The fine art of repetition : essays in the philosophy of music / Peter Kivy.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kivy, Peter.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Music--Philosophy and aesthetics.

Music.

Physical Description:

x, 373 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge [England] ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1993.

Summary:

Peter Kivy is the author of many books on the philosophy of art and, in particular, the aesthetics of music. This collection of essays spans a period of some thirty years and focuses on a richly diverse set of issues: the biological origin of music, the role of music in the liberal education, the nature of the musical work and its performance, the aesthetics of opera, the emotions of music, and the very nature of music itself. Some of these subjects are viewed as part of the history of ideas, others as current problems in the philosophy of art.

A particular feature of the volume is that Kivy avoids the use of musical notation so that no technical knowledge at all is required to appreciate his work. Thus, the essays will prove enjoyable and insightful not just to professionals in the philosophy of art and musicologists, or to musicians themselves, but also to any motivated general reader with a deep interest in music.

Contents:

Prelude: Music and Us

I Music and the liberal education 11

Work and Performance

II Platonism in music: A kind of defense 35

III Platonism in music: Another kind of defense 59

IV Orchestrating Platonism 75

V Live performances and dead composers: On the ethics of musical interpretation 95

VI On the concept of the "historically authentic" performance 117

The World of Opera

VII Opera talk: A philosophical "phantasie" 137

VIII How did Mozart do it?: Living conditions in the world of opera 160

IX How did Mozart do it?: Replies to some critics 178

Music and the History of Ideas

X Mozart and monotheism: An essay in spurious aesthetics 189

XI Child Mozart as an aesthetic symbol 200

XII Charles Darwin on music 214

Music and Emotion

XIII Mattheson as philosopher of art 229

XIV Kant and the Affektenlehre: What he said, and what I wish he had said 250

XV Something I've always wanted to know about Hanslick 265

XVI What was Hanslick denying? 276

XVII A new music criticism? 296

Music Alone

XVIII The fine art of repetition 327

XIX Is music an art? 360.

Notes:

Collection of essays written over the past thirty years and published in various books and journals.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

0521434629

0521435986

OCLC:

26210677