A Performance Guide of Cécile Chaminade’s Early Piano Works: Piano Sonata Op. 21, Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35, and Concertstück Op. 40
A document submitted to the
Graduate School
of the University of Cincinnati
in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Musical Arts
in the Division of Keyboard Studies
of the College-Conservatory of Music
by
Hyuna Park
M.M., Cleveland Institute of Music, 2013
B.M., Sookmyung Women’s University, Korea, 2009
Committee Chair: Michael Chertock, MM.
Abstract
Cécile Louise Stéphanie Chaminade (1857–1944) was a successful French composer during her heyday, who composed over four hundred works, toured Europe and the United
States, and inspired numerous clubs dedicated to the study and performance of her music.
Despite her one-time celebrity, Chaminade is now remembered as a salon composer and for a handful of compositions, mostly character pieces. This document examines her Piano Sonata,
Op. 21, Six Concert Etudes, Op. 35, and Concertstück, Op. 40, three large scale, virtuosic piano works composed in the 1880s which helped to launch her career both as a composer and a performer, though this style would eventually give way to works of a more intimate quality. For each piece, I will provide a performer’s guide that will explore musical issues as well as background that will help to situate these works in her overall output.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor, Professor Michael Chertock, for giving me continuous support and encouragement during this process. Without his insightful suggestions and guidance, this document would not have been possible.
I would like to express my deepest appreciation to my committee, Professor James Tocco and Professor Dr. Dror Biran, for giving me invaluable advice and warm support which have contributed greatly to the improvement of the document.
I would like to express a heartfelt thank you to my parents, Yongsul Park and Yesoon Suh, for supporting me with unconditional trust and love. Also, I am extremely grateful to my grandparents, Byungie Suh and Manyeop Kim, for supporting me spiritually with prayers throughout my life.
I thank my beloved husband, Don Kim, for endless love and support. He has been my best friend and wonderful companion who helped me to get through all this period.
First and foremost, I would like to thank my God for giving me the strength, ability, and opportunity to complete this document.
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Table of Contents
Abstract ...... ii
Acknowledgement ...... iv
Table of Contents ...... v
List of Musical Examples ...... vi
List of Tables ...... viii
Chapter
1. Introduction ...... 1
2. Piano Sonata Op. 21 ...... 6 A. General information about the work ...... 6 B. Selected recordings ...... 6 C. Reception ...... 9 D. Musical Aspects ...... 9 E. Performance suggestions ...... 27
3. Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35 ...... 30 A. General information about the work ...... 30 B. Selected recordings ...... 31 C. Reception ...... 33 D. Musical Aspects ...... 35 E. Performance suggestions ...... 44
4. Concertstück Op. 40 ...... 46 A. General information about the work ...... 46 B. Selected recordings ...... 46 C. Reception ...... 48 D. Musical aspects ...... 53 E. Performance suggestions ...... 70
5. Conclusion ...... 71
Bibliography ...... 72
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List of Musical Examples
Example 1. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 1–8 ...... 10
Example 2. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 30–35 ...... 11
Example 3. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 36–40 ...... 11
Example 4. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 57–62 ...... 12
Example 5-1. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 78–84 ...... 14
Example 5-2. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 100–104 ...... 14
Example 5-3. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 128–133 ...... 15
Example 6. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 134–141 ...... 18
Example 7. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 195–198 ...... 18
Example 8. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 1–8 ...... 20
Example 9. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 40–45 ...... 20
Example 10. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 1–24 ...... 23
Example 11–1. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 153–155 ...... 37
Example 11–2. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 177–182 ...... 37
Example 12. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Scherzo, mm. 1–5 ...... 39
Example 13. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Automne, mm. 1–4 ...... 39
Example 14. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 1–3 ...... 40
Example 15. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Appassionato, mm. 1–3 ...... 41
Example 16. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Impromptu, mm. 1–6 ...... 41
Example 17. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Tarentelle, mm. 1–6 ...... 42
Example 18-1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 1–4 ...... 56
vi Example 18-2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 132–139 ...... 56
Example 19–1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 8–14 ...... 57
Example 19–2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 23–25 ...... 58
Example 19–3. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 61–72 ...... 58
Example 19–4. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 140–145 ...... 59
Example 19–5. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 288–294 ...... 60
Example 20–1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 92–101 ...... 61
Example 20–2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 334–336 ...... 61
Example 21–1. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 107–112 ...... 62
Example 21–2. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 118–122 ...... 62
Example 22. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 121–124 ...... 65
Example 23. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 63–64 ...... 66
Example 24. Chaminade Concertstück, piano reduction, mm. 64–67 ...... 67
Example 25. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 20–30 ...... 68
Example 26. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 243–250 ...... 69
vii List of Tables
Table 1. Citron, the formal analysis of the first movement of Chaminade’s Piano Sonata Op. 21
...... 16
Table 2. Oh, the formal analysis of the first movement of Chaminade’s Piano Sonata Op. 21
...... 17
Table 3. Chaminade, Structure of Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35 ...... 35
Table 4. Chaminade, Structure of Concertstück Op. 40 ...... 54
viii Chapter 1. Introduction
Cécile Louise Stephanie Chaminade (1857–1944) was a French composer and pianist active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. She composed over four hundred works, over half of which are piano pieces. In general, her musical style belongs to the Romantic tradition rather than more contemporary trends like Impressionism and Expressionism. Many of her works showcase a clear tonality and tuneful melody rather than explorations of ambiguous harmonies and scales whose ultimate goal is in evoking mood through those techniques. She toured extensively in Europe and the United States earning both wealth and notoriety. In
America, the degree of her popularity can be seen in the over two hundred clubs organized in her honor. In the decades after her death, Chaminade’s music was largely forgotten until the work of scholars like Marcia Citron renewed interest on her life and works.
In her day, she was best known as a composer of salon music. Indeed, the bulk of her music is for piano, a high percentage of which are character pieces with tuneful melodies and simple ternary structures (of these, La Lisonjera from Op. 50 is especially beautiful). Despite composing numerous character pieces and melodies throughout her life suitable for a salon setting, Chaminade composed various larger genres of music especially in the 1880s such as orchestral works, opera, and large-form piano solo works. Among such works are La Sévillane,
Op. 19, Suite D’Orchestre, Op. 20, Les Amazones, Op. 26, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35,
Concertstück, Op. 40, and Piano Sonata, Op. 21. Many of these works were successful. The Suite
D’Orchestra was performed by the Société Nationale de Musique, a concert series dedicated to
1 the promotion of young French composers’ music.1 Her ballet music Callirhoë, Op. 37 was quite popular and was performed throughout France, and a couple of the numbers from this ballet, including the Air de Ballet, Pas des Echarpes were especially loved by audiences. Among all her large works, Concerstück became her most performed and successful piece. She wrote her memory of the success of Concerstück in the magazine Etude in 1911.
In 1889, I at last came before the public at one of the Lamoureux, with a Concertstück for piano and orchestra….It was a success, and, to tell a long story in few words, it was the beginning of my public career. My reputation had commenced.2
Despite success in these larger genres, from the 1890s on, she focused more on small- scale forms. Citron provides two possible reasons for this shift: financial troubles caused by the death of her father in 1887 and negative reviews directed at female composers of large genres.
Though it can be difficult to prove her real motives in changing directions, one does see that
Chaminade was influenced by conventional views towards musical style and genres, but used them for her own purposes in establishing and maintaining a very successful career.
This document will provide a performance guide of Chaminade’s three main piano works from the 1880s, the Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Concertstück, Op. 40, and the Piano Sonata,
Op. 21, by identifying pertinent background information of each including critical reception and contemporary scholarly (feminist) readings as well as exploring musical elements such as melodic and harmonic writing, formal attributes, techniques and other aspects in order to aid performers in interpreting these important works.
1 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 5.
2 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 7.
2 In a sense, all three of these pieces are problematic within Chaminade’s pianistic output.
They were highly individualistic approaches to long-established nineteenth-century forms, but their contribution to Chaminade’s eventual success as a composer/pianist was minimal. The sonata was almost unknown in her lifetime, the etudes, despite their higher level of difficulty became associated with her more intimate later pieces, and the Concertstück was met with mixed and often competing reviews.
These pieces also take part in the more gendered aspects of Chaminade’s reception that is a large part of her legacy. Although the charming and graceful melodies with simple structure had great impact on her audiences, her musical style was relegated to that of salon music and the larger pieces mostly ignored. A review by the critic George Lowe in The Musical Standard states that “[Chaminade’s music] is just ‘salon’ music, but salon music of the most refined and pleasing kind.” He continues, “It would be foolish to contend that Mlle. Chaminade ranks with the really great composers, for her style is too limited for her to do so.”3 A review from the Philadelphia
Inquirer in 1908 presents a similar view:
It must be said in all frankness that Madame Chaminade is not a great composer nor a pianist of the first rank. That is conceded by herself, as is understood….She has a very pretty sentiment and reaches a peculiar vein of romanticism that others have not been able to touch…It was a pleasing exposition of popular form of music.4
In much of the criticism directed at her music, the notions of sentimentality, pleasingness, and other associations to perceived feminine qualities are common ideas put forth. And while the
3 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 185.
4 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 181.
3 etudes could be put into this “salon” music category, the other two pieces could not. The
Concertstück was often criticized precisely because it didn’t demonstrate enough feminine qualities. While it was sometimes praised for its colorful orchestration and virtuosity, other critics found the piece was “too virile” and lacking in feminine features. It is not difficult to speculate which features caused concern with some critics. The dense, motivic, sonata-form driven music with heavy orchestration—noticed by several critics—can only be understood in terms of other concert pieces of the nineteenth century rather than the salon.
