IMPRESSIONISM: TRENDS AND PARALLELS IN MUSIC AND PAINTING

AS RELATL'D TO THE MIROIRS' OF , A tECTURE

RECITAL, TOGETH R WITH FOUR RECITALS OF SELECTED WORKS

OF J. S. BACH, . A. NMuZART, L. VAN BEETHOVEN, J.

BRAHMlS, F. CHOPIN, F. LISZiT, S. PROKOFIEFF,

AND D. MATHEW

DISSERTATION

Presented to the Graduat e Council of the

North Texas State University in Partial

Fulfillment of the Requirements

For the Degree of

Doctor of Musical Arts

By

Phyllis Mu2{oz, B. Mus., V. Mus.

Denton, Texas

December, 19?3 Mufoz, Phyllis, Imnressionism: f rendsand Parallels in

Music and Painting as Related to the Miroirs of Maurice Ravel,

A Lecture zetal, Together with Four Recitals of Selected

Works of J. , Bach, ,Slloart, L. Van Beethoven, . Brahrs, Choin,b. S Liszt, j. Prokofieff, and D. iathew. Doctor of :usica Ar.ts (lano Performance), December, 1973, 38 pp., 22 illustrations, bibliography, 48 titles.

The lecture recital was given April 23, 1973. A discussion of trends and parallels in Impressionist music and painting

included information about specific technical devices and

innovations related to and common to the arts of music and painting, as seen in the iiroirs of Ravel. BIdes of Impres sionist paintings were used as illustrations. The five pieces of the Afiroirs were then performed by memory.

In addition to the lecture recital, four other public recitals were performed. These consisted of two solo recitals and two concerto performances,

The first solo recital was on April 16, 1972, and in cluded works of Bach, Beethoven, Liszt, Prokofieff and Chopin.

The second recital, on October 23, 1972, was a perfor mance of Beethoven's Piano Concerto in 0 Pa j r, _ 8 j, with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra in Little Rock, Arkansas, under the direction of 1. Francis McBeth,

The third recital, on April 9, 1973, consisted of a performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466, with the Graduate Chamber Orchestra of the North Texas State University School of Music, under the direction of John Giordano. The final recital, on November 12, 1973, was a solo recital, and included works by Brahms, Mathew and Prokofieff. All five programs were recorded on magnetic tape and are filed, along with the written version of the lecture material, as a part of the dissertation. Tape recordings of all performances submitted as as dissertation requirements are on deposit in the North Texas State University Library. TABLE OF CONTENTS

PERFORMANCE PROGRAMS Page

First Solo Recital ...... 0 .a V

First Concerto Recital ...... * . .vi09 .

Second Concerto Recital . . . . . * * * . ... vii Lecture Recital. : Trends and Parallels in Music and Painting as Related to the Miroirs of Maurice Ravel ...... ix

Second Solo Recital and Program Notes . .

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS...... q.....0 . .. .xii*. . IMPRESSIONISM: TRENDS AND PARALLELS IN MUSIC AND PAINTING AS RELATED TO THE MIROIRS OF

IaURICE RAVEL ...... , . * * . , . * . * 9 .9 1

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... , ...... *. 35

iv NORTH TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MUSIC presents

Phyllis Muiioz

in a Piano Recital

Sunday, April 16, 1972 3:30 p.m. Recital Hall

Prelude and in f-sharp minor W TC Vol. II, N o. 14 ...... Bach

Sonata in A Major, Opus 2, No. 2 ...... Beethoven vivace Largo appassionato Scherzo: Allegretto Rondo: Grazioso

intermission

Les jeux d'eaux a la villa d'Este ...... Liszt (Anndes de P&lerinage-Troisieme annde)

Sarcasm s, Opus 17 ...... Prokofieff Tempestoso Allegro rubato Allegro precipitato Smanioso Precipitosissimo

E tudes ...... C hopin C Major, Opus 10, No. 7 e-flat minor, Opus 10, No. 6 F Major, Opus 10, No. 8 c-sharp minor, Opus 10, No. 4

Presented in partialfulfillment of the requirementsfor the degree Doctorof Musical A rts

V THE ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Francis McBeth, Conductor Phyllis Mu'noz, Piano Soloist October 23rd, 1972 8:15 P.M. UALR Fine Arts Auditorium October 24th, 1972 7:30 P.M. Pine Bluff High School PROGRAM CARNEVAL OVERTURE, OP. 92 DVORAK PIANO CONCERTO IN G MAJOR, OP. 58 BEETHOVEN Allegro moderato Andante Rondo: Vivace Intermission THREE PIECES FOR ORCHESTRA KENT KENNAN Wilbert Delaine, Viola Soloist Promenade 17 Carnpo dei Fiori FANTASIA ON THE ALLELUIA HYMN GORDON JACOB FOUR SCOTTISH DANCES MALCOLM ARNOLD

