Charles-Simon Catel's Treatise on Harmony and the Disciplining of Harmony at the Early Paris Conservatory

by Michael J. Masci

Overview

Charles-Simon Catel's Treatise on Harmony and the Disciplining of Harmony at the Early Paris Conservatory traces the formation of the discipline of harmony at the early Paris Conservatory, focusing on the 1801 treatise of Charles-Simon Catel. By examining the forces that shaped Catel's text, Michael J. Masci reconstitutes the contours of the dynamic “disciplinary network” that determined the content and scope of the study of harmony in Paris, expanding our understanding of practical harmony traditions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781793630452
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	03/15/2023
Pages:	268
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Michael J. Masci is associate professor of Music Theory at SUNY Geneseo.

Table of Contents

Contents

Note on Figured-Bass Symbols

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Harmony as Discipline

I. Institutional Power and Disciplinary Pretexts

Chapter 1. The Institutional Authorization of Catel’s Harmonic Theory and the Reconciliation of Fundamental Bass Theory with Figured Bass Practice

Chapter 2. The Institutional Sources of Catel’s (Contested) Authority

II. The Cours d’Harmonie as Coordination of Disciplinary Technologies

Chapter 3. Disciplinary Networks: Sources and Structures of the Cours d’Harmonie

Chapter 4. Reconstructing the Theory, Pedagogy, and Method of the Early Cours d’Harmonie

Chapter 5. Harmony’s Boundaries and the Internalization of Disciplinary Norms

III. The Transmission and Midcentury Revision of Disciplinary (and Generic) Structures

Chapter 6. Tonalité, Modulation, and Alteration: Catel Reception at Midcentury

Chapter 7. Tonal Redaction as Generic Convention in the Traité Complet Théorique et Pratique

Conclusion

Appendix A. Common Marches

Appendix B. Common Broderies

Appendix C. Common Cadences

Bibliography

About the Author

Editorial Reviews

"‪The French Revolution brought us many of the ideas and institutions of the modern world. It gave us both the metric system and the Paris Conservatory. That state-sponsored music school needed to reconcile an inherited, Italian-influenced tradition of practical music making with a French tradition of speculation about harmony. The year 1801 saw not only a truce between Napoleon and the Catholic Church (the Concordat) but also the official approval of the Traité d’harmonie of Charles-Simon Catel‬. From that point on, 'harmony' became part of the discipline of formalized music training. It is a fascinating story of music, power, and institutions, well told by author Michael J. Masci."

Robert O. Gjerdingen

"By focusing on Catel’s treatise as the foundation of a new ‘discipline’ of harmony, promoted by the Paris Conservatoire, Masci makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the origins of modern theories of tonal syntax. The book offers a fascinating addition to the growing body of work that asks how historical lessons and practices, such as partimento, might enhance the learning of music theory today."

Nicholas Baragwanath

"Masci investigates Catel's Traité, the official unified harmony textbook at the Paris Conservatoire, from an original perspective, exploring whether the work stands as a compilation of contemporary theory or as an entirely original work. Masci highlights the theoretical content in a comprehensive historical and critical investigation which sheds new light on Catel’s place in an institutional process of knowledge production."

Rosa Cafiero

"Masci tells the captivating story of Catel’s harmony treatise and how it shaped the discipline of music theory at the Paris Conservatoire, the most admired institution in the nineteenth century. It’s a thrilling story of power, personal and institutional relations, and what it means to be a musician."

Alexander Rehding