DOCSLIB.ORG

Developing Variation, and the Schoenberg Critical Tradition

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Developing Variation, and the Schoenberg Critical Tradition Brahms, Developing Variation, and the Schoenberg Critical Tradition WALTER FRISCH In 1946 Robert Maynard Hutchins, Chancellor oristically-in his critical writings, he clearly of the University of Chicago, sought Arnold considered it one of the most important Schoenberg's advice on the creation and or- compositional principles of Western music ganization of a music department. Schoenberg from the common-practice era to his own day. recommended, as one of several possibili- It is thus worthwhile to gather and examine his ties, "a clean-cut Musicological Department," scattered remarks in order to form a clear pic- whose sole function should be research. He ture of the term and the concept. In one essay graciously provided Hutchins with "Some Schoenberg explains: Problems for the Department," a list of "a few ... with which classes could become subjects Music of the melodic of As be in- homophonic style composi- busy." might expected, Schoenberg tion, that is, music with a main theme, accompanied cluded mainly compositional and analytical by and based on harmony, produces its material by, topics, such as "methods of transition" and a as I call it, developing variation. This means that "'systematic cataloguing of features of variation of the features of a basic unit produces all He also a the thematic formulations which provide for rhythm." proposed subject sugges- and called fluency, contrasts, variety, logic unity on the tively "developing variation."' one hand, and character, mood, expression, and Although Schoenberg discussed developing every needed differentiation, on the other hand- variation only sporadically-and often aph- thus elaboratingthe idea of the piece.2 1Arnold Schoenberg, Letters, ed. Erwin Stein, trans. E. Wil- 2Schoenberg, Style and Idea: Selected Writings of Arnold kins and E. Kaiser (New York, 1965), pp. 240-42. Schoenberg, ed. Leonard Stein (New York, 1975), p. 397. All further page references in section I of this article are to 0148-2076/82/010215+18$00.50 O 1982 by The Regents the Stein edition. of the University of California. 215 This content downloaded from 128.59.222.12 on Wed, 29 Jul 2015 17:43:18 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 19TH Elsewhere defines the transformation" In CENTURY Schoenberg procedure relating figures by (p. 173). MUSIC more polemically. He offers the blunt pos- one well-known example Schoenberg seeks tulate, "Whatever happens in a piece of music to demonstrate more concretely how "the is nothing but the endless reshaping of a basic method of developing variation" was used by shape," and then elaborates: the preeminent Viennese classicist, Beethoven; the second subject in the first movement of the Or, in other words, there is nothing in a piece of Fifth Symphony is derived "from a rein- music but what comes from the theme, springsfrom of the two main notes the first it and can be traced back to still more se- terpretation [of it; put and as tonic dominant of verely, nothing but the theme itself. Or, all the subject], Eb F, and Eb shapes appearingin a piece of music are foreseen in major" (p. 164). This is, unfortunately, not one the "theme." I say a piece of music is a picture-book of Schoenberg's more persuasive analyses.3 He consisting of a series of shapes, which for all their was more successful at-and clearly more in- variety still (a) cohere with one another, [and] (b)are terested how as variations with the of in--demonstrating developing presented (in keeping idea) variation informs the music of a basic shape, the various charactersand forms aris- Brahms, who, ing from the fact that variation is carried out in a he felt, brought the procedure to its most ad- number of different ways fp. 290). vanced state. In "Criteria for the Evaluation of Music," in It is clear that Schoenberg is not discussing Style and Idea, Schoenberg contrasts Brahms's variation form, as in a theme and a series of compositional techniques with those of Wag- discrete variations, but a more flexible compo- ner. The latter, "in order to make his themes sitional procedure whereby the different ele- suitable for memorability, had to use se- ments of a basic idea or shape-what he called quences and semi-sequences, that is, unvar- a Grundgestalt-are successively modified. ied or only slightly varied repetitions differing Indeed, Schoenberg contrasts traditional varia- in nothing essential from their first appear- tion form with the technique of developing var- ances, except that they are exactly transposed iation. Of the former he notes: ". in primor- to other degrees" (p. 129). Schoenberg gives two dial specimens, sets of variations serve rather examples from Tristan, the first seven mea- the virtuoso