Violin works of

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Authors White, Karen A.

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Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/624866 VIOLIN WORKS OF IGOR STRAVINSKY

by

Karen A. White

A Document Submitted to the Faculty of the

SCHOOL OF MUSIC

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of

DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS

In the Graduate College

THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

1 9 8 1 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

SCHOOL OF MUSIC

I hereby recommend that this document prepared under my direction by Karen A. White entitled Violin Works of Igor Stravinsky

be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts.

Cin4 e 2Ad 22 /78/ Sianature of Major Professor Date

Acceptance for the School of music:

Director, Graduate Studies in Music a8, Ifs! Date TABLE OF CONTENTS

Pacte

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS iv

INTRODUCTION v

CHAPTER

1. BIOGRAPHY 1

2. VIOLIN IN D 7

3. DIJO CONCERTANT 16

4. SUITE ITALIENNE AND DIVERT'IMENTO 25

5. SHORT CONCERT PIECES 32

6. EPILOGUE 34 APPENDIX

VIOLIN WORKS AND CURRENT PUBLISHERS 35

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 37

iii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Figures Page

1. Violin Concerto in D, Definitive

Chord ...... 10

2. Opening Measures of Movements of

Concerto in D ...... 12

a. Toccata, measures 1 and 2 b. Aria I, measures 1 and 2 c. Aria II, measure 1 d. Capriccio, measure 1

3. Concerto in D, Aria II, measures 80 -82 . 14

4. , Cantilène, measures 2 -4 . 19

5. Duo Concertant, Cantilène, measures 15 -20 . 19

6. Duo Concertant, Eclogue I, measure 5 . . 20

7. Duo Concertant, Eclogue I, measures 6 -9 . 20

8. Duo Concertant, Gigue, measures 21 -24 . 21

9. Duo Concertant, Dithyrambe, measure 8 . . 23

10. Suite for violin and , after themes, fragments and pieces by Giambattista Pergolesi, (1925), Serenata, measures

1 -6 ...... 28

11. Suite Italienne, (Dushkin- Stravinsky),

Serenata, measures 1 -6 . . . . . 28

iv I'?TRODUCTION

The violin works of Igor Stravinsky form an inte- gral and vital part of the contemporary violin reper- toire. The violin works fall into two categories: original compositions and transcriptions of previous compositions. Included in these transcriptions are orchestral suites and selections from and .

Many similarities can be noted among the composi- tions of this genre. The majority were composed or transcribed during a fifteen year period of Stravinsky's career and they exhibit a particular style of composi- tion utilized by Stravinsky at that time. These violin works also generate from an amiable association between

Stravinsky and a young violin virtuoso, Samuel Dushkin.

During this time, Stravinsky was changing the focus of his career from that of being primarily a composer, to composer, conductor and performer. This necessitated compositions which Stravinsky could perform on tours with Dushkin.

This study will be primarily concerned with

Stravinsky's compositions for violin written during

v vi

the years 1931 to 1935. In order to put these composi-

tions in perspective, it is beneficial to investigate earlier events in Stravinsky's life. CHAPTER I BIOGRAPHY

Igor Stravinsky, born June 5, 1882 in Oranienbaun,

Russia, was one of four sons of the famous singer Feodor

Ignatievich Stravinsky. His father was a soloist with

the Kiev Opera and later moved the family to St. Peters-

burg to star in the opera there.

Although Stravinsky did not have a close personal relationship with his father, his musical interests were influenced by proximity to the opera and theater during rehearsals and performances.

Stravinsky's parents refused to consider a musical career for him, so Stravinsky studied law and philosophy.

However, his musical aptitude was too strong and he eventually pursued a musical career studying orchestra- tion with Rimsky -Korsakov. Stravinsky became a close friend of the Rimsky -Korsakov family and worked with the master orchestrator for three years. Stravinsky was greatly affected by the death of Rimsky -Korsakov in 1908.

Shortly after, Stravinsky was approached by Serge

Diaghilev to move to Paris and collaborate in a

1 2

presentation of Russian artists, performers, and works of Russian composers there. Diaghilev commissioned

Stravinsky to write a ballet score based on the Russian fairy tale, . The ballet was a great success and Diaghilev commissioned a second ballet score for his company. also proved immensely popular with the public and critics. Stravinsky was proud of these successes and his own developing style.

"He found that he liked the sound of his music. While the score of The Firebird had merely been an attempt - and a very successful one at that - to out- shine Rimsky -Korsakov at his own game of colorful instrumentation, Petrushka was the first score to reveal Stravinsky's idiosyncratic way of handling an orches- tra."'

