The Musician as Philosopher: New York's Vernacular Avant-Garde, 1958-1978

An insightful look at how avant-garde musicians of the postwar period in New York explored the philosophical dimensions of music’s ineffability.

The Musician as Philosopher explores the philosophical thought of avant-garde musicians in postwar New York: David Tudor, Ornette Coleman, the Velvet Underground, Alice Coltrane, Patti Smith, and Richard Hell. It contends that these musicians—all of whom are understudied and none of whom are traditionally taken to be composers—not only challenged t...