What I'm Reading - Classical Music In America

Classical Music in America: A History of Its Rise and Fall by Joseph Horowitz
ML200 .H797 2005

This controversial tome peaked my interest after hearing it mentioned at conferences, in journal articles, and even the Chronicle of Higher Education. A few quotations will give you the gist of the book:

“Compared to classical music in its European homeland, classical music in the United States is a mutant transplant. Deep roots were not importable, nor in the main were they newly cultivated.” (pg. XIII)

“Taken as a whole, American classical music describes a single trajectory, rising to a height at the close of the nineteenth century and receding after World War I. In the decades of ascendancy, the quest for an American canon was its defining virtue, whether or not he reigning Germanic model proffered true hope for an indigenous American style. The decades of decline were at first highly interesting: a new culture of performance was crowned by amazing feats of virtuosity and probity, and textures, as well, by an exciting if subsidiary pursuit of the Great American Symphony. After 1950, the absence of a native canon was a defect no longer disguised or minimized by spectacular borrowed goods. By century’s end, intellectuals ad deserted classical music, compared to the theater, cinema, or dance, it was the American performing art most divorced from contemporary creativity….” (pg. 516)

Horowitz starts with this premise and goes back in American history to the development of symphony orchestras, opera performances, virtuoso performers, personality-based conductors, and the quest for an “American” music - to show why he believes classical music is destined to become extinct in the United States.

Whether or not you agree with the premise or conclusion, the detailed history of American classical music is fascinating, and the commentary on what constitutes a successful American work is illuminating.

Categories: Book Review

What I'm Listening To - Shape Note Singing

Shape note singing, labeled as such because the musical notation uses note heads in 4 distinct shapes to aid in sight-reading, has been an American tradition dating back to 1801 (with a history extending back through the Renaissance). In this region, one can still attend "singings," where groups will sing from the Sacred Harp or other tune books, including The Christian Harmony, known as the "Carolina" book.

MCD3663, available in the Maxwell Music Library, is from a May 7, 2005 singing, recorded in Harper Hall. For more information on shape note singing, including a schedule of local singings, visit Fasola.org. There are several resources available on shape note singing in the Furman Libraries. The Special Collections also holds a video of a 1998 singing, and an 1849 copy of The Southern Harmony.

Categories: Featured Listening

Music Librarian Report - SEMLA 2006

This past weekend I attended the Southeast Chapter of the Music Library Association's annual meeting in Columbus, GA.

We had the welcome reception in the music library in the Schwob School of Music, part of Columbus State University. A lot of music librarians in the southeast have been in their jobs for over 20 years, so people seemed to know each other really well. The music library was pretty snazzy, including a nice separate room with comfy chairs and plants just for current periodicals. I noticed that their hours were not nearly as generous as ours, including not being open at all on Saturdays.

The next day was full of presentations - I thought I'd write briefly about each for those of you who have no idea what music librarians talk about!

The first presentation was by the archivist at Columbus State University, about the process of digitizing and creating access to a sheet music collection by "Blind Tom" Wiggins, a Columbus, GA local. During this presentation I learned about an open source digital library software called Greenstone, which I had not heard of before.

The next presentation chronicled the process of putting a collection of popular sheet music, all about the Scopes Trial, evolution, or monkeys, online. The librarian detailed how he had to treat pieces of music differently depending on its copyright and publication dates. The handout he gave, full of resources about copyright, will be immensely helpful later.

After a quick break, two music librarians presented on the piano music of Louise Talma. One librarian talked about her life and accomplishments, and the second one demonstrated her music on piano. I have to admit, I thought I knew a lot about American composers, but I had never heard of Louis Talma.

After lunch we went on a tour of the Springer Opera House, which included information on the more famous people who have come through (Edwin Booth, John Philip Sousa, etc.) and some great ghost stories. As in most "opera houses," opera was rarely performed there.

Later in the afternoon we toured the RiverCenter performance spaces, but not before a presentation comparing the steaming services of Naxos Music Library with the Classical Music Library.

That evening we had cocktail hour and a banquet at a historic home on the Chattahoochee River. At dinner I sat by librarians from New Orleans, and heard a lot about what they've been going through both personally and at the music library. At this particular music library the entire contents were destroyed, and they have a long recovery ahead of them.

The next day we had two presentations from retired music librarians still in the chapter about music in Georgia - one focused on shape note singing and one focused on songs about Georgia. As the chapter meetings move around every year, I imagine I'll learn more about the regional musics of the southeast.

Categories: Conference, SEMLA, Travel

What I'm Listening To - The Celtic Album with the Boston Pops Orchestra

In a search for Scottish themed music, I came across The Celtic Album with the Boston Pops Orchestra, directed by Keith Lockhart. Included are several pieces written for orchestra with Scottish and Irish themes, and several arrangments featuring Celtic musicians. This can be found in the music library - MCD1246. We have several recordings of the Boston Pops with different conductors - view the list here.

It is difficult to be around the music department at Furman for long before discovering that the current director of the Boston Pops, Keith Lockhart, is one of our distinguished alumni. This December the Furman Singers will tour with the Boston Pops, starting with a performance in Greenville. Tickets go on sale October 14!

Categories: Featured listening