Fantasy on a Theme of Luther Dma Document

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FANTASY ON A THEME OF LUTHER

DMA DOCUMENT

Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

The Degree Doctor of Music Arts in the Graduate

School of The Ohio State University

John D. Proodian, MM

The Ohio State University 2005

Document Committee: Approved by Professor Marc Ainger, Advisor

Professor Russel Mikkelson ______Advisor Professor Donald Harris Graduate Program in Music

ABSTRACT

“Fantasy on a Theme of Luther” is a music composition for Wind

Symphony based on Martin Luther’s famous hymn, Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott

(A Mighty Fortress is Our God). This document will serve as a retrievable supplement to the actual composition. It will provide insight into my composition by studying how various composers have used the hymn in their works, specifically in regard to their treatment of rhythm. This famous hymn has been sung in churches all over the world for nearly five hundred years and has inspired many composers to incorporate the theme into their own works.

Among those many composers who have used Luther’s, Fortress as inspiration are Johann Sebastian Bach, Felix Mendelssohn, and Warren Benson.

They have been chosen in order to observe how composers through the years have dealt with the rhythmic complexity of Luther’s original hymn theme, the aspect that was the most interesting to me in my own work.

ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks to my sovereign Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Without him I am nothing but a lost soul. To Him I owe everything.

I wish to thank my wife, Janet Proodian, for emotional support, encouragement, patience, enthusiasm, and always being there no matter what.

I am grateful to Marc Ainger who guided me through the entire process and never stopped believing in my abilities and me. He has been there every step of the way for me.

I thank Donald Harris who aided me greatly in support, guidance and passion.

I wish to thank Russel Mikkelson who inspired me to compose for Wind

Symphony and for campaigning for new works to be heard. He has helped my conducting a great deal and his attitude has always been one of support and service in any way.

Many thanks to Caroline Hong who supported my piano study and worked with me countless hours to put a piano recital together. She never stopped believing in me.

iii VITA

January 19, 1973………...... Born – Arcadia, California

1995…………………………..BA Music Composition, University of California Santa Barbara

2002…………………………..MM Music Composition, The Ohio State University

2000-present…………………Graduate Teaching Associate, The Ohio State University

FIELDS OF STUDY

Major Field: Music

iv TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………….……..ii

Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………….…….iii

Vita………………………………………………………………………………….....…iv

List of Figures…………………………………………..…………………………….....vi

Chapters:

1. Introduction……………………………………………………………..…………....1

2. Luther and his inspiration……………………………………………………..…....8

3. Bach and Luther………..……………....………………………………………….12

4. Mendelssohn’s symphony number five……...... ….…………..………………..17

5. Benson’s rhythmic treatment of Luther………...….………………………...... 21

6. Fantasy on a Theme of Luther…………………...... ……………………….…...26

7. Summary…………………..……………………...... ……...…………………….32

Notes...... …....36

Bibliography………………………………………...………………………………….39

v LIST OF FIGURES

Figure…………………….………………………………………………………….Page

1.1 Luther’s original hymn………………………………………………..…………2

1.2 Luther’s original hymn transcribed……………………………………….……3

1.3 Bach Reformation Cantata BWV 80 chorale excerpt……..…………………4

1.4 Mendelssohn excerpt from symphony number 5………………...……….…5

1.5 Warren Benson excerpt from The Leaves are Falling………...…………….6

1.6 Excerpt from Proodian’s Fantasy on a Theme of Luther………..………….7

2.1 Luther’s original hymn…………………………………………………….…..10

2.2 Luther’s original hymn forced into 4/4 time………………………...….……11

3.1 Bach’s Chorale without fermatas………………………………………….…14

3.2 Bach without fermatas in 4/4…….…………………………………..……….15

4.1 Mendelssohn excerpt from Symphony Number 5……………...…………..18

5.1 Benson excerpt from ‘The Leaves are Falling”…………………………..…22

5.2 Bach Reformation Cantata BWV 80 chorale excerpt………….…………..23

5.3 Benson’s syncopated excerpt from Leaves...... …...24

6.1 Proodian excerpt from Fantasy on a Theme of Luther…………..……..…29

6.2 Proodian syncopated excerpt from Fantasy……………...………..…….…30

vi CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Ein’ feste Burg, (A Mighty Fortress) the hymn, was composed by Martin

Luther in 1529. It is universally regarded as his most famous hymn, and is still sung in churches throughout the world. The version that is presently sung retains much of the melodic structure of the original; however, the rhythmic structure has changed considerably. Figure 1.1 shows the original composition of Luther without bar lines, which was customary for that day and age.

