The private musical memoirs of Dutch nobleman Alexander Michiels van Kessenich (1800–1869)

The memoirs that the Dutch nobleman Alexander Michiels van Kessenich (1800–1869) published in 1858–1859 offer a unique perspective on nineteenth-century social music history. They were public in the sense of being printed, but private in the sense that the publication was not for sale. Because of a lack of editorial rigor the text comes across as a highly informal collection of personal musical memories. The unusual format of this publication is mirrored in its content. With his insistence that in their music making members of the aristocracy should avoid mingling with the lower classes and hi... Mehr ...