who wants to be brilliant through sures of the Prelude and the two measures of his technique. In such variations there is sel- Isolde's command to Brangine in Act I, scene 2, dom any other development than velocity and "Befehlen liess dem Eigenholde." In each a no other change than the figuration of the in- brief phrase is repeated sequentially (though strumental style." But "artistically superior not exactly). Dismissing this technique as compositions" (including the more sophisti- "primitive" and "inferior," Schoenberg points cated variation sets) are generated "through admiringly to Brahms, who avoided exact repe- 'developing variations' of basic features of the tition and "repeated phrases, motives, and theme and its motive ... producing thematic other structural ingredients of themes only in material for forms of all sizes: the melodies, varied forms, if possible in the form of ... de- main and subordinate themes, transitions, veloping variation. " codettas, elaborations, etc., with all the neces- sary contrasts" (pp. 165-66). Schoenberg's essays do not spell out the ways in which the theme can be varied-I re- turn to that below-but do to 3Treating only a few measures of music, the analysis is too topic they begin brief and too to us of the evolution superficial persuade significance suggest how he viewed the historical of developing variation in shaping Beethoven's movement of developing variation. He claims that J. S. as a whole. Furthermore, it misconstrues the first theme; as basic musical Bach the which was as Schenker demonstrated, and perception originated procedure, tells us, the "two main notes" are not Eb and F, but the then taken up and refined by the Viennese pitches on the two analogous downbeats, Eb and D. classicists (pp. 115, 118). We are given no Schenker's compelling analysis treats Eb-D as the basic "two-note motive" of the movement. See Der Tonwille 1 specific examples of how Bach employed the (1921), 27-37; trans. Elliot Forbes and F. J. Adams, Jr., in technique, but are told that he created "the art Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, ed. Elliot Forbes, of producing everything from one thing and of Norton Critical Score (New York, 1971), pp. 164-82. 216 This content downloaded from 128.59.222.12 on Wed, 29 Jul 2015 17:43:18 UTC All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions In this essay Schoenberg does not analyze and the unusual intervals, the ninths contained in WALTER FRISCH music but he does so on several this phrase [m. 5], made it difficult to grasp. I felt all Brahms and any by Brahms, Developing other occasions. In a radio talk of 1931 he this myself, so I know how seriously it must be Variation ap- taken! to the of a late Brahms theme in peals example To make matters worse, the theme develops too order to defend the theme of his own Orches- quickly, and its motivic evolution is very difficult tral Variations, op. 31, against charges of in- for the ear to trace, without the help of the written comprehensibility. "New music is never beau- page. It is only there that one sees that the opening fourth is inverted into a tiful on first acquaintance," Schoenberg fifth; claims. "The reason is simply this: one can only like what one remembers; and with all new music that is very difficult."4 The great popular composers constructed their melodies by "repeating every little phrase often enough ~e~jii~ii~~ for it to impress itself on the listener." After quoting the first part of Strauss's Blue but this is hard for Danube from one to seven the ear to grasp, if only because Waltz-numbering the initial in two-note then the phrasing groups parallel repetitions of the simple four- switches to groups of three: measure phrase-Schoenberg observes: But a stricter style of composition must do with- out such convenient resources. It demands that 2 6 APE*. , a-. • I r 1 I. I1I • d I V nothing be repeated without promoting the de- ..,P,•r I- I I1 ' F velopment of the music, and that can only happen by way of far-reachingvariations. Here is a theme that develops rapidly. You are certainly expecting me to quote something modem and extreme, but you are wrong: It is the opening of So those who did not understand at the time Brahms's F-majorCello Sonata [op. 99]: were right (pp. 28-30). In its penultimate paragraph Schoenberg's Allegro vivace analysis develops almost as elliptically as the ." theme itself. We do not learn precisely where 4. , or how the opening fourth is inverted to a fifth: 10 the D-G never in the , figure actually appears - " -- initial rhythm, as Schoenberg notates it; nor is it easy to discern among his parentheses and grace-notes. Young listeners will probablybe unaware that at At any rate, the actual intervallic develop- the time of Brahms'sdeath this sonata was still very ment of the motive seems less significant (and unpopular and was considered indigestible...
