In nineteenth-century British society music and musicians were organized as they had never been before. This organization was manifested, in part, by the introduction of music into powerful institutions, both out of belief in music's inherently beneficial properties, and also to promote music occupations and professions in society at large. This book provides a representative and varied sample of the interactions between music and organizations in various locations in the nineteenth-century British Empire, exploring not only how and why music was institutionalized, but also how and why institutions became 'musicalized'. Individual essays explore amateur societies that promoted music-making; institutions that played host to music-making groups, both amateur and professional; music in diverse educational institutions; and the relationships between music and what might be referred to as the 'institutions of state'. Through all of the essays runs the theme of the various ways in which institutions of varying formality and rigidity interacted with music and musicians, and the mutual benefit and exploitation that resulted from that interaction.

About the Author
Paul Rodmell is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Birmingham, UK. He is the author of Charles Villiers Stanford (Ashgate, 2002) and has also written on music-making in nineteenth-century Dublin and opera in late-Victorian Britain.

Reviews
'This collection adds usefully to Ashgate's Music in Nineteenth-Century Britain series. Rodmell hopes that the book will demonstrate the sheer diversity of the period's musical structures, the processes through which nineteenth century music became institutionalized and institutions musicalized, and the consequent growth in musicians' self-confidence as they increasingly escaped from systems of patronage and sought both individual and collective improvement. It largely succeeds in these aims and certainly provides plentiful material for later scholars to build upon. Fertile territory has been thoughtfully marked out. NABMSA Newsletter



Book Information
ISBN 9781138268234
Author Paul Rodmell
Format Paperback
Page Count 308
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 453g