Figure 1.1: Luther’s original hymn

If this original score were to be re-notated using today’s notation, without bar-lines, it would appear as follows in figure 1.2.1

Figure 1.2: Luther’s original hymn transcribed

Notice the irregular rhythmic structure of Luther’s highly syncopated original version of the hymn. The note durations often correspond to the text syllables as the theme itself is tied to the words of the Luther hymn. For example the opening short rhythmic quarter note is sung to the word, Ein’, from Ein’ feste

Burg. The shorter word therefore receives the shorter duration. There are no bar-lines present in the original; the C with a line through it in figure 1.1 indicates the basic pulse as alla breve. These rhythms are typical in Renaissance music, which date from the early years of the Reformation. These chorales were typically sung without accompaniment in a relatively fast tempo.

The version that is common today stems from the eighteenth-century metric version passed down from J.S. Bach in which the theme is fit into a certain

3 meter, this one being 4/4. See figure 1.3.

Figure 1.3: Bach Reformation Cantata BWV 80 chorale excerpt2

This example was taken from the final chorale movement of Bach’s ‘Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott’ Reformation Cantata BWV 80. Bach’s version as well as Luther’s is text based, therefore the durations of notes fit properly with the

German text. Bach however, must deal with the implications of the bar-line and its associated metric accents. Since Luther’s theme is pre bar-line, Bach must make major decisions regarding the parts of Luther’s theme which should be accented and which words of the text should receive rhythmic emphasis.

4 Felix Mendelssohn’s version of Fortress comes from the fourth and final movement of his fifth symphony titled Reformation Symphony. See figure 1.4.3

Figure 1.4: Mendelssohn excerpt from Symphony Number 5

Mendelssohn’s version as well as the Benson and my Fantasy are purely instrumental works. There are no words accompanying the theme that would force certain words of the text to fall on strong beats. This results in the melody being free from textual limitations. Certain notes of the melody therefore need not receive special rhythmic stress, based on the text. The words of Luther’s original hymn serve as the inspiration and guiding program of these works, even

5 though no text is present in the actual compositions. The Mendelssohn example will provide insight into a nineteenth-century composers rhythmic approach of the theme as well as reveal the celebratory nature of the subject of the hymn.

Next I will examine Warren Benson’s, The Leaves are Falling for full band composed in 1964. This twentieth-century composition is centered on Luther’s theme; figure 1.5 shows an example from bar 102 of the work.

Figure 1.5: Warren Benson excerpt from The Leaves are Falling

6 The rhythmic treatment of the theme will be explored to get a twentieth- century composers perspective. This perspective comes nearly four hundred years after the shift from mensural practices to modern metered music.

Finally I will end with a twenty-first century composer’s rhythmic approach to the theme in my Fantasy on a theme of Luther for Wind Symphony. Figure

1.6 shows an excerpt from the final movement of bar 413 of the piece.

Figure 1.6: Excerpt from Proodian’s Fantasy on a Theme of Luther

By examining each of these composers’ works, we will gain an understanding into how the rhythmic complexities of Luther’s original theme have been addressed over nearly five centuries. This theme has had to adapt to a changing notational system and to the constantly changing perception of composers through the ages

7 CHAPTER 2

LUTHER AND HIS INSPIRATION

Martin Luther was born in 1483, the son of a Thuringian miner.4 Leaving law school behind, he became a monk and in 1507 was ordained a priest.

After obtaining his doctorate in theology in 1512, he became a professor of sacred scripture at the University of Wittenberg in Germany.5 In contrast to the traditions of the catholic church, Luther’s theology was based on the scriptures. Luther believed that according to the scriptures, people are justified by faith alone. His passion was in assuring people they could have direct access to God, and he worked diligently to provide people with the necessary tools to accomplish this. Among those tools were Luther’s complete translation of the Bible into German and his use of German hymns and chorales in all worship services.6 The result of this would mean that a

German no longer had to depend on professional clergy to teach and translate Latin. Luther expounds on the scriptural truth that God’s word was accessible to everyone, and not just a select few.7 His thoughts on music stem directly from this concept of accessibility.

