Adorno on Music (International Library of Sociology)

by Robert W. Witkin

In clear, non-technical language, Robert Witkin guides the reader through the complexities of Adorno's argument about the link between music and morality and the detailed analytic discussions of specific musical works with which he supported it.

Genres: Music, Philosophy

220 pages, Paperback

First published February 19, 1998

Reviews

[Castles · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read into Adorno’s complicated theories about music and society. I can’t say it makes the subject any simpler, but it’s sure a good way to try and unpack the complexity in at least one way.

[Mark Martin]

Decent treatment of Adorno's philosophy on music by a noted historical sociologist of art. Unfortunately, the author is not a musician and the book suffers some because of this, though his understanding of sociology and of critical theory are solid. Worth reading, but we still await a proper musicological treatment of the subject.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adorno's theories are most complex and even when explaining them it's impossible to make them sound simple. Unfortunately, even though Witkin did a great job of analyzing and fully breaking quotations down, I still grappled to understand a lot of it. Yet, I was recommended to read this text by a modernist and music expert for a Shakespeare and music project I am researching, I do feel my time could have been better spent reading something more relevant to my field. Though there were some parts I did greatly understand and some brilliant quotes I can take away and even use in my forthcoming essay. In essence, the book has given me a better understanding of the interaction between literature and music.

'music can either be a force for truth or it can be an instrument of repressions and concealed domination.'

'Music is intimately related to time. It is a process that takes place in time. Time unfolds in its internal relations. Events succeed each other in time. However, a sense of time passing requires more than the mere fact that one event follows another. It requires, too, some notion that the connection between antecedent and consequent is a necessary one. If events are merely interchangeable, if none have any necessary consequence or antecedents, then there is no development or change.'

Music's similarity to language is the most helpful section for me and my forthcoming essay.