Page 18 - Weiss, Jernej, ur./ed. 2024. Glasbena kritika – nekoč in danes ▪︎ Music Criticism – Yesterday and Today. Koper/Ljubljana: Založba Univerze na Primorskem in Festival Ljubljana. Studia musicologica Labacensia, 7
P. 18
glasbena kritika – nekoč in danes | music criticism – yesterday and today
many and more widely across Europe. Prof. Keym’s article, on the other
hand, considers the artistic and political aspects of music criticism in rela-
tion to the treatment of “foreign” orchestral works in the Leipzig musical
press in the nineteenth century. It is a fact that music criticism became in-
creasingly politically coloured towards the end of the nineteenth century.
At a time when nationalism was reaching its peak, the origin of the com-
posers and performers featured in a concert programme was of increasing-
ly decisive importance. In the same way, music critics frequently regarded
the principles of musical works and the performance practices of individu-
al artists through the prism of national stereotypes and clichés.
The article by our Czech colleague Viktor Velek, the head of the De-
partment of the Theory and History of Fine Arts at the University of Os-
trava’s Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, focuses on the activity of the Czech
musician Břetislav Lvovský (real name Emil Pick) as a music critic and pre-
sents the findings of new research. In the second half of the nineteenth cen-
tury Lvovský worked in Lviv and then in Vienna, where he acted as foreign
correspondent, sending his reviews to the Prague-based magazine Dalibor,
at that time one of the most important Czech music publications. His re-
ports and reviews frequently covered the concerts of Slavic musical socie-
ties and musicians working in Vienna. Lvovský is also remembered as one
of the harshest critics of the music of Antonín Dvořák. The article by Ni-
all O’Loughlin, one of the leading experts on contemporary Slovene music,
shines a light on the work of another extremely important figure from the
world of music criticism: the influential British music critic William Glock.
In addition to his activity as a radio and newspaper critic, Glock served
as controller of music at the BBC, thoroughly overhauling the output of
the Third Programme, and as controller of the Proms festival. Glock’s re-
views and reports helped lift numerous British-based musicians out of an-
onymity and he also commissioned and published works by them. Among
the composers promoted by Glock, three important figures worth mention-
ing are Robert Gerhard, Elliott Carter and Pierre Boulez. Glock was one of
the principal critics of the influential Critics’ Circle, whose music section
brought together many of the most prestigious critical names, among them
the British music critic Charles Acton, who was based in Ireland. The work
of the latter is part of the subject of the article by Wolfgang Marx, current-
ly president-elect of the Council of the Society for Musicology in Ireland
and an associate professor at the School of Music, University College Dub-
lin. Dr Marx’s article explores the specific characteristics of music criticism
18
many and more widely across Europe. Prof. Keym’s article, on the other
hand, considers the artistic and political aspects of music criticism in rela-
tion to the treatment of “foreign” orchestral works in the Leipzig musical
press in the nineteenth century. It is a fact that music criticism became in-
creasingly politically coloured towards the end of the nineteenth century.
At a time when nationalism was reaching its peak, the origin of the com-
posers and performers featured in a concert programme was of increasing-
ly decisive importance. In the same way, music critics frequently regarded
the principles of musical works and the performance practices of individu-
al artists through the prism of national stereotypes and clichés.
The article by our Czech colleague Viktor Velek, the head of the De-
partment of the Theory and History of Fine Arts at the University of Os-
trava’s Faculty of Fine Arts and Music, focuses on the activity of the Czech
musician Břetislav Lvovský (real name Emil Pick) as a music critic and pre-
sents the findings of new research. In the second half of the nineteenth cen-
tury Lvovský worked in Lviv and then in Vienna, where he acted as foreign
correspondent, sending his reviews to the Prague-based magazine Dalibor,
at that time one of the most important Czech music publications. His re-
ports and reviews frequently covered the concerts of Slavic musical socie-
ties and musicians working in Vienna. Lvovský is also remembered as one
of the harshest critics of the music of Antonín Dvořák. The article by Ni-
all O’Loughlin, one of the leading experts on contemporary Slovene music,
shines a light on the work of another extremely important figure from the
world of music criticism: the influential British music critic William Glock.
In addition to his activity as a radio and newspaper critic, Glock served
as controller of music at the BBC, thoroughly overhauling the output of
the Third Programme, and as controller of the Proms festival. Glock’s re-
views and reports helped lift numerous British-based musicians out of an-
onymity and he also commissioned and published works by them. Among
the composers promoted by Glock, three important figures worth mention-
ing are Robert Gerhard, Elliott Carter and Pierre Boulez. Glock was one of
the principal critics of the influential Critics’ Circle, whose music section
brought together many of the most prestigious critical names, among them
the British music critic Charles Acton, who was based in Ireland. The work
of the latter is part of the subject of the article by Wolfgang Marx, current-
ly president-elect of the Council of the Society for Musicology in Ireland
and an associate professor at the School of Music, University College Dub-
lin. Dr Marx’s article explores the specific characteristics of music criticism
18
