Friday, January 27, 2017

Assignment for Monday, Jan. 30

If you haven't done so already, please listen to the entire Dichterliebe cycle (about a half hour). Also, please either print out or get from the library the score, so you have it for class. Then, read Berthold Hoeckner's article, "Paths through Dichterliebe" (19th-Century Music, 2006), available on JSTOR; we discussed part of it today in class.

Finally, I'd like you to consider the following quote from Hoeckner's article:


Since Schumann worried that the dissection of musical compositions would turn them into dead bodies, he sought to reconcile his respect for the living artwork with his keen interest in compositional structure. In his criticism, he combined analytical and poetic modes in order to remain close to the condition of making music. As the first major modern writer about music, Schumann knew that both hermeneutic analysis and performance involve feeling and understanding; that both strive to be captivating as well as plausible; and that interpretive conviction is more likely to persuade an audience than interpretive coercion.

What do you think this means? What is hermeneutic analysis, anyway? Do you agree with him? Please respond in a comment to this post. And don't forget to introduce yourself in the Course introductions post if you haven't already done so!

14 comments:

  1. I think the analysis is very convincing and it corresponds to the quote above. Instead of having "key-center-oriented" progression, structuring the cycle in such coherence seems more compatible to the fragmental poem. The concept is also more substantial after considering the eliminated songs. It might seems to be complex to analyse and re-map it, but composing it out should be easier as he himself is the mapper. However, I think the tritone symmetry with F might be just a coincident. I also do not get the hermeneutic analysis. I assume it is to analyse it by leaning on how Schumann interpret Heine's poem with music, as how it is pointed out in the article, "to listen in terms of Heine".

    ReplyDelete
  2. Schumann, knowing that multiple thought processes go into creating a work of art, considered both analytical theory and emotional/aesthetic choices in his criticisms of art and in the creation of own works. Hermeneutic analysis is a form of analysis that is based on interpretation; in this quote, the author claims that Schumann knew this to be one facet of understanding art, and that reception of art also depends on how it is interpreted by the receiver. I do agree with this statement. I think that successfully creating and interpreting works involve not only analysis of recurring themes and relationships within the work, but also a belief that the themes and relationships must be communicated effectively to the receiving audience.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think the quote is basically saying that Schumann was fully conscious and aware of the importance of interpretation of music in relation to its performance. Hermeneutics, at least, from looking at a quick Google search, has to do with interpretation.

    I think Hoeckner's argument definitely holds water. However, I find it somewhat difficult to believe that this was "exactly" what Schumann intended. At the same time, I think there would be far too many coincidences to discredit Hoeckner's interpretation.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I believe the quote is drawing on Schumann's understanding of the idea of music being extremely multi-faceted, and the non-existence of only one explanation, or a fully "correct" explanation of a work – and I completely agree with the claim.
    Anyone growing up in the western world has since birth subliminally been exposed to music that generally follows a set of guidelines that have been adapted over time to western culture (which intervals, chords, progressions, etc. are "beautiful", which cause tension, so on…). So there is a certain inherent understanding of music, such as if we were to hear a C major scale that ends on B and doesn't resolve, we would hear or sing the pitch in our heads in order to satisfy our learned ideas of tension and release. This addresses the more analytical side of music, as there are particular guidelines and labels for things that we have known subconsciously for our entire lives already. However, if everything followed the most "ideal" standards for music, music would be extremely boring and redundant and it would fail to captivate. So composers, consciously or not, continue to color outside the lines and push musical boundaries in order to make artistic statements, to represent things, to simply rebel, to make things “interesting”, and in order to satisfy their own creative minds.
    In my opinion, interpretation is the beauty of music. It’s why we have favorite recordings of the same piece, why we like some performers more than others, and why we enjoy and continue to see live performances. We can analyze a work with our current set of theoretical knowledge in order to help bring out things that are maybe, or maybe not, intentionally there. But we must also leave room for things we haven’t learned, as well as what we personally believe and feel something should sound like, whether it adheres to common standards or not.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think this quote is describing Schumann's belief that music shouldn't be overanalyzed to the extent that it, in a way, destroys the emotional purpose of the music. Hermeneutic analysis is a way of analyzing music so that there is not a single interpretation of the music, but there are many.

