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Outline

• Nationalism in music • Biography of Claude Debussy A New Type of Musical Coherence Module 17 of Music: Under the Hood • Analysis of Clair de lune

John Hooker Carnegie Mellon University

Osher Course October 2018

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Nationalism in Music Nationalism in Music

• Rise of ethic consciousness and nationalism • Rise of ethic consciousness and nationalism – Mid-to-late 19 th century – Led to nationalistic styles in music – Rooted in colonialism and development of the • During late Romantic era concept of “a culture.” • Often inspired by rejection • As described by of “development” new field of cultural • …and rejection of German anthropology. domination of music scene. • Whence self-conscious “national culture.” • Remains with us today, for better or worse. 3 4

Nationalism in Music Nationalism in Music

• Some nationalistic schools • Some nationalistic schools – Scandinavian – French • Edvard Grieg, Norway (1843-1907) • Georges Bizet (1838-1875) • Carl Nielsen, Denmark (1865-1931) • Claude Debussy (1862-1918) • Jan Sibelius, • (1875-1937) Finland (1865-1957) • Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)

Nielsen

Ravel

Grieg 5 6 Sibelius Bizet Saint-Saëns

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Nationalism in Music Nationalism in Music • Some nationalistic schools • Some nationalistic schools – Russian – German • Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) • Richard Wagner (1838-1875) • The “Russian Five” – Mily Balakirev (1837-1910) They took an – Cesár Cui (1835-1918) oath to avoid – Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) Rimsky-Korsakov development – Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908) in their music! – Alexander Borodin (1833-1887)

7 Mussorgsky 8 Tchaikovsky Borodin

Nationalism in Music Nationalism in Music

• Some nationalistic schools • Some nationalistic schools – British – Spanish • Edward Elgar (1857-1934) • Issac Albeniz (1860-1909) • Gustav Holst (1874-1934) • Manuel Da Falla (1876-1946) • Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) • Enrique Granados (1867-1916)

Da Falla Elgar Holst Vaughan Williams 9 Albeniz Granados 10

Nationalism in Music Nationalism in Music

• Some nationalistic schools • Some nationalistic schools – Czech/Slovak – Romanian • Antonin Dvo řák (1860-1909) • Georges Enescu (1881-1955) – Hungarian – Brazilian • Franz (Ferenc) Liszt (1811-1886) • Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazil (1887-1959)

Liszt

11 12 Dvo řák Enescu Villa-Lobos

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Biography Biography

• Claude Debussy, 1862-1918 • Career – Born into poor French family – Received Prix de Rome • Aunt paid for piano lessons, age 7. composition prize, age 22 – Entered Conservatoire, • Included 4-year fellowship in Italy age 10. • Left after 2 years. • Studied composition, etc., 11 years – Went to Bayreuth, age 28 – Sponsored by Nadezha • Strongly influenced by von Meck, ages 18-20 Wagner’s Tristan & Isolde, which pushed boundaries • She was wealthy patron of tonality. of Tchaikovsky • But later ridiculed the music in Golliwogg’s Cakewalk

13 14 Where Debussy was born

Biography Biography

• Career • Personal life – Musical milestones – Tumultuous • Suite Bergamasque , ages 28-33. • Various wives, • Prélude à l’après-midi d’une mistresses faune , age 32. • One of whom shot • Pelléas et Mélisande , opera, herself (but survived) age 40, after 10 years of work • “He was a very, very • La mer , age 43 strange man.” • Children’s Corner Suite, age 46 , • But was devoted to dedicated to his daughter . his daughter.

• Préludes for piano, first book, Debussy and daughter Claude-Emma his best composition for piano, age 48 15 16

Biography Biography

• Personal life • Approach to composition – Tumultuous – Perhaps not self-consciously nationalistic • Various wives, • But keenly interested in symbolist movement of French mistresses literature • One of whom shot – Discussions with Stéphane Mallarmé about Wagner, Edgar Allen Poe herself (but survived) – The purpose of art is “to depict not the thing but the effect it produces,” according to Mallarmé. • “He was a very, very strange man.” • But was devoted to his daughter.

