永井荷風とロマン・ロラン

――『ふらんす物語』における西洋音楽批評の位相――

抄録

　French Stories (Furansu-monogatari) is an anthology of short stories that reflects the experiences of the author, Nagai Kafū, during his stay in France. The anthology, banned just before its first release in 1909, included four critiques of Western music in the “appendices.” These critiques were first published in literary magazines, reflecting the growing interest in Western music at that time. This paper elucidates the relationship between Nagai Kafū and Romain Rolland and explores the topology of Kafū's music criticism.

　Romain Rolland is best known as the author of the roman-fleuve Jean-Christophe, but he was also a pioneer of musicology in France. In 1908, Rolland published Musicians-of-Today (Musiciens d'aujourd'hui), which delved into French and German music of his era. It is presumed that Kafū read this work during his stay in France.

　In his article “Recent Trends in Western Music,” Kafū cites Rolland's arguments, marking the first introduction of Rolland to the Japanese audience. By comparing this article to “Claude Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande” by Rolland, it becomes evident that Kafū is not merely echoing Rolland's views but rather expressing his own appreciation of French music. Furthermore, a comparison with other critiques by Rolland in Musicians-of-Today reveals that while Kafū was heavily influenced by Rolland's writings, he also incorporated his own musical experiences.

　I argue that The musical critiques in French Stories, coupled with Rolland's name as a music critic and his discourses, introduced contemporary Western music trends to Japan and showcased Kafū's aspirations as a music critic to the literary world of his era.