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Brahms Reimagined by René Spencer Saller
    CONCERT PROGRAM Friday, October 28, 2016 at 10:30AM Saturday, October 29, 2016 at 8:00PM Jun Märkl, conductor Jeremy Denk, piano LISZT Prometheus (1850) (1811–1886) MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488 (1786) (1756–1791) Allegro Adagio Allegro assai Jeremy Denk, piano INTERMISSION BRAHMS/orch. Schoenberg Piano Quartet in G minor, op. 25 (1861/1937) (1833–1897)/(1874–1951) Allegro Intermezzo: Allegro, ma non troppo Andante con moto Rondo alla zingarese: Presto 23 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS These concerts are part of the Wells Fargo Advisors Orchestral Series. Jun Märkl is the Ann and Lee Liberman Guest Artist. Jeremy Denk is the Ann and Paul Lux Guest Artist. The concert of Saturday, October 29, is underwritten in part by a generous gift from Lawrence and Cheryl Katzenstein. Pre-Concert Conversations are sponsored by Washington University Physicians. Large print program notes are available through the generosity of The Delmar Gardens Family, and are located at the Customer Service table in the foyer. 24 CONCERT CALENDAR For tickets call 314-534-1700, visit stlsymphony.org, or use the free STL Symphony mobile app available for iOS and Android. TCHAIKOVSKY 5: Fri, Nov 4, 8:00pm | Sat, Nov 5, 8:00pm Han-Na Chang, conductor; Jan Mráček, violin GLINKA Ruslan und Lyudmila Overture PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 1 I M E TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 5 AND OCK R HEILA S Han-Na Chang SLATKIN CONDUCTS PORGY & BESS: Fri, Nov 11, 10:30am | Sat, Nov 12, 8:00pm Sun, Nov 13, 3:00pm Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Olga Kern, piano SLATKIN Kinah BARBER Piano Concerto H S ODI C COPLAND Billy the Kid Suite YBELLE GERSHWIN/arr.
    [Show full text]
  • A Structural Analysis of the Relationship Between Programme, Harmony and Form in the Symphonic Poems of Franz Liszt Keith Thomas Johns University of Wollongong
    University of Wollongong Research Online University of Wollongong Thesis Collection University of Wollongong Thesis Collections 1986 A structural analysis of the relationship between programme, harmony and form in the symphonic poems of Franz Liszt Keith Thomas Johns University of Wollongong Recommended Citation Johns, Keith Thomas, A structural analysis of the relationship between programme, harmony and form in the symphonic poems of Franz Liszt, Doctor of Philosophy thesis, School of Creative Arts, University of Wollongong, 1986. http://ro.uow.edu.au/theses/1927 Research Online is the open access institutional repository for the University of Wollongong. For further information contact the UOW Library: [email protected] A STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PROGRAMME, HARMONY AND FORM IN THE SYMPHONIC POEMS OF FRANZ LISZT. A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY from THE UNIVERSITY OF WOLLONGONG by KEITH THOMAS JOHNS (M.Litt.,B.A.Hons.,Grad.Dip.Ed., F.L.C.M., F.T.C.L., L.T.C.L. ) SCHOOL OF CREATIVE ARTS 1986 i ABSTRACT This thesis examines the central concern in an analysis of the symphonic poems of Franz Liszt, that is, the relationship between programme,harmony and form. In order to make a thorough and clear analysis of this relationship a structural/semiotic analysis has been developed as the analysis of best fit. Historically it has been fashionable to see Liszt's symphonic poems in terms of sonata form or a form only making sense in terms of the attached programme. Both of these ideas are critically examined in this analysis.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 29 60; 75 Late Romanticism in Germany and Austria 14
