ABSTRACT
The July Monarchy, led by its ‘Citizen-King’ Louis-Philippe, preferred a system of managers who undertook their work at their own financial risk. Much of the contest and competition that resulted from the licensing system may be explained by an analysis of power. The licensing system, as discussed here, is a clear example of what Michel Foucault called a ‘technology of power’, and like all technologies of power, it is subject to Foucault’s claim that ‘power is everywhere’. This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book. The book describes the order is important, and the current preference for privileging the vocal artist above other agents is one that is hard to square with the major shifts in cultural practice. It develops repertorial microcosm, far from home, points to the central feature of Parisian musical culture: the relationship of genre to questions of institution.
