Extraordinary Measures: Disability in Music

by Joseph N. Straus

Approaching disability as a cultural construction rather than a medical pathology, this book studies the impact of disability and concepts of disability on composers, performers, and listeners with disabilities, as well as on discourse about music and works of music themselves. For composers with disabilities--like Beethoven, Delius, and Schumann--awareness of the disability sharply inflects critical reception. For performers with disabilities--such as Itzhak Perlman and Evelyn Glennie--the performance of disability and the performance of music are deeply intertwined. For listeners with disabilities, extraordinary bodies and minds may give rise to new ways of making sense of music. In the stories that people tell about music, and in the stories that music itself tells, disability has long played a central but unrecognized role. Some of these stories are narratives of overcoming-the triumph of the human spirit over adversity-but others are more nuanced tales of accommodation
and acceptance of life with a non-normative body or mind. In all of these ways, music both reflects and constructs disability.

Genres: Music, Disability, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published February 24, 2011

Reviews

[K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess disability studies in mainstream musicology had to start somewhere.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked a few chapters and did not care to read chapters that related musical composition/theory to disability. They just seemed like too much of a stretch for me to truly take seriously and extremely specific for me to engage with. I was more interested in the material that discussed philosophy behind disability in music in a social/ historical context.

[Misty · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating exploration of many different ways that disability permeates music and musical experience. Straus tackles, in particular, the representations of disabilities in the narratives of music, the way we perceive disabled performers and different ways of hearing music as influenced by disability. Indeed, in this, Straus tackles most of the current hot topics in Music and Disability studies (as of time of writing).

Straus's writing style is engaging and to the point, but has enough meat to not only back up Straus's points, but also allow the reader to delve deep into the issues presented. His particular choice of case studies provides both enough variety and continuity to make this a coherent and flowing read.

Straus largely sticks to the Western Art ("Classical") Tradition, as this is where his training and experience lies, and readers completely unfamiliar with the oeuvre may struggle. However, the book benefits from this focus, and opens up to everyone else; even those without any formal training in music, and with only a limited knowledge of the Western Art Music canon will find this an enjoyable, informative and thought provoking read.