{"id":1860,"date":"2018-03-21T14:05:02","date_gmt":"2018-03-21T14:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/?p=1860"},"modified":"2018-04-19T19:40:30","modified_gmt":"2018-04-19T19:40:30","slug":"experiencing-music-beyond-ones-fingertipsthe-musical-touch-of-helen-keller","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/?p=1860","title":{"rendered":"Experiencing Music Beyond One&#8217;s Fingertips:&nbsp;<br\/>The Musical Touch of Helen Keller"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-indent: 2em;\">In the journal <em>Musical America<\/em> during the 1910s there are reports on the musical listening experiences of American Helen Keller, a leading 20th-century author, political activist, lecturer, and champion of people with disabilities. Both deaf and blind as a result of a childhood illness, Keller became the first deaf-blind person to earn a bachelor of arts degree and subsequently traveled to more than twenty countries advocating for the rights and equal treatment of those with disabilities. In the spring of 1916, tenor Enrico Caruso gave a private performance for Keller.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent: 2em; text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1861 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"404\" height=\"574\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-keller.jpg 404w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-keller-211x300.jpg 211w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-keller-162x230.jpg 162w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 404px) 100vw, 404px\" \/><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\"><em>Musical America<\/em>, Vol. XXIV No. 4 (27 May 1916): 28<\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/V8JfWam3wVQ?rel=0&amp;start=1&amp;end=274\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent: 2em; text-align: left;\">The placement of Keller&#8217;s fingers on Caruso&#8217;s lips resulted in a mode of musical listening predominantly based on touch.\u00a0 But rather than acknowledge Keller&#8217;s use of touch as a means of listening to music, an unsigned brief report\u00a0in\u00a0<em>Musical America <\/em>conveyed skepticism if not bias. By referring to Keller&#8217;s tactile encounter with Caruso&#8217;s voice as having &#8220;heard&#8221; and &#8220;listened&#8221; (with quotations), the report promoted the misconception that conventional hearing is the only authentic musical experience; consequently, casting doubt on whether Keller was engaged in a veritable musical encounter at all.\u00a0 Unfortunately, this idea was popularly held in early 20th-century America.\u00a0 But for Keller, touch was a powerful faculty that extended far beyond its perceived limits:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">I think people do not usually realize what an extensive apparatus the sense of touch is. It is apt to be confined in our thoughts to the finger-tips.\u00a0 In reality, the tactual sense reigns throughout the body, and the skin of every part, under the urge of necessity, becomes extraordinarily discriminating.\u00a0 It is approximately true to say that every particle of the skin is a feeler which touches and is touched, and the contact enables the mind to draw conclusions regarding the qualities revealed by tactual sensation, such as heat cold, pain, friction, smoothness, and roughness, and the vibrations which play upon the surface of the body.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\">Helen Keller, <em>Midstream: My Later Life\u00a0<\/em>(New York: Doubleday, Doran &amp; Company, Inc., 1929), 256.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent: 2em; text-align: left;\">Below are more accounts, by Keller and by others that appeared in the same journal, reporting on her other tactile encounters with music.\u00a0 A testament to Helen Keller&#8217;s remarkable life and work, these texts serve as an historical reminder of the progress made in understanding the diverse manner in which music can be experienced.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1863 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"301\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-keller.jpg 301w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-keller-211x300.jpg 211w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-keller-162x230.jpg 162w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 301px) 100vw, 301px\" \/><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\"><em>Musical America<\/em>, Vol. XVIII No. 16 (23 August 1913): 10.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1864 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/3-keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"382\" height=\"308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/3-keller.jpg 382w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/3-keller-300x242.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/3-keller-285x230.jpg 285w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 382px) 100vw, 382px\" \/><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\"><em>Musical America<\/em>, Vol. XIX No. 19 (14 March 1914): 41.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-1865 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4-keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"529\" height=\"548\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4-keller.jpg 529w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4-keller-290x300.jpg 290w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4-keller-222x230.jpg 222w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 529px) 100vw, 529px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1866 \" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-Keller-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"267\" height=\"552\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-Keller-2.jpg 308w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-Keller-2-145x300.jpg 145w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/1-Keller-2-111x230.jpg 111w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 267px) 100vw, 267px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-1867 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-Keller-2-300x252.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"252\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-Keller-2-300x252.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-Keller-2-274x230.jpg 274w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/2-Keller-2.jpg 317w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\"><em><br \/>\nMusical America<\/em>, Vol. 21 No. 21 (27 March 1915): 35.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2077 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4.2-Keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"687\" height=\"342\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4.2-Keller.jpg 687w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4.2-Keller-650x324.jpg 650w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4.2-Keller-300x149.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/4.2-Keller-462x230.jpg 462w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 687px) 100vw, 687px\" \/>Jascha Heifetz playing for Helen Keller<br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: 70%;\"><em>The Musical Observer<\/em>, vol. 28 no. 10 (December 1929): 13.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1879 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/cnc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/5-keller.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"542\" height=\"640\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/5-keller.jpg 542w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/5-keller-254x300.jpg 254w, https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/5-keller-195x230.jpg 195w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 542px) 100vw, 542px\" \/><span style=\"font-size: 10pt;\"><em>Musical America, <\/em>vol. 25 no. 9 (30 December 1916): 6.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent: 2em;\">Fortunately, there is also video documentation of Helen Keller&#8217;s musical touch, this time listening to the opera singer Gladys Swarthout.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4YyhgVjRXFQ?rel=0&amp;start=2&amp;end=69\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><u>RIPM search tip<\/u>: To view more on Helen Keller in <em>Musical America, <\/em>access RIPM\u2019s Preservation Series: European and North American Music, and in \u201cAdvanced Search\u201d, fill in the following fields: Periodical =\u00a0<em>Musical America\u00a0<\/em>(New York, 1898-1899, 1905-1922 [-1964]); Keyword =Helen Keller.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">Click\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"http:\/\/ripm.org\/?page=cncsubscribe\"><strong>here<\/strong><\/a><\/span><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>to\u00a0subscribe to RIPM\u2019s\u00a0<em>Curios, News, and Chronicles!\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>When is our next posting?\u00a0To find out, follow us on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RIPMCenter\">Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RIPMCenter\/\">Facebook<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">***<\/p>\n<p>RIPM\u00a0is an international non-profit organization preserving and providing\u00a0access to\u00a0music periodicals published in more than twenty countries between approximately 1760 and 1966, from Bach to Bernstein. Functioning\u00a0under the auspices of the International Musicological Society, and the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives, and Documentation Centres, RIPM produces four electronic publications: Retrospective Index to Music Periodicals, Retrospective Index to Music Periodicals with Full Text, European and North American Music Periodicals (Preservation Series), and RIPM Jazz Periodicals (Preservation Series, forthcoming).<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ripm.org\/\"><strong>WWW.RIPM.ORG<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the journal Musical America during the 1910s there are reports on the musical listening experiences of American Helen Keller, a leading 20th-century author, political activist, lecturer, and champion of people with disabilities. Both deaf and blind as a result of a childhood illness, Keller became the first deaf-blind person to earn a bachelor of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-curioschronicles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1860"}],"version-history":[{"count":61,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1860\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2385,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1860\/revisions\/2385"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cnc.ripm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}