8 Luther’s German hymns allowed people to sing in their native tongue to worship God, producing a new style of evangelical worship. No longer would professional clergy or highly trained singers be the only ones who could worship the Lord in song.8 The church practice of selling indulgences came under direct fire from Luther, who adhered to the scriptural principle of justification by faith. This idea, that a person could receive justification by faith alone, would have a direct impact on his outlook toward establishing a new form of church worship music. In addition to creating a new form of evangelical worship, Luther also established the importance of music in education.9 He insisted that a person without practical music experience should not be ordained. As a result, Lutheran ministers had to study music and musicians had to study theology, thus fusing the studies of music and theology. This educational fusion would lay a foundation of traditional

Lutheran church music from which J.S. Bach would emerge, some two hundred years later.

After his translation of the New Testament into German, Luther returned to

Wittenburg and began to reform the Catholic Church using biblical principles as his guide. He issued hymnbooks to people so that everyone could participate in the service and have the opportunity to sing and worship God in their own mother tongue. Known for his singing voice, Luther composed hymn melodies for the church. He was neither an amateur musician nor an amateur composer. He had a solid knowledge of music theory as evidenced by his reference to the medieval Quadrivium, which included studies in music

9 along with arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy. He also had associations with many of the fine musicians of his time that were employed by Frederick the Wise in Wittenberg. One of whom he valued highly was Josquin des

Prez, with whose music he came in contact on his visit to Rome.10

After much nineteenth-century debate regarding the authenticity of

Luther’s feste Burg, by the mid twentieth century there was little doubt that

Luther composed and arranged the hymn melody for the text.11,12 Luther’s new evangelical style of worship music would last through the twentieth- century, and come to dominate many of the hymnbooks used this very day in churches of various denominations. There are subtle differences of course in style that have evolved since the sixteenth-century which will come in to focus as the eighteenth through twenty-first century composers are examined.

However much of the melodic content and spirit of the works remain.

Here is Luther’s hymn theme once again transcribed in figure 2.1.13

Figure 2.1: Luther’s original hymn

10 The durations of this melody are so varied that the theme does not fit into any meter without syncopations Here is an example of the Luther melody forced into 4/4 time rather than the original alla breve in example 2.2.

Figure 2.2: Luther’s original hymn forced into 4/4 time

The two pickups remain intact and the cadences on G and C in bars 4 and

8 respectively fall on the downbeat of beat one. Luther’s original score in figure 1.1 confirms why this version works so well since the score is notated with the half note receiving the pulse. There are no bar-lines in the original

Luther, only an indication of the pulse as alla breve. This Luther version forced into 4/4 produces interesting syncopations on the second and fourth beats in bars 2-3 and 6-7 given the half note pulse. It is very interesting to observe how composers over the centuries have dealt with the seemingly awkward rhythmic style of Luther’s time.

11 CHAPTER 3

BACH AND LUTHER

Bach’s place in history is firmly established as the greatest composer of

Lutheran church music. Coming out of the Lutheran tradition, he revered

Luther as a man of God, and as a musician.14 Like Luther, Bach was a native

Thuringian and spent the first ten years of his life in Eisenach, tracing the very steps of Luther nearly two hundred years earlier.15

A great shift occurred in Western rhythmic notation around 1600.

Mensural practices which had been in place since the fourteenth century that featured a pulse without bar-lines, as in the Luther hymn, gave way to the modern rhythmic and metric notation which establishes music in a clear meter. Bach inherited this new metric music notation of the time which is still in place today. Composers since ca 1600 have had to deal with the implications of the bar-line and consequently metric accents.

J.S. Bach was interested in the melodic compositional style that had been refined and mastered by Luther. These melodies in the major mode proceed to clear tonal goals and project an aura of splendor and majesty. Bach composed numerous cantatas based on the hymn themes of Luther including

12 Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (BWV 62), Christ lag in Todesbanden (BWV

4), and Ein’ feste Burg (BWV 82). For Bach the hymn formed the nucleus of the cantata, and the text was not to be sacrificed to fanciful embellishments but rather to serve the more personal emotion which is aroused by the congregational feeling.16 Ein’ feste Burg, Bach’s last church cantata dates from the last decade of his life along with the Goldberg Variations, The

Musical Offering, and the Art of Fugue. This is Bach’s most mature period and Ein’ feste Burg reflects that maturity with its complexities of canon and counterpoint.

