Florida State University Libraries

Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School

2012 Contemporary New Zealand Piano Music: Four Selected Works from Twelve Landscape Preludes: Landscape Prelude, the Street Where I Live, Sleeper and the Horizon from Owhiro Bay Joohae Kim

Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected]

THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MUSIC

CONTEMPORARY NEW ZEALAND PIANO MUSIC: FOUR SELECTED WORKS FROM TWELVE LANDSCAPE PRELUDES: LANDSCAPE PRELUDE, THE STREET WHERE I LIVE, SLEEPER AND THE HORIZON FROM OWHIRO BAY

By JOOHAE KIM

A Treatise submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Music

Degree Awarded: Summer Semester, 2012 !

!

!

! Joohae Kim defended this treatise on April 26, 2012.

The members of the supervisory committee were:

Read Gainsford Professor Directing Treatise

Evan Jones University Representative

Joel Hastings Committee Member

Heidi Louise Williams Committee Member

The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the treatise has been approved in accordance with university requirements.

! ""!

!

!

Dedicated to

my mother, Sunghae Cho (!"#) and my father, Keehyouk Kim ($%&)

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! """! ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my sincere appreciation to four New Zealand composers, Mr. Jack Body, Mr. John Psathas, Mr. Gareth Farr and Ms. Jenny McLeod. I would not even be able to have begun this research without their support. I enjoyed so much working with them; they were true inspirations for my research. My greatest thanks goes to my major professor, Dr. Read Gainsford, for his endless support and musical suggestions. I learnt not only how to be a great performer but also a great teacher. I will never forget these four years working with him; they will remain with me throughout my future professional career life. I also thank my committee members, Dr. Heidi Louise Williams, Dr. Joel Hastings, Dr. Evan Jones and my former committee member, Mr. Leonard Mastrogiacomo, for their tremendous kindness and encouragement. They always supported me in every step of my four years at Florida State University. I would also like to thank to my friends, Liz Remizowski and Nicole Riccardo who helped edit my writing. I would like to extend my appreciation to God who helped me get through this journey. Finally, my deepest appreciation goes to my family and my dear friend, Joong-Han Jung for their endless love and encouragement.

! '

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

! "#! TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures...... vi List of Musical Examples...... vii Abstract...... viii

1. NEW ZEALAND MUSIC...... 1

Background of New Zealand Music...... 1 New Zealand Landscape...... 3 Recent New Zealand Composers...... 5 Landscape Preludes...... 5

2. THE COMPOSERS: BIOGRAPHIES AND MUSICAL INFLUENCES...... 10

Jenny McLeod...... 10 Jack Body...... 12 John Psathas...... 13 Gareth Farr...... 15

3. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION...... 17

Jenny McLeod, Landscape Prelude...... 17 Interpretative Suggestions...... 29 Jack Body, The Street Where I Live...... 30 Interpretative Suggestions...... 34 John Psathas, Sleeper...... 34 Interpretative Suggestions...... 41 Gareth Farr, The Horizon from Owhiro Bay...... 44 Interpretative Suggestions ...... 52

4. CONCLUSION...... 54 APPENDIX...... 56 A. Copyright Permission Letters from the Composers...... 56

BIBLIOGRAPHY...... 60 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH...... 63

! #! LIST OF FIGURES

1.1 A Love Song, Te Marama I Te Po Nei...... 2 3.1 The Twelve Sets of the Tone Clock System...... 24 3.2 First Hour Steering by Tenth Hour...... 24 3.3 Fifth Hour Steering by Second Hour...... 25 3.4 Eleventh Hour Steering by Second Hour...... 25 3.5 Minor Pentatonic Scale on Black Key...... 52

! #"! LIST OF MUSICAL EXAMPLES

3.1 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.16-18...... 18 3.2 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.71-74...... 19 3.3 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.1-11...... 20 3.4 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.28-37...... 21 3.5 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.33-48...... 22 3.6 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.1-5...... 26 3.7 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.37-40...... 27 3.8 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.73-83...... 28 3.9 Jenny McLeod Landscape Prelude, mm.82-88...... 29 3.10 Jack Body The Street Where I Live, mm.1-6...... 32 3.11 Jack Body The Street Where I Live, mm.88-93...... 33 3.12 Jack Body The Street Where I Live, mm.104-106...... 33 3.13 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.1-4...... 36 3.14 John Psathas Waiting for the Aeroplane, mm.1-3...... 36 3.15 John Psathas Waiting for the Aeroplane, mm.10-14...... 37 3.16 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.35-39...... 38 3.17 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.80-89...... 39 3.18 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.13-15...... 40 3.19 John Psathas Sleeper, voice-like melodic figuration...... 41 3.20 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.65-75...... 42 3.21 John Psathas Sleeper, mm.26-31...... 43 3.22 Gareth Farr The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm.1-3...... 45 3.23 Gareth Farr The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm.1-15...... 46 3.24 Gareth Farr The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm.16-17...... 47 3.25 Debussy Pagodes from Estampes...... 50 3.26 Gareth Farr The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm.45-48...... 51 3.27 Gareth Farr The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm.37-38...... 52

! #""! ABSTRACT

Landscape Preludes is a collection of pieces commissioned in 2003 by New Zealand pianist Stephen de Pledge from twelve New Zealand composers. The writing took about four years and the complete set was first performed by de Pledge at the International Festival of Arts in Wellington, New Zealand, on 6 April 2008. The title ‘Landscape Preludes’ refers to inspiration drawn from New Zealand landscapes in general rather than to specific geographical locations.

This treatise examines four pieces from the set: Landscape Preludes by Jenny McLeod, The Street Where I Live by Jack Body, Sleeper by John Psathas and The Horizon from Owhiro Bay by Gareth Farr. These were chosen to represent four contemporary approaches to writing for the piano: music generated from a theoretical notion (McLeod); the piano combined with electronic material (Body); color derived from minimalism, combined with Greek modes (Psathas); the inspiration of the Balinese gamelan (Farr).

The treatise is arranged in three main chapters: a historical background of New Zealand music; biographies of the four composers; and an analysis and performance guide for the four selected pieces. The first chapter describes the history of New Zealand music followed by discussion of New Zealand’s natural landscapes, recent New Zealand composers, and background information of Landscape Preludes. The second chapter presents information on each composer’s life, musical influences and achievements. The third chapter, the analysis and performance guide, I discusses aspects of compositional technique including rhythm, ostinato, harmonic language, pitch choices, and texture. This chapter also describes specific compositional styles such as the use of Greek scales, musical elements from the Balinese gamelan, the Tone Clock system of Peter Schat, and Sprechstimme, a vocal technique used by Schönberg amongst others. An interpretative guide is also provided in this chapter based on the author’s own experience performing the works. The suggestions given explore the use of pedal, and treatment of rhythms, tempo and dynamics.!

! #"""! CHAPTER 1 NEW ZEALAND MUSIC !

Background of New Zealand Music!

New Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean consisting of two main islands, the North and the South. About one thousand years ago, Eastern Polynesians settled in New Zealand and developed a distinct culture now known as M!ori. The M!ori name for New Zealand is “Aotearoa,” which translates as “the land of the long white cloud.” This description from the settlers gives a unique characterization of the nation's landscape, just as “the land of the rising sun” does for Japan. European immigration to New Zealand began with the arrival of British explorer James Cook in 1769. During the course of his three voyages he made four visits to New Zealand. The first visit to New Zealand was from Tahiti, where he had gone to observe the transit of Venus1. In the 1770s, many Europeans began to visit the islands of what would later be called New Zealand to trade food and other goods with the M!ori people. European explorers also transported certain European musical instruments to New Zealand, including violins, flutes, and pianos. By this time, as the Europeans were bringing their music to New Zealand, the M!ori people already had their own fully- developed musical styles. The established M!ori music, as well as its culture, impressed the Europeans. A synthesis of these two musical styles soon occurred, creating a style of music still heard in New Zealand today: a combination presenting traditional M!ori musical expression in a largely European compositional style. Waiata is the name for the traditional songs of the M!ori, which were used for many different purposes, leading to many forms including waiata aroha (love songs), waiata tangi (laments), waiata poi (action songs), oriori (lullabies) and negri (a form of chant). #$%&'&(&)*!+,-,.,!According to Thomson (1991), “traditionally, songs in the style of waiata are performed in unison, and they contain a melodic range of a 4th or 5th. In !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"!/0'1!$(2&+1'()!'1!(03!&1(24+45'6&7!803+453+4+!49!:3+;1!<3'+=!133+!&1!&!<7&6>!-4(!54?'+=!&62411!(03! 9&63!49!(03!1;+,!!

! "! these traditional songs, the central melody returns to a droning note each time the melody’s pattern is stated” (p.1). They were sung without instrumental accompaniment because the text itself was the most important element to convey expression. “M!ori people give expression to their deepest feeling by words” (McLintock, 1966). The lyrics also express a deep connection to specific places, or aspects of the local landscape, especially in love songs, lullabies and laments. These lyrics often contain references to New Zealand’s natural beauty. For example, a love song, Te Marama I Te Po (The Moon in the Night) contains poetry expressing love and connecting to a specific location that would have been known to listeners.

Te Marama i te po nei The moon in the night Nga Whetu i te rangi and the starts in the sky. Oho ake koe e Hine You awaken, oh maiden Papaki kau ana e to a gentle clapping. Me pea hara koe e hine If perhaps I offend you, oh maiden E mutu wai ko aroha this flow of emotion will end, Me he rukuruku pea perhaps with a dive into Nga wai o Matarui e Matauri Bay.

