“TKO ĆE, AKO NE MI SAMI?”: PRIMJENJIVOST DIY KONCEPATA NA PRIMJERU SUVREMENE KANTAUTORSKE SCENE U ZAGREBU

Author(s): Tanja Halužan / Language(s): Croatian Issue: 2/2020

This article explores independent music practices in the context of communities as observed through the theoretical-interpretive framework of ‘The scene (Straw 1991)’. With a focus on local interpretations of creating, performing, and consuming singer-songwriter music, the article discusses key features of the contemporary singer-songwriter scene in Zagreb: the musicians’ versatility and their application of do-it-yourself (DIY) principles, poetics and aesthetics. In addition to their importance in the creation and performing processes, these two ideas can also be detected in the areas of promotion and publishing. Observing how they are applied makes it possible to trace the development of the contemporary singer-songwriter scene in Zagreb. By presenting some of the formative DIY programs and projects that have served as a platform for promoting and connecting musicians, this article provides examples of the applicability of DIY concepts, but also questions the reasons for singer-songwriters’ resistance to the established forms of popular music production and consumption, as well as to some common social and economic conventions.

“With the Ear” or “With the Note”: Orality and Notation among the Fiddlers of Cyprus

Author(s): Nicoletta Demetriou / Language(s): English Issue: 19/2014

This paper discusses how the fiddlers of Cyprus – folk musicians of a professional class that has now all but died out – learned music in the first half of the twentieth century. These musicians’ apprenticeship usually lasted between six months and a year. Within that space of time, men (this was an exclusively male professional class) with no prior knowledge of music had to learn the entire repertoire that accompanied the rituals connected with the traditional Cypriot wedding, as well as several entertainment pieces. Some teachers taught “with the ear” (i.e. by ear, or aurally), while others preferred to teach “with the note” (i.e. by note, using staff notation). Drawing on material from interviews with fiddlers, this paper discusses both these teaching methods, their advantages and disadvantages, and also looks at the effect of notation on the musicians’ practice, after learning “with the note” became the norm.

“You Have to Sing Them Correctly!” Notation and Performance in cunțană Chant

Author(s): Costin Moisil / Language(s): English Issue: 19/2014

The most widespread variant of Orthodox Church music in Transylvania is the so-called cunțană chant. Its name comes from Dimitrie Cunțan, who was the first one to notate and print a collection of chants then prevailing in Transylvania (Cântări bisericeşti, 1890). Cunțan’s volume quickly became authoritative and is still today regarded with high respect by Transylvanian cantors. Despite their declared attachment to the scores of Cunțan, cantors often distance themselves from the written musical text. What are the differences between the notated and the performed variants of a chant? What role does the score play in the performance? Can present-day performance help in the understanding of the church music of the past? This paper is a work-in-progress which tries to answer these questions.

„A climax of horrid sublimity“ – Kriegerische Töne in Joseph Haydns Musik

Author(s): Klaus Aringer / Language(s): German Issue: 1/2010

Haydn lived in a time of omnipresent and continuous military conflict. The composer personally felt the effects of war especially in his last years and weeks of his life. Combing through Haydn’s thematic catalogue for works with connections in their titles to war or the military one finds few authentic pieces and several compositions attributed to him. Among the authentic works are two masses, which Haydn subtitled “in tempore belli” Hob. XXII:9 (1796) and “in angustiis” Hob. XXII:11 (1798), as well as a symphony with the appellation “Military” Hob. I:100 (1793/94), a name which refers to the second movement. Both of the Masses stand out characteristically against the background of the traditional solemn late 18th-century settings by an expressly thematic treatment of the trumpets’ military references. In the “military movement” of the symphony except for the janissary music and the trumpet signal, which announces the great, terrifying orchestral outburst, Haydn avoids all naturalistic tone painting typical for the times. Beyond mere tone-painting, his composition moves into the point of focus that which 18th-century musicians considered to be the central category of affection, and at the same time provides a remarkable contribution to the contemporary aesthetic discussion on the dialectics of the Sublime and the Terrible. In his late works, Haydn’s thematic treatment of war spreading menace, fear and terror is not so much through the use of unusual sounds or tone- painting, but rather through the drastic use of warlike implements in sound. The topic and the works examined cast a significant light on the aspect of instrumentation in Haydn’s late orchestra works. They prove too that Haydn was quite receptive to the events that shaked his times, unlike allegations to the contrary. The contemporary martial references in his music were highly topical and were perceived by audiences as an artistic reaction relevant and related to the times.

