The performance of opera arias composed by George Frideric Handel in our modern day is complicated by the necessity of including improvised embellishments, which were a standard component of the eighteenth-century genre of opera seria. Furthermore, discussions concerning the concepts of historical authenticity and performance practice muddle the issue of preparing Handel's music for presentation. In recent years scholars have prepared ornamented versions of select Handel arias in consultation with eighteenth-century performance practice treatises and other contemporary materials that provide considerable insight into the purpose and execution of ornamentation in performances Handel himself oversaw. What remains relatively unexplored, however, is the relationship between eighteenth-century embellishments and the Baroque affections, or passions. The affections, or passions, were rationalized emotional states derived from the Greek and Latin doctrines of rhetoric and oratory which Baroque composers sought to evoke and express in their music. This study explores the correlation of Baroque affections with ornaments as a legitimate approach to the composition of embellishments for Handel's opera arias. The tradition of rhetoric, the conventions of late Baroque Italian opera seria as a form, and the practice of ornamentation as an integral part of these conventions are examined. The study also provides a survey of eighteenth-century literature concerning the relationship of the musical representation of affects and ornamentation. Lastly, a review of Handel's operatic career and of the plots of the Agrippina, Rinaldo and Rodelinda will provide a context for the preparation of "affective" ornamented versions of six arias from these operas. In closing, a brief discussion of the early music movement and of the debates surrounding the use of the term "authentic" in relation to historic performance practices will illuminate the relevance of the relationship between affect and ornament to twenty-first century performances. / Arts, Faculty of / Music, School of / Graduate

TransFantasies is an interdisciplinary composition for Baroque flute (flauto traverso), computer music, and dance. A crucial component of the work is an interactive hardware and software environment that provides the opportunity for the players to shape aspects of the work during the performance. This essay discusses the influences that inspired the work and presents an in-depth analysis of notable elements of the composition. Primary issues include compositional models for gesture-based composition, historical performance practices, interactivity, and relationships between music and dance. The final component of the essay details the software component designed to create the composition. It also discusses music technology in current practice and its role in this particular work. At its core, TransFantasies is concerned with those moments where computer-influenced decisions and human behaviors collide.

Thesis (doctoral)--Université de Paris-Sorbonne, 1974. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [xvii]-xxix) and index.

Eva Hovorková Resumé Diese Magisterarbeit befasst sich mit der barocken Welt und dem barocken Menschen. Es werden Fragen gestellt, was für den Menschen, für die Wahrnehmung und das Erleben seiner Welt entscheidend war. Für Barock war die Vorstellung von Gott grundlegend, diese bestimmte seine Gedankenwelt. Die physische Welt stellt aber nichts Marginales dar, Barock ist bemüht durch die physische Welt in eine andere Welt, zur Transzendenz zu gelangen. Barock führt die Maximalisierung, Steigerung, Streben bis zu dem Überirdischen durch. Die Barockwurzeln sind laut Zdeněk Kalista bis zu der Kirchenversammlung in Konstanz zu führen, denn der Auftritt von Jan Hus bringt nachhinein die europäische Intelligenz dazu, sich mit den metaphysischen Werten zu beschäftigen; des weiteren ist es das Buch des französischen Kardinals Pierre d'Ailly mit dem Titel Imago mundi, das den inspirierenden Moment für die Erkundungsreise Kolumbus' darstellt. Die Erschließung der Übersee spiegelte sich dann in der Zeitgeschichte - es war ein Durchbruch ins Unendliche. Barock gelangt durch diese Welt in eine andere Welt, in die metaphysische Welt, wobei gerade die Sehnsucht nach dem Unendlichen, nach der Ewigkeit entscheidende Rolle spielt. Die Gegensätze des Physischen und des Geistigen, des Irdischen und des Überirdischen, der Zeit...