    23 13. (728) By 1850, __% of the compositions in orchestral concerts were by dead composers; by 1875, __% Chapter 29 60; 75 Late Romanticism in Germany and Austria 14. TQ: According to the author, Brahms understood what 1. [719] Before 1850, music was written within ________; he had to do to be successful: be aware of the style after 1850, composers had to compete with a _________. accepted by audiences and then introduce something Living memory; repertory new. 1. How are you going to succeed? Do you have that same perspective for your future? Is that concept still 2. (720) This was the beginning of musicology. What applicable to our world? 2. Why is it, then, that we editions were published? Most of the composers were continue to teach freshman music theory, etc.? Can you ________; musicologists, _________. think of instances where the academic route has been Bach, Handel, Palestrina, Mozart, Schütz, Lasso, Beethoven, circumvented? Mendelssohn, Chopin, Schumann, Schubert; German; 1. It seems that this is what our world is about: how to get German ahead. 2. rock musicians, jazz musicians 3. Renaissance and Baroque music came out in what 15. What were Brahms's orchestral works before the editions? symphonies? Denkmäler der Tonkunst (begun 1869); Denkmäler deutscher Two serenades, first piano concerto in D minor (1861), Tonkunst (begun 1892), Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Variations on a Theme of Haydn, op. 56a (1873) Österreich (begun 1894); the usual abbreviations are DT, DdT, and DTÖ 16. List the symphonies. No. 1, C Minor, Op. 68, 1876 4. What is the English collection? French? No.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of Neoclassicism in Generalizing Tradition: Integrating Textural, Tonal and Topical Elements at the Keyboard
    ABSTRACT Title of Dissertation: THE ROLE OF NEOCLASSICISM IN GENERALIZING TRADITION: INTEGRATING TEXTURAL, TONAL AND TOPICAL ELEMENTS AT THE KEYBOARD Ryan Eu-Jyn Chow, Doctor of Musical Arts, 2019 Dissertation directed by: Professor Bradford Gowen School of Music While neoclassicism is viewed as a reaction against tonal saturation of late Romanticism, this dissertation discusses an array of works (both within and outside the scope of interwar neoclassicism) that absorbed elements of the aesthetic. Beyond Martha Hyde’s description of the neoclassical impulse as a “metamorphic anachronism,” I propose that it can extend to the following: (1) an opposition (or apposition, as proposed by Marianne Kielian-Gilbert) between specific musical elements, (2) a capitalization on ahistorical aspects of tradition, and (3) a generalization of tradition by placing the predecessor as a special case of a larger phenomenon. The first category is exemplified through chromatic displacement technique in Francis Poulenc and modified dominants in John Ireland, illustrating the coexistence of conventional periodicity with disruptive tonal practices. The second category manifests through non-contemporaneous musical codes, such as the use of musical topics (originally put forth by Leonard Ratner) within a neoclassical framework as points of departure from tradition, or the hypermeasure (proposed by Edward Cone) that capitalizes on Baroque and Romantic-era sequencing. The third category relates to Harold Bloom’s fourth revisionary ratio of a successor de-individuating the predecessor. For example, the generalization of thematic transformation while disregarding thematic character, and the generalization of the asymmetrical Fortspinnung while disregarding metric regularity, are exhibited in the works of Ernst Krenek and Peter Mennin respectively.