„A ta piosenka jest zrobiona z tego miasta odpadków” – śmieci i resztki, mainstream i nisza w twórczości muzycznej Pablopavo

Author(s): Beata Kiszka-Pytel / Language(s): Polish Publication Year: 0

The article touches upon the topic of cultural transformations, on the basis of the analysis of song lyrics written by Paweł Soltys, performing under the stage pseudonym Pablopavo. Moreover, it elaborates in more detail on the separate, interconnected and overlapping circles of issues, such as: the relationship between the mainstream and niche phenomena in culture, garbage, waste and remnants in culture, or money and the lack thereof in the world of wealth or nothingness. The observations lead to the conclusion that in his musical activity, the artist combines various, sometimes extreme social orders and worlds, including all kinds of phenomena taken from the mainstream and low art.

„Bachiana” de Cornel Țăranu - o creație a secolului XXI

Author(s): Mirela Mercean-Țârc / Language(s): Romanian Issue: Music/2020

Enrolled with the Romanian musical avant-garde of the second half of the 20th century through serial-modal language, Cornel Țăranu enters the new Millenium with an impressive symphonic creation both through the number of works composed and the diversity of themes approached. Thus, from 2005 to 2018, the composer has created no less than 14 symphonic works. Among them, some are proposing a sound in-course into the major themes of music culture and universal philosophy: Indian ("Saramandji", 2008), Chinese in (“Yang and Yin”, 2013), western medieval (“Cantus Gemellus”, 2010), Renaissance (“Diferencias”, 2010) and Baroque (“Bachiana”, 2016). Other themes are: homage in "Rimembranza” and the ”Symphony da Requiem” composed in 2005 on the occasion of George Enescu's commemoration, „Heraldry” composed in 2014 and dedicated to the Romanian Academy on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the country's service, "Memorial Symphony” -2010 dedicated to the memory of totalitarianism victims. The concert symphonic genre is present in the works dedicated to saxophonist Daniel Kientzy: "SaxSynpho" 2006, (Diferencias) Semper Idem- 2015. Archetypal or modern composition techniques are reflected in the works "Hetero Symphony" 2014 and "Jeux de Palindrom" 2016."Bachiana" for orchestra has as its ideational core the fugue in C minor from "Wohltemperiertes Klavier", notebook 1. The semantic levels of this reference are multiple because the work aims to analyze and comment on the various reports of the musical text to the source of Bachian inspiration from the vision of an avant-garde composer who expresses himself in a postmodern context.

„Barbarizmus“ v kontexte štrukturálnych, estetických a interpretačných aspektov hudby Bélu Bartóka

Author(s): Markéta Štefková / Language(s): Slovak Issue: 1/2021

The oeuvre of Béla Bartók (1881–1945) includes a group of compositions usually labelled as “barbarian”. This study focuses on the delineation of the characteristic structural features and aesthetic ideals of this “barbarism”. It examines the various contexts tied to Bartók’s personality. At the time when his personal style was evolving in around 1910, he was significantly influenced by stylizations of authentic Norwegian folklore in the late works of Edvard Grieg (1843–1907). This study aims to point out that “barbarism”, a term with mostly negative connotations, is a not very suitable word for the stylistic orientation in Bartók’s musical oeuvre that was primarily inspired by archaic peasant folk dance music. In addition, it investigates the consequences and impacts of the theory of the “barbarian character” of Bartók’s music on its performance.

