Music: An Appreciation, 10th Edition (Kamien)

Chapter 2: Gregorian Chant

Research Project 2: Authenticity in Music

Among musicians and audiences, Early Music (European Art music up to about 1750) has become a field unto itself: early music proponents, both musicians and audiences, hold strong opinions on all aspects in which early music is conveyed.

These questions boil down to “authenticity.” Typical topics of debate include the authenticity of performance venues (today’s recordings, broadcasts, or huge concert halls in contrast to early Europe’s live music in relatively small rooms) or interpretation (is a wide dynamic and rhythmic range only common today, or did early musicians use these materials of music expressively also?).

One of the most important topics is whether to use authentic instruments. When a musician uses an authentic or replica instrument (such as a lute instead of a modern classical guitar, or a harpsichord instead of a piano), purists say that the fundamental meaning of the original music is only portrayed through the special aspects of the early instrument; use of a modernized instrument, they point out, forces the modern performer to change some notes and expressive gestures, such as volume and timbre. Proponents of the use of modern instruments in early music performance, however, believe that great music can be conveyed with modern, technologically advanced instruments, which generally stay in tune more consistently, are more standardized, and have louder sonic capabilities.

Find at least two recordings of instrumental early music to study: make sure one uses authentic instruments, and the other uses modern instruments (the music doesn’t need to be the same). A visit to an early music instrument website will also be helpful for this project. Write a short essay which answers the following question based on your listening experience.

If you needed to choose between two early music performances, one with early instruments and one with modern, which would you choose?