Abstract
Since the eighteenth century modern Scotland has attracted the attention of a large audience of foreigners, curious about this place of intriguing scenery, history, and culture. For these onlookers, music portraying Scotland has created attractive images that have fulfilled and informed their perceptions of Scotland. This work surveys several prominent compositions that have created an aural representation of the place of Scotland, and identifies the various images portrayed in these compositions. Works examined include eighteenth-century songbooks, nineteenth-century operatic and orchestral works, and modern Celtic music. The images of Scotland presented in these pieces vary, but often identify Scotland as an Other place. The study also identifies audiences, and then based on the images presented and the audiences’ reactions to the works suggests several reasons for foreigners’ attraction to the images. For some listeners, musical performances brought Scotland into their own environs and allowed for a temporary visit as virtual tourists. For others, a performance was an experience that transcended regular life. Still others used the music to link their own personal identity to a culture with historical roots.
The various musical works and their respective representations of place are examined in the context of their places of performance. This discussion illuminates the influence a performance space can have upon musical depictions of place. The settings of the drawing room, opera theater, concert hall, and modern listening media help shape the presented image of Scotland. In turn, the performance of Scottish images in foreign spaces temporarily transforms the performance space as Scotland is re-implaced. Audiences’ willingness to participate in these performances, through various levels of activity, reveals personal desires to experience the Otherness of Scotland through the emotionally laden medium of music.
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