Church chorales were associated with certain church seasons, they sometimes dealt with specific aspects of faith or as in the case of Ein’ feste

Burg, with celebration.17 Luther’s hymn is employed in nearly every movement of this eight movement chorale cantata which likely was composed for the Reformation festival of 1730.18 The first movement opens without any instrumental introduction. Instead, the chorus enters at once singing the chorale text to the melodic lines derived from Ein’ feste Burg in lively fugal imitation. The cantus firmus, which is the unembellished chorale melody, then sounds in long notes by the instruments, either oboes or trumpets or some combination. The cantus firmus is then answered in strict canon, three octaves lower, by the lower instrumental groups.

The final movement of the piece is the most significant as Bach harmonizes the Luther hymn using eighteenth-century harmonic practices and adds meter, establishing the theme in 4/4 time. The chorale movement

13 did not require professional musicians; the congregation was encouraged to sing this portion to the glory of God.19 Bach’s version is the one that most people recognize and sing in churches today. As stated earlier, Luther’s rhythmic version with its high degree of syncopation would be replaced by

Bach’s more straightforward metric version. In order to fit the theme into 4/4,

Bach must make adjustments to the note durations by adding fermatas.

Fermatas in Bach’s day were used to indicate the end of a phrase. In performance they were either held for several beats or paused briefly like a breath mark. These fermatas date back to the oldest surviving manuscript of

Cantata 80 which was notated by Bach’s pupil and family member Johann

Christoph Altnickols.20 These fermatas on beats one and three traditionally hold for the equivalent of three beats. If we were to examine the score without fermatas it could look like this example in figure 3.1.

Figure 3.1: Bach’s Chorale without fermatas

Notice how the theme no longer fits nicely into 4/4 time. This example of forcing the theme to fit without fermatas produces a 2/4 bar before the first

14 fermata in bar 2. It is interesting to note that the fermatas on the quarter note hold for the same duration as the fermata on the half note in bar six, confirming the fact that the fermata was used to indicate the end of a phrase.

In bar six there is a fermata on beat one consisting of a half note, which is traditionally held for three beats. Notating this without the fermata could result in bar six being a 5/4 bar. Example 3.2 shows the same Bach version without fermatas in 4/4 time throughout.

Figure 3.2: Bach without fermatas in 4/4

This example reveals why the fermatas are so often held for three beats.

By holding the fermatas for three beats the theme fits nicely into 4/4 meter.

Certain pitches receive different metric accents in this version than the original as in bar three where the B natural falls on the weaker beat three, rather than on beat one as it does in the version with the fermatas. For the sake of the text it makes more sense with fermatas, so that the important words of the text receive the full beat one stress rather than the weaker beat three stresses. Removing Bach’s fermatas therefore, results either in a

15 composition with changing meter, (if the same metric accents on the same pitches are preserved), or a composition with same meter where certain pitches receive slightly different metric accents, which would disrupt the text.

This demonstrates one reason Bach used the fermatas; to change the original durations of pitches in order to make this older theme fit into a single meter.

16 CHAPTER 4

MENDELSSOHN’S SYMPHONY NUMBER 5

Mendelssohn composed his Symphony Number 5 in D major op. 107, between 1829 and 1830 in Berlin.21 This symphony known as the

Reformation, is based on Luther’s Fortress and the Dresden Amen.22 It is hardly what one would expect from a person descended from a famous

Jewish family.23 Mendelssohn however, had a Christian upbringing, having been converted into the Lutheran denomination in 1815 by his father

Abraham.24 His Symphony Number 5 was composed to celebrate the three- hundredth anniversary of the Augsburg confession of 1530.25 Though the composition has no text, the original spirit of the theme’s text is the inspiration behind the entire work. The composition is celebratory in nature similar to the

Bach and my, Fantasy on a Theme of Luther. The fourth movement finale features a sonata structure and a chorale fantasia on Luther’s hymn, first heard in fragmentary forms.26 The theme is first heard in G major in the opening of the movement, shown here in figure 4.1.

Figure 4.1: Mendelssohn excerpt from Symphony Number 5

Notice how Mendelssohn managed to fit the complex rhythm of Luther’s hymn theme into 4/4 time without using fermatas as J.S. Bach did. He accomplished this by changing the note durations from the original, as Bach did, and, by using the same device used in example 3.2 in which 4/4 is retained but certain melodic pitches receive different metric accents. Bach’s version opens with three quarter notes with the first being a pickup note.

Thus the second note of the Bach receives the downbeat emphasis whereas with Mendelssohn the first note of the theme receives the greater emphasis,

18 until bar 6. By making the first note a half note Mendelssohn manages to get the second note to fall on beat three which is the next strongest beat in 4/4.