It is interesting that the Sonata, virtually ignored during her lifetime, has become an important part of her recent reception due to Marcia Citron’s use of the work in her gendered criticism of the canon and nineteenth century views of sonata form.5 Starting with A. B. Marx’s famous dichotomy of the “masculine” and “feminine” themes discussed in his book Die Lehre von der musikalischen Komposition (1845), Citron argues for the progressive nature of
Chaminade’s treatment. Marx’s formula is as follows:
In this pair of themes…the first theme is the one determined at the outset, that is, with a primary freshness and energy- consequently that which is energetically, emphatically, absolutely shaped…the dominating and determining feature. On the other hand, the second theme…is the [idea] created afterward [Nachgeschaffne], serving as a contrast, dependent on and determined by the former-consequently, and according to its nature necessarily, the milder [idea], one more supple [schmiegsam] than emphatically shaped, as if it were [gleichsam] the feminine to that preceding masculine. In just this sense each of the two themes is different, and only with one another [do they constitute something] higher, more perfect.6
5 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993).
6 James Hepokoski, “Masculine. Feminine. Are Current Readings of Sonata Form in Terms of a ‘Masculine’ and ‘Feminine’ dichotomy Exaggerated? James Hepokoski Argues for a More Subtle Approach to the Politics of Musical Form,” The Musical Times 135, no. 1818 (August, 1994): 494.
4 Citron interpret Op. 21 from this context, arguing that the second theme of the first movement includes both masculine and feminine images especially from the tranquillo section in m. 36 unlike the typical feminine nature of second themes:
It seems to have feminine traits in the “tranquillo” indication, the lyricism, softer dynamic level (mp), and thinner texture (only one voice initially). The masculine, however, emerges in the retention of the home key, the strongly functional harmonies after the other voices enter, and arguably the fact of a fughetta.7
Her approach which centers around narrative images created in this movement is an important reading for anyone playing the sonata.
The following chapters will provide detailed studies of the background, reception, and stylistic aspects of each of each of these pieces and will help continue the renewed interest in
Chaminade’s music.
7 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 151–152.
5 Chapter 2. Piano Sonata Op. 21
General information about the work
Among her piano works, Piano Sonata Op. 21 is her largest form for solo piano. It was dedicated to Moritz Moszkowski (1854–1925), who was the husband of Chaminade’s sister.8
While the work was probably written in the late 1880s and contains a relatively early opus number, it was first published in 1895 by the Enoch publishing company. However, the last movement “Appassionato” was published earlier in 1886 as the fourth etude in the Six Etudes de
Concert, Op. 35.9 Only one record of Chaminade performing this work exists: a concert that included the first movement in London in 1893.10
Selected recordings
Chaminade: Piano Music Vol 3. /Peter Jacobs, piano/Hyperion/1995
The English pianist Peter Jacobs recorded the Sonata Op. 21 in the third volume of a series of Cécile Chaminade’s works for piano solo.11 The complete series is available through
8 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 21.
9 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 147.
10 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 38.
11 Each volume was recorded in 1991, 1993, and 1995, and includes many of Chaminade’s works for piano solo.
6 Hyperion’s online site. Overall, the most noticeable expressive choice Peter Jacobs made lies in his attention to the varieties of tempo marked by Chaminade. He follows her instructions carefully and his playing is characteristically free in nature. In the second movement, Jacobs takes a slower Andante than in the other recordings and his playing is a minute longer than
Louise Cheadle’s 8:21, and two minutes longer than Joanne Polk’s 7:05. His interpretation emphasizes the rhapsodic quality of this movement and he differentiates it from the powerful and driving natures of the outer two movements. The third movement is Jacobs’s weakest movement with over-pedaling getting in the way of clear presentation of the notes. Also distracting is that sometimes the performer accents at the wrong time or ignores an expression in a manner inconsistent with the playing of the first two movements.
The Flatterer: Piano Music of Cecile Chaminade/Joanne Polk, piano/Steinway
&Sons/September 9, 2014
The pianist Joanne Polk recorded Chaminade’s Sonata Op. 21 in her album “The
Flatterer.” The album also includes the Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35, Etude Melodique, Etude
Symphonique, Etude Romantique, Etude Pathetique, and two character pieces, “La Lisonsera” and “Les Sylvians,” which were extremely popular in Chaminade’s day. This album is easily accessible through Naxos music and can currently be found on YouTube. Also, a short video made by Polk for WQXR is useful. This video, released during women’s history month in 2018, includes a short description of the piece and the first movement of sonata. Polk is a well-known interpreter of female composers’ music, and she has released recordings of the music of Clara
Schumann, Fanny Mendelssohn, and Amy Beach, among others.
7 One of the most distinct features of this recording is that Polk rests between sections in the first movement for a greater amount of time in comparison to the other recordings. Especially noticeable between the first big cadence and the first appearance of the second theme, this approach captures perfectly the kind of tonal and structural closure Marcia Citron suggested in her book “Gender and the musical canon,”12 and it helps along with other stylistic choices to reinforce the nuanced readings of the themes Citron and others have suggested. Further, the detached-style interpretation of the fugal transition and the recall of the second theme before the coda are great examples for performers who want to interpret the piece in the context of gender related issues.
Virtuoso Piano Music/Louise Cheadle/CD Baby Independents/2003
This recording includes Chaminade’s Piano Sonata Op. 21, Arabesque Op. 61, Toccata
Op. 39 and Fanny Mendelssohn’s Sonata in C minor. It is accessible through Spotify and
Amazon music. Compared to Polk’s recording, Louise Cheadle’s interpretation of the first appearance of the second theme is totally different in nature. After strong and aggressive first theme presentation, she differentiates the second theme by choosing slower tempo and she maintains a legato style throughout the second theme, which, along with copious use of rubato, create a very romantic and intimate character. The pianist again chooses a totally different tempo in the meno messo section of the middle of the first movement. Her emphasis on and slower playing of the hymn-like nature of the second theme’s presentation during the recapitulation separates it from the earlier iteration. In the second movement, her interpretation of the accents
12 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 151.
8 help to interrupt the flow and give a rhapsodic quality of the movement. Also, in the third movement she continues to exaggerate the accents disturbing the driving energy of the movement. Overall, even though an intimate and romantic interpretation is quite noticeable, over-pedaling and excessive use of accents in the second movement and the third movement make the piece less dramatic.
Reception
There is no contemporaneous review of this sonata. It was not performed in her lifetime except the one concert including the first movement from 1893. Marcia Citron concludes that piece can be seen “a sort of composer’s music” in that it was written for herself rather than for performance.13
Musical aspects
Overall, the forms are of special importance to understanding the piece as none of the three movements fit neatly into normative nineteenth-century formal procedures, and they all proceed with interesting decisions that can provide disparate interpretive readings. The first movement of the sonata shows the strong influence of the Germanic tradition and especially
Beethoven in terms of its use of themes and motivic development; it is a sonata form, but includes elements of prelude and fugue and ternary structure.14 Elements of both ternary form and sonata form exist in the second movement. The third movement is essentially ternary but as
13 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 21.
14 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 147.
9 each section focuses on a virtuosic technical display rather than thematic writing, a certain rhapsodic quality is noticeable. As this movement was originally written and published as an etude (“Appassionato”) in the 6 concert etudes, Op. 35, it is easy to see the reason for this approach.
The first movement
The first movement consists of two main themes and their dialogue creates an unusual formal problem. The first theme in C minor begins in the left hand. It is aggressive, chromatic and built out of two-measure motives that sweep up and down but move progressively higher
(Ex. 1). The entire theme is stated again in G minor.
Example 1. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 1–8
Abrupt changes of rhythmic writing and tempos lend an aggravated and disruptive quality to the theme until it ultimately culminates in a large authentic cadence in C minor (Ex. 2).
10 Example 2. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 30–35
The transition is highly unusual. It is a statement of material that will be the Second theme, but it is first heard in C minor as a fugue (Ex. 3). The fugue dissolves into E-flat major and the second theme is stated (Ex. 4). Chaminade plays with expectations several more times in this movement.
Example 3. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 36–40
11
Example 4. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 57–62
Where the exposition ends and the development begins is open to debate as is the recapitulation. There are two analyses of this movement and comparing the analysis of Citron and Sun Young Oh shows interesting results which coupled with my own observations should benefit performers of this piece.
Citron has provided an important analysis of this first movement that situates its many deformations in terms of gendered politics of the late nineteenth century and posits several readings of its narrative. In terms of form, Citron refuses to view this movement as a sonata form but rather notices its procedural similarities to prelude and fugue and ternary forms as well. This reading allows her to emphasize the different nature of the second theme in contrast to the normative gendered approach she sees in nineteenth-century sonata forms. For instance, the end of the first theme is especially important and she writes:
Another means by which Chaminade marks the unusual nature of the second theme is that it is not led into smoothly and gradually with music that implies continuation. Instead it is preceded by a grand flourish of runs and fortissimo
12 cadential chords that spell closure: not just tonal closure but structural closure of a movement or composition. Thus, when the fughetta begins we have a sense of a new piece beginning-as if the previous music has been a grand preparatory gesture for the main music at hand, perhaps similar to a prelude-like section that precedes a fugue.15
With some synthesis of these three forms (sonata, prelude and fugue, and ternary) then,
Citron reads this movement as a three-part work in which the first section consists of the first theme, the second theme and the themes in fragmentation (133 measures), a short second section containing the second theme (mm. 134–58), and a final section that presents the first theme, a four-measure “re-call” of the second theme, and a coda. As her stated chief concern in looking at this music is the “ambivalent” relationship between tonal stasis and harmonic, this formal reading works well to present this dialogue.
