Journal of the Royal Musical Association - current issue

A la recherche du vrai Socrate

Dossena, P. — 2008-05-02

Socrate, Erik Satie's self-acknowledged masterpiece, generated various interpretations but still remains problematic. This article adopts a genetic perspective and, through the analysis of the most interesting ‘key passage’ (bars 46–59 of Le banquet), adds to the understanding of the passage itself (the interpenetration between the figures of Satie, Socrates and Christ as sacrificial victims) and of the work as a whole. In this regard, the category of homogeneity is presented as the most relevant.

Masks, Minuets and Murder: Images of Italy in Leoncavallo's Pagliacci

Basini, L. — 2008-05-02

This article interprets Leoncavallo's opera Pagliacci (1892) as a voicing of Italy's ‘Southern Question’ – the problem of the underdeveloped and socially troubled Italian South. Pagliacci juxtaposes cultural symbols that include a commedia dell'arte figure representative of the Italian South and antique genres perceived to be emblematic of ‘civilized’ northern culture. By interpreting the interaction of costumes and musical styles, I argue that the work incorporates images of southern Italy – that ‘violent’, ‘uncontrollable’, yet ‘picturesque’ region – into a broader, northern-dominated conception of Italian nationhood (an interpretative mechanism typical of contemporary image-making media such as magazines and novels).

The Fandango Scene in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro

Link, D. — 2008-05-02

This article concerns the use of dance in the Act 3 finale of Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, starting from the problem articulated by Alan Tyson in his Mozart: Studies of the Autograph Scores. Tyson points out that the absence of the fandango from the Viennese musical sources is at odds with Da Ponte's statement that the dance scene was restored at the emperor's command. New evidence shows that the fandango was performed for the three performances that constituted a première at this time in Vienna and was then removed from the score. However, before its removal, the score with the fandango intact was copied for at least one other theatre, hence accounting for the two versions that circulated through Europe. The article goes on to consider the dramatic function of the fandango by exploring the nature of the dance itself and examining the stage directions in the autograph in combination with those in Beaumarchais's play, several early librettos and editions, and the original first-desk first-violin part.

Claver Morris, an Early Eighteenth-Century English Physician and Amateur Musician Extraordinaire

Johnstone, H. D. — 2008-05-02

Claver Morris (1659–1727) was a West Country physician and keen amateur musician. Based in Wells, he was the moving spirit (and possibly founder) of the local music society. A filleted version of his diaries and account books was published in 1934, but the originals have not been closely examined since. They offer a wealth of information about musical (and social) life in the provinces, and fascinating details of the music he heard, performed, bought and had copied.

Music and Philosophy: The Enlightenment and Beyond

Rumph, S. — 2008-05-02

Schumann: A Lover's Guide

Tunbridge, L. — 2008-05-02

The Dent Medal

2008-05-02