Matter of North
Essays on Glenn Gould and The Idea of North

Edited by Anthony Cushing,Brent Wetters

ISBN13: 9798855803136

Imprint: State University of New York Press

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Format: Hardback

Published: 01/07/2025

Availability: Available

Description
Documents and illuminates Glenn Gould's groundbreaking radio composition, The Idea of North. Matter of North collects essays and source material related to Glenn Gould's landmark 1967 radio documentary The Idea of North. The most famous product (other than his studio piano recordings) of Gould's 1964 decision to abandon the concert stage for the recording studio, it combines Gould's interests in the contrapuntal (by the simultaneous layering of speaking voices) with philosophy and a life-long fascination with the Canadian Arctic. Because the documentary is a multivalent work, the contributors approach the documentary from unique perspectives (sociological, philosophical, music-theoretical, ethnomusicological), each illuminating a salient aspect of the work. The source-material section includes for the first time the complete interview responses by Gould's five participants, along with other important documentation.
Foreword Ethan Kleinberg Acknowledgments Introduction Anthony Cushing and Brent Wetters Essays 1. A Conflicted Soundscape: Glenn Gould's Idea of North Lucille Mok 2. Glenn Gould and the Non-Imagined North Jeffrey van den Scott 3. Rails of Protest Christopher DeLaurenti 4. "That Incredible Tapestry": Revisiting Pilgrimage to Solitude, The Idea of North, and the Landscapes of Glenn Gould Mark Laurie 5. When a Fugue Isn't a Fugue: Glenn Gould's Musical Semiotics of Contrapuntal Radio and The Idea of North Anthony Cushing 6. North, History, and the Shadow of Hanslick: Glenn Gould's Ideal of Musical North and Northern Listening Markus Mantere 7. The Genius Is in the Genesis: Demythologizing the Idea of Gould as Creative Outsider Anthony Cushing and Brent Wetters 8. De-Northing North: Thematic Continuity in Glenn Gould's Solitude Trilogy Paul Sanden 9. Monstrous North Brent Wetters Appendix 1. Letter from Jim Lotz Accepting Gould's Interview Request (7 September 1967) 2. Gould's Interview Questions for Jim Lotz 3. Introduction to Transcripts 4. Jim Lotz Interview Transcript 5. Walter "Wally" Maclean Interview Transcript 6. Frank Vallee Interview Transcript 7. Robert Phillips Interview Transcript 8. Marianne Schroeder Interview Transcript 9. Gould's Preliminary Sketch of Form 10. Janet Somerville's CBC Publicity Memo (15 November 1967) 11. Scene-by-Scene Analysis 12. "Eskimo at the Piano" ["Eskimo am Flugel"] 13. Anthony Cushing in Conversation with Marianne Schroeder Bibliography List of Contributors Index
  • Music
  • Radio
  • Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
  • Professional & Vocational
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