The Social Worlds of Nineteenth-Century Chamber Music

Marie Sumner Lott examines the music available to musical consumers in the nineteenth century, and what that music tells us about their tastes, priorities, and activities. Her social history of chamber music performance places the works of canonic composers such as Schubert, Brahms, and Dvorák in relation to lesser-known but influential peers. The book explores the dynamic relationships among the active agents involved in the creation of Romantic music and shows how each influenced the others' choices in a rich, collaborative environment. In addition to documenting the ways companies acquired and marketed sheet music, Sumner Lott reveals how the publication and performance of chamber music differed from that of ephemeral piano and song genres or more monumental orchestral and operatic works. Several distinct niche markets existed within the audience for chamber music, and composers created new musical works for their use and enjoyment. Insightful and groundbreaking, The Social Worlds of Nineteenth-Century Chamber Music revises prevailing views of middle-class influence on nineteenth-century musical style and presents new methods for interpreting the meanings of musical works for musicians both past and present.|

Cover Title Copyright Contents List of Figures and Tables List of Musical Examples Acknowledgments Introduction. String Chamber Music and Its Audiences in the Nineteenth Century 1. Publishing Chamber Music: Archival Evidence for Chamber Music Production and Consumption 2. "Domesticating" the Foreign in Arrangements of Operas, Folk Songs, and Other Works for Chamber Ensembles 3. Music for Men of Leisure: An Examination of the Domestic String Style 4. Redefining the "Progressive" Style in Responses to Beethoven's Late Quartets 5. Creating "Progressive" Communities through Programmatic Chamber Music 6. Audience and Style in Brahms's String Chamber Music 7. The Diversity of Dvořák's String Quartet Audiences Appendix 1 J. Strunz, string quartet transcription of no. 18, "Prière" (Prayer), from Meyerbeer's Robert le Diable Appendix 2 C. W. Henning, string quartet transcription of no. 8, "Leise, leise, fromme Weise" (Gently, gently, pious words), from Weber's Der Freischütz Appendix 3 M. Kässmayer, string quartet arrangement of "Mein Herz ist im Hochland" (My heart is in the Highlands) from Deutsche Lieder, op. 14, no. 4 Notes Bibliography Index|