„Budowle służące zabawom przyjemnym a tem samem przy wodnej kuracji bardzo pożytecznym”. O drewnianych domach zdrojowych, teatrach i estradach w polskich uzdrowiskach w XIX i na początku XX wieku

Author(s): Grażyna Ruszczyk / Language(s): Polish Issue: 4/2020

In order to meet the expectations of wealthy visitors, who did not only anticipate effective treatment, but also rich cultural and social attractions, spa owners and administrators had to provide different entertainment and fun. With this purpose in mind they would hold shows of theatre companies, concerts, balls, soirees, lectures, etc. Therefore the spa houses raised in resorts featured ball rooms, reading rooms, restaurants, cafes, gaming rooms. Also theatres were built, and stages for music shows were mounted in parks. The paper is dedicated to these very buildings that came from several selected spas considered to be Polish and raised in the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. On the one hand they are the oldest spa resorts (from the first half of the 19th century), the largest and operating until this very day: Busko, Ciechocinek, Druskienniki (Druskininkai, t. Lithuania), Iwonicz, Krynica, Solec, Szczawnica, and Truskawiec (Truskavets, t. Ukraine), as well as newer ones on the other (from the second half of the 19th century), but well known and still operating today: Zakopane and Połąga (Palanga, t. Lithuania). The paper is focused on wooden structures, since it was them that until the early 20th century determined the architectural landscape of Polish spas. With the majority having been destroyed, they are known only from iconographic materials and descriptions.

„Cały dzień żyję jakimś zdaniem muzycznym…”. Muzyka jako pasja życia i motyw przewodni pisarstwa Anny Iwaszkiewiczowej

Author(s): Tomasz Baranowski / Language(s): Polish Issue: 4/2021

This article discusses the role of music in the life and work of writer and translator Anna Iwaszkiewicz, who was first and foremost a music connoisseur and amateur pianist, a person for whom contact with music was the essence of her everyday life. Though she was educated at home and never attended school, she grew up to become a person of unusually broad intellectual horizons and great musical culture. In music historiography, she is remembered mostly as the person who discovered for Poland the music of Alexander Scriabin, whose "Poem of Ecstasy", heard in Moscow in 1917, she hailed as an artistic and spiritual revelation; on her return to Poland a year later, she became a fervent promoter of the Russian composer’s music.Anna Iwaszkiewicz’s diaries and memoirs contain many thoughts on music, which she listened to every day, as well as frequently playing piano, often four handed with Karol Szymanowski, her husband’s cousin, with whom she maintained very warm relations. Her comments quoted in this article confirm her profound sensitivity to the music of great composers from the past, particularly Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and Wagner. There are also critical remarks, aimed mostly at the music of the so-called French impressionists, Debussy and Ravel. Iwaszkiewicz also emerges from her diaries and memoirs as an expert on musical interpretation. Her private reviews of numerous concerts and operas contribute to the history of Warsaw’s musical life during the first half of the twentieth century.

„Composing for the films” Theodora W. Adorno i Hannsa Eislera jako krytyczna refleksja o muzyce filmowej

Author(s): Joanna Kwapień / Language(s): Polish Issue: 3/2020

"Composing for the Films" is a unique book in film musicology. Published in 1947, it was a nearly immediate response to the fast developing Hollywood film industry. Though it was the product of a collaboration between two authors, Theodor Adorno and Hanns Eisler, for many years it was known only under the name of that latter artist. Despite its original concepts, it has never been analysed by Polish scholars.The first part of my paper focuses on the circumstances of writing this book and the history of its editions, which was made complicated by both authors’ difficult political situation. Critical theory, as adapted by Adorno for the study of film music, is the key to the concepts contained in this book. In my article, I distinguish four thematic segments in the authors’ commentary: a) criticism of cinematography as a manifestation of mass culture; b) criticism of composition technique in film music; c) criticism of traditional composition techniques and a discussion of the possible uses of new music in films; d) presentation of the dangers related to the use of new technologies in film music. Such a division of topics makes it possible for me to cover all the aspects discussed by the authors, and related to musicology, philosophy, economy, politics, and sociology. My analyses of Adorno and Eisler’s ideas has been extended so as to include Max Weber’s sociological concepts and Adorno’s notions of the fetish character in music, rationalisation, and regression of listening. I also present a survey of selected composition techniques still applied in film music today, which the authors describe as ‘bad habits in composition’.