    [Show full text]
  • Arnold Schoenberg in America
    Arnold Schoenberg in America Bericht zum Symposium Report of the Symposium 2. – 4. Mai 2001 JASC4-2002.indb 1 05.06.02, 13:07:56 Process Cyan Process Magenta Process Yellow Process Black Gedruckt mit Unterstützung von Bundesministerium für Bildung, Wissenschaft und Kultur in Wien Wissenschafts- und Forschungsförderung der Stadt Wien, MA 7 – Kultur Cover-Abbildung: Arnold Schönberg beim Unterricht in seinem Haus in Brentwood Park, West Los Angeles. Im Vordergrund: Natalie Limonick, H. Endicott Hansen und Alfred Carlson. Impressum Redaktion: Therese Muxeneder, Iris Pfeiffer und Verena Zemanek Medieninhaber: Arnold Schönberg Center Privatstiftung Lektorat und Satz: Schwarzenbergplatz 6 Forte OEG, Renate Stark-Voit und Thomas Stark A-1030 Wien www.schoenberg.at Koordination: Edith Barta Eine Kooperation von Arnold Schönberg Center Cover und Gestaltungskonzept: und Bohatsch Graphic Design GmbH Arnold-Schönberg-Institut der Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien Druck: G. Grasl GesmbH Herausgeber und für den Inhalt verantwortlich: © Arnold Schönberg Center, Wien 2002 Christian Meyer ISBN 3-902012-04-8 JASC4-2002.indb 2 05.06.02, 13:08:01 Process Cyan Process Magenta Process Yellow Process Black Richard Kurth The Art of Cadence in Schönberg’s Fourth String Quartet Metric Discourse or Metric Dialectic? I. One of the remarkable aspects of Schönberg’s music is the stunning variety and originality of the cadential gestures he invents. Cadences articulate the tempo- ral experiences that compose a musical form, and moments of cadence (within a piece or movement) are experienced as temporal turning points, through which the recent past comes into fully-formed shape, and the impending future arouses an invigorated sense of expectation.
    [Show full text]
  • STYLE and IDEA
    STYLE and IDEA by ARNOLD SCHOENBERG PHILOSOPHICAL LIBRARY New York CoPYRIGHT, 1950, BY PHILOSOPHICAL LIBRARY, INC. 15 EAsT 40TH STREET, NEw YoRK, N. Y. Printed in the United States of America editor's foreword ARNOLD ScHOENBERG, as an author, has his own personality and ideas, not only in German but also in English. Several of the essays now composing Style and Idea were originally written in German. In translating these, I have, at the author's wish, adhered as literally to the original style as English usage allows. Thus there should be a certain con­ sistency of expression between these and the later essays which were written in English but which still bear the earmarks of Schoenberg's individual Ger­ man style. Schoenberg himself has elucidated his attitude towards his own manner of writing in English as follows: ". I do not plan to hide the fact that I am not born in this language and I do not want to parade adorned by stylistic merits of another person." Obe­ dience to this viewpoint has governed editorial ac­ tivities throughout. It may also be stated that, of set purpose, no at­ tempt has been made to eliminate any possible in­ consistencies in the points of view expressed in the different essays. It should be remembered that they represent the product of nearly forty years of Schoenberg's intellectual activity, and hence reflect the growth and development of his ideas during that time. What they do not present is a fixed dog­ ma and no such thing should be sought for in them.
    [Show full text]
  • Franz Liszt's Vallee D'obermann from the Annees De Pelerinage
    Franz Liszt’s Vallée d’Obermann from the Années de Pèlerinage, Première Année, Suisse: A Poetic Performance Guide 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 Keyboard Studies Division of the College-Conservatory of Music 2013 by Bora Lee MM, University of Cincinnati, 2003 BM, Yonsei University, 2001 Committee Chair: Jonathan Kregor, Ph.D. Abstract An informed performance of the music of Franz Liszt often requires biographical study and knowledge of numerous literary references. Composed primarily during his exile from Paris with Countess Marie d’Agoult, the keyboard work Vallée d’Obermann from the Années de Pèlerinage, Première Année, Suisse captures the despondence and hope in two Romantic sources: the French novel Obermann (1804) by Étienne Pivert de Sénancour and the English poem Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage (1812) by Lord Byron. But the score also reflects the young musician’s unease over his career, reputation, and future. This document will address the highly personal nature of Vallée d’Obermann and investigate musical narratives that will benefit enterprising pianists for more poetically nuanced rendition. The first chapter will discuss the compositional and literary background of Vallée d’Obermann, delving into the works by Sénancour and Byron and touching upon events in Liszt’s life. The second chapter will present the rhetorical devices in Vallée d’Obermann that create unique music-poetic relationships. The final chapter is a performance guide to Vallée d’Obermann for pianists who wish not only to execute the technical obstacles of the score, but to project the work’s literary and autobiographical aspects.
