Subproject 2: Secular Musicking at Night, 1500-1800
Sub-project 2, “Secular Musicking at Night (c.1500-1800),” is concerned with concerts and musical gatherings at night. Firstly, it strives to disentangle the repertoire of vespertine and nocturnal musics by means of self-designation, instrumentation, and contemporary discourses. Secondly, it explores specific reasons and conditions of performance, whether in private or public social gatherings, or at a king’s bedside.
Individual Projects
Helen Gebhart
Serenading the City: Night Music in Basel, 1500–1800
As part of the NightMuse project, my PhD dissertation will focus on the secular night music of Basel in the 16th – 18th centuries. The nocturnal history of Basel has not been studied from a musicological perspective before and thus a study about its music through the lens of the day and night rhythm is particularly intriguing. The key questions of my project are: How, where, when was music played and heard at night in Basel from 1500–1800? What functions of nocturnal music can be identified and which musical traits does the music show? How does gender factor into music making at night?
In a first step, I intend to define the cultural meaning of the night by analyzing a vast array of sources, such as diaries (e.g., Felix Platter’s Tagebuch, Lebensbesschreibung 1536–1567, Johann Conrad Schweighauser’s Familienbuch, etc.), city mandates, bell schedules and travel reports. For the analysis in the second step, collections such as the music library of Lucas Sarasin, nightwatchmen songs, and music printed in Basel will be crucial sources for this study. By covering various spaces and social milieus, such as music in private homes of wealthy families, outdoor concerts, musicians on watchtowers and communal singing in guild halls, I want to bring light into the dark corners of early modern Basel and draw attention to the city’s nocturnal song.
CV
Helen Gebhart is a PhD candidate in the SNSF-funded project The Night Side of Music. Towards a New Historiography of Musicking in Europe, 1500–1800. She holds a master’s degree in Musicology and Anglophone Literature. Following her studies in Basel and Vienna, she worked as managing director for the Swiss Musicological Society and as journal manager for the Swiss Journal of Musicology. Her previous positions include roles at the Paul Sacher Foundation, the Gstaad Menuhin Festival, Gare du Nord (as director’s assistant), and the University of Basel (as a tutor). As a music critic and author, Helen has contributed to bz Basel, Schweizer Musikzeitung, Mizmorim Chamber Music Festival, and Kammerorchester Basel. Her research interests include nocturnal music of the early modern era, music during and between the world wars, and music criticism.
Helen is a member of the vocal ensemble Les Voix Basel and enjoys playing the violin.