Figure 1.1: A Love Song, Te Marama I Te Po Nei (New Zealand Folk Song Website, 2007)

In the 1800s, the Church Missionary Society, which “represented the evangelical movement within the church of England,” began to visit New Zealand. (McLean, 1996, p.270) Missionaries made a great impact on M!ori music by injecting Western music into M!ori society. Some New Zealand churches adopted the chanting of waiata–style scriptures, rather than singing traditional diatonic hymns (Thomson, 1991, p.1). This new style of hymn soon explored melodic ranges beyond the fourths and fifths of the traditional waiata. Waiata was also changed by Western music, incorporating more action and being accompanied by western musical instruments. (“Waiata”, n.d.) On 6 February 1840, 71 years after James Cook arrived in New Zealand, representatives of the British Crown along with various M!ori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which recognized M!ori ownership of their lands and gave them the same rights as British subjects. At the same time that the two peoples entered into a formalized

! @! relationship, their musics also were growing closer. Australian-born composer Alfred Hill (1869-1960) was a pioneer in developing New Zealand’s music by blending traditional M!ori melodies with western harmonies. He lived in New Zealand for most of his youth. After his study at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1887-1891, he returned to New Zealand, working as director of the Wellington Orchestral Society. His composition Hinemoa 2(1896), a cantata for soloist, choir and orchestra, is an example of an early New Zealand composition containing characteristics of M!ori traditional melodies. Also, his String Quartet No. 1 in B-flat Major, “M!ori” (1896) incorporates a traditional M!ori folk melody. The second movement is named “Waiata” and consists of two sections inspired by haka3 and poi4 dances. The third movement, Tangi, is a M!ori lament. #BAlfred Hill’, n.d.).

New Zealand Landscape

This environment of ours is shaping us into characteristic rhythms of living…everything about us, the patterns of our landscape and seacoasts, the changing of our seasons, and the flow of light colour about us…show patterns of movement or characteristic rhythms. Douglas Lilburn (as cited in Thomson, 1991, p. 212)

New Zealand is a recently formed country, much of which came about through the colliding of tectonic plates. This movement of one sheet of land towards another not only formed most of the landmass of New Zealand, but also the Southern Alps, a dramatic mountain range that is the backbone of the South Island. New Zealand is also in the Pacific Rim of Fire, a band of countries surrounding the Pacific Ocean that sees around 90% of the world’s earthquakes and 75% of its volcanoes. These volcanic !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@! Name of princess from a M!ori folk tale. She and her lover, Tutanekai, remain a young couple in M!ori history. A famous love song, Pokarekare Ana, is based on their love story, sung at traditional M!ori weddings.!

A Traditional M!ori war dance, which is performed with vigorous, gallant expression.

C This is the M!ori word for “ball.” Female dancers perform with a ball attached on string while singing the songs.

! A! activities have produced both individual volcanic mountains and volcanic lakes such as the North Island’s Lake Taupo, New Zealand’s largest lake. New Zealand’s unique natural landscape contains a variety of landforms, which include miles of coastline, including both beautiful beaches and large stretches of wild rocky shore. Being of a temperate climate and geographically isolated, New Zealand is home to many native plants and creatures that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. One of the most revered is the Kauri tree. It is the largest, by volume, of any tree found in New Zealand (“Kauri”, n.d.) and it is one of the oldest native plants in the nation. It symbolizes New Zealanders’ deep association with nature and it is a fine representation of New Zealand landscape. Underneath the canopies of the Kauri trees, one can find dense and luxurious undergrowth, including a variety of ferns. These trees and ferns provide an evergreen rainforest that covers about one quarter of New Zealand. The forest areas known as “the bush5” support an incredible variety of bird life. As they evolved on this isolated island, some birds no longer needed wings, as they had no natural predators from which to fly away from. As a result, several of New Zealand’s native birds became flightless, such as the kakapo parrot, the pukeko, and New Zealand’s national icon, the kiwi, which is now an endangered species. However, some birds, such as the tui, have retained their ability to fly. New Zealanders grow up keenly aware of the geographical features of their homeland. They enjoy New Zealand’s great outdoors in a wide variety of recreational activities, with world-renowned hiking trails, fly-fishing rivers and wine trails, as well as simply spending time on the beaches and in the lush native bush. New Zealanders are also aware that their homeland has been well-preserved from its early stages. Environmental organizations, such as ECO, have been centrally involved in campaigns to protect the native forests, lakes, rivers and endangered species, the reform of the Mining Act and defeat of the National Development Act, and in supporting the Resource Management Act and the establishment of the Department of Conservation and Ministry for the Environment. New Zealanders continue to be at the forefront of environmental campaigns on home soil and to inspire the rest of the world. (“Eco”, 2012) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

D!Native forest in New Zealand. (Phillips, 2009)!!!!

! C!

Recent New Zealand Composers

New Zealand’s music is intimately involved with its natural environment, as shown in the words of Douglas Lilburn, quoted above. Lilburn (1915-2001) chose to relate his musical ideas to his everlasting inspiration of New Zealand nature. Just like his composition teacher, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Lilburn frequently used music to reflect the landscape of his homeland. His approach for incorporating nature into a musical style influenced the younger generation of New Zealand composers such as Jack Body and Jenny McLeod. According to Cresswell (2011), “Lilburn finds aspects of the landscape- rhythms, contours, colours and light that need to be harnessed to bring us into harmony with them.” Lilburn’s three early works Aotearoa: Overture (1940), Landfall in Unknown Seas (1944) and A Song of Islands (1946) demonstrate the music that celebrates New Zealand’s national identity, striking audiences with sounds full of images of a New Zealand landscape that is calm and peaceful, yet also dramatic. According to Thomson (1991), “in Aotearoa: Overture, the opening chords of a work whose mood and shimmering atmosphere marked the arrival of a new voice in New Zealand music (p.228). This piece was influenced by Vaughan Williams; Lilburn used open fourths, fifths and octaves, expressing the wide and open landscape of New Zealand. Lilburn composes with harmonic tonal centers and beautifully painted musical textures through his use of colorful instrumentation. As cited in Thomson (1991), “W.R. Anderson wrote in the Musical Times of its ‘excellently sonorous scoring’, attributing its modal character to the influence of Vaughan Williams” (p.228). Building on its inheritance from Hill and Lilburn, New Zealand’s music has expanded even further within these musical traditions, while also incorporating new compositional styles from other countries. The inclusion of these two distinct cultures is also a significant feature of New Zealand’s music that has continued to influence the younger generation of New Zealand composers.

Landscape Preludes

! D! The set Landscape Preludes was the result of a four-year project in which New Zealand pianist Stephen de Pledge commissioned twelve pieces from twelve different New Zealand composers. De Pledge has built his professional career as a soloist, chamber musician, and accompanist in England, New Zealand, Europe and Asia. He studied piano performance at the University of Auckland, and then continued his postgraduate study with Joan Havill at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. In 1996 he won The Gold Medal, the Guildhall’s most prestigious prize for musicians, and having also won the NFMS6 Young Concert Artists’ Award, de Pledge made his solo debut at the Wigmore Hall, London, in 1999. He has appeared as soloist in Hong Kong, Japan, Italy, France, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and the United States, and also as a chamber musician working with notable musicians and chamber groups such as cellist Colin Carr, clarinetist Alan Hacker, violinist Victoria Mullova, the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet, and the English Chamber Orchestra Ensemble. De Pledge is also known for performing contemporary music. He gave the world premiere of the complete chamber works by Arvo Pärt at the Edinburgh Festival in 2001. In addition, he has worked with recording labels Sanctuary Classics, ASV Records and Quartz Recordings to produce recordings of chamber music by composers such as Messiaen, Shostakovich, Schnittke and Pärt. After 16 years based in England, he returned to New Zealand in 2010 to take the position of Senior Lecturer in Piano at the University of Auckland. (De Pledge, n.d.)

Stephen de Pledge started developing the Landscape Preludes project in 2003 while living in England. His idea was to bind twelve different pieces for solo piano with a single title, and he received support from Creative New Zealand,7 Chamber Music New Zealand, Jack Richards,8 and the James Wallace Arts Trust.9 Inspired by Debussy’s two

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

E!National Federation of Music Societies (United Kingdom).

F!/03!Arts Council of New Zealand, supported by the New Zealand government.

G!New Zealand born, Dr. Jack Richards is a linguist, holding a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Laval University in Canada, 1972. He has produced 60 articles and 20 books in second-language teaching. These resources are used internationally including in Korea, China, Japan, Spain and Arabia. He has a profound knowledge of New Zealand music, supporting New Zealand composers and events such as the New Zealand Composer in Music Residence and the New Zealand Scholarship at Victoria University. !

! E! sets of twelve preludes de Pledge brought together preludes written by twelve different New Zealand composers, published as individual pieces in 2008. Three years later, in 2011, an album of the complete Landscape Preludes was published, edited by Samuel Holloway, one of the composers. According to McAlpine (2011), “The composers range from the venerable (Whitehead, McLeod, both born in 1941) through the established (de Castro-Robinson, Psathas, Farr) to the younger generation (Lardelli, Holloway, born in 1981)” (p.111). The complete set of twelve Landscape Preludes contains the following pieces: Arapatiki by Gillian Whitehead Piano Prelude-A Landscape with Too Few Lovers by Ross Harris Chiaroscuro by Lyell Cresswell The Horizon from Owhiro Bay by Gareth Farr Reign by Dylan Lardelli The Liquid Drift of Light by Eve de Castro-Robinson The Street Where I Live by Jack Body Terrain Vague by Samuel Holloway Machine Noise by Michael Norris Sleeper by John Psathas Landscape Prelude by Jenny McLeod Goodnight Kiwi by Victoria Kelly

As mentioned above, Debussy’s preludes significantly influenced characteristic features of the Landscape Preludes. Burge (2004) stated, “Each prelude of Debussy’s consists of basic material that is relatively simple, and its working out seems natural, colorful, and unforced” (p.3). Debussy placed the title at the end of each prelude, presenting suggestions about suitable interpretations for individual pieces. Some preludes refer specifically to landscape, as in Des pas sur la neige (Footprints in the Snow) from the first book. The same simplicity is present in the Landscape Preludes, combined now with inspiration from the New Zealand landscape. De Pledge said in an interview with !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

H!The James Wallace Arts Trust is an arts organization promoting New Zealand artists.

