Research in Musicology

In the context of the social culture of Europe, the rise and fall of Wagnerism ushered in a structural change of artistic forms, a process which in some sense manages to lay bare the transformations of modern culture over two entire centuries. What is presented rather as a complex psycho-sociological theorization of the process involved in producing a work of art, in fact manifests itself as a reformulation of ideas in literature and theatre, in criticism and cinema, providing us with a vast and articulate sketch of an almost endless series of those influences which Wagner’s oeuvre has been able to give rise to. The purpose of the present work is to expand, in this very direction, the thorough study of a system of convergences and dissonances, whether in the sphere of aesthetics, or in the context of that which remains of the oeuvre in the complex and as yet unfinished history of its reception. The editor’s aim has been to examine the Wagnerian influence which is present in the process of politico-geographical transformation of Europe, Russia and the United States from the fin de siècle to the middle of the 20th century. Furthermore, on the same topic, he has striven to cover also the silent revolution which Wagnerism precipitated in literature and in the field of social sciences, its legacy and the inevitable transformations it brought about.

Gustave Charpentier is one of the most original fin de siècle composers. His musical output — in particular Le couronnement de la muse (1897) and Louise (1900) — has to be understood in the appropriate political and social context. Charpentier's dramaturgical view reflects his social project, the concrete realization of which was the foundation of the Chambre Syndicale des artistes musiciens de Paris (1901) and the Conservatoire populaire de Mimi Pinson (1902). Up until now, the success of Louise has eclipsed the output of a composer who wished to be in touch with the workers, without remaining isolated in a purely artistic dimension. Our analysis aims to reconstruct the origin and the evolution of both of Charpentier's masterpieces; and to do that we will make use of unpublished and original documents.

Focusing on music, our attention has been drawn by the visual element; this is the most significant - indeed the principal – stimulus for the composer’s creativity. Charpentier was in fact among the first artists to adapt his works to the new communications media of radio and cinema, experimenting with a method of composing closely connected to them. The music of Gustave Charpentier reveals to us a world in which music and social history are inextricably associated; his music sheds light on the contradictions which enlivened fin de siècle France.

Improvisation is an important aspect of music, not only in jazz and other ‘improvised music’, but also of classical music. Pianists may add improvised interludes to their recitals and cadenzas to a concerto they perform. They may conclude their recitals by playing compositions composed on the spot, freely invented or on themes handed to them by the public. Violinists and other instrumentalists may do the same. Singers may add embellishments to their arias which are not notated in their scores, a practice widely spread in nineteenth-century opera. For the listener it may perhaps not make very much difference whether or not what he hears is improvised or composed, but for the performer it does, of course. In fact, the improviser shows that he is a real master of the art: he can do at once, without preparation, what others can do only with preparation. But there is also a genre of written compositions which is supposed to sound as improvisations, especially those entitled Improvisation, Fantasy, Impromptu, Prelude, and so forth.
Beyond Notes: Improvisation in Western Music of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries brings together twenty essays that do confirm the many sides of the concept of ‘improvisation’ and the wide range of approaches that can be taken to it. Because of the collective nature of this volume, the approaches do indeed vary greatly. Some contributions deal with improvisation from the conceptual point of view: what really is improvisation? Others deal with certain repertoires, or with specific examples. Some deal with improvised additions, others with improvisational aspects of written compositions. The contribution on the improvisations of the French organist Louis Vierne  deals directly with recorded improvisations. The contribution on the flute-cadenza in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor encompasses recorded material, but this was rather semi-improvisational, prepared certainly, but not necessarily notated and not necessarily performed identically every time. Contemporary descriptions of improvisations are found in contributions on Italian music theorists and musicians in general, and in those on composers such as Hummel, Paganini, Bériot, Clara Wieck Schumann, Czerny, Liszt and Henselt. Compositions in improvisatory style are discussed in several of these contributions and in one on nineteenth-century Hungarian or so-called ‘Gypsy’ music. Ad libitum ornamentation is discussed in relation to Tartini’s violin sonatas and nineteenth-century operatic arias. Other contributions discuss the instability that is a property of nearly all music or the migration of motives and schemes from one composition to another, processes that pave the way for improvised additions. Several contributions provide theoretical reflections on improvisation.
Beyond Notes: Improvisation in Western Music of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries contains contributions by Carmela Bongiovanni (Genoa), Philippe Borer (Boudry, Switzerland), Rogério Budasz (Riverside, California), Vincenzo Caporaletti (Rome), Gregorio Carraro (Padoa), Simone Ciolfi (Rome), Damien Colas (Paris), Mariateresa Dellaborra (Pavia), Raffaele Di Mauro (Rome), Martin Edin (Stockholm), Valerie Woodring Goertzen (New Orleans), Martin Kaltenecker (Paris), John Lutterman (Walla Walla, Washington), Naomi Matsumoto (London), Laura Moeckli (Bern), Csilla Pethő-Vernet (Paris), Rudolf Rasch (Utrecht), Renato Ricco (Salerno), Rohan Stewart-MacDonald (Cambridge), and Steven Young (Bridgewater, Massachusetts).

Contents

This volume presents sixteen essays, ranging from the reception of the genre's foremost masterworks to the artistic productions of its protagonists, and finally to strictly aesthetic and musical issues. The book's central goal is to illustrate the foremost traits of this form of musical theatre (which is also an institution) and so to allow the reader (especially the general reader) to appreciate its richness and complexity of traditions, expressions and practices. They form a landscape that is extremely elusive, yet exceptionally lively and vibrant.

Contents

In this book, edited by Roberto Illiano and Massimiliano Sala, twenty-four scholars investigate the relationship between music and dictatorship in twentieth-century Europe and Latin America. The music is explored as a political phenomenon in fifteenth nations under totalitarian regimes: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, France, Greece, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Spain, and Hungary. Historical and aesthetical articles face both individual people (for instance, Chavez, Ligeti, Massarani or Villa-Lobos) as well whole generations of composers operating under dictatorship (for example, in the communist regimes of Poland and Serbia; in France under Vichy; in Franco's Spain, Salazar's Portugal, or in Revolutionary Cuba). The contributors are: Rachel Beckles Willson, Dário Borim, Steve Butterman, Teresa Cascudo, Myriam Chimènes, Regis Duprat, Christoph Flamm, Marina Frolova-Walker, Thomas Garcia, Melita Milin, Simone Münz, Marcos Napolitano, Nina Noeske, Karen Painter, Gemma Perez Zalduondo, Daniel Party, Carlo Piccardi, Marc-André Roberge, Katy Romanou, Mattias Tischer, Andrzej Tuchowski, Luis Velasco Pufleau, Pablo Vila, Maria Alice Volpe.

Contents