Robert Montgomery – författare

This book takes a new look at the place occupied by medieval Spanish epic within European folk and literary tradition. Thomas Montgomery traces the origins of key parts of most known medieval Spanish epics to an ancient myth. He shows how the myth of the initiation of the young warrior, shown by Georges Dumézil to be fundamental to the belief systems of widely distributed Indo-European peoples, was variously adapted to shape the action of texts including the Siete Infantes de Lara, the Mocedades de Rodrigo, and the Poema de Mio Cid, in which it accounts for the peculiar behavior of the Infantes de Carrión. Montgomery also connects the same mythic tradition to works as diverse as Tristan and the Chanson de Roland.In a preliterate society, the oral presentation of this archetypal lore required a special language capable of re-creating the ritualized behavior of the epic characters and maintaining the ceremonial tone of the performance. Focusing on the Poema de Mio Cid, Montgomery examines the ways in which the poetic language worked to evoke a feeling of group unity that absorbed the audience and still works its spell upon today’s readers.

Delius was born in 1862, twenty-four years before the signing in 1886 of the Berne Convention, the international convention for the protection of literary and artistic works of which Great Britain was a founder member. During Delius's lifetime came the birth of the record industry, the development of exercising the performing right, the introduction of the mechanical right, and the advent of films and broadcasting. Robert Montgomery and Robert Threlfall chronicle Delius's dealings with his publishers and the Performing Right Society (PRS) through his copious correspondence. Virtually all of the very early letters have been lost, but his correspondence in German with Harmonie Verlag of Berlin, Tischer & Jagenberg of Cologne, and Universal Edition of Vienna is almost complete. This book provides a selection of translations of these letters, most of which have never been seen before, and offers a unique insight into how a leading twentieth-century composer earned his living from composition in the changing environment of the world of music. Some of the problems that Delius encountered were because the administrative procedures brought in by Berne were in their infancy. Equally important in building a picture of Delius's publishing affairs is the Delius file in the PRS archive, to which Jelka Delius wrote in English, and which contains both sides of the correspondence. The book also covers the period after Delius's death when the Delius Trust, as the legal representative of his estate, took over responsibility for administering copyrights and promoting his music. The book provides a valuable model for the methodology involved in presenting a history of music publishing. It will provide a useful springboard for scholars to look at other composers in terms of their published material and how this relates to the general dissemination of their work.

Delius was born in 1862, twenty-four years before the signing in 1886 of the Berne Convention, the international convention for the protection of literary and artistic works of which Great Britain was a founder member. During Delius's lifetime came the birth of the record industry, the development of exercising the performing right, the introduction of the mechanical right, and the advent of films and broadcasting. Robert Montgomery and Robert Threlfall chronicle Delius's dealings with his publishers and the Performing Right Society (PRS) through his copious correspondence. Virtually all of the very early letters have been lost, but his correspondence in German with Harmonie Verlag of Berlin, Tischer & Jagenberg of Cologne, and Universal Edition of Vienna is almost complete. This book provides a selection of translations of these letters, most of which have never been seen before, and offers a unique insight into how a leading twentieth-century composer earned his living from composition in the changing environment of the world of music. Some of the problems that Delius encountered were because the administrative procedures brought in by Berne were in their infancy. Equally important in building a picture of Delius's publishing affairs is the Delius file in the PRS archive, to which Jelka Delius wrote in English, and which contains both sides of the correspondence. The book also covers the period after Delius's death when the Delius Trust, as the legal representative of his estate, took over responsibility for administering copyrights and promoting his music. The book provides a valuable model for the methodology involved in presenting a history of music publishing. It will provide a useful springboard for scholars to look at other composers in terms of their published material and how this relates to the general dissemination of their work.