Le violoniste et compositeur mexicain Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940) est un des principaux acteurs du développement musical du Mexique postrévolutionnaire durant les années 1930. Proche des avant-gardes artistiques mexicaines, la réception de sa musique est marquée par une double appartenance moderniste et nationaliste, au point que certaines de ses œuvres incarnent le modèle de la musique nationale et se trouvent au cœur de la politique symbolique du régime autoritaire postrévolutionnaire. Revueltas s’engage fin 1935 dans l’antifascisme communiste au sein de la Liga de Escritores y Artistas Revolucionarios (LEAR), luttant contre l’avancée du fascisme dans le monde – notamment après le début de la Guerre civile espagnole – et soutenant les avancées sociales obtenues par le Front Populaire Mexicain (FPM). Les conséquences de l’engagement antifasciste de Revueltas sont considérables, particulièrement dans la thématique de ses œuvres, dans sa vie professionnelle et dans l’utilisation symbolique de sa musique à des fins de légitimation par le régime postrévolutionnaire mexicain. Cette recherche analyse, d’une part, l’impact du militantisme antifasciste de Revueltas dans son œuvre et, d’autre part, la fonction de celle-ci dans la politique symbolique du régime autoritaire mexicain autour de la Guerre civile espagnole. Les résultats montrent que l’engagement antifasciste de Revueltas modifie la thématique de la plupart de ses œuvres après 1936 ainsi que sa conception du rôle du compositeur dans les luttes sociales. De ce fait, il devient indispensable de relativiser la réception exclusivement nationaliste de sa musique en la reconsidérant d’un point de vue politique et militant. / Violinist and composer Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940) was one of the major players in post revolutionary Mexico musical development during the thirties. Close to avant-gardes Mexican artists, the reception of his music is defined by, both modernist and nationalist. Some of his works embody the national music model, and are at the heart of the symbolic politics of the post revolutionary authoritarian regime. Towards the end of 1935 Revueltas engaged himself in communist antifascism by being a member of the Liga de Escritores y Artistas Revolucionarios (LEAR), fighting against the rise of fascism in the world – especially during the Spanish Civil War – and supporting social progress championed by the Mexican Popular Front (FPM). The consequences of Revueltas’ antifascist engagement are considerable especially on the themes explored in his works, on his professional life and on the symbolic use of his music to legitimize the Mexican post revolutionary system. This research analyses, on the one hand, the impact of Revueltas’ antifascist militancy on his work, and on the other, the role of his work on the symbolic politics of the Mexican authoritarian regime during the Spanish Civil War. Results show that Revueltas’ political engagement alters the theme of most of his works after 1936, as well as the composer’s role in a social contest. It therefore appears to be essential to put into perspective the exclusively nationalist reception of his music reconsidering it from a political and militant point of view.

L’historiographie de l’avant-garde musicale sous le franquisme a montré à quel point celle-ci s’était développée dans des structures proches du pouvoir. Selon les études produites sur cette question, les compositeurs se seraient emparés des organismes officiels comme d’espaces dépolitisés dans lesquels ils auraient pu mener une activité artistique autonome. Ce sont ainsi les attitudes de prise de distance et de critique face au gouvernement de Franco qui ont majoritairement suscité l’intérêt des chercheurs, laissant de côté la question de la proximité de ces musiciens avec le pouvoir en place. Notre thèse tente de reconstruire et d’analyser dans toute leur complexité les rapports tissés entre le milieu de l’avant-garde musicale espagnole et le régime franquiste. À cet effet, elle s’intéresse aux éléments – conduites, discours, événements, productions – mettant en évidence la proximité de ses protagonistes avec la sphère politique ainsi qu’au soutien que l’État a pu leur apporter. Située au croisement de l’histoire et de la musicologie, cette enquête cherche d’une part à proposer une nouvelle approche de l’histoire culturelle et politique du franquisme et d’autre part à contribuer à une réflexion plus générale sur les interpénétrations entre musique et politique, en particulier sous les dictatures. / As previous research has shown, the Spanish musical avant-garde originated under Franco and then forged long-lasting and close connections with State institutions. According to these studies, composers used official organizations as depoliticized spaces in which they could develop their autonomous artistic activity. Thus, most scholars have focused on critical attitudes towards the regime and ignored issues regarding the proximity of these musicians with Franco’s government. This research aims to reconstruct and analyse the relationship between the Spanish musical avant-garde and the Francoist regime in all its complexity. In order to do so, we will closely examine elements – behaviour, rhetoric, events, productions – which show the proximity of certain composers to the political sphere as well as the support that the State provided for them. Situated at the crossroads between history and musicology, this study offers a new perspective on the cultural and political history of Francoism and, moreover, contributes to a general reflection on the interpenetration of music and politics, particularly under dictatorial regimes.