! F! SOUNZ, an information center dedicated to promoting the music of New Zealand composers: “I chose ‘Landscape’ because I thought we can get a sort of New Zealand feel to the pieces, that kind of an atmosphere that was different from what you get elsewhere in the world…A lot of different New Zealand aspects are common to these pieces…” (De Pledge, 2008). Though these preludes are grouped under the same title, they all present the striking nature of New Zealand through each composer’s unique compositional style. According to Keam (2011), these twelve preludes each contain different colors and images, which can evoke on image of prism or lenses of teleidoscope10. She stated, “…by using this series of lenses, the colours, contours and contrasts of the aural images may be ‘heard’ through this musical teleidoscope...” The complete set of Landscape Preludes was premiered by Stephen de Pledge at the International Festival of Arts in Wellington, New Zealand, on 6 April 2008. Later, de Pledge gave the work’s English premiere on 4 July 2008 at St. Margaret Lothbury in London. !

I have chosen four works from this collection that not only demonstrate the two main generations of New Zealand composers but also represent a cross-section of contemporary approaches to writing for the piano. These four preludes relate to four prisms that Keam (2011) distinguished in her essay, included in the complete edition of the Preludes: the scenic landscape, a local landscape, the remembered landscape and the bicultural landscape. McLeod's work, Landscape Prelude, generates music from a theoretical notion. She uses the idea of the scenic landscape, depicting the dramatic scenery of Pukerua Bay. McLeod delivers her musical image using the Tone Clock system, producing unique colors and textures throughout the piece. The Street Where I Live, by Jack Body, uses electronic material (pre-recorded spoken text) unlike the other eleven preludes. He presents a local landscape-the place where he has lived for over twenty-five years. According to Keam (2011), the word 'landscape' here "exemplifies the meaning of the word, derived from the Dutch word landschap, which referred not just to a pleasing scene but also a unit of human occupation, a place that is owned". Sleeper, by

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"I!A kaleidoscope with an open view, creating new images from outside sources!

! G! John Psathas derives its colors from minimalist textures and harmonic motion combined with Greek modes. He dedicated this work to the memory of a boy named Fergus Schulz, and took the idea of a remembered landscape. Keam (2011) stated that "the sense of connection is part spiritual, part imaginative, part biographical. Sometimes it traces what we know or believe about those past civilisations that mapped their way across the land, or lived their lives in a particular area". The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, by Gareth Farr uses compositional elements such as multi-rhythmic textures inspired by the Balinese gamelan. He presents the coastal scenery viewed from his studio window as well as referring to the bicultural landscape (M!ori and European) According to Keam (2011), “the land was already imbued with layers of kaupapa (principal) and whakapapa (genealogy), knowledge and ancestry of the Tangata Whenua11, many of which are remembered and acknowledge in place names.” For example, the M!ori word, ‘Owhiro’, translates as the moon seen on the first night of the lunar month.! The following chapter introduces four of the composers who contributed to this project and discusses their personal musical influences that are reflected in their preludes.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

""!M!ori word referring to people of the land!

! H! CHAPTER 2

THE COMPOSERS: BIOGRAPHIES AND MUSICAL INFLUENCES

Jenny McLeod

The most professionally recognized female composer from New Zealand, Jenny McLeod is an active composer in many different genres including film music, church music, popular music, rock music, and music for use in the choirs and churches of M!ori communities. McLeod, born in 1941 in Wellington, New Zealand, played an active part in the musical community from a very young age. While growing up she performed both at the piano as principal soloist and accompanist for her school, and as church organist. In the early 1960s, she met and studied with one of the leading composers in New Zealand, Douglas Lilburn, at the Cambridge Summer School, New Zealand’s premier festival for studying music at that time. While there, she became fascinated with contemporary music, and went on to study composition with Lilburn at Victoria University in Wellington. During her second Cambridge Summer School year, McLeod heard Messiaen’s Quatuor pour la fin du temps (1940/1941), which captivated her imagination and was to be a major influence in her development as a composer. With aid from the New Zealand government she became the first New Zealand composer to study composition in Paris where she worked with Olivier Messiaen, spending two years in Europe beginning in 1964. In addition, her compositional style expanded considerably working under other prominent composers such as Boulez, who introduced her to serialism, and later Stockhausen and Berio in Cologne, Germany. During her studies in Europe, McLeod completed her ambitious work For Seven (1966) written for seven instruments: flute, clarinet, piano, violin, viola, cello and marimba/vibraphone. It was premiered by Stockhausen’s ensemble at the New Music Festival in Darmstadt in 1966, and later the same year was performed at the Berlin Festival conducted by Italian composer and conductor Bruno Maderna. (Shieff, 2002, p.66) After returning to Wellington to begin as lecturer at Victoria University in 1967, she wrote Earth and Sky (1968) for children’s musical theater, which gained her widespread recognition both throughout New Zealand and in London. These two pieces

! "I! were based on rhythmic palindromes, which show influences of A. Webern (Shieff, 2002, p.67). Webern’s solo piano work, Variations for piano, op. 27 (1936) is the one of the most distinguished pieces written using symmetry. In the first variation, the first three measures of opening phrase create the mirror image for the next three measures throughout the piece. Jenny McLeod’s work, Earth and Sky, also use elements of symmetry. According to McLeod, “the whole first piece is symmetrical in terms of bar structure; in one place the melody mirrors itself underneath, and so on” (Shieff, 2002, p.67). McLeod used different and sometimes unusual genres of composition, particularly “devotional rock music,” a tradition of sacred music from India expressing love to God through singing in a rock style. The work Under the Sun (1971) for four orchestras, a five-member rock group and two adult choirs, is in a rock idiom, and it helped to fully consolidate her compositional style. During the 1970s, she began to show her interest in the Divine Light Mission, spent five years working as a volunteer in Auckland, New Zealand, Australia, and the United States (Shieff, 2002, p.69). She also abandoned her life in Wellington, resigning from her job as professor of composition at Victoria University. ! In 1987, McLeod participated as a guest composer at a contemporary music festival in Louisville, Kentucky, where she met Dutch composer Peter Schat12. Schat introduced her to a theoretical system that enormously influenced her compositions. Schat’s “Tone Clock” system offered McLeod a fresh approach to the organization of pitch material, which she expanded into her own pitch classification system (Shieff, 2002, p.71). Since 1988 she has embraced the Tone Clock system, and developed it to the extent that she introduces the subject through her works. As a result, most of her current works, including Tone Clock Pieces for solo piano, were written using the Tone Clock system. The Tone Clock system will be discussed in the analysis of McLeod’s piece in Chapter Three. In the early 1990s McLeod’s compositional style turned in a new direction, and she began writing music for choirs, especially in M!ori communities. He !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"@!Peter Schat (1935-2003) studied composition with Pierre Boulez, Matyas Seiber and Kees van Baaren. His most recognized achievement is the “tone clock” system, in twentieth-century music theory. His book, The Tone Clock (1993) was translated into English and published by Jenny McLeod.!

! ""! Iwi Kotahi Tatou (We are one people, 1993) is one of her pieces for M!ori and Pakeha13 choirs, also commissioned by the New Zealand Choral Federation. Furthermore, she became involved with M!ori communities and their culture, regularly composing hymns and sacred songs for M!ori churches. McLeod stated, “…because I am very close to the M!ori people. I want people to know about the M!ori world...I try to express the sort of charm of the M!ori people in a such way that people will be able to relate to them very easily.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 16, 2011) McLeod is now retired. She is currently devoting her life to writing church music and songs for M!ori communities throughout New Zealand. McLeod’s Landscape Prelude, the only piece that shares its name with the whole set under discussion, will be discussed in the following chapter.

Jack Body

Jack Body is now one of the most influential teachers of the younger generation of New Zealand composers. Passionate about working for the future of new music, he spends much time and energy producing recordings for other New Zealand composers, raising funds for supporting guest musicians, or planning concert series to promote the work of younger composers (Shieff, 2002, p.95). Body was born in 1944 and showed his interest in music from a young age, beginning study of the piano and composition simultaneously. Later, he began his formal study of composition at the University of Auckland with Ronald Tremain who, alongside his teaching duties, organized performances of Stockhausen, Boulez, Dallapiccola, and Maxwell Davies, as well as other prominent contemporary composers. After graduating from the University of Auckland in 1967, Body continued his composition studies overseas at the Ferien Kurse für Neue Musik in Cologne, Germany, and at the Institute of Sonology in Utrecht, Netherlands from1969 to 1970. On his way back to New Zealand after his studies, Body traveled through Asia. This powerful experience opened his eyes to other cultures, particularly those of Indonesia, and this in turn heavily influenced his compositional style, giving it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"A M!ori word referring to Europeans.

! "@! characteristic elements that remain throughout his music to this day. His opera Alley (1997), based on the story of Rewi Alley (1897-1987), is one of his works that is written in a pan-Asian idiom. Rewi Alley was a New Zealander who devoted his life to an industrial school for boys that he had established in China in 1937. Body used folk tunes from Gansu Province to present elements of Eastern culture. This opera was commissioned by the New Zealand International Festival of Arts and premiered in 1998. Body’s music covers almost all genres, including solo, chamber, and orchestral music, musical theater, music for dance and film, as well as electro-acoustic music. Numerous organizations, including the NZBC (New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation), the New Zealand Students’ Art Council, the Auckland Philharmonia, the New Zealand String Quartet, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, and the Kronos Quartet have commissioned Body’s works. He organized a series of contemporary music concerts taking place in multiple venues at the same time, which he dubbed “Sonic Circuses.” His electro-acoustic piece, Musik Dari Jalan (Music from the Street) (1975), inspired by sounds in the streets of Indonesia, was awarded first prize in 1976 at the prestigious International Festival of Electro-Acoustic Music held in France. Body not only composes music but also is involved in many other aspects of New Zealand musical society. He is the editor of Waiteata Music Press, the organizer of the Asia Pacific Festivals in New Zealand in 1984, 1992 and 2007, and a publisher and producer of music by New Zealand composers. Body’s The Street Where I Live for piano with pre-recorded spoken text is one of the Landscape Preludes, and will be discussed in Chapter Three.