PROGRAM NOTES By Jerry E. McSpadden ANTONIN DVORAK (1841-1904): CONCERT OVERTURE "CARNEVAL", opus 92 Dvorak spent most of his life in Czechoslovakia, working his way up in musical circles from background of proverty. After a coming to the attention of Brahms, who was judging a composition contest in which Dvorak had entered a set of piano duets, Dvorak rose rapidly in fame. He eventually became recognized as the chief representative of Czech nationalism in music, and received honorary degrees in several countries. Tonight's composition, which was written on the occasion of such a degree from the University of Prague in 1891, depicts a European Mardi Gras celebration in which solemnity of Lent is prepared the for in almost wanton abandon. Dvorak once described the depicting overture as "a lonely, contemplative wanderer reaching at twilight a city where is in full the Mardi Gras carnival sway. On every side is heard the clangor of instruments, mingled hilarity with joy and unrestrained of the people giving vent to their feelings in songs and opening section, tunes." After the orgiastic a middle episode of quiet romantic quality suggests a more intimate encounter by the and personal wanderer. At the end, the merrymaking resumes with the Slavic dance theme. return of the opening LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827): CONCERTO FOR PIANO & ORCHESTRA MAJOR, opus 58 NO. 4 IN G This concerto was first performed publicly in an all-Beethoven program with the composer himself presiding at the pianoforte. Various accounts have been given, some of which suggest that Beethoven's increasing deafness, plus a somewhat out-of-tune piano left something to be desired. Nevertheless, the concerto has survived on its compositional mertis to hold a most honored place in the concert repertory. standard The concerto begins, unusually, with the main thematic material being presented by the solo instrument alone. The orchestra takes up battle with the piano in alternating moods and virtuoso cadenza creates themes. A the climax of the first movement; and a short coda brings it expansive crescendo. to a close with an The 2nd movement also contains many oppositions of moods between piano and orchestra. Towards the end of the movement, the contrast lessens, and the contemplative mood of the piano prevails. The last movement, succeeding the "Andante" without pause, begins with form, strings. In loose rondo the piano and orchestra engage in boisterous, rhythmic interplay. brilliant virtuoso The movement ends with a cadenza, followed by restatements of the opening theme and brief passages. concluding

KENT WHEELER KENNAN: THREE PIECES FOR ORCHESTRA Kent Kennan was born in Milwaukee, Wis. in 1913. He studied at the University of Michigan, at the Eastman School of Music, and in Rome with Pizetti. Several of his compositions have been recorded by Mercury Records. He has taught composition at the University of Texas at Austin since 1949. His textbook "Orchestration" is standard in many schools throughout the country, including several colleges in Arkansas.

Vi NORTH TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MUSIC presents THE GRADUATE CHAMBER ORCHESTRA John Giordano conductor

Phyllis Mu~oz piano

Mary Beth Armes soprano

monday april 9

8:15 p.m.

recital hall

vii '4.

program

Signals ...... John W atts Warning Certification Notice Mary Beth Armes

Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466 ...... W. A. Mozart Allegro Romanza Rondo Phyllis Mufioz

intermission

vii i NORTH TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MUSIC

presents

PHYLLIS MUNOZ, Pianist

in a

LECTURE RECITAL

IMPRESSIONISM: TRENDS AND PARALLELS IN MUSIC & PAINTING as related to The Miroirs of Maurice Ravel

Monday, April 23, 1973 4:00 P.M. Recital Hall

MIROIRS (Mirrors)...... Ravel (1905)

Noctuelles (Moths)

Oiseaux Tristes (Mournful Birds)

Une Barque sur l'ocean (A Boat on the Ocean)

Alborada del gracioso (Morning Music of a Minstrel -Clown)

La Vallee des cloches (The Valley of the Bells)

Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Musical Arts

ix NORTH TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY

School of Music

presents

PHYLLIS MUNOZ, PIANIST

Monday, November 12, 1973 8:15 p.m. Recital Hall

program

Walzer, Op. 39...... Johannes Brahms

Moods II...... David Mathew

first performance

intermission

Sonata No. 8 in B-flat Major, Op. 84...... Sergei Prokofieff Andante dolce

Andante sognando

Vivace

Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Musical Arts

x NOTES ON MOODS II

1. The pianist is to construct a multi-colored overlay. This may be done by randomly placing small pieces of self-adhesing colored acetate on one score-sized piece of clear acetate, or by painting clear acetate with thinned acrylics. The overlay should be affixed to the score.

2. The pianist is to follow the route indicated in the score, making choices as desired. Repetition of an event is possible.

3. Each event (square) is to be repeated ad lib., as deter mined by the pianist. Duration of the work is dependent upon the pianist's artistic sense.

4. The pianist is to derive all interpretive directions (tempi, dynamics, attacks, releases, pedaling, etc. from the colors on the overlay. Thus, the pianist's feelings about the various colors directly determine content,

5. The pianist may transpose or double any written pitch,

David Mathew, 1973

xi LUP TF IL LU TR A TONS

Figure Page 1. : Imression: Sunrise * . * 2 2. Thirteenth-century French: A usician . e , 3 3. if teenth-century Burgundian. Virgin and Child . , , . , , , , , , 5 , 3 4. idr Degas: In -the. Jins

5. Gustave Courbet: Young Women on the Banks *, , 6 of the Seine . - . *

6. ionet: the Water-Garden at Giverny . * . . 10 70 ."aurice Rnavel Airoirs: "Nortuelles," mm. 1-2 . . * ...... S . .p 11 8. Pavel: iroirs: "," mm, 43-45 . - - # - . - *0...... # . . . 12 9. Ravel: Pir oirs: "Oiseaux tristes," mm. 13-15 , . . * ...... * , * . , . . . 14 M 10. Geor Es Seurat: Study for Le Chahut . * * S -P 15 11. Monet:* Ch ar ingQros Bridge ,..,.., , , ,S 17

