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Abstract

This article surveys a range of musicological approaches to musical performance. It first addresses the place of Western art music within the world of performance at large; it then considers the retrospective means by which musicologists have investigated individual performances and the manifold issues related to them. The discussion turns thereafter to the practical application of research to performance. A case study of Chopin's Nocturne in E-flat major Op. 9 No. 2 demonstrates how the gaps between research and practice might be bridged to enhance the moment of truth that each performance represents. Emphasis is placed on the need for both mediation and a contextualized understanding of whatever it is that historical, analytical and other modes of research might offer the performer.

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In Respect of Performance: The View from Musicology

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