Strauss and the City: The Reception of Richard Strauss’s Salome, Elektra, and Der Rosenkavalier within New York City, 1907–1934

<p>New York City at the beginning of the twentieth century was growing into its status as one of the world’s great cultural centers. At the same time, across the Atlantic, Richard Strauss was emerging as Germany’s preeminent composer. The city and Strauss, although seemingly unrelated, were more intertwined than it would at first appear. This study examines this connection through a reception history of Strauss’s <em>Salome</em>, <em>Elektra</em>, and <em>Der Rosenkavalier </em>in the city, beginning in 1907 with the New York City premiere of <em>Salome </em>and concluding in 1934 when the opera returned to the Metropolitan’s stage. The reception of Strauss in the city provides a unique vantage point to observe the critical reactions to Strauss by his contemporaries. Removed from Europe, New York City’s critics occupied an important distance from their European compatriots, which provided them with a distinct perspective. Along the way, I also utilize the music of Germany’s most prominent opera composer to examine the German American community, who used music to foster a sense of communal identity. This study focuses on opera, rather than the popular theater, to explore both internal and external attitudes towards German Americans as a cultural and ethnic group. My ultimate goal is threefold: to examine an important moment in New York City’s cultural history, to shine light on an immigrant community that was critical in the formation of the city’s cultural, social, and political identity, yet has now been largely forgotten, and to consider the contemporary attitudes towards a significant twentieth-century musical figure. </p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Music

Grantor

The Graduate School and University Center of The City University of New York

Year dc:date.available

2018

Author dc:creator

• Ogburn, Christopher G.

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Chadwick Jenkins

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Janette Tilley
• John Graziano
• Scott Burnham

• Musicology
• identity
• German American
• opera
• Richard Strauss
• New York City

Repository record dc:identifier

https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/2810

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:academicworks.cuny.edu:gc_etds-3869