„Die Schweizerhütte”, Moniuszkowska prapremiera spóźniona o blisko dwa stulecia: pytania, hipotezy, nowe perspektywy badawcze

Author(s): Grzegorz Zieziula / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2021

Stanisław Moniuszko’s early two-act komische Oper titled Die Schweizerhütte, previously unknown, was first staged only in 2018, around 180 years after its composition. The German libretto, basically borrowed by Moniuszko from Carl Blum’s opera Mary, Max und Michel, leaves out some sections of the ‘prototype’, adds an interpolation whose authorship has not been established, and changes the stage directions. In my paper, I focus on analysing the overture to Moniuszko’s Die Schweizerhütte, as well as the forms of arias, duets, choruses and finales employed by the composer. The compositional tools he used are well suited to the dramatic concept of the work, as is confirmed by the thematic links between the overture and the multipartite finales of both acts, as well as the introduction of reminder motifs.This German-language work written by the future ‘father of Polish opera’ demonstrates that the barely 20-year-old Berlin-trained newcomer to the operatic scene was already giving serious consideration to the internal integration of his work and was surprisingly mature in his awareness of the principles of musical dramaturgy. Unfortunately, after his return to Vilnius, Moniuszko in all probability did not find favourable conditions for the further development of his talent. Yet while the so-called operettas that he wrote in the early 1840s with singing actors and a wide audience in mind could hardly be considered a continuation and extension of the ambitious ideas already discernible in Der Schweizerhütte, those ideas were probably echoed in his first opera seria, titled Twardowski (now lost), and are certainly fully manifest in the Vilnius version of his Halka.It is increasingly evident that Moniuszko’s operatic style was closely related from the very start not only to the local tradition (to models elaborated by Stefani, Elsner and Kurpiński), but also to the poetics of European opera, primarily the Italian and French models. Moniuszko absorbed those influences, however, via German musical, theatrical and literary culture. His time in Berlin and his earliest (German-language) attempt at an operatic work that he undertook there thus played a key role in the complex process of the absorption and synthesis of various models of operatic dramaturgy. This ultimately helped the composer attain artistic maturity.

„DRAMA” AND „POST-DRAMA”: CHANGE OF PARADIGM

Author(s): Victoria Alesenkova / Language(s): English Issue: 1 (38)/2021

The purpose of the article is to review some aspects of reforming the historical framework, the prerequisites and prospectsfor the development of European theater art. The attempt to consider the evolution of theater as a natural cyclical process ofmyth transformation through the phase of dramatic form constitutes a reasonable addition to the theory of the German scientistH.-T. Lehmann.

„Dynamiczne systemy” i dążenie do „stanu stabilności”. W kręgu kompozytorskich myśli

