Food for Apollo details the evolution and significance in Philadelphia of what is often called "classical" music. Performances in a variety of settings, from "long rooms" in taverns to large theatres and concert halls, facilitated this process over approximately 100 years. Philadelphia's thriving music publishing trade, award-winning pianos, and literary magazines helped supply the desire of America's middle and upper classes for culture and refinement. It was not uncommon in antebellum America to intersperse cultivated ...
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Food for Apollo details the evolution and significance in Philadelphia of what is often called "classical" music. Performances in a variety of settings, from "long rooms" in taverns to large theatres and concert halls, facilitated this process over approximately 100 years. Philadelphia's thriving music publishing trade, award-winning pianos, and literary magazines helped supply the desire of America's middle and upper classes for culture and refinement. It was not uncommon in antebellum America to intersperse cultivated works with vernacular tunes in concerts and even operas in English translation. While a number of European composers enjoyed substantial fame, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is the primary example in this study. He was chosen because of the adaptability of his music to domestic entertainments and the publics' fascination with his life as a prodigy and tragic genius.
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