The duration of the first three notes of the Mendelssohn version are a half note followed by two quarter notes, or, long, short, short. The duration of the first three notes of the Luther are a quarter note followed by two half notes, or short, long, long. Mendelssohn is therefore able to fit the theme into 4/4 by heavily altering the durations of the original theme and by displacing metric accents between the first and second phrase as in example 3.2 of the altered

Bach. One of the reasons he is able to accomplish this is that he does not need to be concerned about metric accents of text setting since there is no text present in the composition. If text were present it would be awkward to sing the words, Ein’ feste Burg using long, short, short durations.

In comparing this version with the Bach, it is clear that Mendelssohn changed the rhythmic structure; the same pitches of the theme in the Bach receive different accents in the Mendelssohn based on whether they fall on a weak or strong beat of the measure. In bar six of the Mendelssohn the theme briefly falls on the same accent points of the Bach, but it only lasts until bar nine where once again it changes. It changes because without the fermata on the note G as with the Bach, Mendelssohn’s features a half note tied to an eighth, which forces the notes to fall once again on different stress points in the measure. This results in different melodic notes receiving differing metric emphasis which is contrary to the J.S. Bach version with fermatas. This demonstrates that the nineteenth-century composer felt comfortable

19 displacing the metric accents of the theme in each phrase rather than keeping it the same as in the eighteenth-century example.

20 CHAPTER 5

BENSON’S RYTHMIC TREATMENT OF LUTHER

Warren Benson’s 1964 composition titled, The Leaves are Falling for symphonic band is centered on Martin Luther’s, Fortress theme. The title of the piece comes from the first line of the poem, Autumn, by Rilke, Benson’s inspiration for the piece. This setting of Luther’s theme is the most exceptional in that it is not celebratory in nature to the extent of the other compositions. Benson stated, “one may note that the chorale, Ein’ feste Burg, does not appear with either a flawless melody or a traditional harmonization- symbolic linkage to suit both the beginning of the actual composition process and the opening of Rilke’s beautiful poem (a gift from one of my students which I adopted to help me with this work).” Benson’s reference to traditional harmonization is likely in reference to the Bach version whose harmonization became the ‘standard’ for Luther’s theme. It is not nearly as clear what

Benson has in mind when he states that his version of Luther’s melody does not appear as a flawless melody. Figure 5.1 shows Benson’s melody starting in bar 111.

Figure 5.1: Benson excerpt from The Leaves are Falling

It is interesting to note that this statement of the theme from Benson is almost identical to the Bach in figure 5.2.

Figure 5.2: Bach Reformation Cantata BWV 80 chorale excerpt

The same pitches in the Benson fall on the same metric positions as the

Bach. The fermatas of the Bach hold for the equivalent of three beats in the

Benson. Here is another excerpt from the Benson from bar 102 in figure 5.3.

Figure 5.3: Benson’s syncopated excerpt from Leaves

This highly syncopated version of the Luther theme fits brilliantly into 6/4 time with the A natural in bar 104 holding for a dotted half note rather than the traditional half note. The dotted whole note in bar 105 tied to a quarter note in bar 106 gives the G natural a slight augmentation from what was originally a dotted whole note alone. Benson uses this augmentation to set up the syncopation for the rest of the melody through bar 110. It is likely that

Benson is referring to the bar 102-110 version of the melody when he states his melody is not appearing as flawless. The Leaves are Falling contains a clear 2/2 version of Luther’s theme similar to the Bach as well as a highly syncopated version much more akin to Luther’s non-metric original hymn. It is fitting that a twentieth-century composition would feature two 24 very different versions of the same melody. The twentieth century opened up nearly endless possibilities for composers and Benson takes advantage of this by giving us a unique, highly syncopated treatment of Luther’s theme.

25 CHAPTER 6

FANTASY ON A THEME OF LUTHER

Fantasy on a Theme of Luther is a musical work commissioned by Dr.

Russel Mikkelson, director of the Ohio State University Wind Symphony for its performance on June 1st 2005. The composition consists of six fantasy variations on the Mighty Fortress theme of Martin Luther with the theme itself heard at the end as the seventh movement. Fantasy or fantasia is a term adopted from the Renaissance for an instrumental composition of a free and inventive, even improvisatory nature. From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century the fantasy could vary greatly. It could consist of an improvisation, or a more formalized contrapuntal form. Today the term is used loosely to describe any composition with a great deal of freedom from formalized structures.

