Challenging Performance

  • The Book
    • 1 Introduction
      • 2 The status quo
        • 3 Performance changes
    • 4 Identity
      • 5 The music
    • 6 Delusions
      • 6.1 Naturalised beliefs
        • 6.2 You need to know about music
          • 6.3 You must play structure
      • 6.4 Current performances are best
        • 6.5 Performing natural musicianship
          • 6.6 Performers and performances are unalike
      • 6.7 Music is best performed ‘historically’
        • 6.8 Texts document sounds
          • 6.9 Everything is in the score
      • 6.10 A work is greater than any performance
        • 6.11 Scores have limited interpretations
          • 6.12 The composer knows best
      • 6.13 Composers’ intentions are known
        • 6.14 The performer should be inaudible
          • 6.15 Composers are listening
      • 6.16 Composers are gods
        • 6.16a Response by Emily Payne
      • 6.17 Works
        • 6.18 So music is…
          • 6.19 Why these delusions?
    • 7 Teaching
      • 7.1 Teachers and State
        • 7.2 Childhood lessons
          • 7.3 Exam boards
      • 7.4 Conservatoire 1
        • 7.5 Conservatoire 2
          • 7.6 Virtuoso class
      • 7.7 Micro schools
        • 7.7a State Teaching
          • 7.8 Competitions
            • 7.9 Alternatives
    • 8 Musicology
    • 9.1 Criticism
      • 9.2 Reviews 1
        • 9.3 Reviews 2
      • 9.4 Social media
        • 9.5 Risk
          • 9.6 Lack of debate
    • 10 Normativities
    • 11 Obligations 1
      • 11.2 Obligations 2
        • 11.3 Obligations 3
    • 12.1 Policing
      • 12.2 Utopia
        • 12.3 Self-policing
    • 13 Lack of agency
    • 14 Ill-health
      • 14a Mandy Burvill
    • 15 Legal constraints
    • 18 Creativity
      • 18.1 Creativity
        • 18.2 Theatre
    • 19.1 Ethics 1
      • 19.2 Ethics 2
    • 20 Why and How?
      • 20a: Going beyond the text
    • 21 Historical exx
    • 22.1 Music working
      • 22.1b Work terminology
        • 22.2 Shape
      • 22.3 Expression
        • 22.4 Social action
          • 22.5 Assessing
    • 23 Examples
      • 23.1 New Moon
        • 23.2 Ave Maria
          • 23.3 Further transgressions
            • 23.4 Using anxiety creatively
    • 24 Opera
      • 24.2 Making ‘Dido & Belinda’
        • 24.3 Performer feedback
          • 24.4 Audience feedback
    • 25 Current concerns
    • 26 Others
    • 27 Rights
    • 30.0 Related essays
      • 30.1 Sounding the right
    • About the author
    • Acknowledgements
    • Summary
  • ‘Dido & Belinda’
    • ‘Dido & Belinda’: Biographies
    • Making ‘Dido & Belinda’
    • Performer feedback
    • Audience feedback
    • What’s Wrong with Classical Music?
  • Interviews and Recordings
    • Iva Bittová and Dorothea Kellerová
    • Challenging Performance: The Book. 14a Mandy Burvill
    • Mine Doğantan-Dack
      • Interview with Prof Mine Doğantan-Dack
    • Abigail Dolan
    • David Dolan
    • Diana Gilchrist
      • Ave Maria narratives
    • Shelley Katz
    • Patricia Kopatchinskaja
    • Daniel Leech-Wilkinson
      • Challenging Performance: The Book
    • Bobby Mitchell
    • Eszter Osztrosits and Imre Dani
    • Anna Scott
    • Robert Toft
    • Contribute a performance
  • Repertoire
  • Contact

Challenging Performance PDF

Download the whole book as a PDF (3MB):

Daniel Leech-Wilkinson, Challenging Performance: Classical Music Performance Norms and How to Escape Them. PDF copy. version 2.18 (23.ix.23)

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