Fetis's theory of harmony in nineteenth-century Europe: Historical and cultural context of the principle of tonality

Francois-Joseph Fetis (1784--1871) made two significant contributions to music-theoretical thought: he was responsible for giving the concept of tonality the centrality that it continues to enjoy, and his theory of harmony was the first to suggest that the music system of modern Europe was just one in a world where music systems change over time and where different music systems exist in different places. The serious study of almost any topic in nineteenth-century European music will bring the researcher to Fetis. His influence on his contemporaries was vast, and his influence on the development of modern ideas about musical repertoire, theory, history, education, and criticism can hardly be overstated. Considering his importance, it is regrettable that music theorists and musicologists who brush up against Fetis often exhibit lopsided views of his work, the result of a literature that lacks the synthesis of analytical depth and breadth necessary to form a complete picture of his musical legacy.;This dissertation analyzes Fetis's harmonic theory in the context of the wide scope of his other musical activities: the writing of music history, biography, and criticism; the musical education of conservatory students and society at large; the revival of medieval plainchant and medieval and Renaissance polyphony; and the exchange of ideas with other intellectuals and scientists in an effort to promote the status of musical study. In the process, the dissertation enlarges what we know about tonality as it was first conceptualized. Individual chapters address contemporary debates over Fetis's theory of harmony, Fetis's understanding of the tonal differences between common-practice music and the plainchant and polyphony that comprised the previous tonal era, and Fetis's view of tonality and musical ability as racial and national characteristics. With the theory of tonality as a way in, the examination of Fetis's broad musical engagement provides a rich perspective on the intellectual history and cultural context of music-theoretical ideas in nineteenth-century Europe.