Music Commons^™

La Música En Los Cultos Dionisiacos, Adriana Renero

Publications and Research

Para penetrar en el mundo musical griego es preciso alejarnos de nuestras categorías estéticas habituales y pensar en modos, ritmos y armonías diferentes. Al mismo tiempo, es indispensable advertir que en la sociedad griega arcaica la música ocupaba un lugar fundamental, pues mantenía estrechos vínculos con la medicina, la astronomía, la religión, la filosofía, la poesía y la pedagogía, entre otras disciplinas. Lo anterior responde a que la música era considerada un arte peculiar y ambiguo dotado de “poderes especiales” porque actuaba como fuerza capaz de precipitar al hombre a la locura, al mismo tiempo que la curaba, o bien, …

Review Of Analogías Musicales: Kandinsky Y Sus Contemporáneos, Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

It is hard to believe that curators and scholars still find something to say about the relationship between music and art of the twentieth century. Still, in recent years there has been a relentless boom of exhibitions, scholarly studies, and books dedicated to this topic. This interest, to be sure, is due, in part, to the prestige that modernist art commands among wealthy collectors and institutions, but also to its immense popularity among the general public. Less popular in appeal, though equally revered among the happy few, is modernist music. When both manifestations – art and music – are brought …

Like Falling Off A Log: Rubato In Chopin's Prelude In Ab Major (Op. 28, No. 17), William Rothstein

Publications and Research

Rubato is widely regarded as a purely intuitive art. While it may be true that most performers rely solely on intuition for their rubato, a conscious approach may also be helpful. For the teacher of “analysis for performers,” a conscious approach is essential if rubato is to be discussed at all.

Rubato is a difficult subject to theorize. The late David Epstein made an admirable attempt in his book Shaping Time, using recordings by performers he admired to construct quantitative models. My approach here will be qualitative rather than quantitative, and introspective rather than empirical. Unlike Epstein, I will …

"You Better Work": Underground Dance Music In New York City By Kai Fikentscher, Eliot Bates

Publications and Research

You Better Work!: Underground Dance Music in New York City is arguably the first ethnography of electronic dance music culture; it is also one of the first ethnomusicologically-influenced monographs on mediated dance music. Kai Fikentscher deftly avoids the wealth of music industry genre tags (such as "deep house" or "two step garage") that plague many writings on electronic dance music, instead focusing on a specific dance community in New York City which began its social dance practice in the days of disco and continued the practice well into the 1990s. His study took place over the course of thirteen years, …

Negative Emotions And Music Revisited, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

The World Map Of Music: The Edison Phonograph And The Musical Cartography Of The Earth By Ulrich Wegner, Eliot Bates

Publications and Research

The Berlin Phonogram-Archive was founded in 1900 by Carl Stumpf and Otto Abraham with a collection of twenty wax cylinders of a Siamese theatre ensemble. Erich Moritz von Hornbostel became the head of the archive in 1905, and ever since, the archive—and its archivists—have held an important place in the histories f folklore, ethnomusicology, and recorded sound. Recognized in 1999 by UNESCO’s “Memory of the World” project, the archive now holds over 150,000 music recordings and recently released a comprehensive catalogue (Ziegler 2006) and the CD-ROM The World Map of Music: The Edison Phonograph and the Musical Cartography of the …

Song Of The Outcasts: An Introduction To Flamenco [Book Review], Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

Robin Totton's Song of The Outcasts: An Introduction to Flamenco is actually a judicious, balanced overview of flamenco, its styles, history, and practitioners. And although its author is very passionate about his subject matter, facts and opinions are not blurred or mystified, but rather presented with clarity and concision (in only 224 pages). Totton defines himself as an "explainer by trade" (p. 12), and explain he does. The challenge, though, is to explain verbally an art form that defines itself around the notion of ineffability.