Unfortunately, the other formal analysis of this movement by Oh fails to provide an adequate reading. Oh simply changes the designations of Citron’s explanation back to those of sonata form while maintaining Citron’s measure numbers and events. So, she reads the first 133 measures as the exposition, with the second theme beginning with the fugue in m. 43, and
“themes in fragmentation” beginning in m. 80. The development is then mm. 134–58—what
Citron had called section II—and the recapitulation is mm. 159 to the end and includes the second theme (which is four measures). As Citron was not thinking in terms of sonata form, Oh’s misreading of this analysis not only misses Citron’s point, but also presents a skewed sonata form. MM. 80–133 look, feel, and sound like a development section: it is harmonically ambiguous and modulatory; it fragments both of earlier themes and varies them in motivic writing; and it makes its way back to the tonic by the end of the passage (Ex. 5-1, 5-2, and 5-3).
15 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 149–151.
13 For a performer, there is little reason to call this material or to understand it as anything other than the development.
Example 5-1. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 78–84
Example 5-2. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 100–104
14 Example 5-3. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 128–133
Furthermore, mm. 36–58 look, feel, and sound like a transition between the first and second themes. It certainly consists of fugal writing (unusual as it may be) with its subject a foreshadow of the second theme, but as in countless previous transitions, it begins in the tonic
(Cm) and modulates by the end to the relative major (E-flat). So, again, if one is viewing this movement as a sonata form, then there is no reason not to call this section a transition.
Formally—from the perspective of sonata form—, the odd event is in the recapitulation when the second theme comes before the first theme, and that by beginning it in A-flat major it causes another use of the third relationship as it modulates back to Cm. In all, the first movement is complex form that requires a high level of thought to express it properly.
15 Table 1. Citron, the formal analysis of the first movement of Chaminade’s Piano Sonata Op. 2116
Section 1 (133 measures) Section 2 (25 measures) Section 3 (52 measures)
First theme: (35 measures) Tonally static (25 measures) First theme (35 measures) Tonic Closes in Tonic Second theme: in 3 stable Second theme re-call (4 statements (134–45) measures) Second theme: fugue & immediate aftermath Build-up to first theme (146– Coda (13 measures): Built on (43 measures) 58) first theme Tonic (fugue)-E flat major-A flat major
Themes in fragmentation: (46 measures)
First theme (80–83)
Second theme (83–97)
First theme (97–126)
Closing flourish (126–133) Similar to last 7 measures of piece
Ends in Tonic
16 Marcia J. Citron, Gender and the Musical Canon (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 150.
16 Table 2. Oh, the formal analysis of the first movement of Chaminade’s Piano Sonata Op. 2117
Sections Measures Themes Keys Exposition Theme 1 mm. 1–35 C minor Theme 2 (fugue) mm. 36–79 C minor-modulation Themes in mm. 80–133 Modulation-C minor fragmentation : Theme 1 mm. 80–82 Modulatory Theme 2 mm. 83–97 Modulatory Theme 2 mm. 98–125 Modulatory Closing flourish mm. 126–133 C minor Development Theme 1 mm. 134–145 A flat major Transition mm. 146–158 Modulatory Recapitulation Theme 1 mm. 159–194 C minor Theme 2 mm. 195–198 C minor Coda mm. 199–211 C minor
The second theme presents several problems even when accepting this movement as sonata form. Not counting the fragmented statements in the development, the second theme is heard in four distinct places in this movement: in the first transition as a fugal subject (in Cm)
(Ex. 3), in the secondary material (Ex. 4), at the beginning of the recapitulation (Ex. 6), and in between the recapitulation’s restatement of the first theme and the coda (Ex. 7).
17 Sun-Young Oh, “The Piano Works of Cécile Chaminade (1857–1944)” (DMA thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2000), 49.
17 Example 6. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 134–141
Example 7. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the first movement, mm. 195–198
Even without a gendered reading, it is obvious that this theme is crucial to the understanding and expression of this form. Even the consideration of what constitutes the secondary theme is problematic. Citron calls the four measures statement of the secondary theme heard before the coda a “re-call,” and indeed, though she doesn’t mention it, it is quite
18 reminiscent of the idee fixé re-call heard in the fourth movement of Berlioz’s Symphonie
Fantastique. In this place, it sounds like a reduced and truncated quote of the second theme.
However, the main problem with the second theme is that in all of its previous incarnations it was also routinely interrupted by other passage-work music and these passage-work materials are never the same whether in the fugal transition, the secondary theme, or the recapitulation’s restatement of the secondary theme. Therefore, the melody that serves as the four measure “re- call” (really, it is two measures and a downbeat) had been the extent of the secondary theme in its early settings. It changes keys, and it changes harmonies, but other than that it never significantly changes. The changes to the passage-work interruptions make up the differences.
The second movement
The form of the second movement can be labelled both as ternary form and sonata form.
Three sections are divided by key signature. The A section is from the measure 1 to 39 and it is in A-flat major. The second section in B major is from measure 40 until 80. The last section is from measure 81 until the end and the key is back to the tonic. The movement can be seen as a ternary form in that A sections bookend a middle contrasting section.
However, the movement also has features of sonata form. Two contrasting musical materials from section A and B can be seen as the first and the second theme. The first theme is built out of rich, thick chords with a great deal of chromatic motion, and its rhythmic material is mainly based on dotted eighth note and sixteenth notes (Ex. 8). The second theme has a more lyrical and static quality compared to the first theme (Ex. 9).
19 Example 8. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 1–8
Example 9. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 40–45
It is more persuasive to define this movement as sonata form in that two contrasting themes are presented, and ultimately the second theme is resolved to the tonic in the last section.
In this sense, the movement can be divided in the following way: the exposition is from the
20 beginning to 51 and includes the first and second themes; the development section starts in measure 52 and ends in 83; and the recapitulation is from 84 until the end. Here, the first theme is more prominent that in the exposition, and the second theme is presented in the sub-dominant before the resolution back to the tonic. The problem lies in the development. There is little reworking of the themes in the traditional sense. Rather, it presents the first theme material briefly, and second in virtually the same format as elsewhere in the movement.
The third movement
The third movement is different in nature to the first two movements. Virtuosic technical display is the most prominent feature rather than thematic writing. The movement’s form is ternary and each section is based on a technique. The first 50 measures consist of alternating fifth and sixth chords. The middle section, from measures 51 to 114, is octave focused, and the continuous sustained octaves in the left hand under accented notes in the right hand make for a more lyrical sound compared to the earlier sections. After that, the A section reappears, but with technical problem is now sixteenth-note triplets. In general, the succession of techniques creates rhapsodic quality to the piece rather than an emphasis on the formal possibilities.
Melodic writing
Though significant variety exists between the themes throughout the sonata, and they differ in mood, quality, and expression, Chaminade builds her melodies in relatively consistent ways. In general, she uses regular, 4-bar type phrasing, though short two-measure phrases are often combined to form larger units. The first and second themes of movement one, the second theme of movement two, and arguable the difficult technique oriented material of the third
21 movement work in this manner. One exception to this general rule is the first theme of the second movement which has a much more irregular characteristic. The beginning of each phrase begins similarly if not the same, but each includes differing prolonging material to conclude the phrase. This opening passage can be divided into four phrases, with seven measures in the first, eight in the second, nine in the third, and with the fourth phrase being a more continuous thought that plays with the main motives of the phrase and lasts fifteen measures (Ex. 10). This segment, other than the etude style of the third movement, constitutes the most motivic based writing in the sonata as the initial motive—a dotted-eighth rhythm in the melody over chromatic motion in the bass—is generally present in most of the moments along the way.
22
Example 10. Chaminade, Piano Sonata, Op. 21, the second movement, mm. 1–24
23 The second basic way that Chaminade creates her themes is in using development as part of the method to create larger and often soaring melodies. We see this with the very motivic approach in the second movements first theme, shown above, but it also exists in the first movement’s first theme, the second movement’s second theme and the melodic material of the third movement. In these cases, a two measure opening gesture is continued in the next phrases though with varying degrees of expansion and manipulation. In the first movement’s first theme, the basic half-note followed by ascending eighths in a broken chord idea, is stated several times each progressively getting a little higher until it comes back down. The second theme in the second movement is built out of two ideas: the first is a two-measure lyrical gesture, the second is, like in the first theme of the first movement, a short motivic idea that every time its heard in the next 6 bars rises slightly. This approach to melodic writing fits into the idea of soaring melodies so common in nineteenth-century music. The third movement, though much simpler in terms of melodic or thematic construction, also presents the material in this basic manner. The successive chord passage in the third section shows this rhythmic variation that forms larger units of material.
Interruption is another approach important to Chaminade’s melodic and thematic writing.
The second theme of the first movement is very interesting in that it is a two-measure, lyrical melody that is heard many times, but never developed or varied much at all. Instead, Chaminade keeps interrupting it with differing passage-work-like materials. When it is heard in the fugal transition, a sequential pattern quickly ends its presence. In the secondary group, it is heard twice, first interrupted by very fast broken octaves, then a more complicated chordal passage. In the recapitulation as it is heard three times in a chorale-like manner, it is interrupted each time by another—this time descending—chordal passage. Even the “recall” of the theme heard at the end
24 gives way to material that is similar to the beginning. The second theme of the second movement also has this affect. The first two-measure gesture, which is likewise never developed, is interrupted each time by the next part of the phrase which is quite different in character
(animato), but this entire phrase is also interjected with a phrase from the movement’s opening theme. Chaminade plays with expectations by seemingly cutting short these lyrical moments.
Other aspects of Chaminade’s melodic writing include us of internal repetitions, arch-like phrases melodies with a strong rhythmic sense. All in all, the sonata has a striking consistency in the manner in which these melodies and themes are put together despite being use to great contrasting affect.
Rhythmic writing
In the sonata, Chaminade’s rhythmic writing is essentially regular and rhythmic motives quite frequent. Themes and their development usually employ one or two rhythmic motives. The material that is mostly passage work including the majority of the third movement is usually built out of consistent rhythms like steady triplets or sixteenth-notes. Often these passage works utilize back and forth between the hands. There is little to no use of hemiolas, polyrhythms or other more complicated rhythmic devices.