12. Vonet: Lo.1-a tacks * * * * . * * . S . . 19 13. Ravel: Miroirs: "Une Barque sur l'oc*#an,#" mm. 1-10 , , . - . . . . * * ...... S .S 21 14. Rarel: Miroirs: "Ciseaux tristes," # , , * * , , , , . , , . mm. 1-2 - - , * . .S 23 15. Ravel: Miroirs: "La Vallge des cloches," *#. .* . .. mm. 1-4 a . . .- # * . . . . S .S 25 16. Ravel: Diroirs: "oiseaux tristes," m. 24 . * .S 27 17. Ravel: Miroirs: "Noctuelles," mm, 37-39 m . * .5 27

xii Figure Page 18, Ravel: Miroirs: "'Une Barque sur 1'oc6an," . 49 - - # t o - -o - -A. .. ..28

19. : The Sower , ...... 29 20, Ravel: Miroirs: "Alborada del gracioso,f" mm. 114-119 - - - * * ------. - - . . 30 21. Seurat: Sunda Afternoon on the Ile de la .. -. 32 Grande-Jatte . . , 22. Paul Cezanne: 'hocquett Seated ,0 , - . - , - , * 33

xiii IMPRESS IONLS :$ TRENDS AND PARALLELS IN MUSIC AND PAINTING

AS RELATED TO THE MIROIRS OF MAURICE RAVEL

The end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century witnessed a fine flowering of the Arts.

Developments in literature, painting and sculpture culminated in in the last decades of the nineteenth century in the movement known as "Impressionism." This movement pro vided a point of departure for the art of music to escape from the extravagant emotional and tonal proportions to which it had grown in Germany in the late nineteenth century.

The term "Impressionism" was derived by art critics from a painting by Claude Monet entitled Impression: Sunrise in which the artist depicted an impression of the sun rising through mist over the Thames (Fig. 1, p. 2). The painting was first exhibited in in 1874, and its title was launched asER label for the works, not only of Monet, but of

several Painters, including Renoir, Sisley, Gauguin, Pissarro, Toulouse-1Autrec, 3eurat and Cezanne.

Monet's aim in Impression: sunrise was to suggest the

shifting, transitory aspect of the morning mist as it was

being dissolved by the rising sun. The desire to capture the

fleeting, momentary aspect of a subject was not a new element

in the art of the Impressionists. The power to depict the momentary appearance of a subject has long been an important 2

Fig, 1--Claude Monet, Impression: Sunrise (1872), Musee ilarmottan, Paris. Reprinted in i6aurice 3erullaz, The Impressionist Painters, translated by L.J. Jtrachan (New York, 1960), no 8. characteristic of "rench painters and sculptors. Roger Pry observes this peculiar trait in an anonymous thirteenth century figure of a boy musician (Fig. 2, . 3). Fry writes, In the movement of the head and the expression of the face he [the sculptor] has made us vividly aware not only of the character of the boy but of his state of mind. In his intentness on the music which he is playing he is scarcely aware of the outer world--his face has that vague unseeing regard which comes from a withdrawal from the outside, from concentration on what is passing within the mind. 1

In a fifteenth-century Virgin and Child the extem

Yraneous quality is again noticeable (Fig. 3, p. 3).

oger ry, JiiaracteriStics o;? _ronch Art (inew ork, i177), n. 9 3

-Pig. 2--Thirteenth-century French, A !Thusician, Rheiims.

I,

~

~

I r 11niInli ini i-, 3-- iteenth-culouse. ~usee des Augustins, Toulouse. Reprinted in Fry, n. 10. 4

The mother's glance appears to be directed toward something that attracts her attention momentarily, Again, the sculptor has created a "vivid imaginative grasp of a particular moment in an everyday incident." 2

From the nineteenth century, ' In the Wijgs likewise gives the viewer the impression of a "first glance."

The characters are depicted as they might be seen in a brief moment, when passing by (Fig. 4, p. 5). The most distinctive contribution of the Impressionist painters to traditional French painting was their emphasis on outdoor painting, as opposed to the traditional practice of painting inside the studio. Gustave Courbet, in the late nineteenth century, was one of the first artists to paint in the open air1 Fry observes that the habit of painting pictures in the studio was deeply ingrained, however, and was not easily discarded. He writes that many of Courbet's subjects are

"painted from the model in the studio light and then sur rounded with a woodland landscape." 3 This characteristic may be observed in Fig, 5, p. 6. Once completely out of their studios, however, painters discovered that changing qualities of sunlight gave to a subject a different appearance at every moment. It was the achievement of this "atmospheric effect" in Monet's

2 Fry, p. 8. 3 Ibid., p. 108. 5

OI

4 4i-- idgar Degas: In the jvings (1882-1885), Private collection, Paris. Reprinted in Albert Skira, "he Taste editor, of Our Time: Degas, translated by James Emmons 7eneva, owitzerland, 1o5 , n. 74. 6

7 If

Fig. 5--Gustave Courbet, Young Vomen on the Banks of the 3eine (1856), Petit-Palais, Paris. Reprinted in Mfarcel Zahar, Gustave Courbet (New York, 1950), Plate 23. 7

Impression: Sunrise that launched the new ideals and

techniques of the Impressionist painters. In their art, the emphasis is on color, shadings and textures, and their aim

was to capture the transient and illusory quality of objects as they are perceived by the eye in a given moment.