Elated with these triumphs, Stravinsky returned to an earlier idea basing a work on pagan rituals to the god of spring. The Russian Ballet premiered in 1913 with choreography by Nijinsky. It was met with turbulent reactions.

"Shortly after the orchestral intro- duction had started, mild protests against the music could be heard from part of the audience. The expressions of indignation were renewed when the curtain rose on the

'Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, (Berkeley: U. of California Press, 1966), p. 19. 3

dancers and the uproar redoubled as another section of the audience started to retaliate against the demonstrators by appealing for order. .scarcely a note of music could be heard. "'

Subsequent performances were not met with this

type of public outcry, though the press was divided in

its opinion. Today, we cannot deny that Rite of Spring

was a revolutionary work in regard to the treatment of meter and harmony.

Although he composed one opera, The ,

Stravinsky's major output during the years 1909 -1914 was associated with Diaghilev and the Russian Ballet.

During World War I, Stravinsky established his family in and began composing works of dif-

ferent dimension. The Wedding, a depicting a

Ukranian village celebration, is indicative of many

works of this period relating to images of Russia. Other works include Reynard, Three Tales for Children

and Four Russian Peasant Songs. At this time Stravinsky made his debut conducting The Firebird in Geneva and Paris.

Lack of money for large scale productions and wartime hindrances led Stravinsky to consider writing

2E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 26. 4

a theatrical work of practical proportions. With author, C. F. Ramuz, and conductor, Eugene Ansermet, Stravinsky

envisioned a musical work requiring few players and

simple scenery which could be toured. Backing was

acquired and the libretto and score of The Soldier's

Tale were completed in 1918.

The scoring of The Soldier's Tale emphasized an

unusual instrumentation: violin, double , cornet,

, , and percussion. By se-

lecting the treble and bass members of the different instrumental families, Stravinsky was capable of dis- playing the character and timbre of the limited number

of instruments. The players function not only as

seven soloists but as a miniature orchestra. Great

symbolism is placed on the Soldier's fiddle in the

story which correlates with the importance of the violin

in the ensemble. The solo writing for violin in this

work is the most virtuoso in Stravinsky's works to this date.

In 1919, Diaghilev again approached Stravinsky with an idea to utilize the music of the eighteenth

century composer, Pergolesi,for a ballet based on the story of Italian commedia dell'arte. Stravinsky initially demurred. Undaunted, Diaghilev 5 presented Stravinsky with Pergolesi scores he had collected. Diaghilev further attracted Stravinsky by hiring his friends, Picasso and Massine, the former to create costumes and scenery for the production and the latter to choreograph.

Pulcinella was to begin the neo- classic period of Stravinsky's career. Not only did Stravinsky elect to utilize the Pergolesi themes but also chose to write in the eighteenth century style. He recalls:

"...it was a delicate task to breathe new life into scattered fragments and to create a whole from the isolated paces of a musician for whom I felt a special liking and tenderness. "3

Stravinsky retained melodic and bass lines from the original Pergolesi works, but created a new harmonic and rhythmic treatment and utilized an instrumentation which was uniquely his own. Stravinsky discusses

Pulcinella as his entrance to neo- classicism.

"Pulcinella was my discovery of the past, the epiphany through which the whole of my late work became possible. It was a backward look, of course - the first of many love affairs in that dir- ection - but it was a look in the mirror, too. No critic understood this at the time, and I was therefore attacked for

31gor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1936), p. 127. 6

being a pasticheur, chided for composing 'simple' music, blamed for deserting 'modernism', accused of renouncing my 'true Russian heritage'. "4 Many works which followed Pulcinella exhibited

neo- classic influences. Among these are the ,

Concerto for Piano and Wind. Instruments, the Capriccio,

Oedipus Rex and Musagete. Another ballet, The

Fairy's Kiss was commissioned to commemorate the thirty - fifth anniversary of Tchaikovsky's death. The Fairy's

Kiss took form from the plot of the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, The Ice Maiden. Stravinsky greatly admired Tchaikovsky and assimilated his melodies into a nostalgic lyrical work.

Both Pulcinella and The Fairy's Kiss were recast as orchestral suites and will be discussed later in the context of violin and piano transcriptions.

In the years between the two world wars, the royal- ties from compositions proved insufficient to support his family. His largest commissions could not compare to fees received for concert appearances. Stravinsky began to accept more engagements as a conductor and pianist and thus found a practical means of enlarging his income.