The dotted rhythm is an especially important rhythm in the first two movements both for the themes and for their variations and developments. The opening rhythmic phrase, half-note, quarter, dotted-eighth, sixteenth, quarter, dotted-quarter, eights (3), provides the essential rhythmic material of this movement and especially the dotted-eighth and dotted-quarter rhythms provide much of the interest and forward thrust. These rhythms are often worked out on top of each other as in the case of the secondary theme in measure 57. Here the right hand has the
25 longer dotted rhythm (in this case a half-note tied to an eighth for beats 1 and 2 into three), while the left hand has the shorter dotted rhythm punctuating beat 2 into 3. These dotted rhythms are very important for the development section as well (see Ex. 4 and Ex. 5-1).
For the second movement’s first theme, these rhythms are reversed with the shorter going first followed by the longer. Sometimes the smaller notes are embellished with even smaller ones as with the triplets in place of eights in m. 8 or the sixteenths in place of an eighth in m. 22.
However, the uniformity in rhythmic consistency of these two movements is striking and provides a sense of unity and cohesion to the overall work.
Harmonic writing
Chaminade’s harmonic writing in this sonata is consistent with the practices of nineteenth-century—especially middle nineteenth-century—music. She uses a good deal of chromaticism, diminished and augmented chords, mainly in the service of prolong chords and towards cadential figure. In her harmony, she resembles Mendelssohn and Schumann and others in the German tradition.
Modulation is important in her technique, and themes are often presented in their thematic groups in several keys long before more modulation will occur in the development section. The first theme, for instance, at the beginning of the sonata is heard in Cm, Fm, altered slightly in B-flat, on the dominant of Gm, and Gm. The second theme, which as has been pointed out begins the fugal transition, is first heard in Cm, then, in the secondary group proper, both E- flat and A-flat. When the secondary theme begins the recapitulation, it is heard three times, in A- flat, Fm, and A-flat again. The second and third movements also make use of this modulatory approach.
26 Chaminade also plays with certain expectations concerning harmony. The tonic cadence ending the primary group in the first section is one of the most final sounding cadences at the end of a primary group in the literature. It so offsets the subsequent material that it allows the fugal transition to sound like the beginning of a new piece, thus providing the prelude and fugue quality that Citron mentions. Another Cm tonic cadence, though less emphatic than the previous one, ends the development before the bass descends through the note, B-flat, and the recapitulation begins in the key of A-flat. That the secondary theme “recall” is presented still in the relative major continues to separate this theme from the surrounding music in measure 195.
Performance challenges
As the second theme of the first movement is the most difficult aspect formally, it will come as no surprise that it is difficult in terms of expression as well. The second theme material first appears in the fugal transition beginning in in measure 36. It is marked Tranquillo and marcato. In several recordings and performances I have heard, the performer plays this section with legato texture. I think that a detached style is more appropriate to this section because it stresses the isolation of this statement from the first theme. In the normative gendered reading of the sonata form, the second theme is usually lyrical and soft, and mostly it is connected smoothly from the first theme. However, Chaminade deliberately offsets this theme from the first in many ways. While the first theme is more rooted in harmonic stasis, the second relies on a more active harmonic platform as seen by the modulatory nature of the fughetta section. Later, when the theme is constantly interrupted in both the secondary group and the recapitulation—especially in this moment’s chorale style—, the isolation and independence of this theme is always apparent.
27 A more detached performance will help to bring this quality to the forefront in the ears of the listener.
The most challenging feature of the second movement relates to the proper expression and phrasing of Chaminade’s soaring melodic writing. Each theme in this movement has an intimate and rhapsodic nature. The dynamic and animato markings are especially important in playing the phrase in a musical manner. For example, the first theme includes a wide range of dynamic in a short 8 bars, and it has other detailed musical markings. It begins mezzo forte and proceeds to forte by way of a crescendo before returning soon after to piano. After the initial four measures, a three measures animato passage is heard, which consists of an ascending motion coupled with a crescendo and accents and a fermata. These markings create musical tension. The following section also creates tension and should be played in one phrase with emphasis on the chromatic bass movement (E-F-F sharp-G) through the gradual crescendo and accelerando until the climax of accented fortissimo.
The second theme, though also melodic in nature is different to the first theme; however, the animato marking is also important to this section. Chaminade creates tension similarly to that used in the first theme with a sequential pattern beginning in m. 42. Again, the gradual increase in tempo and dynamic will benefit from the performer linking the pattern into one continuous phrase. Then, the diminuendo interruption in m. 45 is important to set up the second presentation of the second theme.
The most important decision when playing the third movement is choosing an appropriate tempo. Chaminade marks the tempo 126 per quarter-note. However, this speed will prove to be too fast for most performers and achieving the right expression and feeling will be quite difficult.
Referencing the available recordings will provide performers with alternate choices that will
28 benefit them greatly. In addition, the practice from the slower tempo is recommended with emphasis on every first note of two-note slur. This procedure will help to express clear sound and articulation even though the performer will perform the piece with much faster tempo.
29 Chapter 3. Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35
General information about the work
The Op. 35 etudes is a collection of technically challenging concert pieces which was written in 1886 by Enoch publishing company. Each in the set has a descriptive title as well as a dedication to a specific individual: “Scherzo” (G. Lewita), “Automne” (Hélena Kryzanowska),
“Fileuse” (Louis Livon), “Appassionato” (Madame de Seres-Montigny), “Impromptu”
(Marguerite Lamoureux), and “Tarentelle” (Marie Jaëll).18 There are several similarities to
Chopin’s etudes. Most of the etudes follow ternary structures with contrasting B sections. Within the difficult technical display, there are also tuneful and even lyrical melodies present providing a mix between virtuosity and emotional connection. And though the difficulty goes beyond the typical character piece, these etudes often provide at least surface-level connections to various extra-musical feelings and ideas. However, unlike Chopin’s etudes and their tendency to focus on one specific technical challenge, Chaminade’s often incorporate several difficulties. Among these six pieces, No. 2 Automne was especially loved by the American audiences. Chaminade performed it frequently in her tours and it achieved great success both in recording and publication. According to the magazine The Musician in 1914, over 8,000 copies of Automne were sold in 1913.19
18 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 42.
19 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 188.
30 Selected recordings
Piano Classics/Chaminade: Piano Music/Mark Viner/October 26, 2018
The young British pianist Mark Viner recently recorded all of Op. 35 for the album
Chaminade: Piano Music. This album also includes four pieces from Poéme provencal, Op. 127 and Six Romances sans paroles, Op. 76. Overall, his performance demonstrates a refined sound and technique. His playing is remarkably clean and full of nuanced expression. His playing of
“Fileuse” is especially good, as he portrays the spinning wheel. In the middle section, which is harp-like, his playing is delicate and with elegant phrasing. On “Automne,” his melodic playing is striking and performers would benefit from listening and applying his touch and feel in these phrases. While his playing of the fifth piece, “Impromptus,” is clear like the others, it does not convey an improvisational style as the title would suggest, rather it is essentially straightforward.
Indeed, in comparison with other recordings, Viner is much less emotional. This approach is reaffirmed by his light pedaling with frequent changes, emphasizing clarity over romanticism, his balance between the hands and his appropriate choice of tempo that allows him to manage the technical challenges with facility.
Steinway & Sons/ The Flatterer/Joanne Polk/September 9, 2014
Along with the Sonata, Op. 21, Joanne Polk recorded Op. 35 for the album The Flatter except for the “Tarantella.” Her performance exudes a warm-hearted sonority and an emphasis on the virtuosic technique. Especially in “Automne” and “Impromptu,” she captures a nostalgic tone quality punctuated by natural and smooth phrasing. Considering the frequent changes of
31 tempo in quick succession that Chaminade marks, Polk’s interpretation is a good instructional for students of this set.
Chandos/Chaminade: Works for Piano/Eric Parkin/April 1, 1991
For the album Chaminade: Works for Piano, English pianist Eric Parkin recorded
“Automne” along with many of the character pieces popular during Chaminade heyday, including “La Lisonjera,” Op. 50, “Air de ballet.” Op. 30, “Callirhoë,” Op. 37 No. 4, and “Pas des echarpes Op. 37 No. 3.” His playing expresses the tuneful and graceful melody of
“Automne” quite nicely. The tempo choice for the lento section is on the faster side, though not so much that it blurs the expression; rather a flowing quality helps color the harmonic progressions. The furious, passionate middle section contrasts greatly to the earlier lento.
Especially, the piu largo appassionato is very dramatic with a clear melody in octaves in the right hand.
CB Records/The Joy of Piano/Valerie Tryon/January 27–29, 1992
The pianist Valerie Tryon also recorded “Automne” for her album The Joy of Piano.
While her tempo is slower than most, the listener will hear an intimate performance focused on the beautiful melodic writing. The most noticeable aspect to her playing concerns the inner voicings. Tryon handles the frequent shifts of the melody between the parts with smooth and natural phrasing and an exceptionally beautiful tone color. Her interpretation captures the melancholic feel often associated with Fall.
32 Pierian Recording Society/ Cécile Chaminade: The Hall Collection, Vol. 1 (1901-
1927)/Chaminade/Released on May 1, 2012
Pierian Recording Society released the album Cécile Chaminade: The Hall Collection,
Vol. 1 in 2012. It includes the recording of Chaminade’s own playing for Gramophone and
Typewriter Era (1901) and Duo Art (1920–1927). The album includes many of her well-known short pieces such as “La Lisonjera,” “Les Sylvains,” Op. 60, “Air de ballet,” and from Op. 35,
“Automne.” It is useful because it provides an insight into the composer’s own interpretation of her music. Compared to later recordings, Chaminade’s playing tends to be on the extremes in terms of the tempo changes. Her pedaling is also noticeably light with frequent changes.