French music shares a common heritage with French painting

in its tendency to appeal directly to the senses. The primary

aim of the music has traditionally been to give pleasure, and not to challenge the mind with intellectual complexities.

Claude Debussy summed up the French musical aesthetic when he stated,

Music should humbly seek to please; within these limits great beauty may perhaps be found. Extreme complication is contrary to art, Beauty must appeal to the senses, must provide us with immediate enjoy ment, must impress us or insinuate itself into us without any effort on our part.4

The bond of "sensual delight" between French painting and music was particularly strong in the Impressionist move ment, Ideals and techniques of Impressionist painters had profound influences on contemporary music. In a public lecture delivered about 1922, the composer Erik Satie stated that he had suggested to Debussy during their early acquaintance,

"Why not use the means of representation introduced to us by

Claude Monet, C6zanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, etc? Why not transpose these means musically?"5

4 , cited in I~on Vallas, The Theories of Claude Musicien Franais, translated by Maire O'Brien (New York, 1967), p. 13. 5Erik Satie, Lecture on Debussy, cited in Pierre-Daniel Templier, Erik Satie (Paris, 1932), p. 19. 8

The term "Impressionism" is often applied to music in a vague sense, simply to distinguish the styles of its two most distinctive composers, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, from earlier and later musical styles. Not all the works of either composer, however, may be termed "impressionistic."

The term itself was rejected by Debussy, who resented its use in regard to his works. In a letter written in 1908 to his publisher, concerning his Images for orchestra, he wrote, "I am trying to make something new--realities, as it were; what imbeciles call 'impressionism'. "6

Regardless of his objection to the use of the term

"Impressionism," much of the music of Debussy and Ravel may be seen to have many points of similarity to Impressionist painting. Often in the two arts are to be found similar techniques and "a related manner of execution. "7

The most distinctive feature of Impressionist painting was the novel treatment of color. As the painters moved out of-doors they realized that individual colors changed appearances with various atmospheric effects. The color

"yellow," for example, might appear in many hues, depending

on the time of day when viewed, whether viewed in bright

sunlight, in shadow, in fog, etc. The result of this

6 claude Debussy, Lettres de Claude Debussy A son Editeur (Paris, 1927), p. 58. ?Donald Ferguson, A History of Musical Thought (New York, 1935), p. 560. 9

discovery was that painters created for every color an

infinite number of divergent hues, to be used side by side

on the canvas for the prpose of achieving a realistic

anpearance of a subject. Individual color was thereby "dis solve d" into many colors.

The late paintings of onet, such as the many canvases

of his aquatic garden at Giverny (Fig. 6, p. 10), prove the

extent to which his colors had dissolved into an infinite variety of shades and combinations, Roger Fry observes that as Tonet grei older "his attitude became almost that of a

scientific researcher of color, his pictures demonstrations

of what he had discovered."8

The disintegration of color in painting was paralleled by techniques in contemporary music. The expansion of tonality

in the nineteen t h century resulted in what may be termed an

"explosion" in the late decades of the nineteenth and early years of the twen t ieth century, in which traditional tonality was dissolved. Regarding this expansion, Salazar states,

The tonal landscape widens limitlessly, as if we were to open a photographic lens with which we are focusing. Anpoint will be reached at which the landscape will dissolve in blobs of vague colors; all form is lost in the "unfocusing" which is the road to atonality.9 In France in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the musical canvas became highly colorful. As in

8Fry, p. 127.

9Adolfo Salazar, rflusic in Our Time: Trends in Vusic 3ince the Romantic Era, translated by Isabel Pope7New York, 1946)1, p 1 I

10

ig. 6--Monet, The ater-Garden at Giverny (1917), P usee des Beaux-Arts, Grenoble. Reprinted in Albert Skira, editor, The Taste of Cur Time: Monet, translated by James Snmmons (Geneva, Switzerland, 1958, . 105. 11

painting, virtuoso coloristic devices were introduced into muSc SNew and colorful instrumental effects were exploited, giving rise to t.he term "orchestral palette" in regard to the kaleidoscopic orchestral colors of Debussy and Ravel. The tonal language itself absorbed new and exciting colors: The harmonic world was enriched and enlarged by the introduction and acceptance of exceptional resolutions, consecutive ninths and elevenths, sequences of and fifths, fourths unprepared dissonances, foreign pedal notes, and unresolved appoggiaturas. "10 In the music of the Impressionists, diatonic, modal, chro matic and whole-tone sounds appear side by side and I nombia.tion, This characteristic is observable in the opening measUres of Ravel's Miroirs, a set of five pieces for solo piano, written in 1905:

Tres leger .

[~~I IL~L

--I

F g -- 'aurice Ravel, iroirs: "octuelles," mm. 1-2,

Paul Collaer, A istoyof Modern vusic (New l961) , p. 16..> ~_~~~c~ ~e York, 12

In the example cited, the left hand pattern consists of a whole-tone scale:

This scale is combined with a highly chromatic figure in the right hand to produce a colorful and descriptive effect.

