Paper Abstracts

Ludwig Finscher

The Musical Work of Art within the Present State of Music in Germany

Following a negotiation of the historically charged notion of “musical work” and the reflection round this notion, the evolution of which runs its course from the Mediaeval Age until the 20^th century, it is dealt with the question of the extend of the tradition and its continuation in the second half of the 20^th century. Reference is made to all contemporary movements as well as to their aesthetic and social characteristics. In the course of this description the paradox of the relativity of the “musical work” within the traditional musical civilization is pointed out, an account of its promotion through the means of technical reproduction and the Mass Media of Musical Information, through a totally indifferent reflection. This has an affect on the decay of the concert repertoire and the downgrading of the musical works in favour of aesthetic values regarding interpretation. The notion of the traditional musical work as an “opus perfectum et absolutum”, as an organic whole, is removed by its breaking in pieces in order to facilitate consumption. The contemporary social forms of production and of the Mass Media Information (such as, e.g., talk shows and the CD series with stars as interpreters), and the influence in the process of dissolution and “fetishism” of the “musical work” in all the culturally advanced countries, are mentioned too.

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