– Died of cancer, Debussy and daughter Claude-Emma age 55. • Daughter died a year later from diptheria at age 14, due to doctor prescribing wrong medicine 17 Manet’s portrait of Mallarmé 18

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Biography Biography

• Approach to composition • Approach to composition – Perhaps not self-consciously nationalistic – Always experimental, on the cutting edge • Often identified with French impressionism in art • Departed somewhat from tonality. – Debussy himself rejected this identification • Nonstandard scales – He liked J. M. W. Turner. – Modes, whole-tone • Unclear what symbolism or impressionism can mean in a • Parallel and “nonfunctional” non-representational medium. harmonies. – La fille aux cheveux de lin (1:04) – We will see something similar from Jule Styne! • Late pieces are scarcely tonal. – Préludes, book 2

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Biography Biography

• Approach to composition • Legacy – Debussy’s fundamental challenge – Closed out the romantic era • Find a new type of musical coherence • Pushed tonal framework to the limit. • A new type of organization for an abstract medium • Even though Mahler, Bruckner were yet to come. – Innovative harmony influenced many • Stravinsky, Bartók, Boulez, Villa-Lobos, Ravel • Gershwin, Ellington, Strayhorn – Particular influence on jazz • 9th , 11 th , 13 th chords and other tensions.

Great Ravel piece: 21 Le tombeau de Couperin 22

Clair de Lune Clair de Lune

• Movement 3 of Suite Bergamasque • Perhaps Debussy’s best-known composition – 1890, substantially revised 1905. – Successfully blends traditional and novel techniques – Bergamasque = a type to achieve coherence. of country dance • Easy to follow because this early work relies primarily on traditional methods. • Clair de Lune (Moonlight) is not a dance! • Debussy originally called it Promenade sentimentale.

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Audio file Clair de Lune Approximate sonata A♭ E♭ A1 • Traditional organizational techniques allegro form: A1A2BA 3+Coda – Approximate sonata allegro form Melody consists of – Tonal center (D ♭ major) major triads. C A♭ F – Unifying motif V: A ♭ E♭ C A♭ – Melody based on major triads I: A♭ F D♭ 6 A classic technique. 7 IV I – Some traditional V-I cadences Compare with Mozart V I A • Debussy’s own techniques Classic V7-I cadence, D♭ 2 – Couplets then I-IV-I progression, relying on traditional 6 7 – Replace I-V-I with I-III ♭♭♭-I expectations. IV I

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I Couplets with approximate repetition Rhythmic motif

Melodic & rhythmic motif Couplets with almost literal repetition

III ♭♭♭ I III ♭♭♭ I-III ♭♭♭-I replaces I-V-I (pivot on A ♭) III ♭♭♭-I cadence, then Melodic & rhythmic remain in III ♭♭♭ motif (spelled as E major) . I III ♭♭♭ I III ♭♭♭ Couplets with almost E: vi 7 literal repetition B 27 28

47 Melodic & rhythmic V motif Return to recapitulation with V7-Imaj7 cadence. Couplets with (but suspended 4 th in V7, approximate repetition maj7 Tonic omitted from Imaj7 ) I III 7

A3

6 7 Fairly standard I V Couplets with almost progression. literal repetition

79 III 7 ii 7 V

7 vi 7 7 vi V7 Move to coda with ii traditional V7-I7

29 cadence 30

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I7 Coda Couplets , an ancient technique used in Hebrew poetry Couplets with (e.g. the Psalms of David) help the ear digest the music. approximate repetition Psalm 8 (KJV) [1] O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens . [2] Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies , that thou mightest still the enemy I III ♭♭♭ Couplets with almost and the avenger . literal repetition [3] When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; [4] What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, I-III ♭♭♭-I replaces I-V-I I III ♭♭♭ that thou visitest him? [5] For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. [6] Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: III Conclude with III ♭♭♭-I ♭♭♭ I [7] All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; cadence rather than V-I [8] The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. 31 [9] O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! 32

Audio file

Replace I-V-I with I-III ♭♭♭-I by pivoting on A♭

I V I I III ♭♭♭ I

A♭ A♭

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