In the following example, a "splash of color" effect is created by the sudden outburst of a rapid lydian scale in the midst of an otherwise diatonic passage:

Assez vif.

p sub/to

ig. 8--Ravel, IMiroirs: "Alborada del gracioso," mm. 43-43. 13

In the Preceding examples, contrast is obtained within the musical frame in much the same way that the painters created color contrasts by freely placing all possible combinations of color on a single canvas,

Herbert WVeinstockt points out that in. both the painting and the music of the Impressionists, "unprepared and inex plicable irruptions" are characteristic, and that these are used "for the Purpose of contrast and integral decoration, "l

This feature may be singularly observed in the following example rom the trojrs, in which the hurried outburst beginning in measure fifteen is in direct contrast to the quiet and slow-paced material which has preceded it from the beginning measure of the piece:

express/f

C r- *1.,.r.-

llHerbert Weinstock, lusic as an Art (New York, 1953), p. 279. 14

B -P

- ---- L

~~ -. - - -

- I F --.

et .

ave, Eirors: "Cuiseaux tris tes, " mm, 13-15. 15

Not only did the Impvressionist painters dissolve color

into an infinite number of hues to be used side by side on the canvas, but the actual treatment of the pigment itself underwent a similar process of disintegration. "Pointillisme"

was the name for a technique of painters, particularly , in which a patch of color is actually made up of

many separate dots of oaint. From a distance, the tiny dots appear as a solid patch of color:

4

Fig 10--Georges Seurat, Study for Le Chahut (1889-1890), Oourthauld Galleries, . Reprinted in Roger Fry and Sir Anthony Blunt, Seurat (London, 1965), Plate 41. 16

The term "Pointillisme" is often applied to the orches tration Of both Debussy and Ravel to indicate the use of isolated "dots" of instrumental sound, which combine to create a succession of orchestral colors. Both the Impressionist painters and musicians agreed that their aim was "dissolution a in color, that they wanted to create aesthetic enjoyment through color rather than through design. "12

In painting, the use of an infinite number of divergent hues caused the surfaces of painted objects to appear dis solved into small touches of color. This freedom from linear design, characteristic of Vonet's surfaces, is observable in his painting, CharLn Cross Bridge (Fig, , p. 17). In this canvas, line and design are "resolved into the flat mosaic of color 1 3 patches." Paul Henry Lang points out that "in such works, the juxtaposition of different colors...which are not held together by definite lines...gives the desired effect only if 'viewed' from a certain distance." 4

The freedom from linear clarity in Monet's paintings corresponds to contemporary musical innovations, particularly those of Debussy. In Debussy's music, a dissolution of design is created by his avoidance of clear, sharp melodic and formal

12Tul Henry Lang, Music in Western Civilization (New York, 1941.), p. 1020,

13Fry, ). 127.

14Lang, P. 1018. l

17

ij. ll-- onet, -haring Cross Bridge (1899-1904). Reprinted in Katharine 7Kuh, Break-Un: The Core of (Greenwich, Connecticut, 1965), ~. 19. nrofiles and his use of a "mosaic" tyPe melody "formed out of fragments of divergent sizes and shapes." 1 5

The anpearance of naintings in series, such as Monet's many canvases of Haystacks and dater Lilies, illustrates an important feature of Imnressionism, which Curt Sachs refers to as "the trend to oversterming the natural boundaries im nosed on every art by its very nature and to prescribing for one art such themes as would more convincingly be treated by some other art."16 The natural boundary of painting is that

1 5 7einstock, n. 279. lCurt Sachs, The Commonwealth of Art: Style in the 'ine Arft, mu susic, and the Dance (New York, 1946), p 219. 18

it does not develop in time. A painting is static. Although

a great degree of movement may be depicted on the canvas, the

painted objects themselves do not move. A canvas is a com

plete work, and one may see or "experience" the complete

work in any given moment. Music, on the other hand, has as

a basic characteristic its development in time. One may not, in any given moment, experience an entire musical composition, en onet's series canvases, such as the L-aystacs (Fig. 12, p. 19), are viewed progressively, they appear

almost as if the artist had intended them to be viewed in succession. Observing such canvases, one easily discerns

3alazar's meanin;, when he states that the colored fragments

follow one after the other with scarcely a break, somewhat as if the painter had had the intention of Presenting a cinematographic series (or "vanishing pictures" as they were called at that time) the constant and insensible change of atmospheric color with the passing of the hours.1?

The illusion of "development in time" is particularly notable in one of onet's last works, an oval canvas of water lLIies, painted on the walls of the Musge de l'Orangerie

in Paris. As the eye followis the band around the room, the scene asses from mornin: to afternoon and finally to sunset, creating the effect of an "imagery &ith no boundaries. "18

alazar, .184.

8r yr p . 12 (. 19

40

Fig. 12--Monet, Two Haystacks (1891), Private Collection, Paris. Reprinted in Kuh, p. 17.

While the painting of the Impressionists in many cases adapted the musical quality of development in time, contemporary music readily adapted the static quality of painting. Regarding the early piano music of Erik 2atie,

F. 3. Kirby states, "What is perhaps most striking... is the directionless quality; the pieces seem static, they lack a climax and central point and they do not go anywhere--they 20

simnly are. "19

The static quality is a particular musical character istic of Debussy, whose refusals to modulate in his keyboard

Improvisation class used to infuriate his teacher, Ctsar

cTranck.2M A favorite compositional device of both Debussy and avel was the use of stationary chords. These chords contained no activating tendency tones, and their function was simply to create harmonic stillness. A striking example of such a chord appears at the beginning of "Une Barque sur l'ocean," from the liroirs, where the F-sharp minor ninth chord of the opening measure is sustained for ten measures (Fig. 13, p. 21). Richard Qrocker observes that such chords were "animated from within, either by some...insistent rhythmic pattern or by novel orchestration. Such chords shimmere d, but showed no inclination to move toward another chord. "21

While the natural boundaries of painting may at times expand to include aspects of music, and while music at times may introduce a static quality associated with painting, it is in the music of the Impressionist composers that one perceives the striking phenomenon of music as an "art of

19F. E. Kirby, A Short Hibtory of Keyboard Music (New York, 1966), P. 391. 20R-ichard Crocker, A Hstory o Musical Syle (New York, 1966), p. 479. 2 1 Ibid,0, pp. 478-479. 21

Dun rythme souple - rr 4s enveloppie poes

Pt

-I -.-It smirii.t

This pattern continues through measure ten.

