Absinthe
Since its introduction to the drinking community, absinthe has the most compelling history of any liqueur. The drink, nicknamed the green fairy, gained popularity in the artistic social circle. Among its devotees were Pablo Picasso, Oscar Wilde, Ernest Dowson, Edgar Allen Poe, Verlaine, and Vincent Van Gough. As time continued, absinthe soared in popularity, reaching the everyday, working-class man. By 1910, French refiners produced thirty-six million liters of absinthe a year (Kiffel). As the drink became increasingly popular, questions concerning the safety of the drink arose leading to bans by almost every European nation between the years 1912 and 1915. While its reign was short, absinthe signified early twentieth century counterculture, leading people to refer to it as “the drink of Parisian abandon” (Walsh).
Absinthe’s two main components were alcohol and thujone, a substance similar to THC. It was made out of a combination of aniseed, fennel, hyssop, and lemonbalm along with lesser amounts of angelica, star anise, dittany, juniper, nutmeg, and veronica (Baggot). These ingredients were mixed with wormwood plants and water. The mixture was then distilled. Dried herbs, including more wormwood, were added to the distillate, which was then diluted with alcohol to give it a concentration of seventy-five percent alcohol by volume (Walsh). If done correctly, the finished product had a mild green color and an extremely bitter taste.
In 1792, Pierre Ordinaire concocted absinthe as a cure-all. The potion remained in relative obscurity until Major Dubied bought the rites to the elixir. Within ten years, he established the Perrod-Fils absinthe company. In 1844, the French military purchased an immense ...
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...nd a threat to European culture. Starting with Sweden in 1912, absinthe was banned from almost every nation, ending with France in 1915.
Works Cited
Walsh, Don. “Absinthe & Thujone”. www.chem.ox.ac.uk/mom/absinthe/absinthe.html. This source provided information about the chemical makeup of absinthe. It also talked about the reasons for its ban and the possible health effects of the drink.
Kiffel, James. “Absinthe”. www.sepulchritude.com/chapelperilous/absinthe.html. (1997). This source provided a good historical view of the drink and its relation to the times in which it was popular.
Baggot, Mathew. “Facts about Absinthe.” www.sepulchritude.com/chapelperilous/absinthe/absinthe-faq.html. (1943). This source provided general information about absinthe such as its main components, the way it was drunk, and its relation to other alcoholic drinks.
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie, 20 vols. (London: Macmillan, 1980)9: 708-709
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TitleAuthor/ EditorPublisherDate James Galways’ Music in TimeWilliam MannMichael Beazley Publishers1982 The Concise Oxford History of MusicGerald AbrahamOxford University Press1979 Music in Western CivilizationPaul Henry LangW. W. Norton and Company1941 The Ultimate Encyclopaedia of Classical MusicRobert AinsleyCarlton Books Limited1995 The Cambridge Music GuideStanley SadieCambridge University Press1985 School text: Western European Orchestral MusicMary AllenHamilton Girls’ High School1999 History of MusicRoy BennettCambridge University Press1982 Classical Music for DummiesDavid PogueIDG Books Worldwide,Inc1997
Howard, John Tasker. Our American Music. 1946. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1954. 666. Print.
Art and substance are sometimes concomitant. One verdant drink, Absinthe, is a landmark to an era long passed among the modern age’s most brilliant artistic minds. Although originally used for medicinal treatment, it was consumed ravenously by such famous individuals such as Hemingway, Van Gogh, Degas in Parisian cafes. However, the rise of the prohibitionist movement and fear of its narcotic effects led to its ban across western Europe in 1915. Nevertheless, its resurging popularity stands as a testament to a yearning of the radicalism and change at the turn of the century.
