Ways of Hearing: Reflections on Music in 26 Pieces

by Scott Burnham (Editor), Marna Seltzer (Editor), Dorothea von Moltke (Editor)

Overview

An outstanding anthology in which notable musicians, artists, scientists, thinkers, poets, and more—from Gustavo Dudamel and Carrie Mae Weems to Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Paul Muldoon—explore the influence of music on their lives and work

Contributors include: Laurie Anderson ● Jamie Barton ● Daphne A. Brooks ● Edgar Choueiri ● Jeff Dolven ● Gustavo Dudamel ● Edward Dusinberre ● Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim ● Frank Gehry ● James Ginsburg ● Ruth Bader Ginsburg ● Jane Hirshfield ● Pico Iyer ● Alexander Kluge ● Nathaniel Mackey ● Maureen N. McLane ● Alicia Hall Moran ● Jason Moran ● Paul Muldoon ● Elaine Pagels ● Robert Pinsky ● Richard Powers ● Brian Seibert ● Arnold Steinhardt ● Susan Stewart ● Abigail Washburn ● Carrie Mae Weems ● Susan Wheeler ● C. K. Williams ● Wu Fei

What happens when extraordinary creative spirits—musicians, poets, critics, and scholars, as well as an architect, a visual artist, a filmmaker, a scientist, and a legendary Supreme Court justice—are asked to reflect on their favorite music? The result is Ways of Hearing, a diverse collection that explores the ways music shapes us and our shared culture. These acts of musical witness bear fruit through personal essays, conversations and interviews, improvisatory meditations, poetry, and visual art. They sound the depths of a remarkable range of musical genres, including opera, jazz, bluegrass, and concert music both classical and contemporary.

This expansive volume spans styles and subjects, including Pico Iyer’s meditations on Handel, Arnold Steinhardt’s thoughts on Beethoven’s Grosse Fuge, and Laurie Anderson and Edgar Choueiri’s manifesto for spatial music. Richard Powers discusses the one thing about music he’s never told anyone, Daphne Brooks draws sonic connections between Toni Morrison and Cécile McLorin Salvant, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg reveals what she thinks is the sexiest duet in opera. Poems interspersed throughout further expand how we can imagine and respond to music. Ways of Hearing is a book for our times that celebrates the infinite ways music enhances our lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691204475
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	09/28/2021
Pages:	216
Sales rank:	1,114,186
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 6.80(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Scott Burnham is Distinguished Professor of Music at the Graduate Center, City University of New York, and Scheide Professor of Music History Emeritus at Princeton University. Marna Seltzer is artistic and administrative director of Princeton University Concerts. Dorothea von Moltke is co-owner of Labyrinth Books in Princeton, New Jersey.

Table of Contents

Introduction: A Convocation of Keen Spirits and Vivid Voices Scott Burnham ix

1 One, Two, Three … Infinity Richard Powers, Writer 1

2 The Joy inside Sorrow Pico Iyer, Writer 7

3 Fidelio's Echo Gustavo Dudamel, Musician 11

4 Beethoven Invents the Species Again G. K. Williams, Poet 16

5 A Winter Drive Edward Dusinberre, Musician 18

6 Work Song Jeff Dolven, Poet 25

7 Arvo Pärt's Tabula Rasa Corinna Da Fonseca-Wollheim, Music Critic 32

8 On Chopin's Ballade No. 2, Op. 38 Jamie Barton, Musician 38

9 $$$ Susan Stewart, Poet 44

10 Jessye Norman Sings "Die Nachtigall" by Alban Berg Alicia Hall Moran, Musician Jason Moran, Musician 47

11 "Wusuli Boat Song" / "Water Is Wide": History of a Cross-Cultural Duet Abigail Washburn, Musician Wu Fei, Musician 58

12 "Loud Dreaming": Of Mothers and Sisters and Lessons in Listening Daphne A. Brooks, Scholar 68

13 Interval / Notation Maureen N. McLane, Poet 80

14 A Change Is Gonna Come Carrie Mae Weems, Visual Artist 82

15 See the Music Brian Seibert, Dance Critic 112

16 Edward Elgar, Cello Concerto in E Minor, 1919 Paul Muldoon, Poet 119

17 Opera Is Indivisible Alexander Kluge, Writer 122

18 Music as a Family Affair Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court Justice James Ginsburg, Music Producer Nina Totenberg Melissa Lane 133

19 Your Brother Called Susan Wheeler, Poet 141

20 Holy Song of Thanks Elaine Pagels, Scholar 144

21 On Beethoven's String Quartet in B-flat, Op. 130, with the Grosse Fuge Arnold Steinhardt, Musician Scott Burnham 148

22 Adagio Robert Pinsky, Poet 159

23 A Long Song Log: Ten Entries on Seriality, to the Accompaniment of Charles Mingus's Black Saint Nathaniel Mackey, Poet 160

24 Ghazal for the End of Time Jane Hirshfield, Poet 167

25 Spaces for Music Frank Gehry, Architect Mark Swed 168

26 Going Spatial Laurie Anderson, Musician Edgar Choueiri, Physicist 177

Acknowledgments 187

List of Contributors 189

Index 197

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Music conservatories have a required course called Ear Training that teaches students not to impose affect, narrative, or imagery on the music itself. Counter to this, Ways of Hearing offers testimonies by leading figures in the arts and humanities, eloquently redressing aesthetic reactions stripped away by professional pedagogy. May this volume become required reading for musicians and music lovers alike!”—Susan McClary, author of The Passions of Peter Sellars

Editorial Reviews

"Startling insights on every page."—-Henrietta Bredin, Country Life Magazine

"A provocative and beautiful collection of twenty-six often deeply personal essays. . . . The works in Ways of Hearing point to the magic in music . . . its ability to enrich and affirm life, to express depths that words cannot reach, to provide hope and healing, and perhaps most importantly, to connect us to other people, near and far, and to all that exists and moves around us. . . . The volume . . . is a pleasure."—-Thomas M. Kitts, Popular Music and Society

"

Across the 26 easily digestible essays that span subjects from Olivier Messiaen to Charles Mingus, this book gives the reader a unique insight into the role music plays in the lives of some of the world’s great artists and thinkers.

"—-Angus McPherson, Limelight Magazine

From the Publisher