Plague and Music in the Renaissance

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title Plague and Music in the Renaissance
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Remi Chiu
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:294
Dimensions(mm): Height 245,Width 170
Category/GenreMedieval and Renaissance music (c 1000 to c 1600)
Sacred and religious
Occult studies
ISBN/Barcode 9781107521421
ClassificationsDewey:780.9031
Audience
Professional & Vocational
Illustrations 99 Printed music items; 10 Halftones, black and white

Publishing Details

Publisher Cambridge University Press
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publication Date 23 January 2020
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

Plague, a devastating and recurring affliction throughout the Renaissance, had a major impact on European life. Not only was pestilence a biological problem, but it was also read as a symptom of spiritual degeneracy and it caused widespread social disorder. Assembling a picture of the complex and sometimes contradictory responses to plague from medical, spiritual and civic perspectives, this book uncovers the place of music - whether regarded as an indispensable medicine or a moral poison that exacerbated outbreaks - in the management of the disease. This original musicological approach further reveals how composers responded, in their works, to the discourses and practices surrounding one of the greatest medical crises in the pre-modern age. Addressing topics such as music as therapy, public rituals and performance and music in religion, the volume also provides detailed musical analysis throughout to illustrate how pestilence affected societal attitudes toward music.

Author Biography

Remi Chiu is Assistant Professor of Music at Loyola University Maryland. He specialises in Renaissance music history and has an interest in the history of medicine and disability studies.

Reviews

'Plague and Music in the Renaissance does a fine job of presenting the pressures that plague put upon medical, theological, and civic understanding. It beautifully outlines the manner in which Saint Sebastian became identified with the plague.' Chadwick Jenkins, Notes '... the book is a very judicious and well-structured study on this otherwise underresearched topic of music in the medical regimens against plague, and covers a wide span of Renaissance music from the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries.' Johann F. W. Hasler, Renaissance Quarterly