    I agree with the Hoeckner because Schumann understood what it meant to enjoy listening to music and how to write it in an enjoyable manner. He connected with Hermeneutic analysis to embrace musicality and not focusing so much on the analysis of a piece of music.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. In the first part of the excerpt on reconciling living artwork with compositional structure, I think Hoeckner is arguing that (in Schumann’s mind) musical analysis, when taken too far into structural and theoretical aspects, can become abstract and lose the lively essence of the art it is meant to interpret. I disagree that “the dissection of musical compositions would turn them into dead bodies,” however. Organizational structure in music can be dynamic and complex, even on the microscopic scale, as in nature. When guided by the functionality of the parts, rather than just their demarcation, you see how their form follows their function, and how they work together to produce the larger structure or effect. For example, in examining one small cell in a human body, we can see incredibly complex systems, and even our evolutionary history, which help us understand how life happens on a macro-scale. Hermeneutic analysis, which I think just means an interpretive analysis, of music really shows the same underlying network/complexity structures. In this way, without losing sight of the larger musical affect, analysis of the minute can be extremely informative and gratifying. Hoeckner says, “he combined analytical and poetic modes in order to remain close to the condion of making music.” I don’t really see the difference between analytical and poetic modes here; they’re one and the same!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think the quote means, Schumann wanted audience to have openness(?) for interpretation especially because the resource of this music was 'Poet.' I am not sure if he wanted it to be open because it was based on poet or if he wanted all of his music should be interpreted in this way.

    Hermeneutic analysis puts importance on possibilities of diverse interpretations. I think, considering where this piece came from (poet), Hermeneutic analysis for this piece will be authentic as well because poet should be openly interpreted! Hermeneutic analysis not only has importance of interpretation but also has broad, complete and multi-directional approach to art.

    ReplyDelete
  9. In my opinion, the author offers an image of the thought process that Schumann used when setting the music to text. Being too much involved into interpreting the text can be a 'killer' for music, which needs to support the text but at the same time be free.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think that this means music has multiple facets of analysis that can be interpreted in multiple ways including an emotionally, and dispassionately including more direct meanings of the language and music. Hermeneutic has to do with interpretation or ones own interpretation of the work. This is an important part of performing a piece; understanding it analytically, or in your own way so that you can reach your audience on an emotional level.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I apologize for commenting late, I hope my comment still gets read. This is an interesting topic, and I believe it is debated more today than it was in Schumann's time. Schumann understood that for music to be received well, it needs to be able to be analyzable and have some semblance of form and thought, but it also needs to be "emotionally" appealing to listeners. Whether musicians and scholars think that music needs to express some sort of emotion or poeticism doesn't matter to the millions of lay listeners who listen to music for personal enjoyment. Conversely, a piece of music without form and structure is not as interesting to listen to, even for lay listeners. Schumann sought to bridge the gap between the two interpretations, creating works that were both theoretically interesting and appealed to the emotional needs of listeners. The article is evidence that he succeeded; the emotional side seems to be self evident, while Hoeckner's analysis (over-analyzed in my opinion) shows that Schumann was technically and theoretically proficient enough to compose a work that would appeal to scholars for years to come.

    ReplyDelete
  12. In my opinion, Schumann thought that music analysis should relative not only to the compositional structure but also live performance. Hermeneutic is the theory and methodology of interpretation. I agree with Schumann that in the process of music making feeling and understanding is important. Also, a convincing music analysis should include both musical and emotional elements.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sorry for the such a late response. I agree with his opinion that the examined musical composition will lead to a disconnection of the musical flow. I think Schumann was aware that the interpretation of the music is a personal matter and how the performer and audience receive. This is why his music is organically connected with the meaning of the poet and his harmonic gesture, rhythm, and all. With his music, it is important that understand his music structurally and emotionally in both aspect.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.