UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI Date:___________________ I, _________________________________________________________, hereby submit this work as part of the requirements for the degree of: in: It is entitled: This work and its defense approved by: Chair: _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________ Time Versus Space: a relationship between music and the visual arts as revealed in Petr Eben’s Okna and Marc Chagall’s Jerusalem Windows A thesis submitted to the Division of Graduate Studies and Research of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS At the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music May 02, 2005 by Paula Hunter Swartz BM, Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, 1992 MM, Yale University School of Music, 1995 MM, Yale University School of Music, 1997 Advisor: Robert Zierolf ABSTRACT The independent, distinct qualities of music and those of the visual arts may work together to create a new type of aesthetic experience. Petr Eben (b 1929) composed Okna, a “translation” of Marc Chagall’s Jerusalem Windows. Both the musical sounds and visual images evoke cultural associations. The relationship of imagery to religious tradition and how it is made manifest in the composition, along with the colors in which they are presented, shed light on Eben’s compositional choices. The reactions of human subjects to the visual stimulus of Chagall’s art and the sonorities of Eben’s music are germane to this document. I explore the composer’s claim that this work provides a sonic interpretation of the visual realm, recapturing the beauty and power of the original. In this milieu, the independent, distinct qualities of music and those of the visual arts work together to create a new type of aesthetic experience. ii iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my husband, Suk Chul Kim, for his continued support of this project. In addition, I would like to thank Robert Zierolf for his invaluable help and advice. Finally, I would like to thank Petr Eben and Marc Chagall, the persons who provided me with more than a fascination. Mr. Eben gave me a wonderful reception when I traveled to his home in Prague for the purpose of interviewing him. Meeting him was an unforgettable experience. iv CONTENTS Page Introduction……………………………………………………………………………1 Chapter One: The Life and Art of Petr Eben………………………………………….9 Chapter Two: The Life and Art of Marc Chagall…………………………………….16 Chapter Three: The Uniting of Two Forms of Art…………………………………...24 Chapter Four: The Analysis…………………………………………………………..27 Movement I: Reuben…………………………………………………………28 Movement II: Issachar………………………………………………………..44 Movement III: Zebulun………………………………………………………54 Movement IV: Levi…………………………………………………………..61 Appendix A…………………………………………………………………………..68 Appendix B…………………………………………………………………………..90 Appendix C…………………………………………………………………………104 Appendix D…………………………………………………………………………106 Works Cited………………………………………………………………………...110 v Introduction “. and if you wouldst make a likeness of me, paint sound.” –Ausonius The focus of this document is an analysis of Okna by Petr Eben (b 1929) and how it was influenced by Marc Chagall’s Jerusalem Windows. I will deal with the cultural associations that the musical sounds and visual images evoke. The relationship of imagery to religious tradition and how it is made manifest in the composition, along with the colors in which they are presented, will shed light on Eben’s compositional choices. Germane to my argument will be the reactions of human subjects to the visual stimulus of Chagall’s art; Eben’s, the listener’s, and my own reactions will be presented and compared. I will explore the composer’s claim that this work provides a sonic interpretation of the visual realm, recapturing the beauty and power of the original. In this milieu, the independent, distinct qualities of music and those of the visual arts work together to create a new type of aesthetic experience. A transcription of an interview with Petr Eben, conducted in his home by the present author, will be a primary resource for many of the ideas presented in this document. The interview will be included in its entirety in the appendix. In addition, I will compile a comprehensive listing of Petr Eben’s complete works. To my knowledge, no such document exists. An English translation will be provided for each title, as well as publication information, instrumentation, and duration, where available. 