Through the Spectrum: The New Intimacy in French Music (I)

Tempo ◽  
2000 ◽  
pp. 12-21
Author(s):  
Tristram Pugin

The image of French music from the late 18th century to the present day in its European context is less clear in most people's minds, even most French people's minds, than one could reasonably expect. Yet it has a decisive bearing on what one makes of contemporary developments. There are too few names involved, for one thing, and the lines of influence drawn do not always point in the right direction. In particular, historical ascendancy is blurred, not least because too many musicologists who ought to know better base their work on that shakiest of grounds, ‘accepted repertoire’. Manuals repeat uncritically the opinions of Grimm and Rousseau on the shortcomings of le style français without bothering to uncover the influence of Rameau and Armand-Louis Couperin on Schobert – and through him on the young Mozart. Beethoven's ‘heroic’ manner is most often thought to be the outcome of an instinctively ‘romantic temperament’ exploding Viennese classicism from inside, when in fact it was largely prompted by French composers of the revolutionary period such as Méhul and Gossec (something altogether natural in a composer born in the Rhine–Palatinate). The beginning of a new contrapuntal spirit in French music is often credited to Gounod and his discovery of Bach, to detriment of Böely both as composer and performer.

Author(s):  
A.A. Kutuzova ◽  

The relations between the church and the state during the revolutionary events in France in the late 18th century were discussed based on the works of Jakov Mikhailovich Zakher (1893–1963), an outstanding Soviet historian. J.M. Zakher’s works cast light on a number of questions: the general position of the church; the frame of people’s mind in the pre-revolutionary period; the emergence and development of the antireligious struggle; the roles played by J. Foucher and A. Schomet, two most prominent public figures of the deсhristianization movement who triggered the most dramatic changes in the spiritual framework of the French society; etc. It was concluded that, despite a whole complex of studies have been performed on the French Revolution, the works of J.M. Zakher provide an important systematic coverage of the state-church relations in France during the 18th century. His legacy clearly preserves the “École russe” traditions, such as thoroughness, scrupulousness and attention to details, as well as the desire to create a vivid and comprehensive picture of the past.


2019 ◽  
pp. 572-582
Author(s):  
Andrei V. Matison ◽  

Falsifications of noble pedigrees have repeatedly been subject of historical studies, but researchers have not yet turned to the study of similar falsifications made by bishops’ servants and their descendants. Due to uncertainty of their social status, representatives of bishops’ boyar scions and ministry clerks made every effort to establish their nobility by birth. However, not many could apply for integration into gentlefolk. At the same time, their descendants, having gained the right to receive hereditary titles through military service, nevertheless, were at pains to achieve affiliation to “ancient” nobility to have the right to include their names in the part 6 of the gubernia genealogical books. This article describes two cases: distortion and outright falsification of private pedigrees made in the late 18th century by descendants of the Tver bishop's house servants when approving their nobility. In the first case, the great-grandson of the bishop's dyak, collegiate assessor Peter Posnikov only maintained his ancestors’ “ancient” nobility. In the second case, the descendant of the bishop’s boyar scions, collegiate assessor Nikita Voronov directly falsified his pedigree by “reading” it from homonimous nobles of Vologda. Posnikov failed to achieve his affiliation to the “ancient” nobility. Voronov’s fabricated evidence was judged convincing, and he and his family were mentioned in the part 6 of the genealogy book of the Tver guberbia and later recognized as “ancient” nobility by the Senate. In order to investigate Posnikov and Voronov’s claims to nobility, the author has studied the materials of the Tver Gubernia Noble Assembly of Deputies. To establish their original pedigree, the materials of scribe and census descriptions, as well as office documentation of the Tver bishop's house, have been used. Both cases are illustrative of how the descendants of the bishops' servants pursued their desire to achieve affiliation to “ancient” nobility.


2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 93-100
Author(s):  
K. N. Tikhomirov ◽  
M. N. Tikhomirova

Тhis article discusses the location of Tatar settlements in the lower and middle reaches of the Tara on maps of the Tarsky Uyezd (1784 and 1798) and on topographic plan of the Kartashevskago and Bergamotskaya districts of the Tarsky Uyezd (1798). These maps had not been previously used for reconstructing the history of the region. To test their accuracy, other sources are used, including the Inventory Book of the Tarsky Uyezd, Gerhard Miller’s itineraries, etc., as well as the results of archaeological and ethnographic studies. Based on the analysis of maps, patterns in the locations of Tatar settlements are reconstructed. They were situated between the mouth of Tara and its confl uence with the Chertalinka River on the right bank, and between the Chertalinka and Kalinka rivers on the left bank. The reliability of the late 18th century maps as sources of information about the winter and summer settlements of the Tatars of the Middle and Lower Tara is assessed. These maps do not suggest that the settlements were still seasonal rather than permanent at that time. The winter camps were situated on the Tara high terrace, away from the valley, and summer camps were on the fl ood plain, close to the villages. The general pattern was that people settled along the river, often close to the places where the Tara tributaries fl owed into it. Place names are suggestive of seasonal settlements. Comparison with modern maps suggests that the current settlements pattern on the Lower and Middle Tara emerged in the late 18th century.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (15) ◽  
pp. 119-137
Author(s):  
O.V. Mykhailova

