konferenz

[Michel Ryckx]

In addition to what Thomas wrote -it's a pretty good overview, some more.

Well, the Conference was very interesting.  It was opened by Hanjo Beressem and John Krafft (Hanjo Beressem: "this conference was partly made possible thanks to an
anonymous donation; every Pynchon conference ought to have at least one anonymous donator") and was dedicated to Stephen Tomaske by John.

As someone told me at the end of the conference: "there are two kinds of Pynchon scholars: those who tend to make things more difficult; and those who make things
more clear."  Though I am not at all familiar with such conferences, I think there was a certain tendency towards more historicizing, and less postmodernism -though
of the latter enough was present.

I was pretty impressed with the 'Radio Cologne Sound' lecture in the Cologne Musicological Department with a very clear explanation of the language, borrowed from
jazz,  mr. Pynchon uses in describing the happening in chapter 3.  Christoph von Blumröder  gave us also a fairly good idea on the evolution of Stockhausen's
compositions in radio cologne, and how it is meant to be heard.

On the lecture given by Luc Herman and Bruno Arich:  it is good to see how Thomas Pynchon's works can be used as a kind of 'gate' towards other insights; the work of
both scientists tend to get away from literature and more and more into history.  The trip to Dora, Peenemünde, two years ago, of some Pynchon scientists proves
indeed to be very fruitful.  Luc Herman told us a book is to be expected within two years.  You ought to have been there to hear the horrors described -up till
cannibalism in Dora.

To me, the most sensational lecture was the one given by Bernd Klähn.  He 'resolved' the log(cabin) formula -I think that was a first-, gave us  a lecture on how
Newton's calculus notation has been used by mr. Pynchon ( and that one turned out to be a Poisson distribution!).  And his comment on metaphors was actually very
funny.

It was very hot; luckily we had a lunch break at Sunday of three hours.  There we were, in sunny and friendly Cologne: Dirk Vanderbeke proved to be a very hard
critic of a lot of opinions on mr. Pynchon; our friend from Minsk, Alexei Lalo, who gave by the way very fresh insights during his lecture, talked with passion of
the bad perception of mr. Pynchon's works, and it was once again proven that art is not science.

The other p-listers present (Nika, Thomas, Douglas, . . .) were very kind.  And: Charles Hollander is very funny.  But we knew that, didn't we?

All in all, worth the trip: fine company, and drinks with strange names (how's it called again, Thomas?).

This is at random; maybe more later.

Thomas Eckhardt wrote:

[a pretty good overview of the conference]