The Power of Sound: Cambridge Library Collection - Music - Softcover

Gurney, Edmund

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1108038638 ISBN 13: 9781108038638

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2011

Synopsis

Edmund Gurney (1847–88) is today best known for his work on psychical research, but from a young age he harboured the ambition to be a composer and performer. Frustrated in this aim, he began writing on the philosophy and psychology of music. This work of 1880 was an attempt to apply a strictly scientific method of enquiry to music, and it is regarded as one of the most important and original treatises from the nineteenth century on musical aesthetics. Gurney discusses the sensations of pleasure and pain in relation to the senses, and goes on to examine how the listener differentiates between 'noises' and 'tones'. He explores whether there is an elemental difference between a 'good' and a 'bad' melody, the ultimate futility of the critic trying to describe music, and the 'moral' conclusion to be drawn from a preference for the music of Rossini over that of Beethoven.

About this title

Book Description:

Best known for his work on psychical research, from a young age Edmund Gurney wanted to be musician. In this 1880 work he applies a scientific method of enquiry to music, and it is regarded as one of the most important treatises on musical aesthetics of the nineteenth century.

About this edition

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 1108038638
• ISBN 13: 9781108038638
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 578