from different fi elds of art refer to the same topic. Stable repetition of phenomena, the names of which were originally perceived in the poetic and metaphorical way, indicates the formation of a certain genre branch, little developed in scientifi c research. Genre neoformations of this kind include walks, behind the semantic layer of which a certain set of stylistic means shines through. It is not by chance that attempts are made to comprehend this phenomenon in aesthetic and artistic aspects. Objectives. The purpose of the article is to highlight the phenomena of artistic culture with the most vivid signs of promenade elements, to consider a set of musical instruments used by French composers of the late 19th – early 20th century in the music “walks”. Methods. To determine the role of walks in the genre palette of the music of the 20th century, the historical biographical and the comparative research methods were used. Results. The author of the article reveals the role of walks in the French national life and culture. Their characteristic signs are the following: desire for rest, lightness of being, enjoying the moment. From here, the verbal landscapes from the “In Search of Lost Time” novel by M. Proust take their beginning in, which were inspired by his walking in the Bois de Boulogne forest, in the outskirts of Paris, the province of Illiers-Combray, where the writer took care of fl owers, trees and shrubs. A similar passion for walking and studying the fl ora was also experienced by the enlightener J.-J. Rousseau. He was known to spend a long time feasting eyes on plants, collecting herbariums, often recording his observations. This also explains why C. Monet loved wandering in the wilds. The famous artist, known for his landscape paintings, bought from the local farmers a piece of land that bordered with his estate in order to freely wander around the fi elds in search of the right object, favorable angle or necessary lighting. As a result, promenade walking, being a typical national feature, is often embodied in French music and poetry. This phenomenon is common outside of French art as well. In music, we can refer to “The Walk” by S. Prokofi ev and “The Walk” from the “Pictures at an Exhibition” by M. Mussorgsky; in prose - “The Walk” by N. Karamzin, “Walking in Rome” by G. Morton, “Walking with Pushkin” by A. Tertz, “Six Walks in the Fictional Woods” by U. Eco; in painting – “The Walk” by M. Chagall, “An Evening Walk”, “A Man and a Woman on a Walk in the Forest” by A. Toulouse-Lautrec, “A Walk”, “A Walk” by P. Delvaux, “A Walk” by E. Degas. Quite a few works in the genre of walks revealed such areas of public knowledge as lecture sessions, historical excursions and reviews of art. Thus, the art critic, historian, art historian S. Stavitsky organized a lecture session “Walk as a genre of modern art”, which consisted of three meetings: “Walk Aesthetics”, “Walk and Neo-avant-garde”, and “Actionist Walks”. Polish literary critic Z. Kopech published a collection of articles called “Walks in Modern Polish Literature” devoted to the issues of national prose, poetry and drama. E. Kulikova wrote the work called “Walks in the Lyrics of Anna Akhmatova”, where the author reviews several of her poems , including “The Walks”. B. Godard’s piano cycle “Chemin Faisant” (1880–1881) was analyzed, where each of the pieces appears as a sketch, a “photography” of a walking person. The fi rst three items of the cycle – “Going Over”, “Crying” and “Singing”, form a mini-cycle, since they contrast with each other in terms of image and content, although they remain related in terms of the selected means complex. Among them are: fi gures of movement, repetition, dynamic approach of “moving closer-moving away”, staccato technique in outside pieces. The unifying principle is the direction of all stylistic means to visualize a music image. This explains the presence and individual traits, since the character’s image created by the composer is endowed with a unique identity. The distinctness, tangibility of B. Godard’s musical images makes one ponder over the impact of cinema on musical art: its abilities through the details – expressions of eyes, facial expressions, turns of the head – transmit a change of emotional state, moods, put together a special emotional and psychological plot. A different approach to a descriptive music in “The Walks” (1921) by F. Poulenc is revealed, where the composer does not present a character on a walk, and does not tell stories. Instead, he creates the appropriate surrounding, inspires us with the atmosphere of such different and contrasting walks with the help of harmonic colors, tempos, texture, dynamic and articulation means. His music language is far from being simple, it is full of bizarre rhythms and complex chords, thus putting forward serious technical requirements. Above all, the composer’s targeted attitudes when creating the visible realism of his urban plots are evidenced by numerous text remarks, which are designed to guide a musician as accurately as possible towards the required performance character. They are found everywhere and relate to all components of the music: tempo, sound level, mood, articulation, agogics, pedal usage. A set of various sound and visual means help a performer to implement the composer’s instructions. Conclusions. The universal and wide compositional possibilities of walks as a special artistic genre are proved by its relevance in various types of art and scientifi c knowledge. The authors use different means of declaring their idea, and different way to materialize it. This versatile experience opens the way to comprehending the new and the unexplored, steadily and leisurely, as if you are just a curious walking person.