Reception
Several reviews exist from Chaminade’s time that refer to etudes, though mostly it is
“Automne” that received attention. The following comments are of concern:
Mme, Chaminade’s art—as composer more particularly, of course—commands respect….Her Automne especially is one of the perdurably lovely things that haunt the memory long after they are played or sung or seen.”20
She has a very pretty sentiment and reaches a peculiar vein of romanticism that others have not been able to touch…It was a pleasing exposition of a popular form of music.”21
“She plays as she writes, impetuously and frequently with a total disregard of conventional standards of tempo. But her rubato is always charming and indeed necessary in much that she writes. Her fondness for melody in the bass, her wandering way from a theme only to return to it in phrases of most delicate beauty, her rich ornamentations and, above all, her light and dainty touch, were
20 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 181.
21 Ibid.
33 exemplified at yesterday’s concert in such familiar works as The Scarf Dance, The Flatterer, Autumn, the popular Fourth Waltz, and Elevation, a composition which deserved longer life than some of the ones that are better known.”22
These reviewers are very positive in their remarks and point out Chaminade’s uniqueness and originality. Another review from this time that covered pieces from the etudes is interesting because it sums up aspects that are common within Chaminade reception:
Mlle. Chaminade belongs essentially to the French school, but to the school of Godard, Massenet and Delibes rather than to that of Debussy and Ravel….Her music also shows traces of the influence of Chopin….But Mlle. Chaminade has not the genius of Chopin….It is just ‘salon’ music, but salon music of the most refined and pleasing kind. There is also a particularly feminine element about it just as there was about the music of Chopin.”…. “It would be foolish to contend that Mlle. Chaminade ranks with the really great composers, for her style is too limited for her to do so. But she does supply a want, and her music contains much individuality.”23
This points this critic makes are common among reviews of her music. Firstly, there is an emphasis on seeing her as an essentially French composer and the pieces such as the Sonata that have a high-degree of German influence seem to be relatively unknown to critics. Secondly, she is seen as a Romantic composer and is tied to earlier composers more so than composers of her own generation. Thirdly, she is tied to music of the “salon” rather than concert music, which at this time is considered to be a second tier. Fourthly, her music is feminine, and other adjectives such as delicate seen in the above reviews are important in this classification, and lastly, while she is seen as individualistic and creative, and as an extremely good composer of a particular style, she belongs to a lesser category of composers situated under the “greats.” These issues are
22 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 181.
23 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography, 185.
34 similar to the notions brought up in the reviews of the Concertstück as well that will be addressed in the next chapter.
Musical aspects
The structure of each etude in Op. 35 is simple ternary form. All of etudes follow the A-
B-A’ pattern, and the sections are divided by contrasting key except for in the first Scherzo, which uses C major throughout the piece.
Table 3. Chaminade, Structure of Six Etudes de Concert Op. 35
Works Sections Keys A (mm. 1–93) C Major Scherzo B (mm. 94–165) C Major
A´ (mm. 166–214) C Major
A (mm. 1–29) D flat Major Automne B (mm. 30–77) F Minor
A´ (mm. 78–107) D flat Major
A (mm. 1–76) E Major Fileuse B (mm. 77–152) A flat Major
A´ (mm. 153–221) E Major
A (mm. 1–50) C Minor Appassionato B (mm. 51–114) E flat Major
A´ (mm. 115–156) C Minor
35
A (mm. 1–25) F Major Impromptu B (mm. 26–44) G Major
A´ (mm. 45–86) F Major
A (mm. 1–123) D Major Tarentelle B (mm. 124–255) B flat Major
A´ (mm. 256–340) D Major
While most of the pieces contain a contrasting key for the B sections, they do not always utilize a contrasting character. Automne, Fileuse, and Appassionato certainly do, however, a single, particular character dominates each section throughout in the Scherzo, Impromptu, and
Tarentelle. Automne shows clear distinction between the sections. The A section is based on a nostalgic and lyrical melody in lento, then, the middle section ups the tempo with a driving technical display based on thirty-second notes in a con fuoco marking. For Fileuse and
Appassionato, both use a perpetual motion technique for the outer sections, while the middle sections focus on a more lyrical melody in the right hand over the left-hand accompaniment which keeps the perpetual motion figures from the outer sections. The other three pieces,
Scherzo, Impromptu, and Tarentelle, keep the main technical motion throughout with no distinct character changes.
In these ternary schemes, however, Chaminade employs a combinative technique that lends unity to these etudes. In four of the pieces, Fileuse, Appassionato, Impromptu, and
Tarentelle, the A’ section does not simply repeat the initial A nor does it merely vary it, but
36 rather it combines material from both of the previous sections.24 For example, in the A’ section of Fileuse, the sixteenth note figure of the A section returns in m. 153 for the next 42 mm., but beginning in m. 178, the melody from the middle section appears in the bass line (Ex. 11-1 and
Ex. 11-2).
Example 11-1. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 153–155
Example 11-2. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 177–182
24 Sun-Young Oh, “The Piano Works of Cécile Chaminade (1857–1944)” (DMA thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2000), 66.
37
The use of the B section’s melody is also found in the Appassionato. In this piece, the repeated accompaniment in the left hand from m. 51 is presented briefly and helps to create tension building up to the dramatic ending of the piece.
In the impromptu, the thirty-second staccato figure for the right hand, first heard in m. 38, reappears in m. 64, and the melody from mm. 26 ff. is again heard beginning in m. 69.
The A’ of the Tarentelle also includes material from the middle section. Although a similar rhythmic pattern is used throughout the piece, the accented rhythm with an eighth note rest in the right hand is derived from the B section in measure 126.
Representative techniques of each piece
Each piece has a distinguishing technique which generally also serves to create the mood.
In the opening Scherzo, an intervallic chordal pattern in the right hand in sixteenth-notes dominates the piece. The pattern includes various combinations of the fourth and the fifth, the second and the seventh, and the third and the seventh. The frequent changes of staccato, legato, and slurred staccato create variety within the repetitious alternations. In m. 1 to 4, the ascending chord alternation is presented with staccato, while the falling thirds and the sixths are indicated with a slurred staccato later, in m. 9, a two-note slur is included. leggiero is marked as well and the pianist needs to capture the piece’s light and humorous mood.
38 Example 12. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Scherzo, mm. 1–5
Automne begins with a warm-hearted melody in the inner voice of the right hand with a chordal accompaniment in surrounding voices. This melody moves frequently throughout the piece; while it is first heard in the alto line, it moves to the soprano in m. 8, and the tenor in m.
16. In the middle section, an abrupt mood change occurs with the advent of a driving chord progression which quickly covers the full range of the keyboard.
Example 13. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Automne, mm. 1–4
39
The representative figure in Fileuse is a perpetual sixteenth note pattern in six-eight time.
Fileuse translates to spinner and this pattern evokes the spinning wheel and belongs to a long tradition of such pieces in the nineteenth century that includes Schubert’s “Gretchen am
Spinnrade” among others. This pattern continues into the middle section where the left hand plays it under the right hand’s melody.25
Example 14. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Fileuse, mm. 1–3
Appassionato features an alternation between an interval, usually a fifth or sixth, and a single note that is present in both hands. Two-note slurs add to the expression of these chordal units. The sequential pattern has a rhythmic transformation in A’ section while emphasizing same melody that was the top note of each chord. The piece maintains a forte dynamic which helps to create a passionate mood except for the softer dynamic in the middle section.
25 Sun-Young Oh, “The Piano Works of Cécile Chaminade (1857–1944)” (DMA thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2000), 65.
40
Example 15. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Appassionato, mm. 1–3
In Impromptu, the left hand accompanies with a sixteenth-note sextuplet figure. The right hand’s melody has quite an improvisatory character and frequently utilizes triplets and duplet figures. The music is marked with con fantasia. Later in the piece the main rhythmic figure is transformed to a thirty-second note accompaniment with the sixteenth-note triplet melody figure in the right hand’s melody.
Example 16. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Impromptu, mm. 1–6
41 The last piece in the set Tarentelle features a perpetual movement of eighth notes in both hands in allegro-vivace. The piece’s fast and driving mood is strengthened and punctuated by numerous accents and sforzandi. This dance-like mood prevails throughout the piece but there is a slight rhythmic modification in the middle section.
Example 17. Chaminade, Six Etudes de Concert, Op. 35, Tarentelle, mm. 1–6
Melodic writing
As can be expected based on the nature of an etude as opposed to other genres like the sonata, the melodic writing of these pieces is in many ways simpler and more straight forward than in the other genres discussed in this document. In general, Chaminade employs very regular four-bar phrasing, often a combination of smaller two-bar phrases. Especially, the Scherzo,
Appassionato, and Tarentelle are consistently in four-bar phrasing. Further each etude’s melodic writing is based on a perpetual rhythmic figuration and so each piece can be labelled as essentially motivic. Even though the phrasing is similar as in the others, both Automne and
Impromptu have melodies, that despite the motivic work in the surrounding voices, are more soaring in quality.
42 In the contrasting middle section in Automne, the A section’s melody interrupts for six bars in the original lento tempo starting in m. 60. There is an arch-like melodic gesture also derived from the first bar of the melody, and this section is linked to the transitional material before the music returns to A’ section. The Impromptu’s melodic writing is in a similar manner.
Compared to Automne, in which the melody appears in different voices, the melody in
Impromptu is consistently presented in top voices. The third piece Fileuse combines these two procedures: while the sixteenth note perpetual figuration is repeated throughout the piece, the soaring melody from the middle section is also presented in similar manner.
Rhythmic writing
Most of the etudes have a rhythmic consistency heavily related to their techniques. Rather than developing or varying the rhythmic materials, a persistent rhythmic pattern is repeated throughout the piece, occasionally with slight rhythmic transformation. This consistency lends unity to the piece and give the unity to the piece. Scherzo, Fileuse, Appassionato, Tarentelle are clear examples of this tendency. The first piece Scherzo uses consistent sixteenth notes, but rhythmic variety is achieved through the grouping of notes: two notes, six notes, and three notes.
