Forum on Adorno, Music, and Society

Over the last 15 years Theodor Adorno’s writings have moved from the far fringe of American musical discourse to a position of substantial influence.  His work, although still controversial,  has opened up fresh outlooks on understanding the significance and social embeddedness of music.

Owing to the long delay in acknowledgement of Adorno's work in the professional musical community, many musicians are still unfamiliar with his writings, and many professional musicians would welcome the opportunity for an extended discussion of his output. Therefore, the editors of Search would like to invite its community of readers and members to a long-term forum on Adorno's  work and the subjects on which he focused much of his musical writing, namely the interrelationship between music society in the broadest sense.

The scope of Adorno's work was such that it is useful draw the focus onto certain topics. However, this forum will not be limited to the topics suggested.  Contributors are welcome to  contribute articles on other topics discussed by Adorno, and they are also welcome to contribute non-Adornian or even counter-Adornian interpretations of historical topics and societal analyses on which Adorno focused his attention. Creative artists are encouraged to offer papers explaining how they respond to these issues and integrate their response in their creative outlook.

Here are some suggestions on topics.

If submitting an article as a contribution to this forum, the phrase "Forum on Adorno, Music, and Society" should appear beneath the title of the article. Any further inquiries may be diirected to: searchjournal@gmail.com.