Each of the seven movements of Fantasy on a Theme of Luther is inspired by Luther’s hymn. Originally the composition was to consist of a set of variations heard first, with the Luther theme heard at the very end. The concept remains the same but each movement is so loosely based on the

26 Luther theme that it doesn’t warrant the title ‘variation’. Variations consist of a more formalized structure and are not as loosely defined as the fantasy.

The composition has an entirely programmatic nature. The Luther melody guides the program along until its theme is heard distinctly in movement number seven. Even though there is no text present, the original assumed programmatic text of the hymn provides the inspiration of the composition.

The program of each movement is based on the chronological stages of human history according the Bible. The first movement begins with stage one of human history, a stage in which humans are absent. This stage consists of triune God, complete and in harmony with himself. The music depicts this with the Fortress theme heard in B major over a pedal C, thus obscuring the

Luther theme by means of polytonality and augmentation. The theme is heard very slowly by different instruments, with rests in between the melodic notes. In all, it takes over one minute to hear the complete first phrase of the theme in movement one. Stage two consists of, ‘God and Angels’, the Angels have been created by God and enjoy communication with Him. The movement opens with a regal melody, which is a variant on Luther’s Fortress theme, representing the angels being ushered into the presence of God.

Stage three is where evil is born and the theme is heard in minor seconds as

Lucifer the archangel rebels against God. These minor seconds come from the second period of the Luther theme on the words, “but still our ancient foe…” from the original text.

27 In stage four people arrive on the scene and enjoy harmony and communication with God. The movement features dance like ornamentation, with an exciting rising rocket figure, that crescendos as it rises. Stage five depicts a corrupt race sinned into existence as humans choose to disobey

God by partaking in the forbidden fruit. Evil enters mankind at this stage of history and harmony with God is lost. The music is solemn and there is a clear separation between God and mankind. God’s theme from movement one can be heard but it is cut off and separated from the solemn theme of fallen mankind. In stage six God goes to work on our behalf, and direct access to God returns through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The sixth movement consists of a four-part fugue based on a fugue subject of

André Gédalge, which can easily be construed as a variation of the Luther theme though officially it is not. Finally stage seven depicts mankind reunited with his God enjoying communion with Him forever. All seven movements are centered on the idea of God being an awesome mighty fortress, but in the final movement it is the most evident, as mankind finally experiences how mighty God truly is. The final movement is celebratory in nature and totally inspired by Luther’s text. Resembling the compositions of Bach and

Mendelssohn, Fantasy depicts a festive celebration of mankind united with his

God forever. This final movement consists of the theme heard two different ways. The first statement of the theme is set very traditionally, similar to the

Bach version in figure 6.1.

Figure 6.1: Proodian excerpt from Fantasy on a Theme of Luther

Instead of the use of fermatas, the held notes are simply represented by their actual durations resulting in mixed meter. It looks similar to the version described in the Bach section above (see figure 3.1) where the fermatas were removed from his chorale and replaced with the actual note durations. The final statement of the theme in Fantasy is heard near the end of the composition. It consists of varying durations that differ significantly from the

Bach, see figure 6.2.

Figure 6.2: Proodian syncopated excerpt from Fantasy

This syncopated approach is similar to that of the Leaves are Falling by

Benson. This version from Fantasy is more akin to Luther than to Bach because of the syncopations and the mixed meter. In both the Benson and

Fantasy, a traditional version akin to J.S. Bach is demonstrated as well as a more syncopated rhythmic treatment akin to Luther. The new notational devices emerging around 1600 laid a new rhythmic foundation and put an emphasis on bar-lines. Bach inherited this new tradition of rhythm that emerged around 1600, which emphasized the bar-line.

Modern composers have the liberty and historical perspective to add inventive rhythmic devices such as syncopation to their works, devices that were somewhat abandoned by composers of the eighteenth and early

30 nineteenth-century. Twentieth-century composers such as Messiaen reverted to the pre bar-line system of medieval rhythmic modes, and other composers such as Benson have incorporated the highly syncopated rhythmic elements that were present in Luther’s time and before in their own modern works.

