Abstract

This dissertation explores the nature and musicological significance of philosophical/musical conceptions found in the writings of Robert Fludd , an English physician and philosopher. As a historical figure, Fludd has been connected with seventeenth-century natural science, the so-called "Rosicrucian Movement" in Germany and England, and the late stages of what modern historians refer to as Renaissance Hermeticism, with its occult and magical resonances. As a musical figure, however, he remains virtually unknown. ;This dissertation demonstrates that in addition to his general historical significance, Fludd also had a connection with the history of seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century music, particularly in Germany, a connection that has remained largely unexplored by modern scholars. Proceeding against the backdrop of the ancient philosophical/musical tradition from which he emerged, the study examines Fludd's philosophical/musical writings and shows that while largely ignored by his musical contemporaries and most subsequent musical writers, these writings were known and even held in fairly high regard by a handful of German Baroque musical writers including such important figures as Athanasius Kircher, Andreas Werckmeister, and Johann Walther. It also shows that philosophical/musical ideas traceable in part to Fludd's works played a tangible rule within the complex and still only partially explored German Baroque musico-theoretical tradition. Finally, it shows that this predominantly German interest in Fludd is but one manifestation of a deeper German theoretical interest in aspects of occult thought. ;Chapters examine the biographical details of Fludd's life, address the historical/philosophical sources and general details of Fludd's thought, isolate and examine these sections of Fludd's published works which deal with music, explore the nature and extent of Fludd's influence on subsequent musical thought, and address the broader implications of Fludd's influence