Fileuse also has a repeated sixteenth-note figure in the accompaniment and a rhythmic pattern in the melody. Appassionato maintains the sixteenth-note pattern in multiple sections by a more lyrical character appears compared to the earlier section. The fifth piece Impromptu is also basically using the same rhythmic pattern; sixteenth note sextuplets in the left hand with eighth note triplet and eighth note in the right hand. In the middle section, its rhythms are shortened to thirty-second sextuplet in the left hand and the sixteenth note triplet in the right hand. This shortened rhythmic figuration gives a more flowing and improvisatory character to the section.
43 Automne is the exception in this set as its rhythm has much contrast. While the melody of the A section is based on eighth-notes accompanied by sixteenth-notes in the right hand, a more driving thirty-second rhythmic figuration in the middle section creates the contrast.
Harmonic writing
The key of the etudes follows the typical ternary scheme which has the tonic key for the
A’s and a contrasting key for the middle section. Only two minor keys are used in the set: the middle section of Automne (fm) and the A section of the Appassionato (Cm). The relationships between keys are mostly third relationships; however, the Impromptu moves from F to G (see
Table 3).
Performance suggestions
The etudes include both technical and artistic challenges. The etudes that have a perpetual motion throughout the piece need focusing more on resolving each technique. For example, the most challenging part of the Scherzo is in making the chord alternations sound lightly. For this, reducing the thumb sound in the right hand is essential, and the performer should bring out the top notes. Since the top notes are played with the relatively weak fingers 4 or 5, the balance between the thumb and weak fingers should be carefully practiced in slower tempo at first. Both
Appassionato and Tarentelle also need a balance between the thumb and the top notes of the chords so that the melody is clear.
Fileuse focuses on a swift sixteenth-note figuration. The suggested fingering for the first passage is 5-3-2-1-2-1 and a sufficient amount of rotation is needed to maintain a relaxed arm. In addition, as the phrase is marked, a quick detachment between the last note of m. 6 and the first
44 note of m. 7 will help to relax the arm and create a more consistent sound for the next four measures.
Automne presents various challenges in phrasing and tempo. The performer needs to focus on moving the melody between the lines. It first appears in the alto line in the beginning
(thumb) and moves to the soprano in measure 8. The melody is exchanged between the soprano and tenor in mm. 12–15, and then it is heard briefly in the tenor in mm. 16–17, before it a unison in mm. 20–21. An appropriate amount of ritardando and accelerelando, within the performer’s own interpretation, is required to create variety of color with each repetition of the melody. In the middle section, while the driving and virtuosic techniques govern the section, the frequent tempo change is the main concern. The abrupt recall of the melody in the A’ section with the lento marking should be smoothly linked to the earlier texture. In mm. 58–59, the performer needs to differentiate the two different musical manners, allargando and slargando.
In Impromptu, the ascending line with a diminuendo occurs in several places such as in mm. 9–10, and the opposite, a descending, crescendo, is also common. The performer should carefully bring these moments out. The volante (flying or fast), beginning in m. 34, should also be in the service of creating a general improvisatory feel for the piece.
45 Chapter 4. Concertstück Op. 40
General information about the work
The Concertstück, Op. 40 was published in 1888 by Enoch Publishing Company.
Chaminade dedicated the work to the pianist Louise Steiger. The composer, herself as soloist, premiered it in Anvers, Belgium on 18 April 1888 and Paris debut occurred one year later on 20
January 1889 at a Lamoureux concert. The Concertstück was regularly concertized until the
1920s in various countries, including Belgium, France, Germany, England, Switzerland, and the
United States.
Selected recordings
Orion/James Johnson (pianist)/Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Paul Freeman (conductor)
James Johnson recorded Concertstück along with an excerpt from Chaminade’s Ballet
Symphonique, Callirhoë Op. 37, No. 3. The recording was released in 1979 and is now available through the Naxos Music Library. There are two main artistic choices to focus on when listening to this recording; the extreme varieties in tempo and the virtuosic display of the piano solo. In terms of tempo, these choices are noticeable in the very beginning as the orchestra takes a relatively slow tempo in the introduction (Allegro moderato, quarter-note = 84). The soloist comes in at a much faster tempo than the orchestra causing at times an unbalance. In fact, the piano and flute do not sound together when they are playing unison in measure 60. At other times the soloist matches Chaminade’s tempo indications more closely except when playing the third theme. His much slower tempo and free treatment of the rubato at this section creates a much more introspective and intimate feeling than in other performances. Above all, James
46 Johnson emphasizes the virtuosic aspects of the piano throughout the piece. In the exposition, rapid scales and arpeggios covering the full range of the keyboard make for a dramatic impression in the first appearance of the piano. Even when the piano serves as an accompaniment, there is a tendency for the piano to outshine the thematic presentations of orchestra as in the repeated tremolo chords in the high register in measure 43. While the technical display is impressive, as with the tempo variances, at times the piano and orchestra do not seem to be together.
Vox Box/Rosario Marciano (pianist)/Orchestra of Radio Luxembourg/Louis de Froment (conductor)
Rosario Marciano’s recording was first released in 1980, and then in 1994, republished by Vox Box in a set of concertos by French composers under the title French Concerto Series.
This recording can also be found currently on YouTube. The most exceptional aspect of this recording lies in the variety in thematic contrast, and, more than in other recordings, each theme is presented with its own distinct color by both the orchestra and piano solo. The French horn’s first theme is noticeably more agitated than in other recordings and the emphasis of marcato is very clear. The lyrical quality of the second theme is quite striking whether played by the
English horn, clarinet, or bassoon. While the musical material is similar to the first theme, these instrumentalists emphasize the tenderness of the melody. The playing of the third and fourth themes are also lyrical and dramatic and the sonorous similarities to the second theme of Grieg’s
Am concerto are pronounced in this recording. The balance between orchestra and piano is good, and while Rosario Marciano’s technical strength is never lost, especially when she plays the melodies, she also never exceeds the orchestra.
47 Hyperion/Danny Driver (pianist)/BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra/Rebecca Miller
(Conductor)
This recording was released in 2017 under the title, “The Romantic Piano Concerto” by
Hyperion. Along with Chaminade’s Concertstück, the album includes Dorothy Howell’s Piano concerto in D minor and Amy Beach’s piano concerto in C sharp minor Op. 45. The playing on this recording is superb and the listener will notice more than in the other two recordings a certain flow to the sonata form. While the various characters of the multiple themes can be difficult to convey coherently, here the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the soloist Driver express these ideas with a very natural-sounding connectedness. In orchestra part, the brilliance of the flute and piccolo are noticeable and the rapid and driving rhythmic alternations with the piano and flute in the development section is especially riveting. Driver’s virtuosity is always prominent and the listener/performer will benefit greatly from his accurate rhythmic sense and subtle and delicate articulations. For example, his marcato articulations have a shorter note value compared to other recordings, more like staccato, but not overdone; this approach helps to create a clear rhythmic progression. His solo playing in the third theme is romantic but not heavy: emphasizing the clear and sentimental quality of the music.
Reception
The reception of this piece is mostly positive and its criticism largely fits into the normal nineteenth-century ideals of good new music, which tends to stress originality as a major concern while simultaneously comparing the work to other compositions. A sampling of the criticism:
48 The general feeling of the work is one of grace and charming delicacy; the phrases are of a poetic cast and an exquisite delicacy.26
She can be compared with two other female composers, Grandval and Holmes, among whom “she is certainly the most feminine.” The one quality that sums up her music, and her playing is “charm,” although in the large works there is also vigor and strength. In concluding, the writer hopes “that she remains faithful to the French style, to that style of reason, of clarity, of inspiration, or grace, of elegance, of grandeur—of wisdom and of order; to that style to which we owe so many masterpieces.”27
We are in the presence “of a work that is strong and virile, too virile, perhaps, and that is the reproach I would be tempted to address to it. For me, I almost regretted not having found further those qualities of grace and gentleness that reside in the nature of woman, the secrets of which she possesses to such degree.”28
“In this time of musical troubles and complications, in which every new arrival strains himself to imitate Wagner, Mlle. Chaminade’s musical provides a character that is fundamentally French, faithful to its nature… The Concertstuck “contains nice ideas, elegantly and naturally developed. We heard a remarkable series of scales, linked successively with truly original harmonies [‘tonalities’].29
There is a little of the color of Weber and Delibes, but without the least imitation.30
The new work…is written with a rare assurance; without being absolutely original, it’s never ordinary… If its sonorities were occasionally less brutal it would recall L’Espana of Emmanuel Chabrier.”31
“that she remains faithful to the French style, to that style of reason, of clarity, of inspiration, or grace, of elegance, of grandeur—of wisdom and of order; to that style to which we owe so many masterpieces.”32
26 Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 137.
27 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,139.
28 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,137.
29 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,133–134.
30 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,137.
31 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,138.
32 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,139.
49
What originality in the timbral disposition, what profound knowledge of orchestration, what flight of fancy in the realm of the ideal!”33
The piece is characterized as “a Breughel vision of hell with Wagnerian sonorities,” which “is concealed behind the inconspicuous title of concertstuck for the piano and orchestral.34
Originality in composition, charm in performance—such are the two masterful qualities of Mlle. Chaminade.35
Critics emphasize above all the French qualities of this music often in direct opposition to
German influences (Wagner) and whether or not it holds up to the standards of originality and the effectiveness in achieving a suitable stage piece. The critics seem to mostly agree on the originality of Concerstück even as the qualities of other composers such as Weber and Delibes are apparent. The critic who describes the pieces as recalling the Dutch painter known for stark, hellish landscapes (Breughal) wrapped in Wagner’s style seems to be a bit outside the consensus.
That Chaminade is a woman composer is also an important distinction to the critics and some of their insight exclaims the degree to which she achieves success in maintaining this ideal. Words, like grace, charm, feminine, delicacy, etc. are important qualifiers as well as comparisons to other female composers.