John Psathas

Internationally renowned composer John Psathas was born in 1966 in Taumaranui, a small town in the center of the western North Island of New Zealand. His parents had immigrated to New Zealand from Greece in the early 1960s. His interest in music began to develop after his family moved to Napier, a town on the east coast of the North Island and the hub of Hawkes Bay, a region now famous for its fruit-growing and wine industries. Psathas began to compose at a very young age; by about eleven, he was spending much of his time listening to old LPs of classical music. Psathas stated on his

! "A! personal website, “I listened to these pieces constantly, feeling the music more strongly each time, and being transported further into this mysterious and disturbing realm.” (Psathas, n.d.) The experience of listening to this music had a powerful impact on him and led him to explore his feelings by composing his own music. He graduated from high school early in order to study composition at Victoria University in Wellington. From 1992-94, Psathas continued his studies further with composer Jacqueline Fontyn in Belgium. Psathas’ music is regularly performed throughout Europe, America, Australia, and Asia. He has worked with internationally recognized musicians such as percussionist Evelyn Glennie, Grammy-winner Michael Brecker, and New Zealand concert pianist Michael Houstoun, as well as many ensembles including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the New Juilliard Ensemble, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and the Orchestra Sinfonia Dell’Emilia-Romagna “Toscanini.” His works have received worldwide attention: one of his most notable accomplishments is having been commissioned to compose music for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2004 Olympics held in Athens. One of his recent works, View From Olympus (2002), a double concerto for percussion, piano and orchestra, was premiered during the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002, further introducing him to an international audience. The recording featuring View From Olympus also remained at the top of the classical music chart in New Zealand for five months. Psathas has produced many works for solo piano, including Waiting for the Aeroplane (1988), Rhythm Spike (1994), Jettatura (1999), and his piano concerto Three Psalms (2003). Currently, he works as freelance composer as well as a professor of composition at Victoria University. Psathas’ music is energetic and vibrant, with a passionate excitement that is a product of his Greek heritage. The sense of the Western classical tradition combined with elements of jazz, which he got from working as a jazz pianist, and Greek folk music define his style. He also commonly makes use of minimalistic textures. In the following chapter I will discuss Psathas’ solo piano work Sleeper, his contribution to the Landscape Preludes.

! "C! Gareth Farr

New Zealand composer and percussionist Gareth Farr was born in 1968 in Wellington. He began his studies in composition and percussion performance at the University of Auckland. During this time in Auckland, the gamelan ensemble from Victoria University in Wellington visited Auckland for a concert, and Farr was riveted by the sounds of this Indonesian instrumental music. He then moved to Wellington to join the gamelan group at Victoria University. The rhythms and colors of the gamelan became enormously influential elements in his music. Farr was awarded an AGC Young Achiever’s award, which offered him the opportunity to travel to the USA to study composition with Samuel Adler (b.1928) and Christopher Rouse (b.1949) and percussion at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Farr’s career as a composer started at an early age. When he was twenty-five years old, he became the youngest composer ever to be appointed composer-in-residence by Chamber Music New Zealand14. During his tenure with them, Farr wrote three chamber pieces: Owhiro for the New Zealand String Quartet, Cadenza for the chamber ensemble CadeNZa, and Keybar Moncar for the Victoria University gamelan ensemble. As his reputation grew, he was commissioned for top events such as the fiftieth anniversary of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (From the Depths Sound the Great Sea Gongs) (1996), the New Zealand International Festival of the Arts (Lilith’s Dream of Ecstasy for orchestra) (1995) and the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney (Hikoi (1998/2000), a concerto for percussion and orchestra). Farr’s music is heavily influenced by his extensive study of percussion, both Western and non-Western. Rhythmic elements of his compositions are often derived from the complex and exciting rhythms of Balinese gamelan and other percussion music of the Pacific Rim, which have been a central focus of his music. His most recent achievements are works commissioned by the Wellington City Council and the Wellington Sinfonia in celebration of the centenary of the city’s town hall. Farr teaches composition and the

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"C!Chamber Music New Zealand is one of the largest music presenters in New Zealand, organizing concerts of New Zealand performers as international musicians, and supporting New Zealand composers.!

! "D! gamelan ensemble at his alma mater, Victoria University, in Wellington, New Zealand. Chapter Three will discuss Farr’s landscape prelude, The Horizon from Owhiro Bay. These composers, while all from New Zealand and all acknowledging a sense of belonging to that country’s traditions and ethos, have been led in different directions in response to the widely differing influences they were exposed to, and bring together a wide range of compositional techniques in their respective preludes. Chapter Three will discuss aspects of their compositional technique focusing on rhythm, ostinato, harmonic language, pitch choices, and textures including the use of piano and other media (recorded spoken text, Sprechstimme) and non-Western musical elements, particularly the influence of Balinese gamelan. !

!

! "E! !"#$%&'()(

((#*#+,-.-(#*/(.*%&'$'&%#%.0*(((

!

Jenny McLeod, Landscape Prelude

Landscape Prelude (2007) is the only piece that shares its title with the entire set. In this prelude McLeod captures a rather generalized landscape inspired by the spirit of New Zealand’s west coast of the South Island, where she had been living for thirty years at the time she composed this piece. She describes the landscape there as “amazing, dramatic…tall big mountain surfaces and an overpowering presence of rough sea, a huge mountain presence when you turn your back” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 16, 2011). Furthermore, McLeod’s personal experience with this landscape formed part of her motivation for depicting it in this prelude. When Stephen de Pledge asked her to write one of his twelve Landscape Preludes the area where she was living was endangered by a proposed new motorway. While she was confronting this circumstance, she recalls, “I became aware of how fragile this landscape that is so powerful really is…this landscape is so strong but can be broken so easily” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 16, 2011). The same feeling can be found in the poem McLeod wrote after the music was composed. She suggested that the poem expresses the emotion of the prelude perfectly and should be thought of as a performance note. The poem is titled “The Price of a New Roof” and begins:

Barely stirs the dark ripple Through liquid bell tones Ancient echoes Of grey green tree gods High sky Wild crags and rocks

(The deep earth gong beats) (McLeod, 2007, p.103)

! "F! Though the poem was written after McLeod completed the prelude, the three sections of the musical work correspond closely to the imagery of the poem’s text. In this sense it helps to guide the performance through imagery, in addition to her dynamics and tempo indications. McLeod invokes the moody, empty feeling of the west coast of New Zealand as the overall character of this music. The piece is performed in a slow tempo with freedom in taking time between phrases. McAlpine (2011) refers to this piece as consisting of contrasting vertical blocks of sound, noting the lack of counterpoint throughout the twelve pieces. According to McAlpine, “McLeod’s piece is the developing variation version of the contrast of two vertical blocks of sound” (p.113). The piece is divided into three sections by “the deep earth gong beats and deep earth heart beat.” These two gong beats and heartbeats are found from mm. 16-18 and in mm. 70-74 represented by the widely spaced chords in the bass. (See examples 3.1 and 3.2)

Example 3.1: Landscape Prelude, mm. 16-18!

! "G!

Example 3.2 : Landscape Prelude, mm. 71-74

McLeod opens the piece at a soft dynamic level, and immediately begins juxtaposing sounds in the high treble or low bass against the middle register of the keyboard. McLeod uses note B to correspond to “The liquid bell tone,” from her poem throughout the first section with repeated fragments in m. 5 portraying the sound of “ancient echoes.” (See example 3.3)

! "H!

Example 3.3: Landscape Prelude, mm. 1-11

When the text describes the rough, dangerous west coast, the dynamic level increases, reaching fff in mm. 19-20 with accentuated chords in mm. 21-22. The dynamic level drops to f from m. 24 to prepare for the next text, “a sudden flash, or dazzle,” in m. 30 (see example 3.4). Arpeggiated figures in both hands are presented in an upward motion, creating a flash of movement, almost a cluster-like sound contrasting with the previous section in mm. 24-29. (See example 3.4)

! @I!

Example 3.4: Landscape Prelude, mm. 28-37

The poem continues: Desire Inexorably draws on Straining at the leash A sudden flash, or dazzle (like teeth) startles the bird

alighting cautiously a flutter of wings soon takes real fright

at the heavy booted tread jaunty, self-assured stepping out beyond its stride

that shatters a splendour of desolation remoulded into clay for the toy people,

! @"! roads, houses, children who never felt (or could they forget)

the deep earth heart beats (where is the sharp regret)

now strangely content or maybe not with their new roof overhead (McLeod, 2007, p.103)

In mm. 34-45, the second section according to the text (“startles the bird / alighting cautiously / a flutter of wings / soon takes real fright”), the right-hand figure, based on the notes B, E and A, gets rhythmically faster to create an image that a bird has been frightened. (See example 3.5)

Example 3.5: Landscape Prelude, mm. 33-48

! @@!

The line “the heavy booted tread” is expressed by tenuto markings on loud, heavy chords in mm. 46 and 47. (See example 3.5) The theoretical element of this prelude is a significant aspect that distinguishes McLeod’s compositional style from that of her compatriots. As mentioned in Chapter Two, McLeod is the only New Zealand composer who uses the “tone clock” system of Dutch composer Peter Schat, especially in her more recent compositions such as 24 Tone Clock Pieces for solo piano. The use of Schat’s tone clock system is also evident in this prelude. According to Petralla (2002), “Tone clock theory is based on the twelve notes of the chromatic scale, and the key to the design of the tone clock is the twelve “triads,” each formed from three different notes within the chromatic scale” (p.17). It is derived from musical set theory formatted to relate to the twelve hours of the clock. The feature that led Schat to name and describe this system is that there are only twelve different trichords based on the chromatic scale, which can easily correspond to the twelve hours of a clock. (See Figure 3.1)

! @A!

