Francesco Rocco Rossi sound srchitectures in the Renaissance: from the mysterious to pure listening
Thursday, 4 June 2020 – 17:00 pm
Is it true—as is often said—that in the fifteenth century musical composition was imbued with hidden meanings? Indeed it is. At least in the early fifteenth century, the compositions of the great Franco-Flemish masters concealed sonic architectures that were at times quite complex and, however fascinating, remained confined to the compositional design itself. Isorhythm, gematria, acrostics, golden sections, and other symbolic implications almost never reached the listeners’ ears, while still preserving their function as the true and authentic meaning of the work. But something new was destined to arrive from England, gradually altering compositional and aesthetic-musical approaches. Thus, in the second half of the fifteenth century, music moved toward ever greater perceptibility, and with it musical structure, already shaped on the page, began to take on a tangible form in the act of listening, thereby opening the way to the different compositional season of the sixteenth century.
Thursday, 11 June 2020 – 5:00 pm
Saverio Mercadante, Sinfonia caratteristica napoletana: presentation of the critical edition
SIdM series Concerti e sinfonie (1780–1840)
Thursday, 18 June 2020 – 5:00 pm
Marco Mangani
Quotation in Jazz Improvisation
The use of fragments of pre-existing music is one of the many techniques available to the jazz soloist. For a long time, this technique had a bad reputation, being regarded as a mere expedient for getting out of difficult situations. Today, however, it has become clear that, at least in the case of certain great jazz musicians, the use of quotation cannot be separated from the overall fabric of improvisational practice: the best-known case in this respect is undoubtedly Charlie Parker. But he is not the only one; and above all one must avoid falling into the other long-standing prejudice, namely the idea that there is a distinction between the refined quotation of the “modernists” and that of the classic jazz players, supposedly reduced to mere entertainment. During the talk, I will present some highly eloquent, and at the same time amusing, examples of the way jazz musicians, in different stylistic contexts, have made use of quotation.
To participate: https://zoom.us/j/2365257749
ZOOM Meeting ID: 2365257749