Author(s): Beattina Skrzypczak / Language(s): Polish Issue: 12/2018

The starting point for this article involves reflection on the phenomenon of tonality as such, extending its meaning to include its aspects beyond the historical approach. This is possible by invoking the ancient Greek notion of “tonos” which, as understood by the Pre-Socratics, meant the force (principle) bonding all layers of being together. In order to relate this thought to music, I present the concept of tonality as the bonding force within the cosmos of occurrences of musical nature. In general, I tend to associate the phenomenon of “tonality” with the cognitive approach rather than merely a way of organizing the sound material. In the subsequent part of the article I reflect upon my own works, placing particular emphasis on the phenomenon of processuality in the context of dynamic systems and their states. I derive the very concept of dynamic system from Katarzyna Zahorodna’s definition, included in her publication The Problem of Mental Representation in Extended Cognitive Systems. In my considerations, I distance myself from issues connected with tonality. The only remaining point of reference is the concept of “tonos”, referring to the force, or rather forces, of binding individual sections of the form and, finally, of the whole composition. These forces are perceptible in the context of certain states of musical matter standing in opposition to each other. These states include the following ones: statics – process, clarity – obscurity, as well as various degrees of density of musical matter. It is within these states that a particular kind of gravitational field is created wherein processual phenomena occur. They occur on the linear, as well as the vertical layers, in the context of micro – aswell as macro-forms. Due to the creation of higher-order structures in orchestral works, processes of this type become more complex. In addition, they are influenced by my reflections on chaos as a complex system (SN 1993 J and Initial).The part of the article with my concluding arguments on the issue of dynamic systems includes my explanation of how they affect the shaping of time flow and the dramatic nature of the pieces. In this context, time becomes something of a metaphor and a trace of vital processes. However, the energy resulting from the activity of the sound substance forms a stimulus that initiates and supports perseverance. The article closes with a reflection on the issue of harmony as the state of internal balance. Hereby, I refer to Ancient Greek mythology, according to which harmony is the result of a dynamic, internally contrasting situation.

„Ein Monolog des Fürsten Myschkin“ (nach Fedor Dostoevskijs Roman Idiot) von Ingeborg Bachmann und seine Übertragungen ins Russische: Aspekte der Übersetzungsforschung

Author(s): Andrea Meyer-Fraatz / Language(s): German Issue: 38/2021

The paper analyzes three translations of a fragment of Ingeborg Bachmann’s libretto for Hans Werner Henze’s ballet, The Idiot. Bachmann’s libretto is based on Dostoevsky’s novel, but it also expresses crucial themes of her own poetry, which is underlined by the fact that the text was integrated into her book of poems, Invocation of the Great Bear. Following the transfer-oriented approach of the Göttingen School of translation research, first, the semantic structure of the source text is examined, after which, the target texts are analyzed with regard to significant deviations, which are then explained against the backgrounds of literary, cultural and social-political history. The fact that Bachmann’s text refers back to Dostoevsky’s novel plays a not inconsiderable role in the choice of texts to be translated.

„EU AM RĂMAS UN ROMÂN LA PARIS...” (MARCEL MIHALOVICI: DESCHIDERE SPRE UNIVERSALITATE)

Author(s): Augustina Florea / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 3 (40)/2021

The work of Marcel Mihalovici, one of the most renowned Romanian composers settled in Paris, elucidates the evolutional paradigm of the Romanian Composition School in the first half of the 20th century, marked by the tendency towards getting close to the European universal musical phenomenon by assimilating stylistic influences of Romanticism, especially, of the Enescu Romanticism. Appreciated by his famous contemporaries, such as M.Ravel, V.d’Indy, F. Poulenc etc., honored with a lot of awards and international distincions, elected Corresponding Member of Institut de France andAcadémie des Beaux-Arts of Paris, Marcel Mihalovici created a musical style of universal nature, which denotes a miraculous stylistic symbiosis between the reflections of Romanticism, some influences of Romanian folklore, as well as certain implications of contemporary techniques, sporadic musical language drifting towards serialism.

