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In this dissertation two solo violin compositions Nelle Mani d’Amduscias (1996) and Luamerava(2000) by the South African composer Hendrik Hofmeyr are analysed regarding the programmatic, compositional and idiomatic content. The Luamerava uses an adapted African legend that is inscribed at the beginning and according to the composer imitates the African mbira or finger piano. The Eurocentric Nelle Mani d’Amduscias is Italian for “into the hands of the (medieval) devil”. Both pieces are analysed under the headings form, melody and motives, rhythm, harmonies and violinistic aspects, always connecting to the programmatic content of the titles. Described by the composer as a pre-sketch to Raptus, some similarities with Nelle Mani d’Amduscias are noted. Mythes by Szymanowski provided a source of inspiration for Nelle Mani d’Amduscias and similar compositional techniques are observed. The title Nelle Mani d’Amduscias is musically illustrated with symbolic elements. These include the tritone, or Diabolus in Musica, the use of which was discouraged by religious medieval theorists, the trill, which is reminiscent of the Devil.s Trill Sonata by Tartini, and a difficulty level that is reminiscent of a Paganini Caprice. This further links to rumours surrounding the violin virtuoso Niccolò Paganini of being in league with the devil, due to his unprecedented performing brilliance. Medieval elements are also considered. The use of mirror image interval patterns and the use of the octatonic scale are discussed as themes. The use of the vertical 2:3 rhythm, an unusual technique on the solo violin, is noted. Luamerava is analysed in connection with the characteristics of mbira music and African music. African and mbira compositional devices that are noted include call and response, melodic shape, mbira counterpoint and the use of ostinato, hocket, canon, hemiola, additive rhythms and African dancing in the Danzante. The chord sequence of mbira music of the Shona of Zimbabwe is compared to the harmonies used in the Danzante. The performance of the Western tradition is compared to that of the African mbira tradition. A short comparison noting the similarities and differences of the two works is provided in the conclusion. Copyright / Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Music / Unrestricted

This dissertation is about a modern Chinese mathematician’s use of traditional Chinese mathematics. Wu Wen-Tsun (born 1919), a French-trained algebraic topologist, became interested in Chinese mathematical heritage in the Cultural Revolution period (1966-1976). He claimed that his subsequent, internationally acclaimed work on the “mechanisation of mathematics” (computer proofs) was inspired by this historical interest. He thus situated his mathematical success within a nationalist framework of independent modernisation, and has become a government-promoted celebrity since the turn of the millennium. Against the standard ‘national hero’ story told about Wu, I portray his turn to the history of Chinese mathematics as a sophisticated response to political, institutional and ideological pressures on mathematics in post-1949 Maoist China. I integrate a biographical account of Wu’s career with in-depth studies of the content and influence of his mathematical work to show the fluctuations of his fortunes since his return to China in 1952. Wu as an individual shared the fate of the Institute of Mathematics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, where he worked between 1952 and 1977. I argue that Wu’s philosophy of mathematics was shaped by the utilitarianism preached by the Communist Party of China, which caused excesses especially during the Great Leap Forward (1958-1960), but remained a feature of Chinese science policy even afterwards. After the research hiatus of the Cultural Revolution, Wu consciously linked his research to ideology. His parallel mathematical research and history-writing since 1977 have reflected the same philosophy of mathematics and the same concerns about modernisation, national development, and independence. The dissertation uses unpublished archival material from China and first-hand interviews with Wu Wen-Tsun and other Chinese mathematicians. I relate Wu’s mathematical nationalism to theories of cultural nationalism and historicism from the political sciences, and theoretically analyse the contradiction between nationalism and internationalism in modern Chinese mathematics.

