Foundations of Music History

A study of the philosophy of music history.

Carl Dahlhaus (Author), J. B. Robinson (Translated by)

9780521298902, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 24 February 1983

188 pages
21.6 x 14 x 1.1 cm, 0.25 kg

This book is the first thoroughgoing study in any language of the philosophy of music history. Drawing on competing philosophies of history throughout the ages, from the Enlightenment to the French structuralists, from the German idealist tradition to Russian formalism, the late Carl Dahlhaus applies the thoughts of these various schools to the specialist requirements of music history and assesses their advantages and shortcomings. Special attention is given to an appraisal of whether Marxist critiques are still viable and where they stand in need of rethinking. For this English edition, the author provided an extensive annotated bibliography.

Translator's preface
Foreword
1. Is history on the decline?
2. The significance of art: historical or aesthetic?
3. What is a fact of music history?
4. Does music history have a 'subject'?
5. Historicism and tradition
6. Hermeneutics in history
7. The value-judgment: object or premise of history?
8. The 'relative autonomy' of music history
9. Thoughts on structural history
10. Problems in reception history
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Music [AV]