Philosophy of Song and Singing

In Philosophy of Song and Singing: An Introduction, Jeanette Bicknell explores philosophical questions that have not yet been thoroughly researched by philosophers, musicologists, or scientists. Issues addressed include: the relationship between the meaning of a song's words and its music; the performer's role and ensuing gender complications, social ontology, and personal identity; the performer's ethical obligations to audiences, composers, and lyricists; and the metaphysical status of isolated solo performances compared to the continuous singing of opera or the interrupted singing of stage and screen musicals. Each chapter focuses on one major musical example.

Jeanette Bicknell is an independent scholar based in Toronto, Canada. She is the author of Why Music Moves Us (2009) and is the co-editor (with John Andrew Fisher) of Song, Songs, and Singing (2013).

Preface. Acknowledgments. Chapter One "Words". Chapter Two "Music". Chapter Three "Giving Voice (What Do Singers Do?)". Chapter Four "Singers and Audiences". Chapter Five "Three Ways to Think about Authenticity in Performance". Chapter Six "Authenticity, Value & Technology". Chapter Seven "Performance: Ethical Considerations". Chapter Eight "Song & Drama". Chapter Nine "Meaning: Songs in Performance". Chapter Ten "Why Sing?"