Received Truths: Bertolt Brecht and the Problem of Gestus and Musical Meaning (AMS STUDIES IN GERMAN LITERATURE AND CULTURE)

This study focuses on the theoretical foundations of the music-text relationship in the works of Brecht and his composers. In the course of his researches, he determined that the formerly accepted or "received truths" regarding Brecht theory and practice had been inadequate. Himself a trained musician, Fowler argues that it is Brecht's dramatic theory - an inadequate account for his practice - rather than a theory of musical meaning that had informed previous investigations. He concludes with an outline for the necessary strategy of re-examining Brecht's theory.