4lgor Stravinsky, Expositions and Developments, (Garden City: Doubleday & Co., 1962), p. 128 -129. CHAPTER II

VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D

The impetus for the composition of the Violin

Concerto in D is largely credited to Willy Strecker, a close friend of Stravinsky and director of Schott publishing in Mainz, . In 1931 Strecker intro- duced Stravinsky to a young violin virtuoso, Samuel Dushkin. Dushkin, the adopted son of American composer

Blair Fairchild, was trained in the violin tradition of the great pedogogue, Leopold Auer. Though Strecker produced a commission for the concerto, Stravinsky was reluctant to write for the violin.

"I was afraid that my slight know- ledge of the instrument would not be sufficient to enable me to solve the many problems which would necessarily arise in the course of a major work specially composed for it. But Willy Strecker allayed my doubts by assuring me that Dushkin would place himself en- tirely at my disposal in order to fur- nish any technical details I might re- quire. Under such conditions the plan was very alluring, particularly as it would give me a chance of studying ser- iously the special technique of the violin. "5

5lgor Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 260.

7 8

Stravinsky had written for the violin in the con-

text of his orchestral works, a string quartet and vir-

tuoso violin passages in The Soldier's Tale. Yet, as

enticing as the project seemed, Stravinsky still had

doubts as to his ability to compose for the violin in

a solo concerto.

"To know the technical possibilities of an instrument without being able to play it is one thing; to have that tech- nique in one's finger tips is quite another. I realized the difference and before beginning the work I consulted Hindemith, who is a perfect violinist. I asked whether the fact that I didn't play the violin would make itself felt in my composition. "6

Hindemith reassured Stravinsky and asserted that the composition would benefit from Stravinsky's approach

as it would "avoid a routine technique and would give

rise to ideas which would not be suggested by the

familiar movement of the fingers ".7

Initially, Stravinsky was wary of the idea of working with a violin virtuoso, feeling the demands of a solo career and public acclaim color the taste of performing artists.

6I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 264 -265.

7I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 265. 9

"How many admirable compositions... are set aside because they do not offer the player opportunity of shining with facile brilliancy. Unfortunately, they (the virtuosi) often cannot help them- selves, fearing the competition of rivals and to be frank, the loss of their bread and butter. "8

Samuel Dushkin proved the exception to these statements and a deep respect and friendship developed between Dushkin and Stravinsky. Stravinsky recalls,

"I was glad to find in him, (Dushkin) besides his re- markable gifts as a born violinist, a musical culture, a delicate understanding and in the exercise of his profession,an abnegation that is very rare ".9 Many composers have relied on the assistance and counsel of violin virtuosi. Ferdinand David, Joseph

Joachim, Leopold Auer and Eugene Ysaye all had direct influence on their contemporaries. However, as with

Dushkin, their influences were as instigator and ad- visor not restricting the original concepts of the composer.

The reverse influence of composer on performer, is noted by violinist, Joseph Silverstein.

81. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 260 -261.

9I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, P. 261. 10

"To me the greatest advances in violin technique have been caused by the composer who refused to be inhibited by the limitations of contemporary violin playing...the composers are solving pro- blems musically and the violin will adapt itself to the musical objective.

While collaborating on the violin concerto, Dushkin observed a disregard for "violinistic" considerations in Stravinsky's work. Stravinsky wrote the chord shown below and asked Dushkin if it could be played.

Figure 1. Violin Concerto in D, Definitive Chord.

Dushkin replied that he had never seen a chord with such an enormous stretch and did not think it could be used. After experimenting on his violin, Dushkin dis- covered that the interval was in such a high register of the instrument that it could be executed. This

10Joseph Silverstein, "Violinists- Innovators, Collaborators or Instigators ". American String Teacher, (Vol. XXV, No. 4), p. 13. 11

chord became important to the structure of the concerto as it begins each movement of the work. The collaboration continued with Stravinsky showing the work to Dushkin and discussing suggestions Dushkin made. Dushkin recalls:

"Whenever he accepted one of my suggestions, even a simple change, such as extending the range of the violin by stretching the phrase of the octave be- low and the octave above, Stravinsky would insist on altering the very founda- tions correspondingly. He behaved like an architect who if asked to change a room on the third floor had to go down to the foundations to keep the ropor- tions of the whole structure. "1 Rejecting the traditional three movement concerto form, Stravinsky organized the work in four movements:

Toccata, Aria I, Aria II and Capriccio. All movements begin with the chord mentioned previously - termed by Stravinsky as the "passport" to the concerto.