The first four decades of the twentieth century was a period of rapid development in physics. The late nineteenth century discoveries of X-rays, Becquerel rays and subatomic particles had revealed new properties of matter, and the early twentieth century quantum and relativity theories added to the notion that the discipline was undergoing a fundamental change in thought and practice. Historians and scientists alike have retrospectively conceived of a sharp divide between nineteenth century and twentieth century physics, applying the terms ‘classical’ and ‘modern’ to distinguish between these two practices. However, recent scholarship has suggested that early twentieth century physicists did not see this divide as self-evident, and in fact were responsible for consciously constructing these categories and definitions. This thesis explores the creation of the terms ‘classical’ and ‘modern’ physics in Britain, and the physicists responsible. I consider how these terms were employed in ‘public’ arenas (lectures, books, newspapers, museums) influencing the wider reception of ‘modern’ physics. I consider not only the rhetorics employed by ‘modern’ physicists, but also those we would now consider to be ‘classical’, revealing a diverse range of potential definitions of ‘modern’ physics. Furthermore, even within the ‘modernists’ themselves, there was considerable disagreement over how their work was to be presented, as industrially applicable, or of value simply as intellectual knowledge in and of itself. There were also different notions of how scientific ‘progress’ should be portrayed, whether knowledge advanced through experimental refinement or theoretical work. Early twentieth century ‘modern’ physics appeared to discard long held theories, rejecting much of the discipline’s past. As such, physicists’ connection to the legacy of Newton was under threat. Furthermore, the instability of science more generally was revealed: if physicists had shown the old theories to be wrong, then why should the new ones be any different? This had severe implications as to how the public placed ‘trust’ in science. I explore how physicists carefully managed the ‘public’ transition from ‘classical’ to ‘modern’ physics, regaining public trust during a period of scientific ‘revolution’ and controversy.

La postmodernité est peut-être une époque de crise des humanités : depuis les années 60, l’apprentissage du latin et du grec est en chute libre. Les arts n’en continuent pas moins, toutefois, de recourir à la matière antique. Dans les arts à récit, c’est-à-dire à dominante narrative, l’esthétique postmoderne traite moins l’Antiquité comme une source de genres à imiter et adapter, à la manière des classiques, ou comme un ensemble de récits à parodier et transposer, à la façon moderne, que comme un corpus de textes auquel recourir pour pasticher les genres, déconstruire les récits, et notamment les « méta-récits », les grands récits à message, les idéologies. L’Antiquité gréco-latine y fonctionne soit comme un autre passé, un autre monde, païen, homo-érotique, à opposer au nôtre, soit comme un nôtre passé, impérialiste, sexiste, une origine des « grands récits », à laquelle remonter pour les déconstruire. Cependant, l’esthétique postmoderne n’englobe pas tout l’art de l’époque postmoderne. Les esthétiques classiques et modernes continuent d’exister pendant cette période. Dans une perspective classique, le péplum, c’est-à-dire l’Antiquité envisagée comme un genre, se déplace du cinéma vers d’autres arts (série télévisée, bande dessinée), se servant de l’espace-temps antique comme moyen d’évasion mais aussi comme matière à réflexion sur le pouvoir, le rapport entre dominants et dominés, centre et marges. La transposition moderne des récits antiques n’en finit pas, elle, de jouer son rôle pour mythifier le quotidien et démythifier l’héroïsme. Autant de manières d’aborder aujourd’hui l’Antiquité, non plus seulement comme ce modèle en crise de la République des Lettres. / Postmodernity may be a time of crisis of the humanities: since the sixties, the learning of the classics has been plummeting. Nevertheless, the arts have gone on using the matter of Rome. In narrative arts – in other words, arts where narratives are dominant, the postmodern aesthetic does not use Antiquity through imitation and adaptation of its genres, as did the classics, nor through parodies and transpositions of its narratives, in the manner of the moderns: it resorts to it as a corpus of texts, in order to pastiche genres, to deconstruct narratives, and especially “metanarratives”, great narratives conveying messages, ideologies. Greek and Latin classics function either as another past, another world, a pagan, homo-erotic world, that can be contrasted with ours; or as our past, steeped in imperialism, and sexism, an origin of the “metanarratives”, that we can get back to for their deconstruction. However, the postmodern aesthetic doesn’t rule all art in the postmodern era. Classic and modern aesthetics still exist during this period. On one hand, in a classical way, the epic, that is Antiquity viewed as a genre, spreads from the cinema to other arts (television series, comic books), and uses ancient space-time for escapism, but also as material for reflections on power, relationships between the dominants and the dominated, centre and periphery. On the other hand, the modern transposition of ancient narratives relentlessly plays its part to mythologize everyday life and demythologize heroism. These are all different, contemporary ways of dealing with the classics, beyond the mantra of a “model in crisis” within the Republic of Letters.

