Abstract
This chapter considers the stereotype of Gypsies as eternal wanderers—arriving suddenly and disappearing unexpectedly—as fossilized in European culture, especially in musical compositions. Gypsies as constant travelers seem to embody the suspension between the ideal aim of their journey—the mystical, almost divine ‘then and there,’ and the mundane, very prosaic ‘now and here.’ The sense of eternality or ‘timelessness’ attributed to their stereotype is discussed in this chapter by the example of musical works featuring Gypsy heroes (operas, operettas, and ballets but also songs) as well as in purely instrumental compositions entitled as ‘Gypsy’ (e.g., ‘Gypsy’ airs, ‘Gypsy’ dances). The specific understanding of Gypsy correlation with time is analysed as reflected in the musical language of the discussed compositions, for example, in the flow of the musical material, or the use of tempo rubato or accelerando.
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Entering Europe, Gypsies continued to move around: they were first encountered on the eastern fringes of the continent. Numerous accounts testify to the presence of Gypsies in fourteenth-century Constantinople , but as documents show, it is highly probable that they had been active in Byzantium by the end of the twelfth century. See Rochow and Matschke (1991: 253).
- 2.
Such letters of protection for Gypsies were issued by, among others, Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor (1368–1437).
- 3.
Wright was also the author of many hits in the style of Tin Pan Alley—including “Dream of Delight” (1916) and “The Toy Drum Major” (1924).
- 4.
Translated in Rennie ( 2005: 116).
- 5.
In contemporary America, the role of raising surrogate emotions is performed, for example, by live transmissions of police car chases. One of the most spectacular cases took place in 1994 when 95 million people followed a live broadcast of the police chasing after footballer O.J. Simpson, accused of murdering his wife. See Furno-Lamude (1999: 23).
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Piotrowska, A.G. (2017). Perpetual Wanderers—Timeless Heroes: Gypsies in European Musical Culture. In: Baumbach, S., Henningsen, L., Oschema, K. (eds) The Fascination with Unknown Time. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66438-5_9
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