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International Conference on Music in Eighteenth-Century Britain; The Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies / La société canadienne d’étude du dix-huitième siècleInternational Conference on Music in Eighteenth-Century Britain; The Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies / La société
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Rice, Paul F. |
| Copyright Year | 1997 |
| Abstract | International Conference on Music in Eighteenth-Century Britain; The Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies/La societe canadienne d'etude du dix-huitieme siecle. The fourth conference organized by the Centre for Eighteenth-Century Musical Studies (Cardiff University of Wales) was presented in the Department of Music from 9 to 12 July 1996, with the theme of "Music in Eighteenth-Century Britain." Sarah McCleave, who admirably organized the conference and coped with a last-minute change of venue, provided a balanced programme which featured topics relevant to church music, the oratorio, music and social context, Italian music and musicians, library collections, journals, concert music, keyboard music, and music for the theatre. Speakers came from Canada, the United States, Italy, Germany, France, and the British Isles. With some thirty presentations in all, the conference provided a remarkable opportunity not only to assess music in eighteenth-century Britain, but also the current scholarly interest in this fertile area. The conference began with a keynote address by Peter Holman, "Eighteenth-Century English Music: Past, Present, Future." Holman, who acts as the series director for Hyperion's "The English Orpheus" recordings, spoke from his personal experience of having worked on the more than thirty-seven recordings in this series, often performing himself with the Parley of Instruments. Holman called for a revisionist history of English music, and one that would be more pro-active in overcoming traditional views about the music of native-born composers, views which appear to have been informed by a sense of cultural inferiority. Holman's more subjective comments surprised some in the audience; however, his point may well have been proven by the papers which were presented at this very conference. One might have expected that, in a conference such as this, the music of Purcell, Arne, Boyce, the Linleys, and Samuel Wesley might have figured prominently. Instead, the music of native-born composers appeared in only about one-quarter of the presentations. Holman also took part in a concert presented by members of the Parley of Instruments, and which featured trio sonatas, theatre songs, ballads, and cantatas by Handel, Boyce, and Arne. It was clear that this group deserves the fine reputation which has developed from their recordings. Also evident was the high quality of the music that they performed. One can only hope that the major publishing project that was "brain stormed" until late one evening at the conference will eventually come to pass. Certainly, it will be difficult to encourage more performances of British music of this era until scores and performing parts are readily available. Canadians taking part at the conference included: (1) Sarah McCleave (Cardiff University of Wales), "Provincial Taste and Publishing Practices: Perspectives Offered by the Mackworth Collection"; (2) James Bohun (St. John's College, Cambridge), "The Social and Political Contexts of Opera at the Accession of George II"; (3) Patricia Debly (Brock University), "Haydn's L'anima del filisofo: An Italian Opera all'inglese?"; and (4) Paul F. Rice, "Style and Influence in the Instrumental Music of John Abraham Fisher." In all, the conference proved to be a rewarding experience, and one that will hopefully encourage further research in the area of eighteenth-century British music. The twenty-second conference of the Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies/La societe canadienne d'etude du dix-huitieme siecle was held at the Harbour Towers hotel in Victoria, B.C., from 17 to 20 October 1996, under the sponsorship of the University of Victoria. The conference was presented in conjunction with the Northwestern Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, and Carol Gibson-Wood prepared an efficiently-run and well-organized conference. Delegates attended from France, Germany, Canada, and the United States. … |
| Starting Page | 134 |
| Ending Page | 136 |
| Page Count | 3 |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| DOI | 10.7202/1014799ar |
| Volume Number | 17 |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://www.erudit.org/fr/revues/cumr/1997-v17-n2-cumr0494/1014799ar.pdf |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://doi.org/10.7202/1014799ar |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
