The Value of Curating Music

This article examines the practice of concert organization from an ethical perspective. By examining the field in relation to the notion of value, it explores the processes by which curators produce live acts, and the issues they face when they do so. The central argument traces a trajectory from the material to the immaterial aspects. The first part (Context and Value) shows how financial and cultural matters are embedded into live music production, and frames curatorship as the articulation of their co-dependent relations. The second part (Praxis) explores how music curators breathe value creation in their work context, by comparing interviews with the directors of Venice Biennale Musica, London Contemporary Music Festival, and No-Nation. The third part (Risk and Ethics) introduces risk-taking as a unit of value measurement, and points out the force of the curatorial in its power to confer value.

Im geschützten Raum

This article explores the musical events organized by the Goethe Institute during the Chilean dictatorship (1973–1990). An examination of the cultural and political discussions around these musical programmes demonstrates that the function of music as a tool for promoting democracy was understood in the context of the cultural activities of the Federal Republic of Germany in Chile. I explore the ways in which projects from the fields of jazz and contemporary music were understood as vehicles of democratic ideals, the consequences of the resulting musical transfers for the local musical life, as well as the shaping of a particular image of West Germany in Chile. (Vorlage)

Between Computer Automation, Voltage Control and Literature: A portrait of Peter Zinovieff

The life and times of Peter Zinovieff (1933–2021) have been amply commented upon and there are numerous testimonies of his role on developing electronic music as well as his strong impact on musicians throughout the 1970s. However, besides his important role in developing synthesisers, sound processing and various other devices, he is now recognised as a significant pioneer in music with computers. His collaboration with Harrison Birtwistle’s opera The Mask of Orpheus has been deemed an important contribution to contemporary music in Great Britain. Finally, his late return to composition and performance shows his lifelong attachment to innovation and experimentation in music.

Thomas Adès Studies

Thomas Adès is a dominant force in contemporary music, whose work attracts significant attention and acclaim, and has been performed by many renowned ensembles. This volume – the first to present a range of scholarly essays on every aspect of Adès's music – offers authoritative accounts of Adès's major compositions from a variety of analytical, critical, cultural and historical perspectives. The opening chapters focus on Adès's earlier music, offering close readings of key works. Further essays focus on his engagement with forms and instrumental genres. The final chapters turn to Adès's texted music and highlight how themes introduced in earlier chapters cut across Adès's entire output. Richly illustrated with musical examples and supported by further online material, this book provides a multi-faceted portrait of Adès's work that opens up new ways of thinking about, and engaging with, his music.

Studio Production in Contemporary Vietnam

Chapter 5 examines how and why the VOV music ensembles are keeping their red music relevant in contemporary Vietnam. In the reform era, the ensembles were separated into two groups: the national or ethnic music ensemble (nhóm nhạc dân tộc), comprised of traditional instrumentalists and folk singers, and the new music ensemble (nhóm nhạc mới), which performs Vietnamese songs and instrumental music composed for choir and chamber orchestra. Drawing on fieldwork at the radio studios in Hanoi, this research provides an ethnographic account of contemporary music production processes at the station. The first case study examines how recordings by the traditional music ensemble, a versatile group of instrumentalists and folk singers, represent and reify the three major cultural regions of Vietnam. The second explores how productions by the new music ensemble, which reference the musical styles of DRV revolutionary opera, memorialize government achievements, valorize heroes of the past, and are made relevant to the contemporary political context through references to current issues such as territorial claims in the South China Sea. Rather than dismiss these musicians as political puppets, the chapter investigates their creative, pragmatic approaches to the constraints and contradictions of life in a (post)socialist state. Meanwhile, culture brokers working at these national broadcasters are leading the politicization of this intangible cultural heritage, a process they justify with the language of cultural sustainability.

From Printed Score to Performance: Access and Collaboration in the New Zealand Orchestral Community

<p>Research into the practical needs and activities of orchestra librarians in New Zealand is rare. This study explores how orchestra librarians and conductors search for, access and manage printed music for the orchestras' players. The constraints of access and availability and the collaborative relationships that enable the sharing of resources are also examined. The research uses a qualitative approach with data collected from open-ended interview questions with eighteen participants who come from professional and amateur orchestras and the National Library of New Zealand. The findings show that orchestras in New Zealand access music from many different sources and the National Library plays a key role in this activity. The groups face constraints in accessing contemporary music (except New Zealand music) due to cost and copyright issues and there are constraints relating to the condition and use of printed hire music. The report concludes that there is a need for a national orchestra association in New Zealand to provide support for both amateur and professional orchestras. Cataloguing projects to increase the visibility and access of existing music resources and training programmes for performance librarians are other areas that are considered.</p>

From Printed Score to Performance: Access and Collaboration in the New Zealand Orchestral Community

<p>Research into the practical needs and activities of orchestra librarians in New Zealand is rare. This study explores how orchestra librarians and conductors search for, access and manage printed music for the orchestras' players. The constraints of access and availability and the collaborative relationships that enable the sharing of resources are also examined. The research uses a qualitative approach with data collected from open-ended interview questions with eighteen participants who come from professional and amateur orchestras and the National Library of New Zealand. The findings show that orchestras in New Zealand access music from many different sources and the National Library plays a key role in this activity. The groups face constraints in accessing contemporary music (except New Zealand music) due to cost and copyright issues and there are constraints relating to the condition and use of printed hire music. The report concludes that there is a need for a national orchestra association in New Zealand to provide support for both amateur and professional orchestras. Cataloguing projects to increase the visibility and access of existing music resources and training programmes for performance librarians are other areas that are considered.</p>