31 CHAPTER 7

SUMMARY

After exploring the details of Luther’s original rhythmic melody and Bach’s strict metric version, we can compare the approaches future composers took in setting the Luther hymn. Mendelssohn’s strict metric version reveals that the nineteenth century was still under the direct influence of Bach and still confined to the bar line. There are however marked differences between the

Mendelssohn and the Bach. The Mendelssohn example displaces the rhythmic accents of the melody whereas the Bach example retains the same metric accents in both phrases by the use of fermatas. Mendelssohn is free from having to be concerned about the metric accent of words because there are no words accompanying the hymn theme; this allows him greater freedom than Bach.

The first phrase of the Mendelssohn contains pickup notes whereas the second phrase does not. As a result the metric accents on any given note of the entire second phrase differ from that of the first phrase. This distinctive rhythmic approach displays Mendelssohn’s ingenuity and shows how nineteenth-century composers were experimenting with rhythmic

32 displacement. Though different pitches receive different metric accents in the nineteenth-century version, the durations of the pitches remain the same in each phrase.

It is rare to find a twentieth-century composition that fits nicely into a traditional repetitious two-phrase period like the Bach version of Luther’s theme. In the twentieth century, composers not only displaced metric accents, but also meddled with slightly changing durations. As an example a twentieth-century composer when quoting an existing melody, which contained a half note, may elect to use a dotted half note instead. This tends to produce a higher degree of syncopation. Twentieth-century music in general therefore tends to be more syncopated than most of the music of the nineteenth century.

In the Benson and my own composition, there is a straightforward rhythmic treatment of the theme similar to the Bach (though not in the same meter), as well as a highly rhythmic management of the theme, similar to

Luther’s original hymn, complete with syncopations. In Fantasy, there is a combination of mixed meter and altered durations. The mixed meter allows

Luther’s theme to sound organic without the use of fermatas and without forcing the theme into strict meter. The altered durations cause certain melodic notes to fall on the upbeats, producing syncopations. It is interesting that both Benson and I wanted a highly syncopated version of the Luther theme in our compositions. This shows perhaps that there is an element in the original theme that inherently needs to be syncopated. Also, the

33 celebratory nature of the hymn text is so tied to the melody that even when the text is removed it is still present in spirit and provides the program for the composition.

The Fantasy theme from figure 6.2 contains more syncopations than the original Luther when compared with example 2.3. The Mendelssohn and

Bach examples demonstrate how these composers de-syncopated the original Luther theme by forcing it into strict meter, using the various devices described above. The twentieth- and twenty-first century compositions of

Benson and myself, demonstrate how modern composers have changed the durations of pitches to produce more syncopation than the eighteenth- and nineteenth-centuries. These examples reveal that contemporary composers added even more syncopations than the original version rather than trying to remove them as the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century composers did. The twentieth- and twenty-first century versions are syncopated within the framework of a certain meter whereas the Luther is syncopated only against a steady pulse since the hymn lacks bar lines.

The timeless subject of God in all his glory inspired Luther to compose the original hymn. The hymn theme is therefore linked to the awesome power and presence of God. It is no wonder so many composers have wanted to incorporate this theme into their personal works because they are depicting what is eternal, the timeless nature and attributes of God. It is very easy to be inspired by this subject as Martin Luther was, and I am very grateful the text of his hymn resounds today in melody even when the actual words are

34 not present. The words are so closely linked to Luther’s theme that a person comprehends the celebratory nature of the text even when hearing the melody alone. There is little doubt that composers will continue to be inspired by Luther’s theme and use it in their compositions in years to come. I am pleased to be a part of a long line of composers who have used the subject of this theme and the theme itself for inspiration.

35 NOTES

1. Albert Schweitzer, J.S. Bach, translated by Ernest Newman (London: A. & C. Black, Limited, 1923), vol. 1. p. 23.

2. Johann Sebastian Bach, Neue Ausgabe Sämtlicher Werke, Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott (Kassel: Bärenreiter, 1987), p. 142.

3. Felix Mendelssohn, Symphony Number 5 [Reformation] (New York: Broude Brothers, 1979), pp. 59-60.

4. Peter Manns, Martin Luther: An Illustrated Biography (New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1982), p. 14-15.

5. Richard Marius, Martin Luther: the Christian between God and death (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999), pp. 84- 85.

6. Richard Marius, Martin Luther: the Christian between God and death (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999), pp. 359- 360.

7. Eric Chafe, Analyzing Bach Cantatas (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000), p. 5.

8. Richard Marius, Martin Luther: the Christian between God and death (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999), p. 386.

