Sydney Conservatorium Calls For Beethoven Symposium Participants
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music is hosting this four-day symposium from 6 to 9 May 2020, Singing and playing in the era of Beethoven.
Convened by Professor Neal Peres Da Costa, the theme of this symposium asks “What did singing and instrumental playing sound like in the era of Beethoven?”
Contemporary written documentation gives us some idea of the practices that were considered indispensable for a ‘beautiful’ (artistic) performance, but as recent research has shown, fails to reveal the quality and frequency of such practices. Early recordings of pre-eminent 19th-century musicians provide an important window into late 19th-century performance aesthetics and preserve features that were part of a continuum of practice dating back to the 18th century, if not earlier.
Organising committee
• Professor Neal Peres Da Costa/ • Associate Professor Helen Mitchell/• Dr Daniel Yeadon/ • Professor Robert Toft/ • Professor Clive Brown/
• Mr Anton Bredow
Applications are invited from interested participants to submit abstracts 300 words maximum for the Symposium in the form of papers (25 mins) and lecture recitals (45 mins). Preference will be given to presentations that explore the interpretation of music by Beethoven and other composers of his era in ways that engage with the evidence of early recordings in conjunction with contemporary documentation.
Applications close 31 March 2020.
Applications are also invited from singers and instrumentalists to take part in a Workshop which will also explore interpretation of music by Beethoven and other composers of his era. The workshops will be led by Robert Toft (Professor, Western University—Ontario), Professor Clive Brown (Emeritus Professor Leeds University and Professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna) and Neal Peres Da Costa (Professor and Associate Dean Research Sydney Conservatorium of Music). Musicians must be flexible in technique and open to experimentation, and engage in recording emulation and other practice-led methods that will, through group work and consensus of opinion, build a taxonomy of sounds and practices for this important era in music history.
Applicants who have been accepted will be guided in a recording emulation exercise prior to and in preparation for the Workshop either by face-to-face meeting/s or via Skype or Zoom. Applicants should send a short CV (one A4 page maximum) outlining any relevant experience.
Applications close 31 March 2020.
Applicants will be informed of acceptance by 8 April 2020.
Please contact neal.peresdacosta@sydney.edu.au for further details and to submit your abstract or proposal.
Registrations will open on 8 April.
