Interpreting the Musical Past : Early Music in Nineteenth-Century France

This study of the French early music revival gives us a vivid sense of how music's cultural meanings were contested in the nineteenth century. It surveys the main patterns of revivalist activity while also providing in-depth studies of repertories stretching from Adam de la Halle to Rameau. In An Era Of Heightened Patriotic Fervor Following France's Defeat In The Franco-prussian War, Parisians Packed Concert Halls To Hear Performances Of Handel's Oratorios And Bach's Organ Works. At The Same Time, Both Royalists And Republicans Called For The Re-evaluation Of The Once Detested Musique Francaise Of The Ancien Regime. Musicologist Katharine Ellis Examines These Unlikely Aspects Of Cultural Life In The New Republic As Part Of A Broader Study Of The Early Music Revival In Nineteenth-century France. After Providing An Overview Of Trends And Contexts Throughout The Century, Ellis Examines Specific Repertoires That Evokes Unusually Spirited Advocacy And Debate. Based On Extensive Primary Research In Paris And The French Regions, Interpreting The Musical Past Is At Once A History Of Culture, Of Reception, And Of Historiography.--jacket. Patterns Of Revival -- Uses, Appropriations, Meanings. Katharine Ellis. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [263]-284) And Index. Presenting a study of the French early music revival, this book gives us a sense of how music's cultural meanings were contested in the nineteenth century. It surveys the main patterns of revivalist activity while also providing studies of repertories stretching from Adam de la Halle to Rameau