Fig. 13--Ravel, ?'iroirs: "Une Barque sur l ' ocan," mm, 1-10. 22 visual imagery." Although descriptive music has existed since earliest times, concepts of music as a visual art and painting as an improvisational art have been particular twentieth century concepts.

The visual inspiration of Impressionist music is clearly discernible in such works as Debussy's Estampes ("Prints,"

1903), his two sets of Images (1905, 1907), and the Miroirs

("Mirrors") of Ravel. The visual imagery suggested by the titles of the collections is further indicated in the titles

of the individual pieces. From Debussy's collections, such

titles as "Jardins sous la pluie" ("Gardens in the Rain"),

"Reflets dans l'eau" ("Reflections on the Water"), and "Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut" ("And the Moon

Descends on the Temple Which Was") might easily have been

titles of contemporary paintings. Nowhere is the descriptive character of Impressionist

music more pronounced than in Ravel's Miroirs. The precise

visual imageries which the composer intended are suggested in

the individual titles of the five pieces: "Noctuelles"

("Night Moths"), "Qiseaux tristes" .("Mournful Birds"), "Une

Barque sur l' ocean" ("A Boat on the Ocean"), "Alborada del

gracioso" ("Morning Music of the Minstrel Clown"), and "La Vallee des cloches" ("The Valley of Bells"). In the first piece, "Noctuelles," a descriptive visual

imagery is established in the opening measures. Ravel's combination of the whole-tone scale pattern in the left hand 23

with a chromatic figuration in the right hand (Fig. 7, p. 11) obscures the D-flat major tonality and creates an "unfocused"

tonal canvas, particularly suggestive of early Impressionist paintings.

The descriptive character of the second piece, "Oiseaux

tristes, " is established at the outset by the opening figure:

Tres lent $=Q

res doux pp

Fie, 14--Ravel, Miroirs: "'iseaux tristes," mm. 1-2.

This figure is sounded almost incessantly throughout the

piece. Its ostinato-like recurrence suggests a visual

imagery that remains constant, almost unwavering.

The descriptive character of "Oiseaux tristes" was

clearly iden t ified by the composer. Victor Seroff writes

that when Ravel performed the Miroirs for the first time for

his friends, they were particularly perplexed by the dis

sonant and slow-moving piece. Seroff writes, 24

Their confusion upset the composer himself and he played the piece to them over and over again. "This one," he explained, "is the most characteristic of them all. In it I evoke birds lost in the torpor of a somber forest during the most torrid hours of summer. "22

The Miroirs centers around the two large middle pieces, the virtuosic "Une Barque sur l'ocean," and the Spanish piece, "Alborada del gracioso." Particularly striking in

"Une Barque sur l'ocean" are the long passages of static harmony which begin and end the piece (Fig. 13, p. 21), creating a "background" against which is outlined a con stantly shifting kaleidoscope of color.

Of the five pieces, "Alborada del gracioso" has won the most favor with pianists and audiences. The art of illusion in music is perfectly defined in this brilliant piece. The Spanish flavor is complete with the rhythms of Spanish dances, clearly marked passages imitating the guitar, lyrical passages quoting song-like fragments, and passages of re peated notes imitating castanets.2 3 The last piece in the Piroirs reflects the vague, un focused quality of the first piece. "La Vall'ee des cloches," with its bell-like chords and dissonant echo effects, has for its objective the "unfocusing" of the set. In this piece, length and intensity are decreased, and, as in the first

2 2Victor Seroff, Maurice Ravel (New York, 1953), p. 89.

2 3 1bid., p, 90. 25

piece, the tonality is obscured, in this instance by the use of quartal harmony.

Tres lent

n Ik Vilt - Ift - R, I - I -1. AWL *~~'~-4- I~-~ X I ~71- f~I J~ I~ ~F F#~ i~ m i~ P m.d. I -L-

I T

DD

p un peu mqrque'

ig, 15--Ravel, Miroirs: "La Va11'e des cloches, " MM. 1-4o 26

Although the 'iroirs was a culmination of the art of visual imagery in music, reactions to the pieces were often

critical. Many of Ravel's friends accused him of trying to oaint ictures rather than to express emotion or to capture

the "erotic," as Debussy had done.2 4 One of the chief ele ments of this criticism, and the one which baffled even the composer's closest friends, was the unprecedented level of dissonance in the pieces. As the late paintings of Monet achieved an ultimate complexity of color, the Miroirs achieve an ultimate complexity of tonal color,

The most dissonant intervals--major sevenths and minor ninths--appear frequently. The extensive use of the minor second interval, the shifting of major and minor ninth over a sustained triad (Fig. 16, p. 27) combine to create what

Paul Collaer calls a "sort of postimpressionism based on great refinement of harmonic perception." 2 5

Dissonances often appear in very thick textures. In tervals of the major seventh in root position are often combined with dissonant pedal tones, as in the middle section of "Noctuelles" (Fig. 17, p. 27). Chords of the ninth and eleventh often appear with added tones or with dissonant non-harmonic tones. Eleventh and thirteenth chords are

2 4 S'eroff, p, 115. 25collaer, p. 46. 27 Lent pre squa0 ad Imoi

ppp

I -.-LTJ6 j- --

i,16--Ravel Miro irs "Ciseaux tristes" m. 24.