    [Show full text]
  • Baroque Transformations and Altered States in the Music of Franz Liszt
    Baroque Transformations and Altered States in the Music of Franz Liszt DaviD Gariff above Jean-Jacques Feuchère, Dante Meditating on the “Divine Comedy”, 1843, pen and brown ink with brown wash and watercolor over graphite, heightened with white gouache, National Gallery of Art, Gift of the Christian Humann Foundation cover Giulio Cesare Procaccini, The Ecstasy of the Magdalen, 1616 / 1620, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Art, Patrons’ Permanent Fund national Gallery of art Trasumanar significar per verba non si poria (To go beyond the human is not possible in words) Dante, Paradiso, i, 70-1 Music embodies feeling without forcing it to contend and combine with thought . Franz Liszt For the nineteenth-century Romantic, feeling was everything. The desire to explore and to understand the subjective experience was paramount to the painter, poet, composer, and novelist. These sub- jective states took many forms: dreams, ecstasy, inspiration, but also darker moods such as delirium, melancholy, grief, and a penchant for the morbid and the grotesque. The greatest triumph for the Romantic artist was to awaken emotions in the viewer, reader, or listener. The concepts of transformation and transfiguration reside at the heart of such thinking, what today might be called “altered states.” Franz Liszt (1811 – 1886) was a composer committed to feel- ing. His inspirations included Beethoven, Byron, Dante, Goethe, and Shakespeare. He shared this attitude with his contemporaries Chopin, Schumann, and, most especially, Hector Berlioz. As a prominent figure in the progressive New German School in Weimar, Liszt also recognized this trait in the music of Richard Wagner (1813 – 1883).
    [Show full text]
  • Transformation of Themes, Controlled Pianistic Textures, And
    TRANSFORMATION OF THEMES, CONTROLLED PIANISTIC TEXTURES, AND COLORISTIC EFFECTS IN LISZT'S HUNGARIAN RHAPSODIES NOS. 6, 10, AND 12 Silvije Vidovic, B.M., M.M. Dissertation Prepared for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS August 2012 APPROVED: Vladimir Viardo, Major Professor Steven Harlos, Minor Professor Deanna Bush, Committee Member Steven Harlos, Chair of the Division of Keyboard Studies John Murphy, Interim Director of Graduate Studies James C. Scott, Dean of the College of Music Mark Wardell, Dean of the Toulouse Graduate School Vidovic, Silvije. Transformation of Themes, Controlled Pianistic Textures, and Coloristic Effects in Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies Nos. 6, 10, and 12. Doctor of Musical Arts (Performance), August 2012, 32 pp., 32 musical examples, bibliography, 35 titles. Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies are uniformly considered highly challenging in terms of technical execution. However, their artistic value is frequently questioned. This dissertation examines the compositional elements that are often overlooked in these virtuoso works, and provides a viewpoint into their interpretative characteristics. Furthermore, it pursues a claim that besides being excellent performance pieces, these works also make an intriguing contribution to Liszt scholarship, and deserve meaningful consideration in terms of their artistic quality. Following the Introduction (Chapter 1), Chapter 2 provides a brief historical perspective of the critical affirmation Liszt the composer encountered from the musical society. It also includes a short background on Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsodies, as well as the general reactions these works evoked from pianists, audiences, and scholars, during the time they were composed to the present day. As the main body of the dissertation, Chapter 3 investigates the three primary compositional concepts found in Rhapsodies Nos.
