Steps to Parnassus

2020 ◽  
pp. 226-282
Author(s):  
Harry White
Keyword(s):  
Imperial Court ◽  
Mass Settings ◽  
Work Concept ◽  
Antonio Caldara ◽  
First Time ◽  
Stile Antico

In this final chapter, the progression from servitude to autonomy in the European musical imagination is traced through the agency of Fux’s Mass settings for the imperial court to the singular achievement of Bach’s Mass in B Minor (BWV 232). Between these extremes lie the Mass settings of Fux’s deputy, Antonio Caldara, three of which establish a mid-way point between Fux’s dutiful (and unsatisfactory) adherence to the dynastic style (an adherence nevertheless redeemed by the composure and thematic integrity of his far fewer stile antico settings) and the exceptional autonomy of BWV 232, in which the emancipation of the musical subject is fully realized. Two of the Caldara settings, the Missa Sanctorum Cosmae et Damiani and the Missa Matris Dolorosae, moreover, share compelling structural and expressive affinities with BWV 232 which (for the first time) contextualize the autonomy of Bach’s setting. The “either/or” understanding of compositional servitude in relation to imaginative autonomy is thus moderated in favor of both concepts. Likewise the relations between the authority concept and the work-concept in Fux and Bach are fortified.

Unrivalled Influence

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Herrin
Keyword(s):  
Political Life ◽  
General Introduction ◽  
Women And Gender ◽  
Mothers And Daughters ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Long Span ◽  
Imperial Court ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Many ◽  
First Time

This book explores the exceptional roles that women played in the vibrant cultural and political life of medieval Byzantium. This book evokes the complex and exotic world of Byzantium's women, from empresses and saints to uneducated rural widows. Drawing on a diverse range of sources, the book sheds light on the importance of marriage in imperial statecraft, the tense coexistence of empresses in the imperial court, and the critical relationships of mothers and daughters. It looks at women's interactions with eunuchs, the in-between gender in Byzantine society, and shows how women defended their rights to hold land. The book describes how women controlled their inheritances, participated in urban crowds demanding the dismissal of corrupt officials, followed the processions of holy icons and relics, and marked religious feasts with liturgical celebrations, market activity, and holiday pleasures. The vivid portraits that emerge here reveal how women exerted an unrivalled influence on the patriarchal society of Byzantium, and remained active participants in the many changes that occurred throughout the empire's millennial history. The book brings together the author's finest essays on women and gender written throughout the long span of her career. This volume includes three new essays published here for the very first time and a new general introduction. It also provides a concise introduction to each essay that describes how it came to be written and how it fits into her broader views about women and Byzantium.

The Musical Discourse of Servitude

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harry White
Keyword(s):  
Johann Sebastian Bach ◽  
George Frideric Handel ◽  
Cultural Significance ◽  
Imperial Court ◽  
Musical Works ◽  
Musical Discourse ◽  
Work Concept ◽  
Musical Genres ◽  
Church Service ◽  
Late Works

The Musical Discourse of Servitude examines the music of Johann Joseph Fux (ca. 1660–1741) in relation to that of Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. Its principal argument is that Fux’s long indenture as a composer of church music in Vienna gains in meaning (and cultural significance) when situated along an axis that runs between the liturgical servitude of writing music for the imperial court service and the autonomy of musical imagination which transpires in the late works of Bach and Handel. To this end, The Musical Discourse of Servitude constructs a typology of the late Baroque musical imagination which draws Fux, Bach, and Handel into the orbit of North Italian compositional practice. This typology depends on two primary concepts, both of which derive and dissent from Lydia Goehr’s formulation of the “work-concept” in The Imaginary Museum of Musical Works (1992), namely, the “authority concept” and a revised reading of the “work-concept” itself. Both concepts are engaged through the agency of two musical genres—the oratorio and the Mass ordinary—which Fux shared with Handel and Bach respectively. These genres functioned as conservative norms in Fux’s music (most of Fux’s working life was spent in writing for the church service), but they are very differently engaged by Bach and Handel. To establish a continuity between Fux, Bach and Handel, and between the servitude of common practice and the emerging autonomy of a work-based practice in the early eighteenth-century musical imagination are the principal objectives of this study.

scholarly journals His Majesty Emperor Hirihito of Japan, K. G., 29 April 1901 - 7 January 1989

