Neohelicon
Volume/Issue:
Volume 39: Issue 1
Wagner or Beethoven?
Shifts in the Musical Taste of Virginia Woolf
Author:
Mihály Szegedy-Maszák Department of Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies, Eötvös Loránd University, Múzeum krt. 4/A, Budapest, 1088 Hungary

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Pages:
89–103
Online Publication Date:
03 May 2012
Publication Date:
01 Jun 2012
Article Category:
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11059-012-0134-0
Keywords:
The “presence” of music in literary works; Musical life in Great Britain in the early twentieth century; The role of music in the life of Virginia and Leonard Woolf (attending opera performances, concerts, and recitals, listening to gramophone records); The impact of the works of Beethoven, Wagner, and other composers on Virginia Woolf’s fiction; Rhythm in music and narrative prose
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Abstract  

The essay focuses on the role music played in Virginia Woolf’s life and writings. By relying on information gleaned from her diaries, correspondence, essays, and fiction, on Leonard Woolf’s autobiography and his reviews of gramophone recordings, as well as on the critical and autobiographical works of their contemporaries, the author gives a detailed analysis of Virginia Woolf’s musical background and education. He sees continuity between her early opera-going experiences and her later interest in the string quartets and piano sonatas of Beethoven, arguing that a major artist never forgets the inspiration of early, formative years. Furthermore, this essay addresses complex questions of whether and how a comparison of music and literature can lead to a better understanding of Virginia Woolf’s works.

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Cover Neohelicon
Neohelicon
Print ISSN:
0324-4652
Online ISSN:
1588-2810

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Neohelicon
Language English
Size B5
Year of
Foundation		 1973
Volumes
per Year		 1
Issues
per Year		 2
Founder Akadémiai Kiadó
Founder's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
Publisher Akadémiai Kiadó
Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Publisher's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
CH-6330 Cham, Switzerland Gewerbestrasse 11.
Responsible
Publisher		 Chief Executive Officer, Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN 0324-4652 (Print)
ISSN 1588-2810 (Online)

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