0 1 2 0 1 3 0 1 4 0 1 5 0 1 6 0 2 4

0 2 5 0 2 6 0 2 7 0 3 6 0 3 7 0 4 8

Figure 3.1: The Twelve Sets of the Tone Clock System

Petralla (2002) stated, “Each triad is also a base unit that generates its own chromatic tonality, so twelve triads produce twelve chromatic tonalities” (p.22). One of the principal concepts that Schat used within this system is called “steering.” This is the method of modulation between the trichords and refers to the relationship between roots of four trichords within the tonality. For instance, the roots of each trichord in the first hour are steered by thirds; in other words, they are a third apart. These roots then form the tonality of the tenth hour, and so are referred to as “steering by X.” (See Figure 3.2)

Figure 3.2: First Hour Steering by Tenth Hour

! @C! According to McLeod (1994), “It is a process exactly parallel to the way a tree grows or living cells multiply; that is, it is a natural process. Every single note can always be thought of as having the power to “sprout” a new group of notes”. In the first section of this prelude, the foundation for the harmonic structure is formed by the second hour (V/II and IX/II). (See Figures 3.3 and 3.4)

Figure 3.3: Fifth Hour Steering by Second Hour

Figure 3.4: Eleventh Hour Steering by Second Hour

Throughout this prelude McLeod uses many ideas based on the interval of a fourth, perhaps representing the open spaces of the landscape the composer has in mind. The first phrase opens in V/II, using the intervals of a half-step and a perfect fourth with their transpositions as per hour II, and presenting four simple notes that are continuously elaborated on throughout the first section, from m. 1- m. 20. (See example 3.6) The phrase ends in m. 5 in IX/II with an embellished motive, closing the section and producing a new motive that will be used to indicate the end of sections (m. 5, mm. 8-10, m. 15, and mm. 19-20). The composer repeats these two basic trichords throughout the

! @D! piece; they form a fundamental theme whose distinctive sonority is recognizable to the ear.

Example 3.6: Landscape Prelude, mm. 1-5

The middle section begins at m. 21 and contains a whole-tone scale in mm. 21-23, which is created by the eighth hour steered by the third hour, repeating three times with principal trichords in the left hand. The trichord in V/II from m. 24 returns, and it continues to be played in the same trichord until m. 33. New material is introduced in mm. 35-40, using the interval of a fourth in the melodic line of right hand, exploring a feeling of a vast landscape. Measures 46-49 form a transitional passage in which all three octatonic scales (oct [0.1], [0.2] and [1.2]) are present. The flowing section in mm. 50-53 contains sonorous melodic material that contrasts with the chordal texture of the preceding measures, using a whole-tone scale in the right hand while the principal trichord of this piece, V/II is played in the left hand. Measures 57-61 form a developmental section using extreme dynamic levels and diminished chords. The dynamic level builds to ffff for the first time, while the passage is written in tenth hour, which produces diminished harmonies. (See example 3.7)

! @E!

Example 3.7: Landscape Prelude, mm.37-40

From m. 77, the pattern of triads in the left hand moves down three times, creating a sequential motion using an octatonic scale, repeated from m. 81. (See example 3.8)

! @F!

Example 3.8: Landscape Prelude, mm. 73-83

In the right hand of m. 77 (See example 1.11), the melodic passage beautifully elaborates a new theme in V/II, in the interval of a fourth. The last phrase, which restates the theme from the first phrase, begins at m.85 in V/II and ends in IX/II. (See example 3.9) !

! @G!

Example 3.9: Landscape Prelude, mm. 82-88

Interpretative Suggestions

This music should be played with a sense of freedom. McLeod suggests, “Please take any freedoms you may feel are helpful with regard to tempo” (McLeod, 2007, 96). This freedom can be achieved through pedaling, rhythm or tempo. For instance, in terms of the pedal marking by the composer in mm. 1-4, it helps to have a sense of building up to the sonorities rather than of counting each note. In sections like mm. 24-33, however, the rhythm should be more consistent. The left-hand figure descends through a block of sounds while the chromatic right-hand melody is clearly audible. In mm. 34-39 where the text says “a flutter of wings,” the composer varies the notes, B, E and A rhythmically, expressing birds fluttering their wings. It is also important to have a steady pulse so that change of speed in bird figurations can be heard clearly. In terms of pedaling in mm.46- 49, the pedal should be off during the rests in order to make a clear break between two phrases. This prelude should flow continuously as well as creating different colors through the use of wide dynamic ranges and articulation. The chords on the fourth beats

! @H! of measures 46 and 47 should be played at a louder dynamic each time. In m. 53, performers need to use different articulation; the bass line plays staccato while the upper two voices are legato. The pedal should be used at the C-sharp staccato in the left hand. In sections like mm. 55-56 and mm. 62-63, there are gestures of conversation between the bass line and the two upper voices, the staccato, accented bass melody contrasting with the smooth right-hand legato passage. Throughout the passage in mm. 77-84, performers are encouraged to follow the pedaling that the composer indicated in order to blend the melodic line together with the chords in the octatonic scale. This music requires expressiveness rather than demanding technical skills. The Price of a New Roof, the poem that the composer wrote to guide the performance, is very helpful in understanding the emotional content of this prelude. The characters inherent in the musical phrases refer directly to each phrase of McLeod’s poem.

Jack Body, The Street Where I Live

The Street Where I Live (2007) uses a different compositional genre from the other eleven Landscape Preludes, as it is performed by a piano soloist with pre-recorded spoken text in the composer’s own voice. Though it uses this voice track, the work belongs to the piano repertoire since the voice is pre-recorded and not performed live. Body stated, “It’s like a self-portrait…it determines who I am and what I sound like” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 17, 2011). The use of the voice was interesting to the composer who said, “It is nice to hear somebody talking about themselves in a personal, frank way. It has some power beyond the sound of the piano” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 17, 2011). The musical idea of this prelude relates specifically to the word “landscape.” Body’s idea is that all physical places are, in fact, landscapes, including the street where he lived for the last thirty-five years of his life. Moreover, the piece tells about his personal life by mapping the music onto his narrative. The title refers to the love song, On the Street Where You Live from the musical, My Fair Lady. According to Keam (2011), Body took the local landscape to mean “not just a pleasing scene but also a unit of human occupation, a place that is owned” (p.119). The composer also employs his sense of humor to express comical ideas within his landscape.

! AI! The style of the recorded monologue is based on Sprechstimme, which was developed by Arnold Schönberg. Sprechstimme is a vocal style in which the melody is spoken at approximate pitches rather than sung on exact pitches, most famously in Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (1912), the first of Schönberg’s pieces to use this vocal technique. The work is written for a narrator (traditionally performed by a soprano) and quintet (flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano). It was based on twenty-one selected poems from a book of poems by Belgian poet Albert Giraud entitled Pierrot Lunaire. About his use of Sprechstimme, Body stated, “I was always interested in exploring how people speak and what accents they have” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 17, 2011). He transferred the rhythm and pitch of speech into the music, producing dialogue between the piano and recorded voice as well as linear shapes within the vocal line. One of the challenges for the performer is to align with the somewhat irregular rhythms of the speech, which do not fit neatly within the bar lines and meter. I will discuss this piece focused on the relationship between spoken text, text painting and the piano part. The rhythmic motives in the piano part are related to the intonations and accentuations of the recorded voice, and the relationship between the piano and voice forms a contrapuntal texture. At the beginning of each phrase the voice presents a rhythmic motive, and to finish the phrase the piano imitates it. (See example 3.10)

! A"! Example 3.10: The Street Where I Live, mm. 1-6

This form of question and answer creates a dialogue between voice and piano. In this prelude, the piano part contains text painting, reflecting the meaning of the spoken text through the writing for the piano. In mm. 90-106, the tui15 has its own material in the piano part, (See example 3.11) based on the actual rhythmic and pitch patterns of the tui’s song. The tui’s motive is varied throughout this section in order to match the text.

! ! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"D!Tui is an endangered species and a member of the honeyeater birds, native New Zealand birds, commonly found in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand.

! A@! Example 3.11: The Street Where I Live, mm. 88-93

When the recorded voice says, “Periodic’ly squawks like a seagull. Very unTuilike!” in mm. 104-106 a new idea appears imitating the raucous sound of seagulls. (See example 3.12)

Example 3.12: The Street Where I Live, mm. 104-106

! AA!

This prelude refers to the personal life of the composer as well as his personal philosophy, which is conveyed to the audience. Body said, “When we see an image of ourselves or hear a recording of ourselves, we are not facing the reality of what you really look like or sound like” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 17, 2011).

Interpretative Suggestions

Body suggests that performers need to be aware of the balance between the voice and the piano. Because of the complex piano part, it may be difficult for the audience to hear certain words. Therefore, Body recommends placing the speakers close enough to the audience so they can hear the text clearly. This prelude requires collaborative technique. Performers should listen to the spoken text carefully in order to bring out the contrapuntal texture between the piano and recorded voice. Pianists must pay close attention to their rhythmic interaction with the voice for placing it perfectly on time. For example, the rhythmic figurations in the piano part in mm. 2-7 play exactly in rhythm in order to line up with the rhythm of speech; especially the G and G-sharp in m. 3 should line up with the word “left” in the spoken text. In mm. 8-10, performers should play the fast scalar passages in the right hand with fast fingers in a sweeping motion, creating an improvised sound. In sections such as in mm. 29-30 and 39-41, the chords in both hands are played short in length as well as with a feeling of urgency. And the last chords of m. 30 and m. 41 should contrast with previous chords, making them subito piano. In addition, the piano part in mm. 54-56 should be played with a similar gesture; the passage should sound rhythmically consistent with a hint of urgency, contrasting with the last chord in subito piano, which should slowly roll upward. In the section presenting birds in the vocal line from mm. 89-108, performers should articulate the rhythmic material in a way that makes it sound free and improvised.

John Psathas, Sleeper.