(Figure 2)

11E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 330. 12

MIR .r1=1, _ W .._..__:,__.74M,,,_ Mr_ VW= _.--

a. Toccata, b. Aria I, measures 1 and 2. measures 1 and 2.

c. Aria II, d. Capriccio, measure 1. measure 1.

Figure 2. Opening measures of Movements of Concerto in D.

The first and last movements are characterized by a driving rhythmic structure and an interchange of melodic material between violin and orchestra. Stravin- sky utilized a full orchestra, yet skillfully handled the balance between soloist and ensemble. "There are numerous passages where the soloist is accompanied by a handful of instrumentalists...Stravinsky shows 13

consummate skill in constructing a score that combines

the spacious properties of a concerto with the inti-

mate qualities of a ensemble. "12

In both the first and last movements, Stravinsky

utilizes ostinato figures to accompany the violin and

features various instruments of the orchestra in vir- tuoso passage work. The technical (sometimes termed 'unviolinistic')

problems presented to the performer cannot be allowed

to interfere with or influence the interpretation of this work. Stravinsky employs many special effects

(harmonics, piz zicati , double stops and chords) to

expand a musical idea, not as unique devices. For

successful performance the artist must transcend the

physical problems of execution and transmit to the audience the vibrant, emotive qualities of melodic line. The two middle movements provide interesting contrasts. Aria I is characterized by a languid theme encompassing the extremes of the violin range. The movement is interrupted by a short -like inter- lude, then returns to the slower opening theme.

12Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, (Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1948), p. 142. 14

Musicologists have noted a harkening to J. S. Bach

in regard to these two Arias. Although there are no actual borrowings, Aria II utilizes an accompanying figure similar to those used in Bach slow movements.

(Figure 3)

Figure 3. Concerto in D, Aria II, measures 80-82.

The second Aria is more restricted in regard to range and makes an eloquent melodic statement. The title, Aria, is indicative of the emotive song quality inherent in both movements.

"Emotion is not lacking in Stra- vinsky's music, in spite of his own pronouncements on the subject...he has achieved expression, not in the intensely 15

individualistic manner insisted on by nineteenth century aesthetics, but through the medium of ritual, which liberates emotion from the narrowly per- sonal sphere and translates it into the public, the universal realm. "13

The premiere of the Violin Concerto took place in

October of 1931 with Dushkin as soloist and Stravinsky conducting the Berlin Radio Orchestra. The concerto

was well received by the public despite the orchestra's

bad playing (noted in a review by Hindemith). Dushkin retained sole performance rights for two years. In 1941, the score was used by as the basis for his ballet, Balustrade. Stravinsky observed Balanchine choreographing the work and later "judged the result to be one of the most satisfactory visualisations of any of his works ".14

13Bernard Jacobsen, jacket notes for Stravinsky,

Concerto in D, (Philips PHS 900 -194) .

14E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 333. CHAPTER III DUO CONCERTANT

The completion of the violin concerto in 1931 did not end the collaboration of Samuel Dushkin and Igor Stravinsky. Stravinsky wished to increase exposure of his music through chamber music concerts. His next work, the Duo Concertant, was to be the nucleus of programs he and Samuel Dushkin would perform on Euro- pean tours. Prior to this time, Stravinsky had avoided writing for the combination of piano and string in- struments.

"In order to be able to accept this combination of instruments, I felt I had to use the smallest possible grouping, i.e., as two solo instruments, so as to find a way of solving the instrumental and acoustical problems arising from the alliance of the two different types of strings. The inspiration for the Duo Concertant came from a recently published work, Petrarch by Charles Albert Cingria. Stravinsky felt that his friend, Cingria, had rare insights in this work which paralleled many of his own thoughts.

15E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 333.

16 17

"...though we were now living far apart and seldom saw each other, the close agreement between our views, our tastes, and our ideas, which I had noticed when we met twenty years before, not only still existed, but seemed even to have grown with the passing years.

In his autobiography, Stravinsky quotes Cingria. "Lyricism cannot exist without rules, and it is essential that they should be strict. Otherwise, there is only faculty for lyricism, and that exists everywhere. What does not exist everywhere is lyrical expression and composition. To achieve that, appren- ticeship to a trade is necessary. "17

Stravinsky made many statements as to the necessity for control and craftsmanship to achieve artistic free- dom. He develops this idea in a description of his admiration of classical ballet.

