“Authenticity in Musical Performance” (Stephen Davies)

Arguing About Art – Chapter 4

     In chapter four, Stephen Davies describes an authentic musical performance as an ideal at which performers should aim.  Because musical instruments, venues, and styles have changed throughout the years, it is sometimes difficult to discern what exactly is meant by “authentic”.  For Davies, a performance may be judged for authenticity when it attempts to realize the sound that the composer intended to be heard.  That performance’s degree of authenticity can then be judged against and compared with the authenticity of other performances that also strive to realize the composer’ intentions.  In the first section, Davies claims that a performance’s authenticity concern’s only the sound of the performance, and not a faithful reproduction of the social setting in which the piece was originally played.  Modern concert halls may have their acoustics altered in order to give a more authentic sounding experience.  He goes on to argue that an authentic musical performance ideally sounds like what might have been heard by the original composer’s contemporaries.  This ideal sound is not that of any one actual performance, but rather a possible performance that accurately produces the original notes as well the relationships between these notes.  Davies continues into the third section where the role of the composer’s intentions is discussed in more detail.  He claims that musical scores are composed with both determinative intentions as well as recommendations from the composer.  Some aspects of music, such as tempo and phrasing, may be changed without affecting the authenticity of a performance.  Precisely which aspects may be altered is decided by the common conventions of the time period in which the piece was composed.  An authentic performance may contain creative deviations from the original score in so far as these conventions allow.  In the fourth section, Davies analyzes authenticity as it relates to the intentions of the performer.  He makes a distinction between the performance of a piece and the improvisation or inspired fantasia of a piece.  The less variance between a performer’s intentions and the sounds specified by the original work, the more authentic the performance.  This authenticity can be defeated when the performer falls short of his intentions and does not accurately produce the correct sounds.  Davies discusses the value of authenticity in the fifth section.  He alleges that authenticity is valued because we have an aesthetic concern with the ideas of the original composer, but that it possesses independent value as well.  We independently value and appreciate the creativity required in ordered to interpret a musical score regardless of the merits of the work itself.  Davies ends by accentuating the importance of the performer’s creative role in interpreting any given piece of music.  Every performance contains subtle nuances and differences that contribute to the aesthetic value of the work.  Performance goes beyond what is given by the score in order to produce something that is original yet remains authentic.

Chapter 4 Class Discussion Synopsis

     In class, we discussed the authenticity of a musical performance in light of descriptive metaphysics.  One thing that is essential for an authentic performance is the composer’s score.  The score acts as a set of instructions (similar to a chef’s recipe) for the performers to follow.  An authentic performance will remain true to the composer’s original score; however, it is not an exact copy or replication in the same way one might copy a painting.  Unlike an exact copy of a painting, a musical score leaves certain creative aspects up to the performers.  Different performances of a piece can both be authentic as long as the publicly expressed intentions of the score are followed, and authentic performances need not coincide with any actual, original performance.  Davies emphasizes the importance of the performer’s intentions as well as the intentions of the composer.  The performer’s must intend to follow the expressed instructions of the composer for a performance to count as authentic.  One component of performance left out of Davies’ account of authenticity is audience uptake.  On his view, an authentic performance does not need to evoke any particular emotions from the listeners.

- Blaise Morgan