1990 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 241-272
Keyword(s):  
Science Museum ◽  
World War ◽  
Living Things ◽  
Spare Time ◽  
Imperial Court ◽  
Implicit Trust ◽  
Post War ◽  
The One ◽  
First Time ◽  
National Science Museum

The biographer, reflecting on the long and manifold life of the Showa Emperor, cannot but be struck by many contrasts. None, perhaps, is greater than that which distinguished the Scholar Emperor and Imperial Biologist, about whom this memoir is written, from His Imperial Majesty the Emperor and Statesman. Many short articles have appeared in illustration of his biological prowess (Egami 1989; Guillain 1989; Hamburger 1962; Kitamura 1988; Komai 1972; Reischauer 1975; Steam 1989; Taku 1972), and there is the early book by Hino (1931). The substantial biographies of the western press, however, treat it as if it had been a pastime (Haas 1975; Mosley 1966; Packard 1987; Sayle 1988; Takeda 1988). It was far more. No amateur could have encompassed and mastered the vast field of nature that he did and have risen to international authority. His enjoyment of biology not only provided comfort and relaxation, as others have remarked, but reflected his confidence in natural science as a means, so dear to his heart, of uniting all mankind. With much greater resources than others, he assembled a biological court of advisers in whom he had implicit trust, and became the first emperor to have devoted his spare time to science. Said to have entered this world alarmingly slight as an infant, he developed the physique and resolution to reign for 62 years, longer than any monarch in history, and he passed away still dwelling on that research. He wore two faces. There was the placid, impassionate, and, even, obedient leader in public regard, and there was the eager intent of the original investigator whether in the field or the laboratory, bent on discovery and understanding. A boy, raised strictly in the aura of the one divinely to ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne, found not respite so much as inspiration in studying the humblest orders of life. Surrounded with beauty and detesting conflict, he was led into the second and most frightful world war, to rescue his country, for the first time in its history, from shattering and abject defeat, by that very humility which his science had nurtured. A dual image has already been ascribed. Takeda compares an arrogant monarchy with the democratization of post-war and modem Japan. Others have contrasted the impassionate emperor with the endearing father who loved his children; and in both regards there is a profound chapter in one of the books of Elizabeth Vining (1970). Neither aspect, however, reveals the true personality which was manifested in that love of nature, respect for all living things, and confidence in the brotherhood of science. So far from being a side-issue, it is a cardinal consideration; it was the force that kept him going through troubled times. In the words of Professor Woodroofe, when we were conversing in Tokyo, Hirohito was a born naturalist who had to be the emperor. In the course of this memoir about one who was both botanist and zoologist, I have kept two questions in mind. What led the young Prince to biology and what was the scientific outcome? Perhaps, the nearest answers have already appeared in the charming reminiscences of Kanroji (1975), written at the age of 96 years after he had served the Imperial Court for 70 years. With Japanese text and splendid illustration, there are the book of the National Science Museum, Tokyo (Anonymous 1988) and those of the Asahi Publishing Company (Anonymous 1989 a ; Senzo 1989).

scholarly journals On the Sources for the “Life of Alexander of Svir”: The Chapter “About the Person Who Wrote the Life of the Saint”

Slovene ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 350-380
Author(s):  
Natalia V. Pak
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Control Element ◽  
Literary Sources ◽  
First Time

The article analyzes the literary sources of the “Life of Alexander of Svir,” which was written by Hegumen Herodion of Svir. The discovery of new sources significantly expands the methodological possibilities of studying this literary monument. Knowing which text the medieval author reworked, we can reveal and describe those changes which were made by the author in the adaptation of the borrowed texts. In addition, knowing which circle of sources the author borrowed from, we can come to a conclusion concerning the result that the author sought. The study shows that the final chapter, with autobiographical information on the hagiographer’s life, was compiled on the basis of three sources: “The Life of Theodosius of Kiev,” “The Life of Nikon of Radonezh,” and the epilogue of scribe Athanasius to “Oko tserkovnoe.” The first of these sources was pointed out by I. Yakhontov (1881), but the borrowings from this source that are found in the final chapter of “The Life of Alexander of Svir” have still not been studied. The other two sources are revealed for the first time. Yakhontov concluded that Herodion used in his work the lives of Russian venerables and monastery founders, mainly the works of Pachomius the Serb. Now we have reason to believe that Alexander of Svir’s hagiographer was not ruled only by patriotic or genre considerations, and that he was not an imitator of Pachomius. As far as we can tell, the choice of the source was motivated by a specific literary purpose and by each separate episode, the description of which he created on the basis of the texts of his predecessors. (The examination of these motives, however, are beyond the scope of this article.) The texts of all of the sources known to date (especially those sources which were unchanged when they were included in the “Life” of the saint) can be used as a control element in the comparison of the copies of the literary monument and in the construction of a stemma codicum.

