Philosophy of the performing arts / David Davies

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

PHILOSOPHY OF THE PERFORMING ARTS

" David Davies's Philosophy of the Performing Arts is long-awaited. Not since Paul Thom's For an Audience has a book in the Anglo-American philosophical tradition focused so clearly, exclusively, informatively, and fairly on all the performing arts. I will use this book in my classes."

James Hamilton, Kansas State University, author of The Art of Theater

"In this outstanding philosophical study, David Davies subjects the different, conflicting literatures characterizing works, performances, and their relationships to critical review en route to developing his own integrated theory. Covering classical music to jazz, Shakespeare to Brecht, dance to performance art, this is essential reading for anyone interested in the performing arts."

Stephen Davies, University of Auckland, author of The Philosophy of Art

Philosophical inquiry concerning the performing arts has tended to focus on music - specifically classical music - which is assumed to provide a model for understanding the performing arts as a whole. This book engages with this belief and critically explores how the "classical paradigm" might be extended to other musical genres, to theater, and to dance.

Taking in key components of artistic performance - improvisation, rehearsal, the role of the audience, the embodied nature of the artistic performer - the book examines similarities and differences between the performing art forms and presents the key philosophical issues that they bring into play. These reflections are then applied to the disputed issue of those contemporary artworks usually classified as "performance art." Assuming no prior knowledge of the subject matter, this book provides an accessible, yet sophisticated, introduction to the field and a comprehensive framework for thinking about the performing arts.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface and Acknowledgments (p. viii)
• Part 1 Performance and the Classical Paradigm (p. 1)
• 1 The Nature of Artistic Performance (p. 3)
• 1 Introduction (p. 3)
• 2 What is a Performance? (p. 4)
• 3 Institutional Theories of Artistic Performance (p. 7)
• 4 Aesthetic Theories of Artistic Performance (p. 10)
• 5 Artistic Performance and Artistic Regard (p. 14)
• 6 Overview (p. 17)
• 2 The Classical Paradigm I: The Nature of the Performable Work (p. 23)
• 1 Introduction: Berthold and Magda Go to the Symphony (p. 23)
• 2 The Multiple Nature of Performable Works (p. 24)
• 3 Performable Works as Types (p. 29)
• 4 Varieties of Type Theories: Sonicism, Instrumentalism, and Contextualism (p. 32)
• 5 Other Theories of the Performable Work (p. 38)
• 3 The Classical Paradigm II: Appreciating Performable Works in Performance (p. 51)
• 1 Introduction: Talking Appreciatively about Performable Works (p. 51)
• 2 Can Performable Works Share Artistic Properties with Their Performances? (p. 53)
• 3 The Goodman Argument (p. 57)
• 4 Answering the Goodman Argument (p. 62)
• 4 Authenticity in Musical Performance (p. 71)
• 1 Introduction (p. 71)
• 2 Authenticity in the Arts (p. 72)
• 3 Three Notions of Historically Authentic Performance (p. 74)
• 5 Challenges to the Classical Paradigm in Music (p. 87)
• 1 Introduction: The Classical Paradigm in the Performing Arts (p. 87)
• 2 The Scope of the Paradigm in Classical Music (p. 90)
• 3 Jazz, Rock, and the Classical Paradigm (p. 94)
• 4 Non-Western Music and the Classical Paradigm (p. 101)
• 6 The Scope of the Classical Paradigm: Theater, Dance, and Literature (p. 103)
• 1 Introduction: Berthold and Magda Go to the Theater (p. 103)
• 2 Theatrical Performances and Performable Works (p. 105)
• 3 Challenges to the Classical Paradigm in Theater (p. 112)
• 4 Dance and the Classical Paradigm (p. 120)
• 5 The Novel as Performable Work? (p. 128)
• Part 2 Performance as Art (p. 133)
• 7 Performances as Artworks (p. 135)
• 1 Introduction: Spontaneous Performance in the Arts (p. 135)
• 2 The Artistic Status of Performances Outside the Classical Paradigm (p. 138)
• 3 The Artistic Status of Performances Within the Classical Paradigm (p. 143)
• 8 Elements of Performance I: Improvisation and Rehearsal (p. 149)
• 1 Introduction (p. 149)
• 2 The Nature of Improvisation (p. 150)
• 3 Improvisation and Performable Works: Three Models (p. 154)
• 4 Improvisation and Recording (p. 160)
• 5 The Place of Rehearsal in the Performing Arts (p. 164)
• 9 Elements of Performance II: Audience and Embodiment (p. 172)
• 1 Can There Be Artistic Performance Without an Audience? (p. 172)
• 2 Audience Response (p. 181)
• 3 The Embodied Performer and the Mirroring Receiver (p. 189)
• 10 Performance Art and me Performing Arts (p. 200)
• 1 Introduction (p. 200)
• 2 Some Puzzling Cases (p. 201)
• 3 What is Performance Art? (p. 206)
• 4 When Do Works of Performance Art Involve Artistic Performances? (p. 209)
• 5 Performance as Art: A Final Case (p. 216)
• References (p. 219)
• Index (p. 226)

Author notes provided by Syndetics