Table Of Content

Authenticities Also by Peter Kivy Speaking ofA rt The Seventh Sense: A Study ofF rancis Hutcheson's Aesthetics and Its Influence in Eighteenth-Century Britain The Corded Shell: Reflections on Musical Expression Sound and Semblance: Reflections on Musical Representation Osmin's Rage: Philosophical Reflections on Opera, Drama, and Text Music Alone: Philosophical Reflections on the Purely Musical Experience The Fine Art of Repetition: Essays in the Philosophy of Music AUTHENTICITIES 0 Philosophical Reflections on Musical Performance P E T E R K I V Y Cornell University Press Ithaca and London Copyright© 1995 by Cornell University All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book. or parts thereof. must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House. 512 East State Street. Ithaca. New York 14850. First published 199 5 by Cornell University Press First printing. Cornell Paperbacks, 1997 Design and composition by Wilsted & Taylor Printed in the United States of America Cornell University Press strives to use environmentally responsible suppliers and materials to the fullest extent possible in the publishing of its books. Such materials include vegetable-based, low-VOC inks and acid-free papers that are recycled, chlorine-free, or partly composed of non wood fibers. For further information, visit our website at www.cornellpress.cornell.edu. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA Kivy. Peter. Authenticities : philosophical reflections on musical performance I Peter Kivy. p. em. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 978-0-8014-8480-3 (pbk.: alk. paper) 1. Performance practice (Music) 2. Music-Philosophy and aesthetics. I. Title. ML457.K58 1995 781.4'3'01-dc20 94-36842 Paperback printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 For Ronald Roseman My last word in performance It's a bad plan that can't be changed. -Publius Syrus Contents Preface ix One: How to Be Authentic oN E The Concept of Authenticity 1 r w o Authenticity as Intention 9 T u R E E Authenticity as Sound 47 FouR Authenticity as Practice 80 F 1 v E The Other Authenticity 108 Two: Why to Be Authentic s 1 x The Authority of Intention 145 sEvEN The Authority of Sound 188 E 1 G H T The Authority of Practice 233 N 1 N E The Other Authority 260 Bibliography 287 Index 293 Preface When logical positivism was in its heyday, one of its leading proponents was charged, in a book review, with "fiddling while Rome burns." With World War II just around the corner and Western Civilization at the edge of the abyss, the meaning of the indictment was all too clear. Instead of fulfilling one of its traditional roles, as the reviewer saw it-that of show ing us the way-philosophy was in thrall to questions so abstruse, tech nical, and abstract as to be incomprehensible to the uninitiated, as well as completely irrelevant to their practical and moral concerns. "What is to be done?" was a question that philosophers either would not deign or would not presume to address. In recent years a radical change in philosophy has taken place. One can now subscribe to a respectable academic journal called Philosophy and Public Affairs. On the committee that apportions kidney machines and or gans for transplant you are more than likely to find a philosopher as well as a surgeon. Philosophy departments routinely teach courses in such subjects as medical ethics, business ethics, environmental ethics, and even environmental aesthetics, while some of the best philosophers in the business have made substantial contributions not only in the public ix