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The Thing About Austen

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EP105: The Thing About Marianne's Music with guest Dr. Elizabeth Weybright

5/21/2025

 
Transcript
Marianne has a lot of feelings, and what better way of expressing them than through her music? Dr. Elizabeth "Elly" Weybright joins us for this episode to discuss Marianne as a musician and the ways in which Marianne's musicianship is central to her character. We also get into a bit of Austen's own history of piano ownership and music playing. 

If you have ever cried on your piano after a bad break-up, this episode is for you. 

Thank you so much to Elly for joining us for this episode! You can find her on Twitter @EllyWeybright.

Ep95: The Thing About Mary's Concerto with Dr. Lidia Chang

8/20/2024

 
Transcript
Mary Bennet is ready to wow the audience with her concerto, but it's not receiving the rousing reception she might have hoped for. This episode we welcome back Dr. Lidia Chang to discuss Mary's performances within the context of Regency era societal expectations for a young lady's musical education and accomplishments. Thank you so much to Lidia for joining us for this episode! You can find her online at https://www.lidiachang.com and follow her on Instagram @Lidiaac.

Ep71: The Thing About Cramer with guest Dr. Karali Hunter

7/14/2023

 
Jane Fairfax has received a mystery piano, along with some new music, and Frank Churchill is here to tell Emma all about it. In this episode, we break down the reference to Cramer in Emma. We also chat with Dr. Karali Hunter who stops by to trace the development of the étude from Cramer to Chopin, as well as talk to us about the process of recording our new intro and outro music.
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​Thank you so much to Karali for joining us for this episode and for recording our new music, Cramer's étude, No. 21! You can learn more about her and her work at www.karalihunter.com, www.hammerandstrings.com, and www.salonnieres.org.

Ep48: The Thing About the Meryton Assembly

8/30/2022

 
It's dancing time! This week we are covering the origins of public assemblies before taking a look at the Meryton assembly scene in Pride and Prejudice. If you have ever wished your bestie would just let you sit one out, this episode is for you.

Select Sources:

  • Castelow, Ellen. “Assembly Rooms.” Historic UK. Accessed August 7, 2022. https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Assembly-Rooms/.
  • Chamber, Ephriam. Cyclopedia: Or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. London, 1728.
  • Girouard, Mark. The English Town: A History of Urban Life. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1990. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_English_Town/ny2HA2-ZHpEC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=assemblies.
  • Kingsbury, Pamela D. “Assembly Rooms.” In Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press, 2003. https://doi.org/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T004633.
  • Ray, Joan Klingel. “Do Elizabeth and Darcy Really Improve ‘on Acquaintance’?” Persuasions 35 (2013): 34–49.
  • Richardson, Kristen. The Season: A Social History of the Debutante. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2020. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Season_A_Social_History_of_the_Debut/WPuKDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0.

EP32: The Thing About Jane's Irish Melodies

3/17/2022

 
Jane Fairfax has recently received a selection of music, and we're here to unpack the significance of that "new set of Irish melodies." Spoiler alert: Frank Churchill has some explaining to do. If you have ever received a mystery gift, this episode is for you.

Thank you to Salonnières for letting us share part of their gorgeous arrangement of "The Last Rose of Summer" as our outro music this week. You can learn more about Salonnières on their website, www.salonnieres.org and find their albums on iTunes.
Selected Sources:
  • Hunt, Una. “The Harper’s Legacy: National Airs and Pianoforte Music.” Journal of the Society for Musicology in Ireland 6 (2010): 3–53. https://doi.org/10.21427/D7MB3C.
  • Libin, Katheryn L. Shanks. “Music, Character, and Social Standing in Jane Austen’s Emma.” Persuasions 22 (2000): 15–30.
  • McCleave, Sarah. “The Genesis of Thomas Moore’s Irish Melodies, 1808–1834.” In Cheap Print and Popular Song in the Nineteenth Century, edited by Paul Watt, Derek Scott, and Patrick Spedding, 47–70. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316672037.004.
  • Montagne, Renee, and Miles Hoffman. “The ‘Irish Melodies’ Of Poet Thomas Moore.” Morning Edition. NPR, March 17, 2015. https://www.npr.org/2015/03/17/393530786/the-irish-melodies-of-poet-thomas-moore.
  • Moore, Thomas, and John Allen Stevenson. A Selection of Irish Melodies. Vol. 1. London and Dublin: James and William Power, 1808.
  • Piggott, Patrick. The Innocent Diversion: Music in the Life and Writings of Jane Austen. London: Cleverdon, 1979.

EP12: The Thing About Mary Crawford's Harp with guest Dr. Lidia Chang

10/3/2021

 
Mary Crawford is playing the harp over at the Mansfield Parsonage, and we've got front row seats to the hottest performance in town. If you have ever wondered about all those mornings Edmund spent listening to his "prime favourite," this episode is for you. Thank you so much to Dr. Lidia Chang for joining us for this discussion! You can find her online at www.lidiachang.com or follow her on Instagram @lidiaac.

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