Towards a ‘Scientific’ History of Music. Understanding Music Discourse in Southern India

29.06.2015 17:15 - 19:00

Lakshmi Subramanian | Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta

This talk will address two things: one, the challenges that histories of music have involved for the professional discipline of history, and two, the scientific imperative that music histories were guided by in twentieth century India. It will especially focus on the roles assumed by scientists in developing a methodology for teaching and appreciation that was meant to enable an objective understanding of art practice rather than simply frame it within a template of subjective experience. C.Subrahmanya Ayyar, the brother of C.V.Raman, was particularly active in this direction and came up with fascinating attempts to look at music in terms of the physics of sound. 

Organiser:
Institut für Südasien-, Tibet- und Buddhismuskunde
Location:
Seminarraum 1, Universitätscampus, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2.7 1090Wien