Throughout my research and writing in this class, Nationalism seemed to be the strongest course theme. Most of my papers and blog posts discussed nationalism prominently, and although they alluded to other course themes, they all addressed ideas of what French music should be. It seems many people, institutions, and works shaped national artistic ideals, […]
Germaine Tailleferre is an interesting subject of study, which has contributed to the fact that she has been well-studied by many musicologists and scholars. The sources about Tailleferre are numerous, from entire books, to dissertations; many have attempted to draw conclusions from her compositions, her social (ie. romantic) life, and her membership in Les Six. As […]
In his writing, Samuel Dorf argues that Satie’s Socrate is a vivid expression of sapphonics, a term Wood used to describe the erotic quality of the feminine voice to listeners in an expression of a feminine sexuality or lesbianism. Dorf substantiates his claims by highlighting the close relationship between Satie and the Princesse de Polignac during the inception […]
We all know the couple, the one we constantly watch with curious eyes as their relationship continues, even if it shouldn’t: the couple who is always on and off again. Whether in movies or in real life, toxic relationships are an unfortunate reality of human love. Often characterized by imaginary expectations, manipulation, conquest, inconsistency, fleeting […]
The French magazine, La Femme de France published a fascinating article about the emergence of “Étoile Noir,” Josephine Baker. The article, written by French film director J.K. Raymond-Millet, came out with the 1925 issue of the magazine, and summarized the public opinion of Baker at the time, shortly after her debut in Paris in 1925. […]
France in the early 1920s struggled to reconcile its own national identity with growing globalization and the absorption of other cultures on its own soil. The influences of globalization and nationalism made their imprint on the music of the time. French composers took inspiration from the music of other cultures, to create a “new” French […]