Revised Thesis (doctoral)--University of Oxford, 2004. / Foreign cultural models at the English royal court -- International events and musical exchanges -- Building a foreign musical establishment at the early Tudor court -- Anglo-continental relations in music manuscripts -- English music theory and the international traditions. Includes bibliographical references (p. [297]-315) and index.

Bulgaria, though a fairly small Eastern European country, boasts an ancient history of folk traditions and music; however, very few notated works exist due to the people's primitive lifestyle throughout Bulgaria's history. Singing and dancing as well as creating instruments from wood and animal skin were considered an integral part of everyday life, equal to cooking, sewing, herding, or farming; in fact, one almost always accompanied the other. Thus, more than 1500 years of folklore was orally passed on and preserved generation after generation; however, nothing was notated until only very recently when Bulgarians realized the cultural and national value of their history. After the liberation from Ottoman Rule (1453-1877) a nationalist movement spread throughout the Balkan countries, which resulted in the emergence of Bulgarian composers. Music and songs from the local folk traditions evolved, developed, and - with notation - became the foundation for the vocal and instrumental music of the so-called first generation of Bulgarian composers. Around the turn of the century, many Bulgarian artists and musicians traveled to Western Europe (mostly Austria, Germany, and Russia) and upon their return, their artistic output created an original mixture of Bulgarian national folk with influences from Western classical music. After World War II, Bulgaria became one of the countries governed by the Communist regime, which restricted all travel to and contact with the West, including cultural influences from the West. Gradually, as the Communist regime became less controlling until it dissolved completely in 1989, restrictions on music and culture started to lift. Petar Christoskov (1917-2006), considered part of the second generation of Bulgarian composers, began his compositional career immediately after returning from Germany to a communist-ruled Bulgaria. His first opus was the set of 12 Caprices for Solo Violin (1953, formerly known as Concert Etudes in Folk Style); they have a fairly simple compositional style but are full of elements from the Bulgarian folk tradition. Some of these caprices, along with other works from the beginning of Christoskov's compositional career, were commissioned by the nationalist government and/or were required repertoire at national music competitions. Nearly thirty years after the first set of caprices, Christoskov composed another set: 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Op. 24 (1978-9). These later works also contain many Bulgarian folk characteristics, but their compositional style is much more abstract, atonal, and complex - more “mainstream Western.” The goal of this document is to compare and contrast the two sets of Caprices for Solo Violin, Op. 1 and Op. 24, by investigating the development of Petar Christoskov's compositional style. I will argue that the constantly-changing political systems in twentieth-century Bulgaria had a direct impact on the composer's artistic output. After a historical overview of Bulgaria's music and political background, the two sets of caprices will be compared and contrasted by focusing on technical, musical, and sociological similarities and differences. In order to illustrate these similarities and differences, three caprices from each set will be selected and analyzed, as well as compared and contrasted with each other. The second part of the document will discuss the negative influence of the political climate on music and printing, with a focus on the difficulties of preserving Bulgarian culture itself. This research has the additional purpose of serving as scholarly support for a future project: as a personal contribution to the circulation and preservation of Bulgarian music, I intend to produce a new violin edition of Petar Christoskov's caprices as well as complete the arrangements for viola.

The purpose of this research is to analyze representations of Queen Elizabeth I of England in nineteenth-century Franco-Italian opera, and the relationship of these representations to contemporaneous singing style and the historical background. The basis for this analysis is three arias: "Quant'é grato all'alma mia" from Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra (1815) by Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868), "Sì, vuol di Francia il rege...Ah! quando all'ara scorgemi...Ah! dal ciel discenda un raggio" from Maria Stuarda (1835) by Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848), and "Malgré l'éclat qui m'environne" from Le songe d'une nuit d'été (1850) by Ambroise Thomas (1811-1896). This research is divided into two main sections: the historical background of Italy and France in the nineteenth century, especially in the contemporaneous vocal style and fashions of literature; and a discussion of the composers' musical and dramatic choices for Queen Elizabeth I in the three selected arias. Chapter 2 is a brief introduction to the early nineteenth-century Franco-Italian historical background, vocal style, and popular literature. Chapter 3 presents an analysis of the three arias. The last chapter summarizes the representations of Elizabeth I in nineteenth-century politics, literature, and vocal style.