In terms of specific criticism, orchestration is the main point of disagreement and in this aspect there are two dividing perspectives. Some critics mention that the orchestration is well constructed and praise its use while others point out excesses in the brass and percussion which diminishes the effectiveness of the strings and soloist. Others praise the orchestration and the manner in which it is used. A sample of the criticism in this regard:
33 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,150.
34 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,156.
35 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,157.
50 The Concertstück that she performed yesterday is a work that is interesting, serious, and brief, with a well-conceived structure, orchestrated certain passages that are especially well written. I will single out a passage that return twice, in which the piano, above a pattern in the orchestra, executes a rapid ascending scale that it repeats like an ostinato, and whose effect is both highly ingenious and felicitous. As virtuoso and as composer, Mlle. Chaminade enjoyed a great success.36
“the orchestration seemed a bit dense; sometimes it covers the piano. If relieved a bit of its tiring sonorities, the piece will quickly take its place in the category of brilliant concert pieces to recommend to virtuosos who do not wish to totally sacrifice the music to digital gymnastics.37
“The Concertstuck of Mlle. C. Chaminade, performed with real virtuosity by the composer, seemed to us to have an extreme propensity for violent sonorities, and as a result, not exempt from errors in taste. One can be energetic without putting the brass and percussion in the forefront, and it is not necessary in every case to have the piano’s chords that are always a bit weak proceed without transition to highly eccentric sonorities in the orchestra.38
“Don’t expect a concerto for piano and orchestra. Not at all. This is a symphonic piece, in one movement, with piano obbligato. Perhaps there are a few abuses of the brass. Perhaps, quite simply, we don’t get enough strings.39
Concertstuck evinces “vigor and artistic quality…although the passages for piano seemed ornamental rather than essential.40
In formal structure, the reviews from European countries mentions the piece as single movement, but three later reviews from Philadelphia concert indicated it as three movements. It specifically mentioned that the three movements piece was played without the break, and mentioned it as “the formless and vague piece.”41 These three reviews talked about the same
36 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,136.
37 Ibid.
38 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,136–137.
39 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,138.
40 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,171.
51 concert in Philadelphia in 1908. It is hard to speculate who was the reviewer for each magazine, but it is possible that one critic wrote the review in three different magazines.
“In form, the work of Mlle. Chaminade would imply a title of Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra. It would come close to the Rhapsodies so much in vogue today if it were based on nationalistic motifs. Whatever its title, it offers us an original composition, rich in color and of sustained interest. An expansive theme, like a leitmotif, permeates the score.42
The title should be the French Morceau de Concert.43
“The Concertstuck is a somewhat ambitious composition in three movements, with a rather elaborate orchestration of some unusual effects.44
the Concertstuck, Op. 40, which although nominally in three movements, is played without any break, is a vague, formless, incoherent, vacillating piece of work, without any thematic backbone or logical harmonic development.”45
The three movements are telescopes, with no interval between, and her fleet- fingered, facile performance brought out with entire clarity of utterance the rippling continuity of the movement.46
These reviews do demonstrate an emphasis on accuracy in naming a piece by genre that adequately meets the expectations put forth by such a designation. Notions of form and balance are equally important.
41 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,171.
42 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,143.
43 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,150.
44 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,171.
45 Ibid.
46 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,172.
52 Musical aspects
By composing a single movement for piano and orchestra, Chaminade linked her piece to a nineteenth-century tradition of shorter concertante works that stood apart from full blown concertos in a similar way that concert overtures and symphonic poems correspond to the symphony. The choice of title, Concertstück, seems to suggest a desired connection on
Chaminade’s part to German tradition as opposed to the French. Camille Saint-Saëns had composed several of this type of pieces for solo instrument and orchestra and called them the
French equivalent of concert piece, Morceau de Concert. Indeed, one of Chaminade’s reviewers state that the piece should have been called Morceau de Concert. Perhaps Chaminade saw herself cultivating a more German style.
Most scholars view Carl Maria von Weber’s Konzertstück in Fm for piano and orchestra,
Op. 79, as one of the early seminal works in this genre. He composed the piece in 1821. It is a single movement work with four contrasting sections (Larghetto affettuoso-Allegro passionate-
Tempo di Marcia-Presto giojoso), which modulate, evoke differing moods, and showcase various techniques. Though without an explicit program, anecdotal evidence suggests that Weber himself may have imagined a story of a lady’s longing for the return of her husband from the Crusades.
Liszt also wrote a single continuous movement work for piano and orchestra in A major, S. 129.
It has six sections which are varied in character (Adagio sostenuto assai,-Allegro agitato assai-
Allegro moderato-Allegro deciso-Marziale un poco meno allegro-Allegro animato). In his piece, the use of thematic transformation connects the sections. As developed by composers such as
Weber and Liszt and others, the Concertstück genre tends to be a free form which has multiple sections varied in mood and character, sometimes with extra-musical connections.
53 Although Chaminade was certainly influenced by these earlier composers, her structure emphasizes traditional sonata principles rather than a multi-sectional approach. Her Concertstück consists of an introduction, exposition, development, recapitulation, and coda.
Table 4. Chaminade, Structure of Concertstück Op. 40
Sections Measures Keys Instruments Introduction Orchestra Theme 1 mm. 1–10 C sharp minor
Theme 2 mm. 11–18 A major
Closing tutti mm. 19–25 Modulation
Exposition Orchestra Transition mm. 26–34 C sharp minor Piano solo
Theme 1 mm. 35–52 C sharp minor
Transition mm. 53–63 Modulation
Theme 2 mm. 64–91 E major
Theme 3 mm. 92–117 A major
Theme 4 mm. 118–133 D flat major
Development Orchestra Theme 1 mm. 134–162 C sharp minor Piano solo
New Material mm. 163–232 G sharp minor
Theme 3 mm. 233–248 E major
Transition mm. 249–265 Modulation
Recapitulation Orchestra Theme 1 mm. 266–283 F minor Piano solo
Transition mm. 284–287 Modulation
Theme 2 mm. 288–301 E major
54
Theme 3 mm. 302–311 D flat major
Theme 4 mm. 312–336 D flat major
Coda mm. 337–395 D flat major
In addition to the structure created by the use of sonata form, there are also four main themes, varying greatly in mood and affect, that are present throughout this form and help to serve as structural elements. The thematic writing is unusual. The four themes are not developed throughout the piece as is common with themes in sonata form; rather, they exhibit qualities of leitmotivs each with their own distinct character. An early critic in the Journal De Marseille
(1892) noticed this affect, describing the first theme as “an expansive theme, like a leitmotif, which permeates the score.”47 Although there is no extra-musical relation or the characteristics given by the composer, the four themes have distinctive features while also showing a strong relation to each other.
In the orchestral introduction, the first theme is introduced. The first theme is presented in
C-sharp minor by the English horn over a violin tremolo that provides some tension to the opening. The theme is heroic in nature and appears mostly in a loud dynamic except in m. 35 when the piano plays it more softly. This theme is also used to interrupt other themes, especially the second, in an agitated manner. In the development and recapitulation, the first two beats
(half-note) from the original first theme is extended to four beats for the emphasis in m. 134 ff.
47 Citron, Cécile Chaminade: a Bio-bibliography,143.
55
Example 18-1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 1–4
Example 18-2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 132–139
56 Compared to the other three themes, the second theme has the most varied character; namely, four distinct characters exist in this piece brought about by instrumentation. The first appearance of the second theme is found in the introduction. It is played by the cello and bass immediately following the first theme with little to no transition. It is in A and its character is similar to the first theme, featuring marcato and a strong dynamic (mf and f). This theme is also found in the exposition (mm 43) after the presentation of the first theme by the piano solo. A rhythmic fragment of the second theme is used to smoothly transition from the introduction to the exposition.
Example 19-1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 8–14
57 Example 19-2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 23–25
The next appearance of the second theme, beginning in m. 64 in the exposition is imbued with a much more tender and lyrical sound. The violins play it in E with a soft dynamic (p). Here, the rhythm is altered from two sixteenth notes and an eighth to that of an eighth-note triplet. This loosened rhythm fits more into a lyrical character than earlier presentations.
Example 19-3. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 61–72
The second theme exhibits a rhapsodic quality when it is played by the English horn and clarinet in the development, which the woodwinds are used the first time with this theme. In m. 140, this
58 theme is presented three times with differing intervals, alternating with the piano solo’s brilliant passage work.
Example 19-4. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 140–145
The fourth character this theme evinces is very light and gentle. In measure 288 (recapitulation), even though the musical material is the same as in the first appearance, the dynamic is reduced from forte to pianissimo. With perpetual sextuplets in the piano accompaniment, the theme set in the violin has an almost ethereal quality.
59 Example 19-5. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 288–294
Although the second theme can at times convey a soft lyrical quality, it is the third theme which best transmits this character. First heard in A in m. 92 by the orchestra (piu lento), it is followed by a statement in the piano without orchestral accompaniment. The later two presentations of this theme, beginning in m. 233 and m. 312, also are for the piano, which stands in contrast to the natures of the first two themes which are primarily orchestral.
60 Example 20-1. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 92–101
The most unusual presentation of the third is found in m. 334, three measures before the coda section. The beginning two measures of the theme is played here in D-flat by the piano with rhythmic fragments of this theme echoed by the orchestra. This reduction in texture and dynamics suggest a quiet ending, but this resolution is abruptly interrupted by the coda resulting in a brilliant ending.
Example 20-2. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 334–336
61 The fourth theme has a strong relation to the third theme. Its rhythm is derived from the second part of the third theme. The rhythm in measure 110 is reduced by half when the fourth theme appears in measure 118. However, it is expanded when it reaches the eighth note triplet section in m. 122 with lyrical and softer quality.
