Skip to main content

  • HOME
  • CURRENT CONTENT
  • ALL CONTENT
  • SUBMIT
  • ABOUT
    • Journal
    • Editorial
  • INFO FOR
    • Librarians
    • Authors
    • Reprints and Permissions
    • Subscribers
  • MORE
    • Alerts
    • Contact Us

  • Login

  • Advanced search

  • Login
Advanced Search
  • HOME
  • CURRENT CONTENT
  • ALL CONTENT
  • SUBMIT
  • ABOUT
    • Journal
    • Editorial
  • INFO FOR
    • Librarians
    • Authors
    • Reprints and Permissions
    • Subscribers
  • MORE
    • Alerts
    • Contact Us
Nineteenth-Century Music
Feminist Revolutionary Music Criticism and Wagner Reception
The Case of Louise Otto
Laurie McManus
19th-Century Music, Vol. 37 No. 3, Spring 2014; (pp. 161-187) DOI: 10.1525/ncm.2014.37.3.161
Laurie McManus is assistant professor of music history and literature at Shenandoah Conservatory of Shenandoah University. She is currently at work on a book examining notions of purity and priestliness in Brahms reception. Her articles have appeared in Studi Musicali, Jazz Perspectives, and the American Brahms Society Newsletter.
  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • PDF
PreviousNext
Loading

Abstract

Histories of progressive musical politics in mid-nineteenth-century Germany often center on the writings of Richard Wagner and Franz Brendel, relegating contributors such as the feminist and author Louise Otto (1819–95) to the periphery. However, Otto's lifelong engagement with music, including her two librettos, two essay collections on the arts, and numerous articles and feuilletons, demonstrates how one contemporary woman considered the progressive movements in music and in women's rights to be interrelated. A staunch advocate of Wagner, Otto contributed to numerous music journals, as well as her own women's journal, advising her female readers to engage with the music of the New German School. In the context of the middle-class women's movement, she saw music as a space for female advancement through both performance and the portrayals of women onstage. Her writings offer us a glimpse into the complex network of Wagner proponents who also supported women's rights, at the same time providing evidence for what some contemporary conservative critics saw as a concomitant social threat from both Wagnerian musical radicalism and the emancipated woman.

Keywords
  • music criticism
  • gender
  • feminism
  • Richard Wagner
  • Germany
  • © 2014 by the Regents of the University of California
PreviousNext
Back to top

Vol. 37 No. 3, Spring 2014

19th-Century Music: 37 (3)
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • Index by author
  • Front Matter (PDF)
eTOC Alert

RSSRSS Icon

Email

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on Nineteenth-Century Music.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Feminist Revolutionary Music Criticism and Wagner Reception
(Your Name) has sent you a message from Nineteenth-Century Music
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the Nineteenth-Century Music web site.
Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Citation Tools
Feminist Revolutionary Music Criticism and Wagner Reception
The Case of Louise Otto
Laurie McManus
19th-Century Music, Vol. 37 No. 3, Spring 2014; (pp. 161-187) DOI: 10.1525/ncm.2014.37.3.161
Laurie McManus is assistant professor of music history and literature at Shenandoah Conservatory of Shenandoah University. She is currently at work on a book examining notions of purity and priestliness in Brahms reception. Her articles have appeared in Studi Musicali, Jazz Perspectives, and the American Brahms Society Newsletter.

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Request Permissions
Share
Feminist Revolutionary Music Criticism and Wagner Reception
The Case of Louise Otto
Laurie McManus
19th-Century Music, Vol. 37 No. 3, Spring 2014; (pp. 161-187) DOI: 10.1525/ncm.2014.37.3.161
Laurie McManus is assistant professor of music history and literature at Shenandoah Conservatory of Shenandoah University. She is currently at work on a book examining notions of purity and priestliness in Brahms reception. Her articles have appeared in Studi Musicali, Jazz Perspectives, and the American Brahms Society Newsletter.
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Technorati logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
View Full Page PDF
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

  • Top
  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • PDF

Related Articles

Cited By...

Similar Articles

FIND US Facebook Account LinkRSS Feeds LinkTwitter Account LinkInstagram Account LinkLinkedin Account LinkYoutube Account LinkEmail Link

Customer Service

  • Reprints and Permissions
  • Contact

UC Press

  • About UC Press

Navigate

  • Home
  • About
  • Submit
  • Editorial
  • Contact

Content

  • Current Issue
  • All Content

Info For

  • Librarians
  • Authors
  • Subscriptions and Single Issues

Copyright © 2018 by the Regents of the University of California  Privacy   Accessibility