Author(s):  
M. McNEIL

Erasmus Darwin was the focus and embodiment of provincial England in his day. Renowned as a physician, he spent much of his life at Lichfield. He instigated the founding of the Lichfield Botanic Society, which provided the first English translation of the works of Linnaeus, and established a botanic garden; the Lunar Society of Birmingham; the Derby Philosophical Society; and two provincial libraries. A list of Darwin's correspondents and associates reads like a "who's who" of eighteenth century science, industry, medicine and philosophy. His poetry was also well received by his contemporaries and he expounded the evolutionary principles of life. Darwin can be seen as an English equivalent of Lamarck, being a philosopher of nature and human society. His ideas have been linked to a multitude of movements, including the nosological movement in Western medicine, nineteenth century utilitarianism, Romanticism in both Britain and Germany, and associationist psychology. The relationships between various aspects of Darwin's interests and the organizational principles of his writings were examined. His poetical form and medical theory were not peripheral to his study of nature but intrinsically linked in providing his contemporaries with a panorama of nature. A richer, more integrated comprehension of Erasmus Darwin as one of the most significant and representative personalities of his era was presented.


2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-185
Author(s):  
Edyta Sokalska

The reception of common law in the United States was stimulated by a very popular and influential treatise Commentaries on the Laws of England by Sir William Blackstone, published in the late 18th century. The work of Blackstone strengthened the continued reception of the common law from the American colonies into the constituent states. Because of the large measure of sovereignty of the states, common law had not exactly developed in the same way in every state. Despite the fact that a single common law was originally exported from England to America, a great variety of factors had led to the development of different common law rules in different states. Albert W. Alschuler from University of Chicago Law School is one of the contemporary American professors of law. The part of his works can be assumed as academic historical-legal narrations, especially those concerning Blackstone: Rediscovering Blackstone and Sir William Blackstone and the Shaping of American Law. Alschuler argues that Blackstone’s Commentaries inspired the evolution of American and British law. He introduces not only the profile of William Blackstone, but also examines to which extent the concepts of Blackstone have become the basis for the development of the American legal thought.


2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 187-204
Author(s):  
Carolin Rocks

"Praktiken zur Autonomie Zu Moritz’ Über die bildende Nachahmung des Schönen Karl Philipp Moritz’ Über die bildende Nachahmung des Schönen (1788) gilt als der autonomieästhetischeProgrammtext in der zweiten Hälfte des 18. Jahrhunderts. DerAufsatz stellt diese ästhetikgeschichtliche Klassifikation nicht in Frage, zeigt aber,dass die im Kern unbestreitbar kunstmetaphysische Argumentation über ethischePraktiken begründet wird. Diese Praktiken nehmen in der Arbeit an der Autonomieeinen so entscheidenden Stellenwert ein, dass sich eine heteronomieästhetischeGrundierung der Moritz’schen Kunsttheorie aufweisen lässt. Diese tritt hervor,wenn man den Fokus darauf richtet, wie Ethik und Ästhetik zueinander insVerhältnis gesetzt werden: Moritz verpflichtet die autonome Kunst nicht einfachauf moralische Normen oder soziale Funktionen, modelliert aber den genialenKünstler als Praktiker, als ›Hand-Werker‹, dessen künstlerische Produktivität immerschon einem ›guten Leben‹ zuarbeitet. Der Aufsatz demonstriert, wie Moritz ineinem eigenwilligen Begriffsspiel mit dem Schönen und dem Guten ›Nachahmung‹neu entwirft als auf Moralität zusteuernde ästhetische Praxis. Diese praxeologischeGrundlage der Argumentation wirft zusätzlich ein neues Licht auf Moritz’ Rezeptionneuplatonistischer Philosopheme. Karl Philipp Moritz’s »Über die bildende Nachahmung des Schönen« (1788) is regarded asone of the key texts of autonomous aesthetics from the late 18th century. This article doesnot challenge this classification. Instead, it argues that Moritz’s metaphysics of art is foundedupon ethical practices. These practices are so essential to his conception, that one can show thatit is also based on heteronomous aesthetics. This aspect of his argument emerges from how herelates ethics to aesthetics. Moritz does not simply reduce autonomous art to moral norms orsocial functions. Instead he portrays the ingenious artist as an artisan (›Hand-Werker‹) whoseaesthetic productivity serves a ›good life‹. This article therefore demonstrates how Moritz playswith the concepts of the beauty and the good in order to remodel mimesis as an aesthetic practicethat significantly contributes to morality. Finally, by emphasising this praxeological foundationof Moritz’s argument, one can also reconsider his reception of Neo-Platonism "


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document