Example 21-1. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 107–112
Example 21-2. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 118–122
62
In terms of rhythmic similarities, the four themes can be divided into two large thematic groups. The first group includes the first and the second theme and is in general more robust than the second group. Although the second theme is more lyrical, it still shares the rhythmic character. Compared to the first group, the second group, the third fourth themes, has a more lyrical and song-like quality. These themes are mainly played by the strings or the piano, the tempos are slower, and the prominent use of rubato gives a more relaxed and romantic mood.
Due to similarities, especially in terms of the triplet figures, the fourth theme can be defined as a continuation of the third theme.
In general, Chaminade did not change or develop the themes. Rather, she essentially maintains the original formats as she uses them throughout the piece. The four themes are mixed or alternated as two thematic groups defined by their rhythmic and character relationships. The first and the second theme always alternates each other. The third and the fourth themes have strong relation in rhythmic sense. Especially in its presentation in the recapitulation (mm. 302–
328), the third theme is smoothly linked to the second part theme of the fourth theme with no transition. The rhythmic relation makes this connection more natural, and it is almost sounds as a continuation of the same theme.
Melodic writing
The melodic writing in the Concertstück demonstrates more variety than in the other pieces examined in this document. Irregularity of phrasing is also more noticeable. While the phrases of the first and second themes are consistent with the manner of four-bar phrasing and much of the passage-work and transitional materials also, the third and fourth themes are both
63 irregular. The third theme consists of 7+6 phrasing, and the fourth theme consists of 4+3. In most cases of irregularity, it is due to an extension or working out of the melodic idea. For example, when the third theme is presented by the piano in measure 103, the melodic idea from the animato section (m. 110) extends the last two measures (mm. 116 and 117) and connects with the fourth theme. In measure 233, the melody is presented without that animato section and the first part of the phrase (seven measures) is elongated to 16 measures.
Chaminade’s method for building themes in this piece relies heavily on internal repetition and sequence. The four these are all comprised in this manner, but in varying degrees. The first two themes have a strong rhythmic idea which is often repeated while the third and fourth themes have melodies that are more soaring in nature. The first theme consists of two repetitions of the basic motive followed by a sequential motion including it. The second theme of four measures can be divided as two sequences with a slight intervallic modification: the first perfect fifth interval (A-flat–E flat) is changed to the perfect fourth (E-flat–A flat). The four measures of the second theme are then presented a half-step down in measure 15 with the modification of the last two measures. With the varying of the interval of the last two measures of phrase, the sequence in mm. 15–18 is a repetition of the two measures. Mm. 122–123 show a sequential progression which is found in the fourth theme. The triplet sequence ascends by a half-step. The melodic idea of the third theme is also essentially based on internal repetitions of the shorter melodic ideas.
64 Example 22. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 121–124
In several places, the Concertstück shares approaches Chaminade also used in her sonata.
In mm. 140–158, two bars from the second theme is interrupted by the arpeggio figures in the piano solo (Ex. 19-4). Interruption, which occurred several times in association with the second theme of the Sonata’s first movement as well as the second theme of the second movement, is also used in this piece. Finally, immediately preceding the coda, three bars from the third theme is heard in the piano in connection with the coda. This moment is not unlike the “recall” of the first movement of the sonata (Ex. 20-2).
65 Rhythmic writing
Rhythmic similarities among and between the themes are prominent. The clearest example occurs between the third theme and the fourth theme. Essentially, Chaminade creates the rhythmic content of the fourth theme by halving the rhythmic values of the third theme. For example, the two measures from the third theme, appearing in mm. 110–111 (two quarter-notes, eighth-note rest, three eight-notes, two quarter-notes, and quarter-note triplet), is changed to one measure in m. 118 (two eighth-notes, sixteenth-note rest, three sixteenth-notes, two eighth-notes, and eighth-note triplet). In this sense, the fourth theme can be viewed as a continuation of the third theme. However, by adding triplet arpeggio figure mm. 121, the fourth theme takes on a more flowing character. Even the first theme and second themes shows rhythmic relation. In m.
64 (second theme), there is a triplet figure which is transformed from original two sixteenth- notes and an eighth-note is related to the triplet figure in the first theme.48 Further, the triplet rhythmic figure is common to all four themes.
Example 23. Chaminade, Concertstück, orchestra reduction, mm. 63–64
48 Sun-Young Oh, “The Piano Works of Cécile Chaminade (1857–1944)” (DMA thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2000), 74.
66 Sometimes, Chaminade emphasizes the theme through rhythmic extension. The first theme which includes the eighth-notes, half-notes, the eighth-notes triplets, and two eighth-notes is extended to eighth-notes, the whole-note, the quarter-notes triplets, and two quarter-notes in developmental section (m. 134) and the beginning of the recapitulation (m. 266). For both cases, the rhythmic extension creates a more powerful and dramatic quality to the first theme especially within the faster tempo choices (Allegro vivo and tempo animato).
Chaminade uses septuplet rhythms as an accompaniment material. In the exposition and recapitulation, especially when the orchestra plays the second theme, the repeated septuplets in the piano solo function as support. The rhythm in this accompaniment helps to emphasizes the gentle character of this theme.
Example 24. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano reduction, mm. 64–67
Harmonic writing
In terms of harmonic writing, Chaminade treats key relationships between themes in a relatively freer manner. The modulations consist of third relations; however, they are not always presented in the traditional manner. The opening key of C-sharp minor, used for the first theme,
67 moves to A for the second theme. The relative major (E) does appear later in m. 64. The music returns to A for the third theme (m. 92), before modulating to D-flat with the beginning of the fourth theme. The moves up and down a third around C-sharp/D-flat creates is harmonically very much in line with nineteenth-century practices.
The prominent technique Chaminade uses for changing the section and modulating is to use enharmonic notes. In m. 26, the first note, A-flat (G-sharp), functions as the last note of closing tutti which as the key signature suggests A-flat major, is the enharmonic dominant note of C-sharp minor. The repeated G-sharp in downbeat of several leading up to the tonic resolution in m. 31 helps to emphasize C-sharp as the tonic.
Example 25. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 20–30
68 A similar example is found in 116–18. The last two measures of the third theme in E modulates to D-flat through an enharmonic note. The downbeat of F-sharp mm. 116 and 117 is smoothly connected to G-flat and serves as the fourth to D-flat.
In addition, there is some unusualness in her resolution methods. In several places, she overlaps the resolution note with the first note of the next phrase. In mm. 248 and 249, one would expect the resolution to E-flat, but the resolution is completed by the beginning note of the new material in measure 249.
Example 26. Chaminade, Concertstück, piano part, mm. 243–250
In mm. 335–337, a similar method is found. The downbeat D-flat in m. 337 functions as both the resolution of the earlier phrase and the beginning note of coda section. Chaminade also uses this technique in the Sonata.
69 Performance suggestions
The first thing that the performer should consider for this piece is the balance between the orchestra and piano. As demonstrated by early reviews, this work has a relatively strong brass and woodwind sound. In addition, since the piano is sometimes in high register, the piano should present the sound with stronger sound. In mm. 43 to 50, the piano solo is accompanying the second theme material presented by the orchestra with a chordal trill. The second theme is heard by the brass and bass instruments with a marcato marking, and in m. 47, piccolo and flute is added which has the potential to cover the piano even more. Therefore, the performer should perform this section with a stronger sound than is indicated. However, at the same time, care should be taken not to over do it as is the case in the James Johnson; the piano is suppose to function in a supporting role at this section of the piece.
The performer should also consider the tempos. Throughout the piece, there are many places in which the piano has repeated septuplets. (mm. 53–91 and mm. 284–301). Since the section is simple and repetitive, rushing the tempo can be a problem. Once again, the performer should carefully listen to the thematic presentation in the orchestra and balance the tempo with it.
For this, emphasizing the accent markings will help to control the tempo and also create a clearer rhythmic sense.
The beginning of the third and the fourth theme (m. 103) is a great place for free expression. Most of the section is played by piano solo, and the beautiful phrases with changes of tempo require a performer’s distinct interpretation. A slightly slower tempo choice would be beneficial in creating and maintain this passage’s emotional intensity.
70 Conclusion
Much of Chaminade’s success as a composer and pianist during her lifetime centers around her status as a good composer of salon music. Audiences gravitated to her character pieces and critics saw in them charm, sentimentality, and feminine grace. Many of her more aggressive, large-scale pieces were written in her youth and were largely ignored by the public and stylistically abandoned by Chaminade herself later in life. However, these pieces, and especially Op. 21, Op. 35 and Op. 40, need to be reevaluated, reexamined, and included into the repertory. They are creatively and expertly written and belong to a style that at the end of the nineteenth-century looks back towards romanticism as it imbues the music with contemporary gestures and techniques. In terms of genre, all three belong to the genres of their titles while blending elements from other categories and so complicate the expectations of listener. Pianists are beginning to learn, perform, and record these works and this study will help them capture the expressive qualities inherent in these works.
71 Bibliography
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Stankis, Jessica E. “Rethinking Cécile Chaminade’s Concert Tour of the United States, 1908.” MA thesis, Arizona State University, 2006.
Tardif, Cécile. Portrait de Cécile Chaminade. Montréal: L. Courteau, 1993.
Wallace, Robin. “Myth, Gender, and Musical Meaning: The Magic Flute, Beethoven, and 19th- Century Sonata Form Revisited.” Journal of Musicological Research 19, no. 1 (1999): 1– 25.
Scores
Chaminade, Cécile. Konzertstuck, Op. 40. Boca Raton, Fla: Edwin F. Kalmus, 1997.
Chaminade, Cécile. Six Etudes de Concert, for Solo Piano, Op. 35. Boca Raton, Fla: Masters Music, 1997.
Chaminade, Cécile. Sonata in C minor for Solo Piano, Op. 21. Boca Raton, Fla: Masters Music, 1997
Chaminade, Cécile. Piano Music. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2001.
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