    [Show full text]
  • Re-Forming Brahms: Sonata Form and the Horn Trio, Ope 40 Christopher K
    Re-forming Brahms: Sonata Form and the Horn Trio, Ope 40 Christopher K. Thompson In his essay "Some Aspects of Beethoven's Art Forms," Donald Francis Tovey challenges many of the claims inherent in traditional sonata-form analysis. 1 For example, he takes the first movement of Beethoven's Piano Sonata in B-flat Major, op. 22-a work often thought to be the ideal embodiment of textbook sonata form-and redirects our attention toward its many unconventional formal aspects. In the second part of his essay, Tovey reverses his strategy, showing a notoriously atypical sonata-form movement-the first of Beethoven's String Quartet in C-sharp Minor, op. 131-to be surprisingly conventional in design. Tovey's approach to Opus 131 brings to mind the first movement of Brahms's Horn Trio in E-flat Major, op. 40. Conspicuously absent from analyses of its first movement is any mention of sonata form. In fact, nearly every writer who discusses this work makes a point of saying that this is the only instance among Brahms's chamber works in which he avoids the traditional plan for the first movement of a sonata. ID.F. Tovey, "Some Aspects of Beethoven's Art Forms" [1927], in The Main Stream of Music and Other Essays, ed. Hubert J. Foss (New York: Oxford University Press, 1949), 271-97. 66 Indiana Theory Review Vol. 18/1 Walter Frisch's assessment is typical: "In the first movement of the horn trio (1865), Brahms takes the surprising step of avoiding sonata form altogether-the only such case in his entire reuvre."2 Yet Frisch does not say why he himself rejects a sonata-form interpretation.
    [Show full text]
  • Zukerman & Beethoven's Violin Concerto
    NOTES ON THE PROGRAM BY LAURIE SHULMAN, ©2016 Winter Festival: Zukerman & Beethoven’s Violin Concerto ONE-MINUTE NOTES Barber: The School for Scandal Overture An 18th-century comedy inspired this sparkling overture, which features three principal themes and a memorable oboe solo. Beethoven: Violin Concerto Five majestic timpani strokes set the tone. Their rhythm recurs frequently in the first movement. The Larghetto is lyrical and noble, at once transparent and richly layered. Beethoven reveals his flair for dance in the buoyant finale. Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3, “Organ” Organ does not play a solo role but is integrated into the sonic fabric of the orchestra. Quieter passages in the first section are subtle and reward careful listening. You will definitely know when the organ joins the fray for the triumphant finale. BARBER: The School for Scandal Overture SAMUEL BARBER Born: March 9, 1910, in West Chester, Pennsylvania Died: January 23, 1981, in New York, New York Composed: 1931 World Premiere: August 30, 1933, by the Philadelphia Orchestra NJSO Premiere: 1961–62 season; Kenneth Schermerhorn conducted. Duration: 8 minutes Barber is best known for the emotional and popular Adagio for Strings, which is actually an arrangement of the slow movement to his string quartet. He has had a far greater impact on American music, however, writing two important operas (including the Pulitzer Prize winning Vanessa, 1958), a large quantity of vocal music and a superb violin concerto. A brilliant young talent, Barber proved his mastery of the orchestra early. He wrote this overture as a graduation exercise from the Curtis Institute of Music.
    [Show full text]
  • Walter Wilson Cobbett and the English Phantasy
    WALTER WILSON COBBETT AND THE ENGLISH PHANTASY Kathryn L. Lent A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF MUSIC August 2008 Committee: Eftychia Papanikolaou, Advisor Mary Natvig Robert Fallon © 2008 Kathryn Lent All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Eftychia Papanikolaou, Advisor Walter Wilson Cobbett (1847-1937), amateur violonist and philanthropist during the English Musical Renaissance, supported the composition and performance of chamber music in England. In 1905 and 1907 Cobbett held competitions, followed by a series of commissions over the next decade, for compositions that he called Phantasies. According to Cobbett’s announcement, the phantasies were to be twelve minutes in length, have sections that differed in tempo and meter, and had parts of equal importance. These works were to be reminiscent of the early English fantasies and were intended to supplement the longer chamber works that were popular at the time. Following a discussion of the English Fantasia and Cobbett’s musical knowledge, this thesis examines Cobbett’s phantasy competitions and commissions in addition to his definition of the term “phantasy.” After Cobbett’s ideas are established, the reactions and comments of his contemporaries are presented and discussed. The final pages discuss and analyze three of the award winning phantasies in terms of Liszt’s thematic transformation and Brahms’s developing variation. iv To My Mom v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I feel incredibly lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Dr. Eftychia Papanikolaou. Her patience, encouragement and knowledge have been inspiring. I would like to thank Dr.
    [Show full text]