1 It is neither easy nor necessarily correct to classify the visual arts as a “spatial” art, or music as a “temporal” art; within both of these art forms there is an “interrelationship between time and space.”1 Even though music is literally temporal, it also conveys a sense of space to the listener. Likewise, even though a picture is essentially static, a line in space can only be drawn as a continuous succession of points over time.2 This document will explore the many aspects that link the stained-glass windows of Chagall and Eben’s musical composition. Okna (1976) is a work in four movements titled Modré Okno, Zelené Okno, Cervené Okno, and Zlaté Okno (Blue Window, Green Window, Blood-Red Window, and Golden Window) for trumpet and organ. Not only is the instrumentation of personal interest, but also the subject matter—Chagall’s stained-glass windows in the Hadassah- Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem.3 Okna is a remarkable creation that perfectly exemplifies the relationship of music and the visual arts. An analysis of techniques shows that Eben’s compositional style is analogous to Chagall’s, and an exploration into what each artist has said about the purpose of his art reveals striking similarities. Two aspects in particular—colors and images—will be investigated. The images and colors Chagall chose for the windows made a permanent impression on the composer’s mind; stained-glass windows intrigued Eben because “they are a source of light and are a view from reality to fantasy.”4 With regard to color, the phenomenon of synesthesia will be considered. Petr Eben’s mentor, Olivier Messiaen, was a synesthete— 1 Elena Bertola, “On Space and Time in Music and the Visual Arts,” Leonardo Vol. 5 (1972): 27. 2 Ibid., 28. 3 Jean Leymarie, The Jerusalem Windows (New York: Braziller Press, 1996), vii. 4 Kateřina Voncrovicová, Petr Eben (Prague: Panton Press, 1995), 124. 2 the hearing of certain sounds induced the visualization of certain colors—and this sensation profoundly effected his compositions. His particular type of synesthesia is referred to as “photism”—when another sense produces a visual5 sensation such as color or shape.6 This peculiarity certainly interrelated the visual and sonic realms for Messiaen, but some may argue that the rarity of this trait makes it less of a factor for other composers and listeners. Others argue that it may be learned, just as we are able to learn a foreign language or a code. Messiaen expected that conductors and performers could learn his vision. He would mark in the score for the brass to “play red” and the woodwinds to “play blue.” Extramusical languages balance the idiosyncratic language of synesthesia, translating it into communicable terms. One aspect that will be focused on in this document pertains to the question that was asked of Eben in an interview conducted by the present author: “Is [Okna] mostly based on the colors of the windows, or based mostly on the iconography?”7 If the listener knew nothing about the work previous to his or her first listening, would colors be evoked in the imagination of the listener? Or would it be more likely that the listener would hear the solemnity of the work and the religious subject matter of the tribes of Israel on which the work is based? Upon playing a recording of Okna for my colleagues, each person was able to identify correctly the color of each movement without any prior extramusical information.8 Conceived of while looking at Jean Leymarie’s book 5 Other synesthesia may involve smell, taste, and/or touch. 6 Margaret Elizabeth McGinnis, “Playing the Fields: Messiaen, music, and the extramusical” ( Ph.D. diss., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 2003), 126. 7 Paula Swartz, “An Interview with Petr Eben,” Appendix A (Cincinnati: transcribed October, 2004): 74. 8 University of Cincinnati Brass Seminar, Winter 2003. Students were supplied the following colors to choose from for the four windows: red, green, orange, black, blue, yellow, violet. A recording was played for each of the windows (in random order), and the students recorded the color that they associated with the sounds they were hearing. 3 containing pictures of Marc Chagall's Jerusalem Windows, Eben “just translated it into music.”9 Okna is an excellent example of how Eben used musical resources of different origins in complementary ways. In this work he used Gregorian chant, Hebrew melodies, Russian Orthodox Church music, a Czech hymn, and his own original music. Much like Messiaen and Wagner, he is able to use musical referents to convey extramusical ideas to the listener through his music. The musical style of Okna is analogous to the inherent characteristics of stained- glass windows in that Eben allows each player a certain degree of improvisation, making each performance unique. Each person who views a stained-glass window sees it in his or her own light, depending on the particular moment the glass is viewed; the work must change with its environment. For example, the appearance of the color “yellow” viewed at high noon may be drastically different when viewed at dusk; likewise, the music may spark a different color depending on the conditions of the performance, i.e., the acoustics, the quality and quantity of organ stops available or used, and the musical choices made by the soloists. National Public Radio carried a broadcast one morning regarding the visual artist Dan Flavin.10 His art involves the use and arrangement of florescent lighting in various colors and shapes.