- Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Roger Graybill
New England Conservatory, Music Theory, Faculty Member
The string quartets of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and their nineteenth century successors possess an unusually rich and varied gestural vocabulary, and this very richness raises a question addressed in this essay. I begin by proposing... more
The string quartets of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and their nineteenth century successors possess an unusually rich and varied gestural vocabulary, and this very richness raises a question addressed in this essay. I begin by proposing (following Maus 1988) that we view a gesture as an intentional action by an imaginary agent who is motivated by some belief, desire, or attitude. According to Maus, musical agency is indeterminate in principle; a triad played by three strings can be imagined as the action of a single agent, or as coordinated actions by three different agents. However, my talk will consider one possible scenario that Maus does not directly address: Can we interpret each instrumental line as a series of actions by a ‘permanent agent’ – that is, as a coherent character/agent that retains its identify throughout an entire movement (Cone 1974)?
One of the most obvious manifestations of Brahms's indebt-edness to the Viennese Classical tradition is his frequent use of sonata form, a predilection that made him appear reactionary to many of his contemporaries. But Brahms... more
One of the most obvious manifestations of Brahms's indebt-edness to the Viennese Classical tradition is his frequent use of sonata form, a predilection that made him appear reactionary to many of his contemporaries. But Brahms viewed sonata form as a living tradition, and he ...
Reviews of Recent Textbooks in Theory and Musicianship. 4. Harmony: Harmony and Voice Leading . Edward Aldwell, Carl Schachter. ; Music in Theory and Practice . Bruce Benward, Gary White. ; Tonal Harmony, with an Introduction to Twentieth-Century Music . Stefan Kostka, Dorothy Payne. ; Harmony . ...more
... Reviewed by Roger Graybill A survey of theory textbooks may base its evaluations on any of a variety of issues, which might be roughly charac-terized as ranging from the practical to the ideological. ... En-glewood Cliffs, NJ:... more
... Reviewed by Roger Graybill A survey of theory textbooks may base its evaluations on any of a variety of issues, which might be roughly charac-terized as ranging from the practical to the ideological. ... En-glewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1986. Reviewed by Roger Graybill ...
Research Interests:
Building on the insights of the first volume on Music and Gesture (Gritten and King, Ashgate 2006), the rationale for this sequel volume is twofold: first, to clarify the way in which the subject is continuing to take shape by... more
Building on the insights of the first volume on Music and Gesture (Gritten and King, Ashgate 2006), the rationale for this sequel volume is twofold: first, to clarify the way in which the subject is continuing to take shape by highlighting both central and developing trends, as well as popular and less frequent areas of investigation; second, to provide alternative and complementary insights into the particular areas of the subject articulated in the first volume. The thirteen chapters are structured in a broad narrative trajectory moving from theory to practice, embracing Western and non-Western practices, real and virtual gestures, live and recorded performances, physical and acoustic gestures, visual and auditory perception, among other themes of topical interest. The main areas of enquiry include psychobiology; perception and cognition; philosophy and semiotics; conducting; ensemble work and solo piano playing. The volume is intended to promote and stimulate further research in Musical Gesture Studies.