Séminaire « Contrappunto | Modern History & Music History Talks », German Historical Institute, Rome/en ligne, 5 juin 2023.

Dernière séance du séminaire, « Energy for Modernity. Aluminum in Musical Instrument Making », par Rebecca Wolf (Staatliches Institut für Musikforschung Preußischer Kulturbesitz).

« This paper combines music history with the history of science by means of aluminum, one of the most abundant metals in the earth’s crust. The history of its industrial production is quite short, about 150 years. Science and capitalism brought aluminum into use, and its qualities are fascinating: it shines like silver and is very light. Aluminium’s aura of modernity was shaped not only by economic circumstances, but also by literature and other forms of art. It became a symbol of modernity and exclusiveness. Surprisingly, aluminum was also processed for one of the most traditional and popular musical instruments: the violin. Especially instrument makers in North America and Germany developed various methods to replace wood with the light metal. Drawing on examples from collections in the USA and Germany, this paper explores questions of sound quality and motivation for using aluminum as a key material in modern music and material history. »

Pour plus de détails (et s’inscrire) : cliquez ici.