Schulenberg, David. Music of the Baroque. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. ML193.S38 2001 c.2
This book by John Rupert Martin is a good introductory book in the understanding of Baroque artists and their tremendous variety. Martin defines the Baroque characteristics, but only very broadly leaving a significant amount of room for the reader to make his own deductions. In general, Martin believes that the typical definitions of the Baroque are "too restrictive and hence likely to create more problems of classification and interpretation than it solves." Even the time of the Baroque is left open to the reader when Martin says the Baroque is roughly comprehended by the seventeenth century. It is important to note at the outset that this is only a convenient approximation; for epoch as a whole can certainly not be fitted into such a strait-jacket." This helps to define the Baroque much more generally as a gradual change which can much easily be noticed from the present than the past.
The baroque has been called a theatrical style, one that deals in spectacle, grandeur, and dramatic contrast. Test these concepts in an essay that discusses the baroque as an expression of the Catholic Reformation, Protestant devotionalism, the Scientific Revolution, and the Age of Absolutism. Define your general statements with specific examples. The following essay will discuss the baroque period and how the Catholic Reformation, Protestant devotionalism, and the Scientific Revolution influenced it. The Baroque period generally refers to the years 1600 to1750. Classicism of the Renaissance has been replenished during the Baroque period. During the Baroque artistic period, the exploration of the fundamental components of human nature and the realm of senses and emotions were very crucial. The Baroque era was a very dynamic time that showed an abundance of radiance and color. Artists of this time were passionate and sensual. Their works were many times considered to have an overpowering emotional effect. The superficial form of light was fascinated during this period due to the thoughts of godlike sun or the truth of the Holy Spirit. The Baroque naturalism maintains the religious themes in content. The elements of perception in the Baroque art are how we perceived the natural human figures are in motion through space, time, and light. We present and analyze the extent of human actions and passions in all its degrees of lightness, darkness, and intensity. The scientific revolution also had a tremendous impact on art during this time. Scientists started to study the earth and it’s positioning in the universe. This was a time when the people started take more of an interest in astronomy and mathematical equations. During the time of the Catholic Reformation artists began to challenge all the rules that society has set for artistic design. Artist starting with Parmigianino, Tintoretto, and El Greco began to add a wide variety of colors into their paintings, challenging the way things have been done in the past. These artists also added abnormal figures or altered the proportions in paintings. This is displayed in Parmigianino’s painting, Madonna of the long neck. During this time the Catholic Church was in a transition period moving from their recent reputation and becoming a well-respected organization. During this reform, an autobiography written by Layola about Saint Teresa of Avila set a new tone for Catholics to follow. This influenced people to have a more spiritual outlook on life.
Berg, Darrell M. "Beethoven, Ludwig Van." The World Book Encyclopedia 1996. Vol. 2. Chicago, IL: World Book, 1996. 213-14. Print.
Even in the early times, alcohol was a key component in everyone’s lives. According to Tori Avey in “The Great Gatsby, Prohibition, and Fitzgerald” in colonial times people drank beverages containing alcohol at every meal. Weak beer and cider was the choice dinks in the 1700's (Avey). In the 1800's, farmers were able to cultivate more potent grains to make rum and whiskey (Avey). By 1830 men, 15 years and up, began drinking 88 bottles of whiskey per year; since then numbers have tripled (Avey). Men began losing their jobs, wasting paychecks, and neglecting their families. This called for a change.
Anthony, James R., H. Wiley Hitchcock, Edward Higginbottom, Graham Sadler, Albert Cohen. “French Baroque Masters.” The New Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians. W.W. Norton and Company, 1986. p. 1-63
Bonds, Mark Evan. A Brief History of Music in Western Culture. 1st. New Jersey: Pearson
Getzinger, Donna. Johnann Sebastian Bach and the art of baroque music. 1st ed. Greensboro: Morgan Reynolds, 2004
... the rumor. In December of 1981 they received 1,152 queries, about the rumor, and then by “June, however, the center was receiving more than 15,000 queries monthly”. In just a matter of months the Rumor had skyrocketed, and this information shows just how big the rumor actually was.
Warsh, Cheryl Krasnick. ""John Barleycorn Must Die": An Introduction to the Social History of Alcohol ." In Drink in Canada: Historical Essays , by Cheryl Karsnick Warsh, 3-26. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1993. (SUNY Stony Brook HV 5306.D75 1993)