"Thought-Tormented Music": Joyce and the Music of the Irish Revival

"In this special issue's opening essay, Martin Dowling devotes almost half of "'Thought-Tormented Music': Joyce and the Music of the Irish Revival" to what he calls "the situation of music in the Irish literary revival." He focuses chiefly on 1904, which was both an intensely productive period for the revival movement and a year chock-full of crucial events and decisions for Joyce. Drawing on the works of Pierre Bourdieu and Jaques Lacan, Dowling explores the revivalists' efforts to "de-anglicize" Irish music, to remove foreign influences that distorted the "pure tradition of Irish song," and to achieve an improbable harmony between the music favoured by the disappearing Anglo-Irish aristocracy and the Irish-speaking peasantry. Inevitably, disputes occurred over what constituted "authentic" Irish music. Factions quarrelled over whether pristine Irish music existed in the Atlantic seaboard or more inland; whether "authentic" songs were sung with or without instrumental accompaniment; and whether the piano, rather than the traditional harp, was a legitimate instrument of accompaniment. Having delineated the historical and theoretical context, Dowling offers a richly detailed analysis of Joyce's story "A Mother." He reveals how almost every element in the story--from the Eire Abu Society to the Antient Concert Rooms, from the conflict between Mrs. Kearney and Hoppy Holohan to the plight of Kathleen Kearney--is charged with meaning by the subtextual conflicts of the revivalists' agenda. Dowling explains also the "authenticity" in Joyce's depiction of vocal performances of "The Lass of Aughrim" in "The Dead" and "The Croppy Boy" in "Sirens," which he calls two "true gems" of authentic Irish music." --Introduction by Charles Rossman and Alan W. Friedman, Guest Editors, pp. 409-410

Virginia Apgar and string music

Virginia Apgar (1909-1974) is one of the most recognized American doctors, worldwide known by his contribution as the developer of the "Apgar test" a method used for the evaluation of newborns all over the world. She had many interests. She was anesthesiologist, a brilliant teacher and researcher, but she also loved lecture, basketball, fishing, golf, philately, and music. She played violin and cello and she interpreted that instruments in various chamber groups. Being motivated by one of her patients, Carleen Hutchinson, a science and music teacher, she made four instruments, viola, violin, cello, and mezzo violin. Nearly twenty years of her death, on October 24 1994, on the occasion of the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the issue by American Postal Service of a stamp honoring her, some of the preferred Dr. Apgar music pieces where performed with the instruments she made. Her life mixed different activities and let invaluable contributions for humanity.

Sonate (A moll) für Violine und Klavier, op. 33 [music] /

v. 1. Klavier -- v. 2. Violine.

Concerto no. 17 (first movement) in D minor for violin.

Pl. no. 16481.

Famous composers and their music /

Vol. 1-6, text, paged continuously; v. 7-16, music, paged continuously.

Chaconne, from the fourth sonata for violin solo /

Bach's original violin work with added accompaniments by Schumann and by Mendelssohn.

Sonata for violoncello and piano /

Mode of access: Internet.

Sonates pour piano et violon.

v. 1. Sonates, no. 1-9.--v. 2. Sonates, no. 10-18.--v. 3. Violon, no. 1-9.--v. 4. Violon, no. 10-18.

Concerto for violin and orchestra, op. 33.

Mode of access: Internet.

Concertos for the piano. [music] /

For 2 pianos.

Sonate Opus 4, [for] violoncello & piano. [music].

Mode of access: Internet.

Concertino : pour flûte avec accompagnement de piano, op. 107. [music] /

Caption title.

Première rhapsodie, pour orchestre avec clarinette principale. [music] : Réduction pour clarinette et piano.

Mode of access: Internet.

Préludes pour piano. [music] /

Mode of access: Internet.

Twelve sonatas for the piano. [music] /

bk.1. 1-7 -- bk.2. 8-12.