Pas trop lent

t i- St - --- 4,- 4-=-W------~ 4ALz7r~ A tat__ z L-r"fL, TIEez IF lp off r

-j- -L

7- -

Fig. I?--Ravel, Wiroirs: "Poctuelles," mm. 3-39. 28

common, and are frequently voiced in such a way as to pro duce the harshest effects of dissonance, as in the following example from "Une Barque sur l'oc an:"

A

sff

---- ____

Fig. 18--Ravel, Miroirs: "Une Barque sur l'ocean," mO 49.

Trequently, such chords apear without resolutions, or with dissonant resolutions,

The thickness of dissonance in the Miroirs reflects

the thick textures of many of the Impressionist painters,

particularly those of the Dutch painter, Vincent Van Gogh,

who, living in Paris, was much influenced by Impressionist

techniques. Van Gogh's use of thick textures on his canvases to create emotional expression (Fig. 19, p. 29) foreshadows the techniques of the later Expressionist painters; similarly,

the level of dissonance attained by Ravel in the 4iroirs foreshadows the techniques of the later Expressionist 29

Fig. 19--Vincent Van Gogh, The 3ower (1888). reprinted in 4ilton 3. Fox and Meyer Schapiro, editors, Vincent Van Go:h (New York, 1928), p. 81. composers--,-choenberg, Berg and Webern.

The complex dissonance of the Miroirs is combined with a clarity of melody and design which are immediately dis cernible to the listener. Even in the most impressionistic of the nieces, such as "Noctuelles" and "Une Barque sur l'ocean," Ravel dissipates his Impressionism "beneath a crystalline light which shines with a dazzling and gemlike brilliance. "26

This characteristic is particularly evident in the strong lines and design of "Alborada del gracioso." A melodic line

6 2 Salazar, n. 191. 30

such as that shown in the following example is easily per ceivable to the ear, in spite of the often complex rhythmic and harmonic activity which surround it,

p/us /ein7 _ _ _ .01

-I

IL

'RW ,

I' % 3 0 I

F.ig, 20--Ravel, Miroirs: "Alborada del gracioso," mm. 114-119. 31

Ravel's melodic clarity is an obvious influence of

Satie, who once remarked, "...the melody is the Idea, the contour just as much as it is the form and content of a work. Harmony is lighting, an exhibition of the object, its reflection,."27

The clarity of line and design apparent in the Miroirs represents one of the chief elements of Ravel's style. It is a characteristic which is paralleled in the work of several painters, who, like Ravel, took their departure from

Impressionist techniques, but to whom form and design were of prime consideration. Of these painters, Georges Seurat rep resents the height of linear clarity and formal precision.

In his paintings, the intervals between things are dis covered with almost "mathematical orderliness." 2 8 In the formal rigidity observable in such paintings as Sunday After noon on the Ile de la Grande-Jatte (Fig. 21, p. 32), it is apparent that the artist left not the slightest effect to chance.

27Erik Satie, cited in Roger Shattuck, The Banquet Years, rev. ed. (New York, 1968), p. 167. 2 8Fry, p. 147. 32

17. 21--Georges Seurat, Sunday Afternoon on the Ile e la Grande-Jatte (1883-1886), Chicago Art Institute. inrinted in Roger 7ry and 3ir Anthony Blunt, Plate 21. 33

Paul Cezanne, also like Ravel, was not content with the loose formal designs of many Impressionist painters.

In his art he sought to recognize the importance of under

lying form. His study of forms and planes laid the foundation lor the later techniques of .

A

464

Fig. 22--saul Cezanne, Chocquet Seated (1887), Gallery of Fine Arts, Columbus, Chio. Reprinted in Mlilton S. Fox and Meyer Schaniro, editors, Paul Cezanne (New York, 1952), P. 51. 34

In the Miroirs, Ravel's peculiar combination of linear and formal clarity with an unprecedented level of dissonance perhaps reflects most clearly the trends evident in the

Paintings of Van Gogh, Van Gogt's paintings, like Ravel's

Miroirs, are based on Impressionist techniques. In the works of both men, form, line and design are readily per ceivable. The thick textures of Van Gogh's paintings parallel the thickness of dissonance in the Miroirs, and the beginnings of the later techniques of are evident in the works of both artists.

Ravel's Miroirs reflects tendencies drawn from the entire Impressionist movement, The vague, unfocused quality of the early Impressionist canvases is paralleled in the

"Noctuelles," and "La Vall'6e des cloches." The clarity of line and design obvious in all the pieces, and especially notable in "Alborada del gracioso," reflects similar tendencies in the art of the painters, Seurat and C'ezanne. Ravel's tendency toward great dissonance and thick textures reflects the Expressionist tendencies of Van Gogh. Thus, in the i'iroirs, Ravel reflects the trends which characterize the art of the Impressionist painters, and points the way to further twentieth century techniques. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

Austin, William F., Music in the Twentieth Century from Debussy Through Stravinsky, New York, W. W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1966.

