Proselytizing the Prague Manifesto in Britain: The Commissioning, Conception, and Musical Language of Alan Bush's "Nottingham" Symphony

British composer Alan Bush (1900-1995) wrote the "Nottingham" Symphony in 1949. It was the first major orchestral work he wrote after attending the Second International Congress of Composers and Music Critics in Prague in 1948 - a Congress at which the principles of socialist realism were...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inMusic & politics Vol. 3; no. 1; pp. 1 - 23
Main Author Waters, Julie
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ann Arbor Michigan Publishing (University of Michigan Library) 01.01.2009
Subjects
1940s
Bush, Alan
Composers
Ideology
Musical Aesthetics
Musical Traditions
Realism
Socialism
Symphonies
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Summary:British composer Alan Bush (1900-1995) wrote the "Nottingham" Symphony in 1949. It was the first major orchestral work he wrote after attending the Second International Congress of Composers and Music Critics in Prague in 1948 - a Congress at which the principles of socialist realism were affirmed and national musical traditions upheld as artistic models. Given his Marxist and Communist Party connections and the symphony's pivotal position in his "oeuvre," the work clearly invites exploration in terms of ideological influences. This article explores the symphony in the context of Bush's view of music as a social activity, and particularly in terms of his response to the Prague Manifesto and Soviet musical aesthetics. Drawing on a range of sources, including Bush's correspondence and publications, the article aims to shed light on the complex interrelationship between his musical theory and practice, and the social and cultural context in which the symphony was created and performed. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]
ISSN:1938-7687
1938-7687