Thesis submission ID 339 | created | last updated

Annemarie Halloran, Liszt's Heroes: An investigation into the Artistic Independence of Franz Liszt and his Contemporaries
MA, NUI Maynooth, 2005



General specialism: Musicology

Abstract:
‘Lizst’s Heroes’ looks primarily at Liszt’s own published writings. There is an extensive body of literature written by Liszt, both in essay and letter form, which deals with the other important figures of the musical age and other issues relating to music and art. This thesis aims to establish Liszt’s relationship specifically through treatment of this source material, and to examine what light it can shed on the composer’s life and work. Texts examined include Liszt’s biography of Chopin, his essay on John Field, his essay on the future of artists and their place in society, the extensive volume of his personal letters. Contemporary scholarship has redeemed Liszt’s literary output, defending it at least in part from accusations that it was in fact written by others. So one can turn afresh to these fascinating essays and read the words of the composer himself on such seminal figures as Wagner, Chopin, Field, Schumann and Berlioz.
Thesis submission ID 339