The New German Cinema : Music, History, and the Matter of Style

When New German cinema directors like R. W. Fassbinder, Ulrike Ottinger, and Werner Schroeter explored issues of identity—national, political, personal, and sexual—music and film style played crucial roles. Most studies of the celebrated film movement, however, have sidestepped the role of music, a curious oversight given its importance to German culture and nation formation. Caryl Flinn’s study reverses this trend, identifying styles of historical remembrance in which music participates. Flinn concentrates on those styles that urge listeners to interact with difference—including that embodied in Germany’s difficult history—rather than to "master" or "get past" it. Flinn breaks new ground by considering contemporary reception frameworks of the New German Cinema, a generation after its end. She discusses transnational, cultural, and historical contexts as well as the sexual, ethnic, national, and historical diversity of audiences. Through detailed case studies, she shows how music helps filmgoers engage with a range of historical subjects and experiences. Each chapter of The New German Cinema examines a particular stylistic strategy, assessing music’s role in each. The study also examines queer strategies like kitsch and camp and explores the movement’s charged construction of human bodies on which issues of ruination, survival, memory, and pleasure are played out. When New German cinema directors like R. W. Fassbinder, Ulrike Ottinger, and Werner Schroeter explored issues of identity -- national, political, personal, and sexual -- music and film style played crucial roles. Most studies of the celebrated film movement, however, have sidestepped the role of music, a curious oversight given its importance to German culture and nation formation. Caryl Flinn's study reverses this trend, identifying styles of historical remembrance in which music participates. Flinn concentrates on those styles that urge listeners to interact with difference -- including that embodied in Germany's difficult history -- rather than to "master" or "get past" it. Flinn breaks new ground by considering contemporary reception frameworks of the New German Cinema, a generation after its end. She discusses transnational, cultural, and historical contexts as well as the sexual, ethnic, national, and historical diversity of audiences. Through detailed case studies, she shows how music helps filmgoers engage with a range of historical subjects and experiences. Each chapter of The New German Cinema examines a particular stylistic strategy, assessing music's role in each. The study also examines queer strategies like kitsch and camp and explores the movement's charged construction of human bodies on which issues of ruination, survival, memory, and pleasure are played out. When New German Cinema directors like R. W. Fassbinder, Ulrike Ottinger, and Werner Schroeter explored issues of identity -- national, political, personal, and sexual -- music and film style played crucial roles. Most studies of the celebrated film movement, however, have sidestepped the role of music. Caryl Flinn's study reverses this trend, identifying styles of historical remembrance in which music participates. Flinn concentrates on those styles that urge listeners to interact with difference -- including that embodied in Germany's difficult history -- rather than to master or get past it. Her study breaks new ground by considering contemporary reception frameworks of the New German Cinema, a generation after its end. She discusses transnational, cultural, and historical contexts as well as the sexual, ethnic, national, and historical diversity of audiences. Frontmatter Acknowledgments (page vii) Introduction: "Strategies of Remembrance" (page 1) PART I. HISTORICAL PREDECESSORS: MELODRAMA AND MODERNISM 1. Mourning, Melancholia, and "New German Melodrama" (page 29) 2. Modernism's Aftershocks: Peer Raben's Film Music for Fassbinder (page 70) PART II. MUSIC AND THE MATERIALS OF HISTORY: ALEXANDER KLUGE 3. Kluge's Assault on History: Trauma, Testimony, and Difference in The Patriot (page 107) 4. Undoing Act 5: History, Bodies, and Operatic Remains: Kluge's The Power of Emotion (page 138) PART III. QUEERING HISTORY THROUGH CAMP AND KITSCH 5. Restaging History with Fantasy: Body, Camp, and Sound in the Films of Treut, Ottinger, and von Praunheim (page 173) 6. Introjecting Kitsch: Werner Schroeter, Music, and Alterity (page 231) Coda: Working the Pieces (page 267) Notes (page 279) Index (page 313) Introduction: Strategies Of Remembrance -- Historical Predecessors: Melodrama And Modernism. Mourning, Melancholia, And New German Melodrama ; Modernism's Aftershocks: Peer Raben's Film Music For Fassbinder -- Music And The Materials Of History : Alexander Kluge. Kluge's Assault On History: Trauma, Testimony, And Difference In The Patriot ; Undoing Act 5: History, Bodies, And Operatic Remains: Kluge's The Power Of Emotion -- Queering History Through Camp And Kitsch. Restaging History With Fantasy: Body, Camp, And Sound In The Films Of Treut, Ottinger, And Von Praunheim ; Introjecting Kitsch: Werner Schroeter, Music, And Alterity -- Coda: Working The Pieces. Caryl Flinn. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 279-312) And Index. This study of New German cinema identifies different styles of historical remembrance in which music participates The relationship between history and film style and music is a long and uneven one.