„Gdzie jest moja rewolucja?” Świat oczami artystki. O twórczości Marii Sadowskiej

Author(s): Piotr Sieńko / Language(s): Polish Issue: 31/2021

Celem artykułu jest prezentacja i omówienie wybranej twórczości Marii Sadowskiej. Są to utwory pochodzące z płyty Dzień kobiet oraz film o tym samym tytule, a także kompozycja „Rewolucja” zawarta w albumie Spis treści. W związku z charakterem przytoczonych materia-łów metodologią, którą wykorzystuję do ich interpretacji, jest krytyka feministyczna. Jednym z podstawowych powodów wyboru wymienionych dzieł i perspektywy badawczej jest to, że artystka inspiruje się matkami myśli feministycznej, takimi między innymi jak Susan Sontag, Barbara Kruger czy Simone de Beauvoir, a podniesione przez nią wątki zdecydowanie mieszczą się w obrębie zainteresowań krytyki feministycznej. Próbuję też określić, czy podjęcie kwestii feministycznych wynika jedynie z bieżących wydarzeń społeczno-politycznych, czy jest rezultatem wnikliwej refleksji.

„Kanon i postmodernizm” w twórczości religijnej kompozytorów polskich przełomu XX i XXI wieku

Author(s): Krzysztof Cyran / Language(s): Polish Issue: 7/2015

The starting point for this reflection on Polish sacral music at the turn of the millennia was the claim presented by Maria Piotrowska in Canon and postmodernism 59 about the maximal polarization within the interpretation of contemporary culture. On this basis one can clearly distinguish the ideological tension between sacral art (which as a rule invokes the theological aesthetic canon) and postmodern pluralistic discourses. This approach to the issue provoked an attempt a distinguish the boundaries and features of a new canon of artistic sacral music, broadened to include the postmodern experience. As examples, eight works have been chosen 60 ; those include large vocal and vocal-instrumental forms, all of the non-liturgical, concert repertoire, created between 1976–2011. A crucial factor in making the choice was the importance of including different generations of composers, as well as diverse creative approaches and stylistic idioms.Following the analysis and interpretations of the chosen works the author distinguished their common features which – according to him – make them noteworthy sacral compositions. The compilation of those features, divided in two groups, forms the proposition of the new canon of modern Polish religious music.The characteristics of the canon of the postmodern are: masterpiece value, an expression of the individual and objectified spirit, logos and logocentricity, and genre-specificity. Postmodern characteristics within the canon are: the avant-guarde and tradition in the quest for synthesis, dialogue with traditional values, and new ways of expressing the numinosum. The first are part of more universal categories; however, when confronted with a specific historical moment – the culture of postmodernism – they obtain specific meaning. The latter three are an attempt to describe the presence of “postmodernism in the canon,” the influence of postmodern thought, particularly its “discoveries” as regarding the problemification of new concepts.

„Können Tränen meiner Wangen nichts erlangen?“ Manifestationen der Traurigkeit in der deutschen Musik des 18. Jahrhunderts

Author(s): Tobiasz Janikowski / Language(s): German Issue: 1/2020

Emotions and feelings, such as sadness, disappointment or doubt, are not only a characteristic feature of the narrative present in the widely understood German-language literature. Manifestations of various emotional states can undoubtedly be found in numerous vocal and instrumental works, whose period of splendor appears during the 18th century, in particular in the decades within the time frame set by the St. John Passion of Johann Sebastian Bach BWV 245 (1724) and the majestic oratorios The Creation and The Seven Last Words of Our Saviour on the Cross by Joseph Haydn (1796-98). The purpose of this article is to show the affective potential of selected texts in the orbit of the impact of the phenomenon of musi-cal rhetoric and to illuminate the works of famous German composers of the 18th century, placed in a broader cultural and literary context.

„Könyvek, Judit – könyvek, könyvek”

Author(s): Tamás Jakabffy / Language(s): Hungarian Issue: 810/2021

„Musicae Scientiae” 22 (2018) nr 1 [wydanie specjalne pt.] „Creative Conceptual Blending In Music”, red. Emilios Cambouropoulos, Danae Stefanou, Costas Tsougras

Author(s): Violetta Kostka / Language(s): Polish Issue: 4/2021

Journal Review of „Musicae Scientiae” 22 (2018) No. 1 [special edition]: „Creative Conceptual Blending In Music”, eds. Emilios Cambouropoulos, Danae Stefanou, Costas Tsougras