Music of the Spheres and the Dance of Death : : Studies in Musical Iconology / / Kathi Meyer-Baer.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Princeton Legacy Lib. eBook Package 1931-1979
• VerfasserIn: Meyer-Baer, Kathi,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2015]; ©1970
• Year of Publication: 2015
• Language: English
• Series: Princeton Legacy Library ; 1307
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (406 p.)

The roots and evolution of two concepts usually thought to be Western in origin-musica mundana (the music of the spheres) and musica humana (music's relation to the human soul)-are explored. Beginning with a study of the early creeds of the Near East, Professor Meyer-Baer then traces their development in the works of Plato and the Gnostics, and in the art and literature of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Previous studies of symbolism in music have tended to focus on a single aspect of the problem. In this book the concepts of musica humana and musica mundane are related to philosophy, aesthetics, and the history of religion and are given a rightful place in the history of civilization.Originally published in 1970.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Preface -- Photographic Sources -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- ONE. MUSIC OF THE SPHERES -- Introduction to Part One -- I. Theories of the Cosmos in Antiquity -- II. The Hellenistic Period -- III. The Early Christian Centuries -- IV. The Early Works of Art -- V. Tonal Theories of Music of the Spheres -- VI. The Emergence of Celestial Musicians in Christian Iconography -- VII. Late Medieval Writings and Dante's Paradise -- VIII. Musician Angels -- DANCING ANGELS AND THE DANCE OF THE BLESSED -- SINGING ANGELS -- ANGEL ORCHESTRAS -- ANGELS OF THE PSALTER -- ANGELS' INSTRUMENTS - REAL OR IMAGINARY? -- IX. Renaissance and Humanism -- X. Two Offshoots of the Idea of the Music of the Spheres -- TWO. MUSIC AND DEATH -- Introduction to Part Two -- XI. Music as a Symbol of Death in Antiquity -- XII. Later Greek Concepts and the Hellenistic Period -- XIII. The Christian Era the Development of Early Medieval Images -- XIV. Later Medieval Images: The Dance of Death -- XV. The Fifteenth-Century Mystics -- XVI. Survivals of Earlier Images -- Conclusion: Survivals in Contemporary Musical Concepts -- Appendix I. EXCERPTS FROM FIRST CHAPTER OF LETTER ON HARMONY ADDRESSED TO ARCHBISHOP RATHBOD OF TREVES BY REGINO OF PRÜM -- Appendix II. EXCERPTS FROM THE HYMN "NATURALIS CONCORDIA VOCUM CUM PLANETIS" ("NATURAL HARMONY OF THE TONK AND THE PLANETS") -- Appendix III. THE MUSIC IN DANTE'S COSMOS -- Appendix IV. A NOTE ON THE SINGERS OF THE GHENT ALTAR -- Appendix V. REAL OR IMAGINARY INSTRUMENTS: AN EXAMINATION OF THE BEATUS MANUSCRIPTS AND THE UTRECHT PSALTER -- Index