Albert George ("Al") Hibbler, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Al Hibbler was a singer who had success both as a solo artist ("Unchained Melody") and with big bands (Jay McShann, Duke Ellington).

Berlín Era Una Festa: Capllonch Vist Pels Seus Contemporanis A Alemanya, Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

A principis del segle XX, Berlín i París eren, segons Joaquim Nin Castellanos, ciutats “a l’avantguarda dels països musicals”. Segons ell, les institucions culturals alemanyes eren admirables per la seva solidesa, però entenia i es resignava a acceptar que el futur de les arts passava per París. “París o Berlín?”, es devien demanar aleshores elsjoves artistes amb aspiracions mentre preparaven l’imprescindible viatge a l’estranger per conèixer aquesta “avantguarda”.

The Guajira Between Cuba And Spain: A Study In Continuity And Change, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Towards A New Form Of Opera Production, David Smith, Frederick Bianchi

Publications and Research

Opera has historically been one of the most expensive and complex art forms to produce, limiting its accessibility and viability, especially for smaller companies and touring productions. This paper proposes a new model for opera production that utilizes emerging technologies—such as synchronized digital music systems, real-time projection, and programmable lighting—to create high-quality operatic experiences at significantly reduced cost. By leveraging tools like the Sinfonia system for musical timing and dynamic visual elements controlled by digital protocols, opera can be made portable, repeatable, and customizable. The model aims not to replace traditional opera but to supplement it with efficient, flexible systems …

Oscar Esplá In Belgium (1936-1949) [Book Review], Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

In sum, one feels grateful that someone has taken up the task of debunking, one brick at a time, the vast amount of misinformation that exists about Esplá. De Kloe is a thorough, meticulous scholar whose work shows a masterly command of Spanish music history and its sources.

Sneaking Into The Boys Club: Gender And The Independent Record Shop, Lee Ann Fullington

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Flamenco Guitar: History, Style, And Context, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

From Scarlatti To "Guantanamera": Dual Tonicity In Spanish And Latin American Musics, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Indo-Caribbean 'Local-Classical Music': A Unique Variant Of Hindustani Music, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

As cosmopolitan South Asians are well aware, several Indian performing arts, from Bharatanatyam to Bhangra, have come to flourish outside of India, especially as cultivated by non-resident Indians and Pakistanis. Most of these art forms, like Bharatanatyam, either adhere closely to models thriving in India itself, or else - like the British-based Bhangra - although differing from counterparts in India, are nevertheless familiar to interested urbanites in South Asia, who can buy recordings and cultivate an interest in them if they desire. Among the ethnic Indian populations of the Caribbean, a unique sort of Indian music has come to evolve …

Modernity And Musical Structure: Neo-Marxist Perspectives On Song Form And Its Successors, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Review Of Raíces: The Roots Of Latin Music In New York City, Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

When I was in school – and that was, obviously, a long time ago – the word Latin, whether as a noun or as an adjective, referred to the world of ancient Rome, its language, culture, and civilization. Needless to say, this definition has now been replaced by another, whose connotations refer to the culture of the countries south of the border of the United States. When a term alters its meaning, it is undoubtedly indicative of larger issues. In recent decades, for example, the popular music of the Spanish-speaking world, not only has attained by appropriation a distinct …

Davis Eli ("David") Ruffin, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

David Ruffin was a singer who had a successful career both as a solo artist and as a member of The Temptations, who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.

Review Of William Blake, Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

Although William Blake is the quintessential multidisciplinary artist – his achievements in literature and the visual arts are for the most part uncontested – as far as we know, he was never particularly interested in music. Indeed, neither his poetry nor his pictures describe or depict music directly. Yet, in the last 200 years or so, his work has made an astounding mark on composers and music. One sees Blake's influence primarily in the numberless musical settings of his poems, but also in more general, indefinite, and ineffable way – a very Blake-ian one, I am tempted to say. I …

The Construction Of A Diasporic Tradition: Indo-Caribbean "Local Classical Music", Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

A historical and stylistic survey of Indo-Caribbean local-classical music, an idiosyncratic form of North Indian song created by indentured immigrants and their descendants, primarily in Trinidad and Guyana.

