria,butthroughhersupernaturalvisionsLuciaisnowfreetoescapetherealityaroundherandtojoinherloverintheafterlife.Thecorrespondingsciencethatwillbeexploredinthispaperisphysiologyandthescienceofthemind,anewsetofscientificinquiriesintheearlynineteenthcenturythatembracedphysiognomy,thescienceoffacialfeatures,andcharacterology,thescienceofanalyzingexternalactionsandsoundstodiscoveralatentcharacterofthemind.BothofthesesisterstudiesofphysiologycometogetherintheworkofMarshallHall(1790-1857),theBritishphysicianwhopublishedin1826hiswidelyread‘CommentariesontheMoreImportantDiseasesofFemales’.ThroughaninvestigationofthelookandsoundofhysteriainHall’sworkandDonizetti’soperawecanseehowclosetheoperacomestomirroringearlynineteenth-centurynotionsofwellnessandsenilityandthuspresentfurtherinsightintothelookandsoundofthisvirtuosicfemalerole.
CatherineSchwartz(McGillUniversity)ClaireCroizaandtheArtoftheSelfFullofnotesonClaireCroiza’sperformances,masterclasses,andcauseries,HélèneAbraham’sUnArtdel’Interprétation,ClaireCroiza(1954)servesasacriticalsourceonthisfamedinterpreterwhoworkedcloselywiththelikesofDebussyandFauré.Afterattendingherfirstmasterclass,Abrahamemphasizedthat“theartofinterpretationisabovealltheartofforgettingoneself,”astatementthatseemstocontradictherobservationafewmonthslater:“theroleofpersonalityintheartofexpression:predominant.”Reflectingontheapparenttensionbetweenthevaluesofselfhoodandself-abnegationinCroiza’sartraisesanumberofquestions:Whereisthesinger’ssenseofselflocated?Howisitmanifest?Howcanitbeforgotten?Whathappenstotheselfinthisprocess?Whatisatstakeinforgettingtheself?InaclosereadingofCroiza’steachingsonthepsychology,physicality,andimaginationoftheinterpreter,Ifocusonthesequestionsthroughthelensofthreepreviouslyunexaminedtopics:first,theconceptofdédoublementorsplitpersonality,atermusedbyAbrahamtodescribeCroiza’sperformativeact;second,Croiza’scharacterizationofthepedagogicalprocessasaquestforthesinger’sownvoice;andthird,theimportanceofthegenderedself,offéminité,insinging.Inelucidatinghowamultiplicityofanswerstotheabovequestionsconvergeonthesethreeissues,myanalysisbuildsonBergeron’sstudyofCroiza’s“selfless”vocalityinthemélodiegenretoilluminateamultifacetedsenseofselfhoodasintegraltoCroiza’sbroaderaesthetics.
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LocalcontactnumbersMedicalemergency -999Localtaxis: -001Taxis:01865240000 -OxfordCityCars:01865703030MertonCollege
MertonCollegeMertonStreetOxfordOX14JD T:(+44)(0)1865276310
FacultyofMusic
StAldate’sOxfordOX11DBT:+44(0)1865276125
PlacestoeatPubsTheChequers(Nicholson’s)-131HighStreet,OX14DHOldTom(Thai)–101StAldate’s,OX11BTTheEagleandChild(Nicholson’s)-49St.Giles,OX13LUAngelandGreyhound(Young’s)-30StClement’s,OX41ABHeadoftheRiver(Fuller’s)–FollyBridge,OX14LBRestaurantsAselectionofrestaurants(chainsandindependent)canbefoundon:-LittleClarendonStreet,OX12HP-GeorgeStreet,OX12BE-OxfordCastle,OX11AY
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The19thBiennialInternationalNineteenth-CenturyMusicConferencewouldliketothankthefollowingsponsors:
THEOXFORDSONGNETWORK
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