Asian Traditions of Meditation

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Vital Role ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Ancient India ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Basic Features ◽  
The Comparative Study ◽  
First Time ◽  
Different Parts

Meditation has flourished in different parts of the world ever since the foundations of the great civilizations were laid. It played a vital role in the formation of Asian cultures that trace much of their heritage to ancient India and China. This volume brings together for the first time studies of the major traditions of Asian meditation as well as material on scientific approaches to meditation. It delves deeply into the individual traditions while viewing each of them from a global perspective, examining both historical and generic connections between meditative practices from numerous historical periods and different parts of the Eurasian continent. It seeks to identify the cultural and historical peculiarities of Asian schools of meditation while recognizing basic features of meditative practice across cultures, thereby taking the first step toward a framework for the comparative study of meditation. The book, accessibly written by scholars from several fields, opens with chapters that discuss the definition and classification of meditation. These are followed by contributions on Yoga and Tantra, which are often subsumed under the broad label of Hinduism; Jainism and Sikhism, Indian traditions not usually associated with meditation; Buddhist approaches found in Southeast Asia, Tibet, and China; and the indigenous Chinese traditions, Daoism and Neo-Confucianism. The final chapter explores recent scientific interest in meditation, which, despite its Western orientation, remains almost exclusively concerned with practices of Asian origin.

A Harmony of ImperfectionsThe Epilogue

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Gann
Keyword(s):  
First Time

The final chapter of Essays Before a Sonata is a grand speculation on what separates the greatest, most indelible music (such as Bach and Beethoven) from music that is merely clever and competent. Our own essay examines, for the first time in the literature, Ives’s indebtedness to Ruskin, Tolstoy, and Hegel, and holds up to scrutiny his idea that the value of music depends on the intensity of the artist’s experience in making it; that “what music sounds like may not be what it is.”

Sima Tan and the Invention of Daoism, “Legalism,”et cetera

2003 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kidder Smith
Keyword(s):  
Short Version ◽  
First Time

Here's a short version: The “-ism” we invoke when we posit things like “Daoism” was glimpsed for the first time by Sima Tan. (d. 110b.c.e.), lord grand astrologer (taishigong) to the Han court. His essay “Yaozhi”(Essential points), included in the final chapter of his son Sima Qian'sTaishigong, analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of six approaches to governance:Yinyang,Ru(known to us as Confucians),Mo(the Mohists),Fajia(called Legalists),Mingjia(called Sophists), andDaojia(or Daode, the supposed Daoists).

Preparing Germany for the 21st Century: The Reform of the Code of Civil Procedure

2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 909-942
Author(s):  
Giesela Rühl
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Procedure ◽  
Civil Procedure ◽  
District Courts ◽  
German Empire ◽  
German States ◽  
Imperial Court ◽  
Bankruptcy Code ◽  
Local Courts ◽  
Criminal Matters ◽  
First Time

One of the most important dates in German legal history is 1 October 1879. On this day the four Imperial Judiciary Laws (Reichsjustizgesetze) became effective: the Code of Civil Procedure (Zivilprozessordnung), the Code of Criminal Procedure (Strafprozessordnung), the Law on the Organization of Courts (Gerichtsverfassungsgesetz) and the Bankruptcy Code (Konkursordnung). They replaced a large number of different organizational and procedural provisions in the existing German states and effectively established legal uniformity in civil and criminal procedure in the German Empire. More specifically, the Court Organization Law created a national system of courts for civil and criminal matters consisting of Local Courts (Amtsgericht), District Courts (Landgericht), Appeals Courts (Oberlandesgericht) and the Imperial Court of Justice (Reichsgericht). The Code of Civil Procedure, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Bankruptcy Code provided the procedural framework for all these courts thereby bringing procedural unity to the German Empire for the first time.