My paper investigates Peter Paul Rubens’ female portraits in terms of the male and female gaze, psychoanalytic analysis, and historical context. My research will support the idea that Rubens painted women in a sexualized manner based on what Foucault coins the male gaze.[1] The paintings evaluated in this project include portraits of Rubens’ wives, Isabella Brandt and Helene Fourment, and portraits of wealthy patrons such as Marchesa Brigida Spinola Doria, Anne of Austria, and Marie de’ Medici. It is incorrect to view these paintings as pure, complete depictions of identity because women in this time were always defined and observed by men.[2]However by deconstructing the male gaze and also acknowledging the role of the active female gaze of the subjects of these works, a more complex construction of female identity is uncovered. Throughout history the feminine has been generalized to be passive and silent. My project aims to build on recent feminist scholarship that works to uncover more responsible and representative descriptions of the images of women in history. [1]Michel Foucault, “Discipline and Punish” from Literary Theory: An Anthology, ed. by Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan, (Malden: Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 2004), 549-565. [2]Patricia Simons, “Women in Frames: The Gaze, the Eye, the Profile in Renaissance Portraiture,” edited by Norma Broude and Mary Garrard, The Expanding Discourse: Feminism and Art History (New York: Harper Collins, 1992): 44.

The revival of interest in historical performance practice has led to much speculation concerning how early instruments might have been made, played and in particular how early ensembles might have sounded. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the hunting horn became increasingly accepted as an integral member of the orchestra. This new role led to changes in the design of the instrument and also in player technique which in turn led to a change in the sound quality or timbre of the instrument. There are many surviving examples of eighteenth-century horns in museums and private collections worldwide and the significant variation amongst these instruments is evidence of this new and innovative era in the development of the horn. Perhaps the most significant and contentious debate in the discussion on horn technique from this period concerns how and in what situation the hand should be employed within the bell of the instrument. This is the central issue on which the following research has been based. A multifaceted approach was adopted in order to gain a broader insight into the mysteries surrounding the eighteenth-century horn. The various methods used include: acoustical analysis of the effect of the hand in the bell of the horn on intonation and ease of playing in the high register, and analysis of variation in tonal characteristics; ergonomic analysis which lends a practical perspective to the issues surrounding playing technique; bore profile analysis in order to efficiently and effectively compare a large amount of data concerning this fundamental aspect of horn design. The results have shown that an integrated approach to the analysis of eighteenth-century horns, performed systematically on measurements from a large database of over one hundred instruments, has the potential to provide an insight into the development of the horn from a number of different perspectives. A large scale analysis such as this allows trends to be observed which shed new light on regional variation in horn design and playing technique over time.

No description available.

The thesis, The Bagpipe: perceptions of a national instrument, is a work offered to the University of Edinburgh for the degree of PhD by research publications, and includes a portfolio of published items and research papers, amounting in total to approximately 63,600 words, with a critical review and a CD. Research papers: 1. ‘Making a national collection of a national instrument.’ Lecture to the American Musical Instrument Society and Galpin Society Conference, 3-9 August 2003. 2. ‘The Early History of the Scottish Bagpipe’, in Ellen Hickmann, Arnd Adje Both and Ricardo Eichmann eds., Studien zur Musikarchäologie V (Papers from the 4th Symposium of the International Study Group on Music Archaeology, 19-26 September 2004) Rahden/Westf.: VML 2006, 447-461. 3. ‘Musician and Milieu: piping, politics and patronage through three centuries.’ The John Macfadyen Memorial Trust Annual Lecture, 19 March 2004. 4. ‘Traditional origins of the piping dynasties.’ RSAMD Research Seminar 31 May 2007 (publication forthcoming). 5. ‘The Pastoral or New Bagpipe: piping in the Neo-baroque’, in The Galpin Society Journal, 2007-2008 (forthcoming). 6. ‘Taste and Humour: the Union Pipe of Britain and Ireland’, in Seán Reid Society Journal Volume 3 (2007) [electronic format]. 7. ‘Donald MacDonald, Bagpipe Maker’, in Proceedings of the Piobaireachd Society Conference Volume XXXIII (2006), 10-18. These papers are discussed in a critical review whose thesis and structure is explained in the Prospectus. The critical review amounts to approximately 24,200 words and is divided into seven Sections (as listed on the Contents page) which relate specifically to their respective research papers and summarise their findings. There is some imbalance of wording between the Sections, for example there are more words in sections ‘Piping Dynasties’ and ‘the Maestros’, and this reflects a perceived need to strengthen the statements in these areas in order to deliver the arguments of the thesis more effectively.

No description available.

This thesis looks at the transverse flute as an instrument as well as flute music in the baroque period.