Jun 29, 2020
My guest today is the great Professor Ludwig Holtmeier, who is a music theorist, musicologist, pianist and the president of the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg!
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0:23 What’s your musical background?
3:37 Did you have a typical classical training or did you ever
improvise as a young musician?
4:18 Do you have perfect or absolute pitch?
4:29 Did you learn music theory and counterpoint as a young
musician?
4:59 Moving to Freiburg
7:37 When did you discover partimento?
10:10 How did you break away from Riemannian theory?
12:36 How did you find these older methods?
13:24 Were a lot of treatises lost during WWII?
14:02 What was inside that library of note?
14:45 Continuing the story of how he discovered Fenaroli
15:50 Was it the Fenaroli Regole?
16:10 What date was that manuscript of Fenaroli?
17:12 Why did no one want to teach music theory at the piano at the
University of Freiburg?
18:10 How did you fill in the gaps of information in Fenaroli’s
regole?
20:57 Is Rameau one of the most misunderstood music theorists?
22:46 What are people getting wrong about Rameau?
27:01 How do you integrate partimento theory with the modern
curriculum?
28:08 Is it based around Fenaroli or other teachers as well?
28:43 Do most students come to you not knowing anything about
partimento?
29:21 What are some of the best exercises you use?
31:50 Are there theories that you exclude at the University?
33:31 How do you balance partimento with other theories in
analysis?
34:42 How would you analyze the music of Wagner?
37:08 What do you mean by arabic numerals?
37:52 What is your perspective on Riemann?
43:22 How about Heinrich Schenker?
45:18 What’s the best way to learn counterpoint?
47:41 Should Harmony be separated from counterpoint? Should they be
2 separate subjects?
48:50 Do you have a preference for Fixed Do, Moveable Do or
Hexachordal Solfeggio?
50:16 On Music Schema
53:46 What is the importance of David Heinichen in music theory in
the 18th century?
54:46 Did he codify the methods of the Italians?
55:34 Did Bach use Heinichen’s treatise?
57:08 The intriguing unity of the methods of the 18th century
1:00:25 Can partimento and 18th century pedagogy help us understand
newer composers like Rachmaninoff, Debussy and Ravel?
1:01:40 What is your advice for parents who will start music
lessons for their children?
1:02:49 How can people find you and your work?
1:03:45 Wrapping Up