! AC! Sleeper, by John Psathas, was composed in 2007, eight years after his previous solo piano piece, Jettatura (1999). Sleeper was dedicated to the memory of the teenage son of Psathas’s closest friend, the young intrepid traveler, Fergus Schulz. Psathas stated: “When I was writing this, it was very, very terrible. A good friend of mine, his son [Fergus Schulz] died. He was very young. We were all in shock. It was very difficult to all of us who knew him... the thing I remember after that happened, was no matter how everybody tried, we all started to forget. It is so hard to remember people properly. I thought that I wanted to write a piece of music that for me, remembers him in a way that music can do, you can’t do it in language.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) In composing this piece, Psathas wanted to deliver the honest feeling of this tragic moment and capture Fergus’ spirit. He recalled, “The tragedy is always with us, but I wanted to remember who he really was while he was alive. And that’s what this piece is, that’s why it’s innocent.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) Psathas chose to write this piece for solo piano because of the different layers and voices the instrument is capable of achieving. He explored a variety of sounds and colors using the full range of the keyboard, as well as a wide range of harmonies. Sleeper is in a kind of ternary form with coda, consisting of four sections, each having a distinguishable systematic harmonic progression. These four sections will be referred to as Major 1, Minor, Major 2, and Coda. In Major 1 (mm.1-67), the harmony follows a pattern of major triads ascending by minor third, minor third, and then major third – from E major in m.1 to G Major in m. 9, B-flat Major in m. 13, D Major in m. 17, F Major in m. 21, A-flat Major in 24 and so on through six cycles until m. 67. This creates a pattern of shifting semitones hidden within the harmony: the third (G-sharp) of the first harmony (E major, m. 1) moves a semitone to G natural, the fifth of the next harmony (G major, m. 9), and so on. The B-section, Minor, begins in m.68, and establishes a minor key for the first time (G-sharp minor). In this section, which lasts until m.107, harmonies change without a clear pattern, making it harmonically unstable. From m.1 07, the start of the Major 2 or A-prime section, the piece moves to D-flat major, and the subsequent harmonies fall by thirds in an inversion of the pattern used in Major 1: in m. 107, B-flat Major falls by a

! AD! third, G-flat Major in m.109, E-flat Major in m. 112, falling by major then minor then minor thirds until we reach G Major in m. 138. This also forms a corresponding pattern of semitones between the harmonies as occurred in Major 1. The Coda starts in D Major in m. 139, and stays in the same key to the end of the piece. The opening section of Sleeper contains similarities to Psathas’ first piano piece, Waiting for the Aeroplane (1988/90). Sleeper (see example 3.13) starts with a two-note ostinato, which resembles the main motive of Waiting for the Aeroplane (see example 3.14) a two sixteenth-note ostinato lasting until the end of the piece. According to the composer’s note on Sleeper, “[the] ostinato pattern forms a static harmonic base out of which the work unfolds” (Psathas, 2007).

Example 3.13: Sleeper, mm. 1-4

Example 3.14: Waiting for the Aeroplane, mm. 1-3

From m. 5 on, lyrical melodic lines are incorporated into the rhythmic figurations consisting of notes tied over to the downbeat, creating syncopated melodic lines. The left- hand melody has three syncopated notes descending through a broken chord, which is

! AE! added to the two-note ostinato in mm. 5-8. This section, mm. 1-8, is centered on E major. The harmony rises by third to G Major in mm. 9-12, and the syncopated melodic theme appears in ascending motion, forming a question and answer between those two melodic lines. The melodic material, which is prefigured in the left hand syncope beginning in m. 5, first appears in a longer unit in mm. 13-16 in B-flat Major, with a more active off-beat rhythm, juxtaposed against the regularity of the ostinato, a similar technique to that which Psathas established in Waiting for the Aeroplane. (See example 3.15)

Example 3.15: Waiting for the Aeroplane, mm. 10-14

In mm. 17-20 the left-hand melody forms another question and answer, similar to the one presented in mm. 5-12, but this time within the same harmony, D Major. The harmony rises again by third to F Major in mm. 21-23. The irregular rhythm in the left hand’s single, syncopated notes, mm. 24-26 is in an ascending A-flat Lydian scale. An added upper voice, B-flat moving to B natural joins the rocking of the ostinato in mm. 25-27. The left-hand ascending scale now becomes descending leaps in C Major in mm. 27-30. The left- hand melody then creates another question and answer by responding to this with rising and falling leaps in E-flat Major in mm. 31-34. In mm. 35-38, the

! AF! syncopated left-hand melody ascends in G-flat Lydian, continuing all the way up to B-flat in the treble clef in m. 39. (See example 3.16)

Example 3.16: Sleeper, mm. 35-39

In this predominantly Major section, Psathas transforms the lyrical passages into scale-type melodies that use a Greek mode, developing the dynamics and texture of the piece while sustaining a rhythmic pulse. According to theorist Adam of Fulda (1445- 1505), “Greek modes express certain characteristics” (‘Greek Mode’, 2008), and the Lydian mode express joyful motion. Psathas says of Sleeper, “lyrical, child-like melodic gestures of exploration and discovery evoke a sense of the young intrepid traveler, Fergus Schulz, to whom the piece is dedicated” (Psathas, 2007). The mode that Psathas uses throughout this section expresses happiness and seems to celebrate Schulz’s youthful years. In mm. 39-43, the left hand melody disappears, but E-flat and B-flat are added in the top voice, appearing for the first time in a higher register of the keyboard. The melodic line in the left hand reappears in syncopated rhythm in mm. 44-46. From m. 47, the melody continues on every off-beat until m. 53. In mm. 54-68, the melodic line creates a vivid build-up through continuous rising and falling motion in the left hand, and a thicker texture, leading to the B-section, Minor.

! AG! In this section, the melodic material in the left hand meanders in G-Sharp minor and D-Sharp minor in mm. 68-82, rather than following the pattern of ascending and descending figurations from Major 1. However, the harmony stays in C-Sharp Minor from mm. 82-106, and the left-hand melody is written in an ascending Dorian scale, which according to Adam of Fulda represents youth, thereby evoking Fergus Schulz’s youth. (See example 3.17)

Example 3.17: Sleeper, mm. 80-89

In addition, both hands are played in the high register of keyboard, and the two- note ostinato shifts to the top voice in mm. 86-94. The melodic figuration in the left hand meanders again from m. 98, fading away at m. 103.

! AH! The Major 2 begins in m. 107 in B-flat Major. The melodic material is now mostly descending motion similar to the first melodic figuration from mm. 5-8. The ascending scale is presented in a long phrase, with rests between syncopated notes in mm. 110-111, mm. 120-122 and m. 130. The question and answer format is again used with mm. 110-119 corresponding to mm. 120-142. The descending melodic material, derived from mm. 5-7, is repeated throughout the coda section. It recalls Fergus’s spirit as well as reminding the hearer that his life was entirely within the sphere of youth. According to Keam (2011), “The Sleeper leaves with the two-note ostinato at the end of the piece, portraying the endless journey of Fergus”. (p.121) In addition, the composer presents the image of a landscape viewed through the window of a train. In Sleeper, Psathas defined three meanings of “sleeper” as the basic inspiration for the details of the work as well as its overall structure: 1) a person or animal who is asleep or who sleeps in a specific way; 2) a thing used for or connected with sleeping, in particular, a train carrying sleeping cars; and 3) (British) a wooden or concrete beam laid transversely under railroad track to support it (“Sleeper”, 2012). The two-note ostinato conveys the sense of the continuous motion of a train. The irregular rhythm in the left hand’s single, syncopated notes, mm. 13-15, expresses the motion of a person nodding his head as he gradually falls asleep (See Example 3.18) This combination of the two ideas at the beginning of the piece portrays Psathas’ first definition of a sleeper, that is, a person asleep in a moving train.

Example 3.18: Sleeper, mm. 13-15

! CI! The composer indicates cantabile from m. 5 where the melodic passage appears in the bass line throughout the piece. This ‘voice-like’ melodic figuration in the left hand relates the second definition of a sleeper, a train carrying sleeping cars. In fact even the look of these notes resemble a train viewed in the landscape. (See Example 3.19)

Example 3.19: Sleeper, voice-like melodic figuration

Lyrical melodic lines are incorporated into the rhythmic figurations that consist of notes tied over to the downbeat, creating syncopated rhythms, which correspond to the gentle bumping motion, experienced when riding in a train. Lyrical melodic passages are written in slowly ascending and descending motion, suggesting the motion of a row of moving sleeper cars. Lastly, the arch-like structure with a middle section surrounded by symmetrically balanced sections provides the third meaning of the sleeper, that of a railroad tie which extends symmetrically on either side of the rails.

Interpretative Suggestions

Sleeper demands a great amount of personal expressive skill from its performer. The pianist should focus on bringing out the innocent and child-like personality of Fergus exploring his journey. Though this piece does not require having advanced technical keyboard skills, it is rhythmically active and is engaging for pianists. It is very important that performers keep the right-hand ostinato steady and consistent throughout the whole piece to create a pulse against which the melodies written in the irregular rhythm can be understood. The two-note ostinato must also remain at a soft dynamic level to allow the melodic line to be heard in relief. The ostinato pattern forms a rocking motion and is inverted at irregular intervals. When the additional top voice joins the rocking of the ostinato in m. 65, it becomes more difficult to maintain

! C"! the steady pulse. Performers should focus on the upper line as a melody that works in counterpoint to the bass, and should practice the two melodies together without the ostinato, as well as each melody on its own with the ostinato. (See example 3.20)

Example 3.20: Sleeper, mm. 65-75

The ostinato plays a key role not only as a continuous pulse, but also in changing harmony throughout the piece. When the harmony rises or falls by thirds, the space between the third and the root of the next chord creates a semitone. Performers should bring out the half-steps when changing harmonies to build the feeling of a continuing journey.

! C@! The left-hand melody should be played with a singing quality. The syncopated melodic figurations can tend to sound accented; however, according to Psathas’ performance note, “this melody should always be in the foreground and performed as “voice-like” as possible” (Psathas, 2007). Psathas suggests that performers play this passage less articulated and in legato style. Also, in sections like mm. 17-20, mm. 26-29, m. 34, m. 45, m. 108, mm. 120-126 and m. 130, the use of pedal is challenging when the left-hand melody has rests between the sixteenth notes while the ostinato is legato. Performers should use more finger legato to achieve a smooth melodic line in the left hand. (See example 3.21)

Example 3.21: Sleeper, mm. 26-31

In terms of phrasing the left-hand melody, as the line becomes longer, it is important to feel a sense of direction through the length of the line. Therefore, the performer should be aware of the length of each phrase. Whether the phrase is one measure or five measures, be sure to keep the sense of direction throughout. Performers also should allow themselves to produce different kinds of sound. When the left-hand melodic material explores the lower range of keyboard such as mm.