Bauer, Marion, Twentieth Century Music, New York, G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1933.

Bazin, Germain, Baroque and Rococo, New York, Frederick A. Praeger, 1964.

Brown, Calvin S., Music and Literature: A Comparison of the Arts, Athens, Georgia, University of~Georgia Press, 1948.

Collaer, Paul, A Historyoof Modern Music, translated by Sally Abeles, New York, Gosset and Dunlap, 1961. Cortot, Alfred, French Piano Mjsic, translated by Hilda Andrews, London, Oxford University Press, 1932.

Craven, Thomas, A Treasury of Art Masterpieces from the Renaissance to the Present Day, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1939,

, The Story of jPai g, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1939.

Crocker, Richard L., A Historyof Musical Style. New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1966C

Debussy, Claude, Lettres de Claude Debussya son Editeur, Paris, Jacques Durand, 1927,

Demuth, Norman, Musical Trends .in the Twentieth Century, London, Rockliff Press, 1952,

, Ravel, London, Dent Publishers, 1947.

Ferguson, Donald, A Historyf f Musical Thought, New York, F. S. Crofts and Company, 1935. Fox, Milton S., and Meyer Schapiro, editors, Vincent Van Ggh, New York, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1928.

35 36

editors, Paul .ezanne, .New Yorkc, uarry N. Abrams, Inc., 1952.

Fry, Roger, Characteristics of French Art, New York, Lrentanos, 1933. ury, Ro er and Sir Anthony Blunt, Seurat, London, Phaidon Press, Ltd., 1965.

Gilman, Lawrence, Phases off Modern lusic, London, John Lane the Bodly :ead, 1905.

Gray, Cecil, jurve of ontemporary Music, 2nd ed., London, Oxford University Press, 1927,

71ill, Burlingame,2dward Modern French Music, New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1924.

Jean-Aubry, Georges, French Music oflToday, translated by Sdwin Evans, London, K. Paul, Prench, Turbner and Company, Ltd., 1926.

Lirby, 2E E., A Short History of Keyboard Music, New York, The Free Press, 1966,

Kuh, Katharine, Break-Up: The Core of Modern Art, Greenwich, Connecticut, New York Graphic Society, 1965.

Lang, 'Paul enry, Music in Western Givilization, New York, W, W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1941

Mellers, Wilfrid, and the Twentieth C ntury, t ondon, Rockliff Press, 1957,

Myers, Rollo H., Ravel: Life and Works, London, Gerald Duckworth and Company, Ltd., 1960.

:oland-Manuel, 'laud, Maurice Ravel, London, Dennis Dobson, Ltd., 1947.

Sachs, Curt, he. Commonwealth of Art: Style in the Fine Arts, music, and tie Dance, New York, W. W. Norton and Com pany, H Inc., 194.

Our4 Musical Heritajae, New York, Prentice-Hall, Inc, , 194F8.

Salazar, Adolfo, Music I nurTime: Trends in Music Since the Romantic Era, translated by Isabel Pope, New York, 1. , Norton and Comoany, Inc., 1946. 37

ohm1itr, 2. Robert, The Piano orks of -"'lude.De bussr, New York, Duell, Sloan and Pearce, Inc., 1950.

S e r ofr,- ictor, Maurice l avel, New York, Henry Holt and Company, 1953. oerullaz, Maurice, The Impressionist t Painters, translated by . J ' rachan, New York, Universe Books, Inc., 1960, Shattuck, Roger, The Banquet Years, rev. ed., New York, Vintage ress, 19t8

Shera, 7 ritank N., Debusy and Ravel, London, Oxford University -ress, 1927. Skira, Albert, editor, The Taste of Our Time: Monet, trans lated by James Eimmons, Geneva, Switzerland, Editions d'Art Albert Skira, 1958,

editor, The Taste of Our Time: Dgas, trans late d by James .immons, Geneva, Switzerland, Editions d'Art Albert Skira, 1954.

Slonimsky, Nicolas, A-usic .Sinc 0, fNew York, W. W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1937.

Temolier, 9ierre-Daniel, E atie, Paris, Editions Rieder, 1932, TysonG eorge, The Neyr AuIsc, london, ford University Press,

Vilas ,i eon, T e Theories ofC laude Debussy, jujsic ien Fran ais, translated by Maire O'Brien, New York, tove PubLications, Inc., 1967, einstoC, erbert, music as an Art, New York, Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1953,

Zahar, parcell, Gustave Courbet, New York, Harper and Brothers, 1950, 38

Lasic

Ravel, Maurice, viroirs, New York, G. Schirmer, Inc., 1939.

Unpublished Materials

Jameson, Elizabeth, "A Stylistic Analysis of the Piano Works of Debussy and avel," unpublished master's thesis, Denartrment of Music, North Texas State University, Denton, Texas, 1942.

Roberts, Jack L., "The Piano Style of ,iaurice Ravel," unpublished master's thesis, Department ofe usic, North Texas State University, Denton, Texas, 1952.

Ryan, A. B., "The Piano Style of Claude Debussy," unpublished Master's thesis, Department of Music, North Texas State University, TT Denton, Texas, 1951.

viley, Larry, "Selected Piano Works by Franz Liszt and Their Influence on the Impressionists," unpublished master's thesis, Department of Music, North Texas State ni versity, Denton, Texas, 1965.