Descripciones mejoradas de Syndetics:

Representing Stephen Davies's best shorter writings, these essays outline developments within the philosophy of music over the last two decades, and summarize the state of play at the beginning of a new century. Including two new and previously unpublished pieces, they address both perennial questions and contemporary controversies, such as that over the 'authentic performance' movement, and the impact of modern technology on the presentation and reception of musical works. Rather than attempting to reduce musical works to a single type, Davies recognizes a great variety of kinds, and a complementary range of possibilities for their rendition. Among the questions that Davies considers are these: How can expressiveness be in a musical work when music experiences nothing? Is music a language of the emotions? How do recorded pop songs and purely electronic pieces differ from works created for live performance? Is John Cage's silent piece, 4'33", music? To what extent is the performer free to create her own interpretation and to what extent is she constrained by the composer's score? Is training in musical technicalities a prerequisite for a full appreciation of musical works and performances? Is an awareness of the socio-historical setting in which a work is created relevant to its appreciation? How does the value of individual musical works go beyond the worth of an interest in music in general? Stimulating and insightful both as individual discussions and as a coherent argument, these essays will be greatly enjoyed by philosophers, aestheticians, art theorists, and musicologists.

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Introduction
• Ontology
• 1 John Cage's 4'33. Is it Music?
• 2 Ontologies of Musical Works
• 3 Transcription, Authenticity, and Performance
• 4 The Ontology of Musical Works and the Authenticity of their Performances
• Performance
• 5 Authenticity in Musical Performance
• 6 So, You Want to Sing with the Beatles? Too Late!
• 7 What is the Sound of One Piano Plummeting?
• Expression
• 8 The Expression of Emotion in Music
• 9 Is Music a Language of the Emotions?
• 10 Contra the Hypothetical Persona in Music
• 11 Philosophical Perspectives on Music's Expressiveness
• Appreciation
• 12 The Evaluation of Music
• 13 Musical Understandings and Musical Kinds
• 14 Attributing Significance to Unobvious Musical Relationships
• 15 The Multiple Interpretability of Musical Works

Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Davies (philosophy, Univ. of Auckland, New Zealand) has been a leading voice in the philosophy of music, a discipline that is relatively young. This contribution is a collection of 15 of his essays, 13 previously published and two new for this volume, loosely organized into four chapters: ontology (nature of music), performance, expression, and appreciation. These essays are short, distinct, and separable; the book does not flow with a unifying idea other than Davies's general approach to open the door to a wider discussion by broadening the parameters. In chapter 2, he offers a fresh observation for authentic performance practice: like a person, a work evolves, changing with time; it no longer exists therefore in its original state. In many of the essays in aesthetics, Davies too generously defines his terms, a drawback for the readership of musicians. The book does provide an overview of themes in the field, and the bibliography is excellent. Because these essays were written over a span of 22 years, the prose style differs widely and is not easily accessible. ^BSumming Up: Optional. Academic libraries supporting the study of music at the upper-division undergraduate level and above. M. N.-H. Cheng Colgate University

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Stephen Davies is at University of Auckland, New Zealand.