! CA! 27-30, mm. 107-108, mm. 115-119 and mm. 123-129, performers need to bring out the richness of sound down in the bass register of keyboard. And when the melodic line builds up to the high range of keyboard, it seems like a crescendo, but in a lighter color, especially mm. 35-39, mm. 94-97, mm. 110-112 and m. 130. In the Minor section, the left- hand melody should sound ‘flutier’ when it meanders in a soft pp in the higher register of keyboard in mm. 67-68 and mm. 82-93. When the long-held top voices are added on the two-note ostinato in mm. 25-27, mm. 39-46, mm. 67-69, mm. 107-108 and mm. 120-135, performers should aim more toward sound with more ‘ping’. Lastly, the melodic line needs contrast between its wide intervals such as in mm. 47-53, which uses more legato and should feel lazy on finger tips, and the scalar passages in the section in mm. 56-62, which has a more articulated and urgent feeling.

Gareth Farr, The Horizon from Owhiro Bay

The Horizon from Owhiro Bay (2007) is one of 11 works!that Gareth Farr has composed for solo piano: his pieces are mostly for percussion instruments or ensembles. Owhiro Bay is a “southern suburb of Wellington, New Zealand, that overlooks the Cook Strait” (‘Owhiro Bay’, 2010). Farr could see it from the window of his house, and it is this landscape that he presents in this prelude. Farr stated, “All you need to do is picture it in your mind. And I was living in Owhiro Bay at the time. So I had a picture in my front window anyway.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) Before Farr wrote this prelude, he explored this landscape in an earlier piece for string quartet, Owhiro Bay (1993), which conveyed a sense of rhythmic complexity and “the high intensity, harsh and rhythmically jagged nature” of Owhiro Bay (Farr, 2007, p.30). In contrast, The Horizon from Owhiro Bay is “a musical depiction of the more gloomy and moody depths” of New Zealand’s Owhiro Bay and Cook Strait. (Farr, 2007, p.30) The name Owhiro is M!ori and means “the place of the God of darkness” or “moonless nights.” The meaning of the word describes the Bay: dangerous and rough. Farr stated, “I prefer if audiences get their own idea, rather than me telling them what to think. But for this one, I had to put it as almost a snapshot. Because it’s quite a literal piece, and that is the reason I often don’t try to use a visual limitation.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) Furthermore, the composer includes his notes in the score:

! CC! This prelude is a musical representation of the view I see at twilight from my studio on the South Coast of Wellington – the moody dark green depths of Cook Strait, the inky blue sky, and the endless unbroken horizon dividing the two. Fishing boats sit on the horizon all lit up, looking like little gleaming gemstones in the darkness. The occasional gust of wind stirs up wild eddies on the surface of the water, and the odd rogue wave hurls itself onto the rocks and up into the air in a spectacular explosion of sea spray. (Farr, 2007, p.30)

Example 3. 22: The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm. 1-3

The piece is written in an arch form, ending as it begins after a developed middle section. It begins with a two-note repeated motive which is heard throughout the entire piece, and which represents the horizontal line of the horizon, being in the center of the keyboard, and providing an axis around which the other events (sky and sea) pivot. (See example 3.22) From mm. 4-9, B-flat and A-flat in the left hand are added to the two-note motive in the right hand, creating a six-measure segment, Segment 1. A third voice in the treble (G-flat, A-flat, G-flat, A-flat, B-flat and A-flat) is added in mm. 10-15, to form a second six-measures, Segment 2. (See example 3.23)

! CD! Example 3.23: The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm. 1-15

A fourth layer is added in m. 16 as ascending and descending sextuplet figures embellish the original two-note ostinato, evoking the occasional gusts of wind that stir up wild eddies on the surface of the water. (See example 3.24)

! CE!

Example 3.24: The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm. 16-17

The sextuplet figure in m. 20 expands into the higher register of the keyboard in a louder dynamic, portraying an image of a slightly bigger wave. The first two segments continue in the lower and higher voices, creating continuity while the texture grows around them. This six-measure unit is repeated in mm. 22-27, but the extended passage of m. 20 is lengthened into a two-bar flurry, adding a low bass note, E-flat in the lowest voice in m.25. The ascending and descending sextuplet figure disappears from mm. 28- 30, exposing the renewed stillness of the horizontal line, followed by an abbreviated recall of the sextuplet waves in mm. 31-32. From mm. 33-37, Segment 1 is varied, adding more widely spaced notes in the bass notes (E-flat, F-flat, C-flat, B-flat, A-flat, F-flat, E- flat, D-flat), to give a counterpoint to the E-flat-D-flat ostinato. This is repeated with doubling at the octave from mm. 39-43. In the section between mm. 45-50, the dynamic level is ff, the bass has low octaves, and the sextuplet figure builds up to the highest register of keyboard, bringing the piece to its climax, and depicting the waves hurling themselves onto the rocks and up into the air in a spectacular explosion of sea-spray. (See example 3.24) In this section, the sextuplet figure is based on the thumb line B-flat and A-flat, instead of the original two-note motive E-fat and D-flat. In the middle voice, the original two-note motive remains, doubled a fourth lower with B-flat and A-flat to expand the thickness and volume of the sound. As the sextuplet figuration returns to the middle of the piano, where it is once again based on the original two-note ostinato, the second voice (in the tenor register) from Segment 1 disappears, not being heard from m.

! CF! 50 until the end. The soprano G-flat –A-flat segment 2 in top voice also begins to disappear in mm. 51-55. The ocean gradually becomes calm as the sextuplet figure starts fading away, leaves the stability of the two-note motive, in an image of the endless horizon. In The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, Farr experiments with a new compositional element that he has not used in his earlier works. In his piano work, Sepuluh Jari (1996), the rhythm, tempo and melodic structure change rapidly and are varied throughout the piece, but the Landscape Prelude is more minimalistic in style. Farr stated, “My instinct tends to be going somewhere different tonally, breaking up the rhythms, not staying in the same harmony. But I suddenly allowed myself to try a lot of things, to keep developing but staying in the same harmonies, rhythmically and tonally.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) In many of his pieces Farr has been inspired by the sound of the Balinese gamelan and that remains the fundamental characteristic of this work. When asked about significant influences on this piece, Farr said, “I think this is a lot like Debussy, actually,” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) referring to the work’s being derived from musical elements of the Balinese gamelan. In The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, Farr borrows the musical style of some of Debussy’s piano music that also utilizes textures deriving from the sounds of the gamelan. According to Sorrell (2000), “Debussy was one of many Western classical composers who were inspired by the sound of the gamelan. Although he did not directly exploit the rhythms, scales, and melodies of gamelan in his works,” Pagodes from Estampes (1903) does refer to the gamelan’s framework for musical texture, a structure known as colotomic. The gamelan is a type of ensemble from the Indonesian islands of Java or Bali. It consists of a collection of instruments grouped by texture, style and tuning. In the gamelan’s tuning system, the quality of pitches is described as “fast” or “slow” rather than “high” or “low” as it is in Western music. In other words, fast vibrate produces high pitches and slow vibrate creates low pitches. For example, large gongs of various sizes vibrate slowly, making a large, low-pitched sound, and the fast-playing instruments such as the kempyang and ketuk vibrate rapidly, making a sharp, high-pitched sound. The use of these specific pitched instruments distinguishes the rhythmic structure, called colotomy.

! CG! While the kempyang and ketuk play every beat, larger gongs play once per measure. (Spiller, 2004) There is also a core melodic line of the gamelan composition, which is called balungan. The balungan instruments are performed on metal instruments (metallophone) such as Saron barung, Saron panerus, Demung, Slenthem and Slentho. The panerusan elaborates on balungan, and is played on string, wooden or wind instruments such as siter, rebab, bonang, gambang, gendér and suling in the gamelan ensemble.!The musical texture of Debussy’s Pagodes was influenced by this layered structure, and in turn influences the layered color of The Horizon from Owhiro Bay. In mm. 3-10 of Pagodes, long-held bass notes represent the sound of a gong, played only once during the long melodic phrase in the right hand. (See examples 3.25) “Debussy reduced the rhythmic texture of a complete gamelan to three parts: low, prolonged pedal notes in the bass, imitating the gongs; a moderately paced, melodic middle voice, the equivalent of the unclear theme; and a swiftly moving ornamental line in the upper register of the keyboard, representing the elaborations of the panerusan instruments.” (Tamagawa, 1988, p.7)

! CH!

Example 3.25: Debussy Pagodes from Estampes

Similarly, in The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, the bass line from mm. 45-49 resembles the bass in Debussy’s layered texture. The distinctive registers across the keyboard, with their variety of colors, can match the variety of sounds from a Balinese gamelan. In a section like mm. 45-50, the long-held bass notes C and E-flat correspond to the slowly vibrating gong, and sextuplets in the highest register imitate the sound of fast- playing instruments, ketuk. (See example 3.26)

! DI!

Example 3.26: The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm. 45-48

Farr has stated, “[The Horizon from Owhiro Bay] is quite layered, with a lot of different voices going on and keeping their own part.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) While having a similar texture to Debussy’s music, Owhiro Bay is not really a harmonic piece, according to Farr: “There is nothing you would consider a chord progression like in Debussy.” (J. Kim, personal communication, August 15, 2011) The prelude’s harmony is based on the pentatonic scale, a common one in used in gamelan music, where it is called sléndro. The Horizon from Owhiro Bay has minor pentatonic scales throughout the piece to express the depth and mystery of Owhiro Bay, while imitating the glittering sound of gamelan instruments. (See Figure 3.5)

! D"!