9. Martin Marty, Martin Luther (Waterville: Thorndike Press, 2004), pp. 178-179 large print edition.

10. Albert Schweitzer, J.S. Bach, translated by Ernest Newman (London: A. & C. Black, Limited, 1923), vol. 1. pp. 29-30.

11. Albert Schweitzer, J.S. Bach, translated by Ernest Newman (London: A. & C. Black, Limited), vol. 1. p. 16.

12. Richard Marius, Martin Luther: the Christian between God and death (Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999), p. 386.

13. Albert Schweitzer, J.S. Bach, translated by Ernest Newman (London: A. & C. Black, Limited, 1923), vol. 1. p. 23.

14. Charles Sanford Terry, The Music of Bach an introduction (New York: Dover Publications, 1963), p. 68.

15. Philipp Spitta, J.S. Bach His Work and Influence on the Music of Germany, translated by Clara Bell and J.A. Fuller Maitland (London: The H.W. Gray Company, 1899), vol. 1. p. 181.

16. Philipp Spitta, J.S. Bach His Work and Influence on the Music of Germany, translated by Clara Bell and J.A. Fuller Maitland (London: The H.W. Gray Company, 1899), vol. 2. p. 459.

17. W.G. Whittaker, Fugitive Notes on Certain Cantatas and the Motets of J.S. Bach (London: Oxford University Press, 1924), p. 28.

18. Albert Schweitzer, J.S. Bach, translated by Ernest Newman (London: A. & C. Black, Limited, 1923), vol. 2. p. 245.

19. Alec Robertson, The Church Cantatas of J.S. Bach (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1972), p. 340.

20. Johann Sebastian Bach, Neue Ausgabe Samliche Werke, kritischer bericht von Frieder Rempp (Kassel: Bärenreiter, 1988), serie I band 31, p. 53.

21. Peter Mercer-Taylor, The Cambridge Companion to Mendelssohn (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), p. 104.

22. Peter Mercer-Taylor, The Life of Mendelssohn (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), pp. 90-91.

23. Clive Brown, A Portrait of Mendelssohn (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2003), pp. 83-85.

24. Peter Mercer-Taylor, The Life of Mendelssohn (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), p.28-29.

25. Phillip Radcliffe, The Master Musicians: Mendelssohn, edited by Stanley Sadie (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000), pp. 18,94.

26. Phillip Radcliffe, The Master Musicians: Mendelssohn, edited by Stanley Sadie (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000), p. 95.

38 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bach, Johann Sebastian. Neue Ausgabe Sämliche Werke, kritischer bericht von Frieder Rempp. Kassel: Bärenreiter, serie I band 31, 1988.

Bach, Johann Sebastian. Neue Ausgabe Sämtlicher Werke, Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott. Kassel: Bärenreiter, 1987.

Benson, Warren. The Leaves are Falling. New York: Piedmont Music Company Incorporated, 1966.

Brown, Clive. A Portrait of Mendelssohn. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2003.

Chafe, Eric. Analyzing Bach Cantatas. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.

Manns, Peter. Martin Luther: An Illustrated Biography. Translated by Michael Shaw. New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1982.

Marius, Richard. Martin Luther: The Christian Between God and Death. Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999.

Marty, Martin. Martin Luther. Waterville: Thorndike Press, large print edition, 2004.

Mendelssohn, Felix. Symphony Number 5 [Reformation]. New York: Broude Brothers, 1979.

Mercer Taylor, Peter. Editor. The Cambridge Companion to Mendelssohn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

Mercer-Taylor, Peter. The Life of Mendelssohn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Radcliffe, Phillip. The Master Musicians – Mendelssohn. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.

Robertson, Alec. The Church Cantatas of J.S. Bach. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1972.

Schweitzer, Albert. J.S. Bach. London: A. &. C. Black Limited, 1923, vol. 1.

Schweitzer, Albert. J.S. Bach. London: A. &. C. Black Limited, 1923, vol. 2.

Spitta, Phillip. J.S. Bach His Work and Influence on the Music of Germany. Translated by Clara Bell and J.A. Fuller Maitland. London: The H.W. Gray Company, 1899, vol. 1.

Spitta, Phillip. J.S. Bach His Work and Influence on the Music of Germany. Translated by Clara Bell and J.A. Fuller Maitland. London: The H.W. Gray Company, 1899, vol. 2.

Terry, Charles. The Music of Bach. New York: Dover Publications, 1963.

Whittaker, W.G. Fugitive Notes on Certain Cantatas and the Motets of J.S. Bach. London: Oxford University Press, 1924.