In the Process of Becoming

In the Process of Becoming PDF Author: Janet Schmalfeldt
Publisher:
ISBN: 0195093666
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 347

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Book Description
With their insistence that form is a dialectical process in the music of Beethoven, Theodor Adorno and Carl Dahlhaus emerge as the guardians of a long-standing critical tradition in which Hegelian concepts have been brought to bear on the question of musical form. Janet Schmalfeldt's account of this Beethoven-Hegelian tradition restores to the term "form" some of its philosophical associations in the early nineteenth century, when profound cultural changes were yielding new relationships between composers and listeners, and when music itself became a topic for renewed philosophical investigation. A recurring metaphor in early nineteenth-century philosophical writings is the notion of becoming. In the Process of Becoming explores the idea of "form coming into being" in respect to music by Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Schumann. A critical assessment of Dahlhaus's preoccupation with the opening of Beethoven's "Tempest" Sonata serves as the author's starting point for the translation of philosophical ideas into music-analytical terms. Due to the ever-growing familiarity of late eighteenth-century audiences with formal conventions, composers could increasingly trust that performers and listeners would be responsive to striking formal transformations. Schmalfeldt's unique analytic method captures the dynamic, quasi-narrative nature of such transformations. This experiential approach invites listeners and performers to participate in the interpretation of processes by which, for example, brooding introduction-like openings become main themes and huge formal expansions offer a dazzling opportunity for multiple retrospective reinterpretations. Above all, In the Process of Becoming proposes new ways of hearing beloved works of the romantic generation as representative of a quest for novel, intensely self-reflective modes of communication.

In the Process of Becoming

In the Process of Becoming PDF Author: Janet Schmalfeldt
Publisher:
ISBN: 0195093666
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 347

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Book Description
With their insistence that form is a dialectical process in the music of Beethoven, Theodor Adorno and Carl Dahlhaus emerge as the guardians of a long-standing critical tradition in which Hegelian concepts have been brought to bear on the question of musical form. Janet Schmalfeldt's account of this Beethoven-Hegelian tradition restores to the term "form" some of its philosophical associations in the early nineteenth century, when profound cultural changes were yielding new relationships between composers and listeners, and when music itself became a topic for renewed philosophical investigation. A recurring metaphor in early nineteenth-century philosophical writings is the notion of becoming. In the Process of Becoming explores the idea of "form coming into being" in respect to music by Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Chopin, and Schumann. A critical assessment of Dahlhaus's preoccupation with the opening of Beethoven's "Tempest" Sonata serves as the author's starting point for the translation of philosophical ideas into music-analytical terms. Due to the ever-growing familiarity of late eighteenth-century audiences with formal conventions, composers could increasingly trust that performers and listeners would be responsive to striking formal transformations. Schmalfeldt's unique analytic method captures the dynamic, quasi-narrative nature of such transformations. This experiential approach invites listeners and performers to participate in the interpretation of processes by which, for example, brooding introduction-like openings become main themes and huge formal expansions offer a dazzling opportunity for multiple retrospective reinterpretations. Above all, In the Process of Becoming proposes new ways of hearing beloved works of the romantic generation as representative of a quest for novel, intensely self-reflective modes of communication.

The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven (Vol. 1-3)

The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven (Vol. 1-3) PDF Author: Alexander Wheelock Thayer
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 1230

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Book Description
Alexander Wheelock Thayer's 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' is a monumental three-volume biography that delves deep into the personal and professional life of the legendary composer. Thayer's meticulous research and comprehensive documentation provide readers with a detailed account of Beethoven's trials and triumphs, offering insights into his revolutionary compositions and enduring legacy. Written in a scholarly but approachable style, this biography sheds light on Beethoven's complex personality and the social and cultural context in which he created his immortal music. Thayer's work is not only a biography but also a valuable historical and artistic resource for anyone interested in classical music and the life of one of its greatest composers. Alexander Wheelock Thayer, a dedicated music historian, spent years studying Beethoven's life and works, collecting extensive materials to create this definitive account. His passion for Beethoven's music and commitment to accuracy shine through in every page of this meticulously researched biography. Thayer's expertise and deep understanding of Beethoven's music and life make 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' a must-read for scholars, musicians, and music lovers alike. I highly recommend 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' to anyone seeking a comprehensive and engaging exploration of Beethoven's life, music, and lasting influence on classical music. Thayer's scholarly approach and detailed analysis provide a rich and rewarding reading experience for those interested in the life and works of one of the greatest composers in history.

Singing Like Germans

Singing Like Germans PDF Author: Kira Thurman
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 150175985X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 434

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Book Description
In Singing Like Germans, Kira Thurman tells the sweeping story of Black musicians in German-speaking Europe over more than a century. Thurman brings to life the incredible musical interactions and transnational collaborations among people of African descent and white Germans and Austrians. Through this compelling history, she explores how people reinforced or challenged racial identities in the concert hall. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, audiences assumed the categories of Blackness and Germanness were mutually exclusive. Yet on attending a performance of German music by a Black musician, many listeners were surprised to discover that German identity is not a biological marker but something that could be learned, performed, and mastered. While Germans and Austrians located their national identity in music, championing composers such as Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms as national heroes, the performance of their works by Black musicians complicated the public's understanding of who had the right to play them. Audiences wavered between seeing these musicians as the rightful heirs of Austro-German musical culture and dangerous outsiders to it. Thurman explores the tension between the supposedly transcendental powers of classical music and the global conversations that developed about who could perform it. An interdisciplinary and transatlantic history, Singing Like Germans suggests that listening to music is not a passive experience, but an active process where racial and gendered categories are constantly made and unmade.