Figure 3.5: Minor Pentatonic Scale on Black Keys

Interpretative Suggestions

Since it is inspired by the sounds and textures of the Balinese gamelan, this piece requires an ability to elicit various qualities of sound from the keyboard. As the sextuplet figurations are built based on the two-note motive E-flat- D-flat, performers should bring out the melodic line (the quarter-note ostinato played usually by the thumb) as well as shape the figurations with crescendo and decrescendo to better express the up-and-down motion of the waves. The top voice from mm. 10-15 should have a lighter sound in order to bring out a different layer of color from the lower voices. In sections like m. 25 and mm. 45-49, the lowest voice in the left hand requires using long, deep pedals in order to make the deep and low-pitched sound of the low gong from the gamelan ensemble. Performers should generally change the pedal once per measure throughout the piece. Measures 28-29 however need more frequent pedal changes in order to hear the three voices clearly. In addition, when the piece approaches the end in mm. 57-62, performers should change the pedal on every beat to attain a gradual dynamic softening to pppp at m. 62.

Example 3.27: The Horizon from Owhiro Bay, mm. 37-38

! D@! In order to evoke the image of Owhiro Bay that Farr describes in his program note, “the occasional gust of wind stirs up wild eddies on the surface of the water” (Farr, 2007), performers should bring out gradual crescendo and decrescendo as the sextuplets reach up to the higher register and then back down to middle range of keyboard in m. 20, mm. 24-25, mm. 37-38 and mm.43-49. (See example 3.27) Performers should make sure to pace the crescendo carefully. It is very important not to begin the crescendo too early in the phrase. When the dynamic level decreases volume from pp to ppp, and as well as in the sextuplet figures, which become fragmented in mm. 50-62, performers should maintain tempo and not slow down as the piece ends. !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! DA! CHAPTER 4

CONCLUSION

This research shows Landscape Preludes as a representation of the music of New Zealand. The four composers from Landscape Preludes, a collection of twelve pieces written by twelve leading New Zealand composers, are inspired by different aspects of New Zealand’s landscapes, contributing four creative preludes with their individualistic compositional styles.

New Zealand piano music occupies a special place in the literature for the piano. The need for demanding keyboard skills is secondary to the most vibrant aspect of these compositions: understanding the musical language, and having extra- musical knowledge of the composition. The excerpts of music shown illustrate simple yet vital components. Landscape Prelude by Jenny McLeod contains the image of a coastal view, using the Tone Clock system, which is derived from musical set theory formatted to relate the twelve hours of the clock to the atonal sound world. Jack Body’s prelude, The Street Where I Live conveys a story about the local landscape where he has lived for more than twenty-five years. He used Sprechstimme in addition to the keyboard instrument, creating a conversational texture between those two different musical timbres: pre-recorded electronic material versus live performing piano. Sleeper by John Psathas unfolds the image of New Zealand’s countryside viewed through the window of a train. The poetic interpretation of ‘Sleeper’ is intermixed with rhythmic and modal techniques. Gareth Farr brings the image of deep and moody Owhiro Bay into his piece, The Horizon from Owhiro Bay. This piece illustrates a layered rhythmic texture recalling the color and texture of another world, the Balinese gamelan. These pieces are a fine representation of New Zealand music transmitted into a picturesque sculpture. These works have merit in the tradition of music inspired by the distinctive landscape of New Zealand. Images of New Zealand’s varied environments inspired these composers to add to the body of New Zealand piano music, each with his

! DC! or her unique compositional style. It is my hope that the study of these pieces will motivate performers to take greater interest in the works of New Zealand composers and incorporate them into their repertoire.

! DD! APPENDIX

A. COPYRIGHT PERMISSION LETTERS

I, Jenny McLeod, hereby authorize Joohae Kim to use any manuscripts of or pertaining to my compositions for the purpose of complementing and/or inscribing parts of the pieces in her treatise submitted as part of the requirements for her doctoral degree at Florida State University. If any questions may occur I am willing to answer by email at [email protected].

Jenny McLeod

! DE! May 11, 2012

To Whom it May Concern

I, John Psathas, hereby authorize Joohae Kim to use any manuscripts of or pertaining to my compositions for the purpose of complementing and/or inscribing parts of the pieces in her treatise entitled Sleeper by John Psathas as part of the requirements for her doctoral degree at Florida State University. If any questions may occur I am willing to answer by email at [email protected]

Yours Sincerely

J40+!K1&(0&1

! DF! I, JACK BODY, hereby authorize JOOHAE KIM to use any manuscripts of or pertaining to my compositions for the purpose of complementing and/or inscribing parts of the pieces as part of the requirements for her doctoral degree at Florida State University.

Jack Body Associate Professor New Zealand School of Music (Kelburn Campus)

! DG!

21 May 2012

To whom it may concern

I, Gareth Farr, hereby authorise Joohae Kim to reproduce excerpts from the musical score of “The Horizon From Owhiro Bay”, a work for piano solo that I composed, and is represented by Promethean Editions Ltd. The excerpts are only to be used in reference to her doctoral treatise at Florida State University, and must not be reproduced for resale in any form whatsoever.

Yours sincerely

Gareth Farr ONZM Composer

! DH! BIBLIOGRAPHY

Alfred Hill. (n.d.). String Quartet No. 1 in B-flat Major “Maori”. Retrieved February 22, 2012 from http://www.editionsilvertrust.com/hill-string-qt1.htm Body, J. (2005). Jack Body. Retrieved November 24, 2011 from http://www.jackbody.com/biography.htm Body, J. (2007). The Street Where I Live. In Holloway, S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes [Musical Score]. SOUNZ. Burge, D. (2004). Twentieth-Century Piano Music. Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press Inc. Cresswell, L. (2011). A Search for Tradition by Douglas Lilburn Review. Listener, (Issue. 3721). Retrieved March 13, 2012, from http://www.listener.co.nz/culture/books/a- search-for-tradition-by-douglas-lilburn-review/ De Pledge, S. (2008). Interview with New Zealand Pianist Stephen de Pledge. [VIDEO]. SOUNZ. De Pledge, S. (n. d.). Stephen de Pledge, Retrieved December 12, 2011, from http://www.stephendepledge.com/ Eco. (2012). Environment and Conservation Organisation of Aotearoa New Zealand. Retrieved April 5, 2012, from http://www.eco.org.nz/what-we-do.html Farr, G. (2007). The Horizon from Owhiro Bay. In Holloway, S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes [Musical Score]. Promethean Editions Ltd. Farr, G. (2011). Gareth Farr. Retrieved November 23, 2011, from http://garethfarr.com/ Hardi, R. L. (1994). “Jenny McLeod, The Emergence of a New Zealand Voice.” (Master’s thesis). Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and These (Accession Order No. 1360054). Kauri (n.d.). Department of Conservation Website. Native Plants. In Conservation. Retrieved January 17, 2012, from http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/native- plants/kauri/ Keam, G. (2011). Landscape Preludes: a Teleidoscopic View. In Holloway, S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes. SOUNZ. McAlpine, F. (2011). The Blue, Blue Sky and the White, White Mountains. In Holloway,S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes. SOUNZ. McLean, M. (1996). Maori Music. Auckland: Auckland University Press.

! EI! McLeod, J. (1994). Tone Clock Theory. In VIII Clockwise. Retrieved March 10, 2012 from http://www.peterschat.nl/clockwise.html

McLeod, J. (1994). Tone Clock Theory Expanded: chromatic maps I & II- a new guide to the chromatic system. Retrieved March 10, 2012 from http://sounz.org.nz/resources/show/448 McLeod, J. (2007). Landscape Prelude. In Holloway, S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes [Musical Score]. SOUNZ. McLintock, A.H. (1996). An Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved March 3, 2012 from http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/maori-music/4 Musical Mode. (April 15, 2008). New World Encyclopedia. Retrieved December 30, 2011 from http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Musical_mode NZSM. (2007). New Zealand School of Music. Retrieved January 12, 2012, from http://www.nzsm.ac.nz/people New Zealand Folk Song Website. (2007). Maori Songs. In Kiwi Songs. Retrieved January 17, 2012, from http://folksong.org.nz/te_marama_i_te_po/index.html Owhiro Bay. (2010). Wikipedia. Retrieved December 20, 2011 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owhiro_Bay Petralla, D. H. (2002). The Tone Clock: Peter Schat’s System and an Application to his Etudes for piano and orchestra, Opus 39, a lecture recital, and three recitals of selected repertoire by Bartok, Clementi, Copland, Debussy, Griffes, Mozart, Liszt, Rachminoff, Ravel and Schumann. Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and These (Accession Order No. 3076255). Psathas, J. (2007). Sleeper. In Holloway, S (Ed.), Landscape Preludes [Musical Score]. Promethean Editions Ltd. Psathas, J. (n. d.). John Psathas. Retrieved November 23, 2011, from http://www.johnpsathas.com/ Shieff, S. (2002). Talking Music, Conversation with New Zealand Musicians. Auckland: Auckland University Press. Sleeper. (2012). Oxford Online Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Retrieved December 24, 2011, from http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/sleeper?region=us SOUNZ. (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2011, from http://www.sounz.org.nz/ Spiller, H. & Bakan, M. B. (Ed.). (2004). Gamelan: the tradition sounds of Indonesia. New York: ABC-CLIO, Inc.

! E"! Sunmarsam. (1995). Gamelan: cultural interaction and musical development in central Java. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Tamagawa, K. (1988). Echoes from the Easel: The Javanese Gamelan and its Influence on the Music of Claude Debussy. Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses (Accession Order No. 8816574). Thomson, J. M. (1991). The Oxford History of New Zealand Music. Auckland: Oxford University Press. Waiata (n.d.). Korero Maori. Retrieved February 24, 2012 from http://www.korero.maori.nz/forlearners/waiata.html

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! E@! BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Name: Joohae Kim

Birthplace: South Korea

Date of Birth: November 20, 1982*

Higher Education:

The University of Auckland

Major: Piano Performance

Degree: Bachelor of Music (2005)

Degree: Bachelor of Music (Honours) with first class (2006)

Degree: Master of Music with first class (2007)

The Florida State University

Tallahassee, Florida

Major: Piano Performance

Degree: Doctor of Music

!

! EA!