Ethnic Identity, National Identity, And Music In Indo-Trinidadian Culture, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Carlos Chávez: A Guide To Research [Book Review], Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

There is no doubt that Robert Parker's Carlos Chávez: A Guide to Research is an important contribution to music scholarship. A guide dedicated to the most important Mexican composer of this century has long been overdue.

Stravinsky's Serial "Mistakes", Joseph N. Straus

Publications and Research

In 1952, after the completion of The Rake's Progress, Stravinsky embarked on a remarkable voyage of compositional discovery. His late works differ from his earlier ones in striking and profound ways. During the final two decades of his life, every major work was almost shockingly new, right down to original, and ever-changing, principles of structural formation. The works in this period describe a succession of compositional firsts, including his first works to use a series (Cantata [1952], Septet [ 1953], Three Songs from William Shakespeare [1954]); his first fully serial work (In Memoriam Dylan Thomas [1954]); his …

Review Of La Imagen De Nuestros Músicos: Del Siglo De Oro A Edad De Plata, Antoni Pizà

Publications and Research

La imagen de nuestros músicos: Del Siglo de Oro a la Edad de Plata is a hefty compilation of 681 portraits of Spanish composers from the Renaissance to the present. The illustrations are organized in four large chapters: "Del siglo de oro a la ilustración", covers the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries; "El primer romanticismo" and "El segundo romanticismo", deal with the first and second half of the 19th century; the final section, "Los músicos de nuestro siglo" focuses on the 20th century. If my numbers are correct, the earliest composer included in the study is the polyphonist Cristóbal de …

Improvisation In Latin Dance Music: History And Style, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

Latin dance music constitutes one of the most dynamic and sophisticated urban popular music traditions in the Americas. Improvisation plays an important role in this set of genres, and its styles are sufficiently distinctive, complex, and internally significant as to merit book-length treatment along the lines of Paul Berliner's volume Thinking in Jazz (1994). To date, however, the subject of Latin improvisation has received only marginal and cursory analytical treatment, primarily in recent pedagogical guidebooks and videos. While a single chapter such as this can hardly do justice to the subject, an attempt will be made here to sketch some …

Howard Harold Hanson, John A. Drobnicki

Publications and Research

Howard Hanson was a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, conductor, and music educator who was director of the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester for forty years.

Chutney And Indo-Trinidadian Cultural Identity, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

Since the early 1980s Indian diasporic communities have attained sufficient size, affluence, self-awareness and generational distance from South Asia to have created a set of popular music styles that are autonomous and distinctive rather than strictly derivative of Indian models. While the bhangra music of British Punjabis has attracted some scholarly and journalistic attention, chutney, a syncretic IndoCaribbean popular music and dance idiom, is little known outside its own milieu. This article constitutes a preliminary socio-musical study of chutney.

Gender Politics In Caribbean Popular Music: Consumer Perspectives And Academic Interpretation, Peter L. Manuel

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Mallorca: Centers For Musical Historical Research, Antoni Pizà, Joan Parets I Serra

Publications and Research

Majorque, la plus grande des îles Baléares, a une riche histoire musicale. Depuis plus de dix ans, le Centre de documentation musicale historique local a entrepris de recueillir, conserver et propager le patrimoine historique et musical des îles Baléares. L'article retrace l'historique de la recherche dans la région et donne un aperçu des collections et des activités du Centre, qui incluent des publications, des colloques réguliers et des rencontres scientifiques.

Mallorca, eine der größten Inseln der Balearen, hat eine reiche Musikgeschichte. Seit zehn Jahren ist das lokale Zentrum für historische Musikdokumentation dabei, das historische und musikalische Erbe der Balearen zu …