The Musical Discourse of Servitude

Harry White has the unusual and idiosyncratic ability to link cultural debates about servitude and autonomy to very specific moments in the music of three of the greatest musical figures of the eighteenth century. He not only achieves the seemingly impossible task of integrating J. S. Bach and Handel into one discussion, but goes even further by introducing Fux, a figure who had the tenacity to derive creative capital from the highest degree of musical servitude. We learn about political power, religious prescription, drama, poetry, and the emerging power of autonomous musical works-all articulated with a literary flair that is rare in musicological discourse. * John Butt, Gardiner Professor of Music, University of Glasgow, and Musical Director, Dunedin Consort *
Harry White's new book is a singular achievement, which synthesizes a lifetime's deep engagement with the music of Fux, Bach, and Handel. Its central thesis — that the monarchic indenture of Fux offsets the emerging emancipatory modernity of Bach and Handel — is evidenced by a deft mixture of historical, cultural, and analytical commentary, and underpinned by a commanding knowledge of the long-overlooked legacy of the Austrian Baroque. Ultimately, White makes explicit just how crucial debates about the origins of the modern musical imagination remain. Virtuosic in style and magisterial in scope, this book makes a vital contribution to the cultural study of eighteenth-century music. * Julian Horton, Professor of Music Theory and Analysis, Durham University *
White exercises an "autonomy" of thought, but also a "servitude" to both musicology and music. * Ivan Curkovic, BACH Journal *