Series

Philosophy and literature have been related to each other since the dawn of history, and it seems extremely difficult to draw a clear dividing line between them. At the point where philosophy raises fundamental questions about the world and human existence, it encroaches onto a topic area also addressed by poetry and literature, although they use different means in doing so. This means that the relationship between philosophy and literature is not limited to a collection of related or mutual themes, questions and issues, but that it also particularly involves the reciprocal exchange of forms and formats of philosophical and poetic spoken and written expression. This series of publications intends to shed greater light on the fascinating interconnections between philosophy and literature, their affinity, mutual complementarity and differences, and in doing so to investigate both the literary dimensions of philosophy and the philosophical dimensions of literature using relevant case studies and selected problems.

The series ‘Quellen zur Kunst’ (Examining Art through Sources) presents the works of art it examines from the perspective of one or several contemporary literary sources. The starting point for these examinations is the traditional understanding of a painting, sculpture, piece of architecture or graphic representation. The sources used can take the form of not only literary essays, artists’ statements and iconographic ensembles, but also, for example, pamphlets, chronicles or reviews.

This series of publications is primarily reserved for those works which pursue new avenues of cultural studies research in the humanities and also address interdisciplinary issues. First and foremost, therefore, it places particular emphasis on studies which are able to go beyond merely taking an, at times, overly isolated view of individual subjects by dealing with cultural studies issues and by broadening horizons.

Since 2015, monographs, anthologies and conference proceedings on subjects relating to the history of knowledge from literary studies and its related disciplines have been published in the series ‘Das Unsichere Wissen der Literatur’ (The Changeable Knowledge of Literature). In addition to reflecting methodically on the relationship between literary texts and discursive contexts, the series focuses on the diverse and partly contradictory functions of literature in the production, discussion and diffusion of cultural knowledge. If knowledge is understood as a process rather than substance, the changeable knowledge of literature with its fiction, fantasies and fakes proves to be a key factor in understanding processes of knowledge production which need to be constantly reappraised.

The series entitled ‘klang-reden. Schriften zur Musikalischen Rezeptions- und Interpretationsgeschichte’ (Tonal Discussions. Studies on the history of the reception and interpretation of music) was founded by the Institute for the History of Musical Reception and Interpretation in 2008. To date, the series has focused on Mozart, modern classical music, baroque music, popular music and methods used in musical interpretation research. One of its significant incentives in studying this field is, in particular, to place topics relating to musical practice in a clear context.

Since it was founded 100 years ago by the musicologist Willibald Gurlitt, the music department at the University of Freiburg has studied the history of music from the early Middle Ages to the present. The volumes in the series ‘Freiburger Beiträge zur Musikwissenschaft’ (the Freiburg Contributions to Musicology), which have been published under the title Voces since 1995, are dedicated to upholding this tradition. This title refers to the tradition of medieval solmisation, which was taught and used until during the 16th century and represents a key element in understanding medieval sources of music. In this respect, the publications in the series are intended to bring to life the works they focus on through historical and music theory source criticism in tandem with intensive analytical examinations, and in this way make them more understandable for readers today.