Until the recent publication of twelve choral compositions, Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979) was known solely as a professional violist and composer of chamber music and art songs. Clarke composed choral music throughout her active period from 1906 to 1944. In 2004, the first study of Clarke's complete compositional output provided an introduction to the choral music, but only covered selected works. The present study traces the development of Clarke's compositional style through chronological analysis of all twelve choral compositions and an incomplete fragment. Clarke's choral music reveals the selection of high quality, expressive texts; exploration of the timbral, registral, and textural potential of unaccompanied choral music; changes in the treatment of all musical elements; the persistent acquisition of new techniques; and reliance on English choral genres including the madrigal, glee, carol, part song and motet. Chapter one establishes Clarke's importance through a survey of publication, criticism, and scholarship. The chapter also examines the society in which Clarke lived and the issues women composers encountered. A biography then reveals that despite obstacles, Clarke tenaciously pursued compositional study, eagerly acquired new techniques, and expressed enthusiasm for each compositional project. Her skill was confirmed by success in competitions and festivals. Throughout her active period, Clarke supported herself as a professional violist who specialized in chamber music, and a busy performing schedule limited her compositional work. Chapter two documents Clarke's formative vocal- and chamber-music experiences and suggests that her thorough knowledge of chamber music influenced her approach to choral composition. The chapter continues with analysis of Clarke's first seven choral works. The first three are well-crafted part songs that demonstrate Clarke's assimilation of basic compositional techniques. The next four show the increasing complexity of Clarke's style that culminates in her mature masterpiece, "He That Dwelleth in the Secret Place of the Most High." Chapter three presents analysis of three choral arrangements, two works for women's voices, and a choral fragment for mixed voices. The last five complete choral compositions confirm elements of Clarke's mature style and demonstrate her interest in exploring the new challenges of choral arranging and writing for women's voices. While Clarke's choral arrangements of her own songs are idiomatic adaptations for unaccompanied, mixed voices, the last three compositions display the diversity of styles Clarke employed in her late works. Chapter four summarizes changes in Clarke's choral style from 1906 to 1944, examines reasons for her obscurity, and raises questions that merit further research. The appendix which follows clarifies Clarke's intentions and illustrates common editorial issues and solutions through comparison of choral manuscripts and published editions.

The journal América (Mexico City, 1940-1960) was founded as a leftist monthly focused on politically uniting Latin American and exiled Spanish youth and, by the end of its print life, was a semifrequent literary anthology sponsored by the Mexican government’s Secretaria de Educación Pública, publishing the early-career writings of Juan Rulfo, Rosario Castellanos, Rodolfo Usigli, and more. Despite its literary historical importance, the journal’s issues are not digitized nor are their contents publicly available; further, there is no library or archive that holds a complete collection of América’s issues. This index and editorial history catalogues the contents of sixty-nine of América’s seventy-four issues and gives a brief editorial and publication history of the journal.

Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Kathinkas Gesang als Luzifers Requiem presents mental, physical, and musical challenges that go beyond the usual expectations of an instrumentalist, extending and redefining the traditional idea of virtuosity. Using firsthand performance experience, score and recording study, and flutist interviews, this document explores the effects of some of these heightened demands and argues that the particular performance situation presented by Kathinkas Gesang brings up critical questions about the performer’s role, the nature of performance and of the musical work, and the existence of an authoritatively “authentic” interpretation. Employing an expanded definition of virtuosity that includes interpretation and encompasses both choices and actions, the document discusses the extensions of virtuosity into two main areas: first, memory; and second, staging and movement, covering both practical suggestions and larger implications. Finally, it examines how the performer’s negotiation of these challenges relates to questions about authenticity and agency. Performance is defined here as a creative and collaborative act, not attempting to duplicate previous performances or recordings, but rather to give the best realization of the piece possible in the given circumstances, according to the individual’s interpretation of the score’s directions. There is no single “authentic” interpretation, but rather a rich multiplicity of possibilities, and the performer’s creative agency and personal authenticity are necessary for the full realization of the work.

The aim of the text is a description of the causes of creation, functioning and especially activities, of "Moravian" hidden Church. For these purposes 16 interviews were collected using oral history method. These interviews were analyzed through Grounded theory method. As the basic factors affecting the activity of "Moravian" hidden Church the analysis indicated: the degree of openness of activities and measure of their own individual initiative. The thesis consists of five chapters. The introduction presents state of research, described the sources from which it was drawn, it also presented the methodology and definitions based on the methodology. The second chapter introducesthe basic terms fundamental for conceptual point of view. The third chapter describes the context changes and trends within the Catholic Church in the twentieth century, chronologically, of course, it also describes the situation of the Catholic Church in communist Czechoslovakia. The fourth chapter in the first part deals with hidden Church phenomenon in Czech landsand then brings the history, specifics and characteristics of "Moravian" branches, including the integration process. Then it analyzes the hidden church activities of "Moravian" branches, including theoretical model. The conclusion summarizes the findings arising from...

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