Beethoven

Beethoven PDF Author: Laura Tunbridge
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 030025797X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
A major new biography published for the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, offering a fresh, human portrayalThe iconic image of Beethoven is of him as a lone genius: hair wild, fists clenched, and brow furrowed. Beethoven may well have shaped the music of the future, but he was also a product of his time, influenced by the people, politics, and culture around him. Oxford scholar Laura Tunbridge offers an alternative history of Beethoven’s career, placing his music in contexts that shed light on why particular pieces are valued more than others, and what this tells us about his larger-than-life reputation. Each chapter focuses on a period of his life, a piece of music, and a revealing theme, from family to friends, from heroism to liberty. We discover, along the way, Beethoven’s unusual marketing strategies, his ambitious concert programming, and how specific performers and instruments influenced his works. This book offers new ways to understand Beethoven and why his music continues to be valued today.

The Chevalier de Saint-Georges

The Chevalier de Saint-Georges PDF Author: Gabriel Banat
Publisher: Pendragon Press
ISBN: 9781576471098
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 600

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Book Description
Banat, a concert violinist and teacher, describes the life of this virtuoso violinist, who is thought to be the earliest black European composer, born on his father's plantation on Guadeloupe.

Refresh, Refresh

Refresh, Refresh PDF Author: Benjamin Percy
Publisher: Graywolf Press
ISBN: 155597015X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 255

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Book Description
The war in Iraq empties the small town of Tumalo, Oregon, of men—of fathers—leaving their sons to fight among themselves. But the boys' bravado fades at home when, alone, they check e-mail again and again for word from their fathers at the front. Often from fractured homes and communities, the young men in these breathless stories do the unthinkable to prove to themselves—to everyone—that they are strong enough to face the heartbreak in this world. Set in rural Oregon with the shadow of the Cascade Mountains hanging over them, these stories bring you face-to-face with a mad bear, a house with a basement that opens up into a cave, a nuclear meltdown that renders the Pacific Northwest into a contemporary Wild West. Refresh, Refresh by Benjamin Percy is a bold, fiery, and unforgettable collection that deals with vital issues of our time.

Far Tortuga

Far Tortuga PDF Author: Peter Matthiessen
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0394756673
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 417

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Book Description
An adventure story and a deeply considered meditation upon the sea itself. "Beautiful and original...a resonant and symbolical story of nine doomed men who dream of an earthly paradise as the world winds down around them." —Newsweek

The Reluctant Fundamentalist

The Reluctant Fundamentalist PDF Author: Mohsin Hamid
Publisher: Anchor Canada
ISBN: 0307373355
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 155

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Book Description
From the author of the award-winning Moth Smoke comes a perspective on love, prejudice, and the war on terror that has never been seen in North American literature. At a café table in Lahore, a bearded Pakistani man converses with a suspicious, and possibly armed, American stranger. As dusk deepens to night, he begins the tale that has brought them to this fateful meeting. . . Changez is living an immigrant’s dream of America. At the top of his class at Princeton, he is snapped up by Underwood Samson, an elite firm that specializes in the “valuation” of companies ripe for acquisition. He thrives on the energy of New York and the intensity of his work, and his infatuation with regal Erica promises entrée into Manhattan society at the same exalted level once occupied by his own family back in Lahore. For a time, it seems as though nothing will stand in the way of Changez’s meteoric rise to personal and professional success. But in the wake of September 11, he finds his position in his adopted city suddenly overturned, and his budding relationship with Erica eclipsed by the reawakened ghosts of her past. And Changez’s own identity is in seismic shift as well, unearthing allegiances more fundamental than money, power, and perhaps even love. Elegant and compelling, Mohsin Hamid’s second novel is a devastating exploration of our divided and yet ultimately indivisible world. “Excuse me, sir, but may I be of assistance? Ah, I see I have alarmed you. Do not be frightened by my beard: I am a lover of America. I noticed that you were looking for something; more than looking, in fact you seemed to be on a mission, and since I am both a native of this city and a speaker of your language, I thought I might offer you my services as a bridge.” —from The Reluctant Fundamentalist

Beethoven, A Life

Beethoven, A Life PDF Author: Jan Caeyers
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520390210
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 656

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Book Description
"With unprecedented access to the archives at the Beethoven House in Bonn, ... Beethoven conductor and scholar Jan Caeyers ... weaves together a deeply human and complex image of Beethoven--his troubled youth, his unpredictable mood swings, his desires, relationships, and conflicts with family and friends, the mysteries surrounding his affair with the 'immortal beloved, ' and the dramatic tale of his deafness. Caeyers also offers new insights into Beethoven's music and its gradual transformation from the work of a skilled craftsman into that of a consummate artist"--Publisher marketing.

Music Lovers' Encyclopedia

Music Lovers' Encyclopedia PDF Author: Rupert Hughes
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 1016

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Book Description