
The Musical Discourse of Servitude
Authority, Autonomy, and the Work-Concept in Fux, Bach and Handel
Harry White(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
Published on 5. November 2020
Book
Hardback
326 pages
978-0-19-090387-9 (ISBN)
Description
Examining, for the first time, the compositions of Johann Joseph Fux in relation to his contemporaries Bach and Handel, The Musical Discourse of Servitude presents a new theory of the late baroque musical imagination. Author Harry White contrasts musical "servility" and "freedom" in his analysis, with Fux tied to the prevailing servitude of the day's musical imagination, particularly the hegemonic flowering of North Italian partimento method across Europe. In contrast, both Bach and Handel represented an autonomy of musical discourse, with Bach exhausting generic models in the mass and Handel inventing a new genre in the oratorio. A potent critique of Lydia Goehr's seminal The Imaginary Museum of Musical Works, The Musical Discourse of Servitude draws on Goehr's formulation of the "work-concept" as an imaginary construct which, according to Goehr, is an invention of nineteenth-century reception history. White locates this concept as a defining agent of automony in Bach's late works, and contextualized the "work-concept" itself by exploring rival concepts of political, religious, and musical authority which define the European musical imagination in the first half of the eighteenth century. A major revisionist statement about the musical imagination in Western art music, The Musical Discourse of Servitude will be of interest to scholars of the Baroque, particularly of Bach and Handel.
Reviews / Votes
Harry White has the unusual and idiosyncratic ability to link cultural debates about servitude and autonomy to very specific moments in the music of three of the greatest musical figures of the eighteenth century. He not only achieves the seemingly impossible task of integrating J. S. Bach and Handel into one discussion, but goes even further by introducing Fux, a figure who had the tenacity to derive creative capital from the highest degree of musical servitude. We learn about political power, religious prescription, drama, poetry, and the emerging power of autonomous musical works-all articulated with a literary flair that is rare in musicological discourse. * John Butt, Gardiner Professor of Music, University of Glasgow, and Musical Director, Dunedin Consort * Harry White's new book is a singular achievement, which synthesizes a lifetime's deep engagement with the music of Fux, Bach, and Handel. Its central thesis - that the monarchic indenture of Fux offsets the emerging emancipatory modernity of Bach and Handel - is evidenced by a deft mixture of historical, cultural, and analytical commentary, and underpinned by a commanding knowledge of the long-overlooked legacy of the Austrian Baroque. Ultimately, White makes explicit just how crucial debates about the origins of the modern musical imagination remain. Virtuosic in style and magisterial in scope, this book makes a vital contribution to the cultural study of eighteenth-century music. * Julian Horton, Professor of Music Theory and Analysis, Durham University * White exercises an "autonomy" of thought, but also a "servitude" to both musicology and music. * Ivan Curkovic, BACH Journal *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
56 music examples
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
Weight
655 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-090387-9 (9780190903879)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Harry White
The Musical Discourse of Servitude
Authority, Autonomy, and the Work-Concept in Fux, Bach and Handel
E-Book
09/2020
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€46.99
Available for download

Harry White
The Musical Discourse of Servitude
Authority, Autonomy, and the Work-Concept in Fux, Bach and Handel
E-Book
09/2020
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€46.99
Available for download
Person
Harry White is Professor of Music at University College Dublin and a Fellow of the Royal Irish Academy of Music. He is widely acclaimed as the foremost cultural historian of music in Ireland.
Author
Professor of MusicProfessor of Music, University College of Dublin School of Music
Content
Preface & Acknowledgements
Introduction: Servitude, Autonomy and the European Musical Imagination
Chapter 1: The Minstrelsy of Heaven: Servility, Freedom and the Dynastic Style
Chapter 2: The Virtuoso of Submissiveness: Fux and the Concept of Authority
Chapter 3: The Steward of Unmeaning Art: Bach and the Musical Subject
Chapter 4: 'A Darkness Which Might be Felt': Handel, Fux and the Oratorio
Chapter 5: Steps to Parnassus: Fux, Caldara and Bach
Conclusion: Well, well, well: Fux, Bach and Handel
Select Bibliography
Select Index
Introduction: Servitude, Autonomy and the European Musical Imagination
Chapter 1: The Minstrelsy of Heaven: Servility, Freedom and the Dynastic Style
Chapter 2: The Virtuoso of Submissiveness: Fux and the Concept of Authority
Chapter 3: The Steward of Unmeaning Art: Bach and the Musical Subject
Chapter 4: 'A Darkness Which Might be Felt': Handel, Fux and the Oratorio
Chapter 5: Steps to Parnassus: Fux, Caldara and Bach
Conclusion: Well, well, well: Fux, Bach and Handel
Select Bibliography
Select Index