scholarly journals Some Phytoseiidae (Acarina: Mesostigmata) from Madagascar, with Descriptions of Eight New Species and Notes on their Biology

1976 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leo Blommers
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Spider Mites ◽  
Simultaneous Occurrence ◽  
Additional Food ◽  
Phytoseiid Mites ◽  
Iphiseius Degenerans ◽  
The Family ◽  
Oligonychus Coffeae ◽  
First Time

The taxonomic portion of this paper discusses 27 species of mites of the family Phytoseiidae known to occur on plants in Madagascar. Eight new species are described: Phytoseius (Phytoseius) betsiboka. Ph. (Pennaseius) onilahy, Amblyseius (Amblyseius) hova, A. (A.) ankaratrae, A. (A.) boina, A. (A.) sakalava, A. (A.) trichophilus and A. (Proprioseiopsis) tulearensis. The following species are recorded for the first time from the island: Typhlodromus (Typhloseiopsis) contiguus Chant, 1959, Phyloseius (Phytoseius) crinitus Swirski & Shechter, 1961, Ph. (Ph.) intermedius Evans & Macfarlane, 1961, Ph. (Pennaseius) hongkongensis Swirski & Shechter, 1961, Ph. (P.)amba Pritchard & Baker, 1962, Iphiseius (Iphiseius) degenerans (Berlese, 1889), I. (Trochoseius) gongylus Pritchard & Baker, 1962, Paraphytoseius multidentatus Swirski & Shechter, 1961, Amblyseius (Amblyseius) hima Pritchard & Baker, 1962, A. (A.) deleoni Muma & Denmark, 1970, A. (Proprioseiopsis) sundi Pritchard & Baker, 1962 and A. (P.) peltatus Van der Merwe, 1968. Additional descriptions are given for most of these species. The male of P. multidentatus is described for the first time. New distribution records are presented for the following species: Typhlodromus scytinus Chazeau, 1970, the T. (Anthoseius) gutierrezi-chazeaui group, Amblyseius (Amblyseius) masiaka Blommers & Chazeau, 1974, A. (A.) bibens Blommers, 1973, A. (A.) rotundus Blommers, 1973, A. (A.) brevipes Blommers, 1973 and A. (A.) tamatavensis Blommers, 1974. The simultaneous occurrence of spider mites and other small arthropods on the plants on which the phytoseiids were collected is noted. A final chapter summarizes the results of experiments devised to see whether the collected phytoseiid mites can be effectively predators of spider mites, i.e. of Tetranychus neocaledonicus André, 1933 and sometimes Oligonychus coffeae (Nietner, 1861). Most of these results were negative. Only, Typhlodromus contiguus, Amblyseius tulearensis and A. sundi can regulate population numbers of the first prey species under circumstances of low webbing and/or additional food. Iphiseius degenerans, and possibly Amblyseius rotundus, can control Oligonychus coffeae in their area of distribution.

scholarly journals Roman Senators and Absent Emperors in Late Antiquity

1970 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 27-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Humphries
Keyword(s):  
Late Antiquity ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Fifth Century ◽  
The Political ◽  
The West ◽  
Imperial Court ◽  
Close Proximity ◽  
Set Up ◽  
First Time ◽  
The City

It is often assumed that the political fortunes of the city of Rome and of its élite, the Senate, decline in late antiquity. Such decline is attributed to emperors residing in other centers closer to the frontiers and to the inflation of senatorial status in the fourth century. This article argues, however, that the senators of Rome continued to see themselves as important participants in imperial high politics throughout the period. Such ambitions were ably demonstrated by Q. Aurelius Symmachus, whose role as senatorial ambassador to the imperial court was predicated on the basis that the Senate in Rome was still an important political institution. Similar ambitions motivated Roman senators to give active support to rival sides in political usurpations in the fourth century; this activity was advertised, moreover, by an impressive series of dedications set up in the Forum Romanum in close proximity to the Senate House itself. The climax of these aspirations came in the unstable circumstances of the fifth century when, for the first time in over a hundred years, Roman senators seated themselves on the imperial throne. Far from being a moribund political anachronism, then, the Senate in Rome continued to act as a major partner in the running of the Empire throughout the last centuries of Roman rule in the West.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document