"In classical dancing, I see the triumph of studied conception over vague- ness, of the rule over the arbitrary, of order over the haphazard. I am thus brought face to face with the eternal conflict in art between the Apollonian and Dionysian principles. The latter assumes ecstasy to be the final goal - that is to say, the losing of oneself - whereas art demands above all the full consciousness of the artist...it is not simply a matter of taste on my part,

161, Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 267.

l7I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 268. 18

but because I see it (ballet) the per- fect expression of the Apollonian prin- ciple."18 In reference to the Duo Concertant, Stravinsky declared his interest to produce a lyrical composition,

"a work of musical versification and I was more than ever experiencing the advantage of a rigorous discipline which gives a taste for the craft and the satisfaction of being able to apply it - and more particularly in work of a lyrical character ".19

The Duo. Concertant is the only work of Stravinsky which might be considered a for violin and piano. The work is separated into five movements:

Cantilène, Eclogue I, Eclogue II, Gigue and Dithyrambe. Stravinsky stated that the theme he envisioned "de- veloped throughout the five movements of the piece which formed an integral whole ".20 The Cantilène uses two contrasting motives; one, arpeggiated chords (Figure 4) and the other, an ex- pansive theme expressed in double stops on the violin

(Figure 5) . The arpeggiated motive is first intro- duced by the violin while the piano plays tremalo

18I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 156. 19I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 268.

20E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 334. 19

unisons. In the middle section of this movement, the piano takes over this motive while the violin intro- duces the chordal theme.

Figure 4. Duo Concertant, Can tiléne, measures 2 -4.

Figure 5. Duo Concertant, Cantiléne, measures 15 -20.

An eclogue is defined as an idyllic conversation

between shepherds. Eclogue I exemplifies this dialogue by eliminating bar lines in the first half of the movement encouraging a free flow of conversation 20 between violin and piano. The piano plays continuous sixteenth notes while the violin outlines a simple tune over a drone. (Figure 6) This tune is interrupted occasionally for the violin to join the piano in run- ning sixteenths.

- f r r r. r rr r r

Figure 6. Duo Concertant, Fcloaue I, measure 5.

The violin sets the character of the last half of the movement with a double stop passage simmilar to the jaunty fiddler's tune in The Soldier's Tale.

(Figure 7)

y au talon 0. n nn n n nnn nn nn n 1Milf1 MIMI MNMlINISIN/'71 11=111M111 wee ...11/ AM. MINN, fMININ INi,/1111111111111,11rMINOMrs.11lft.-. n-'f1'...... f.lM=W111111111111111 .Alli: i1 L i. IIMIN1.`.111111111, 1.11401416.1111M.AN.MI,

Figure 7. Duo Concertant, Ecloaue I, measures 6 -9. 21

This section of the Eclogue also features constantly moving from to to 4. shifting meter randomly 4 8 Stravinsky gives equal treatment to the violin and piano in Eclogue II. The melodic lines are inter- twined and bound together in conversation.

The Gigue is less restrained than other movements of the Duo Concertant and is reminiscent of the earthy of Pulcinella. The movement rollicks along in 16 meter and features a percussive motive enhanced with left hand pizzicato of the violin. (Figure 8)

_, ".A.M. M. M M M M -.M-_-1=.I=N.- - M 'M 7 v._M M -=MM _M .r 1. 1 MM a -IM>_t p M/ . rrM1 + arco r f .Mpizi.

Figure 8. Duo Concertant, Gigue, measures 21 -24.

The sprightly dance is in form with one

contrasting episode in 4 and another in 16 meter. The concluding Dithyrambe is considered to be the most substantial movement of the Duo Concertant. The piano is given elaborate passagework in four -part while the violin has a lyrical, highly 22

ornamental melody. "The swirls and undulations of motion make the progress toward the hich pitched, fortissimo climax the more intense: truly impassioned as befits a hymn to Dionysus."21

Again, Stravinsky suspends bar lines and adapts the sixteenth note beat. In Conversations with Igor Stravinsky, asked the composer why con- temporary composers tended to use smaller note values for the beat, citing the Dithyrambe of the Duo Con- certant (Figure 9) as an example. Stravinsky replied,

"Contemporary music has created a much greater ranee and variety of tempi and a vastly greater rhythmic ranee, therefore the greater range and variety of rhythmic unit.

As a composer I associate a certain kind of music, a certain tempo of music with a certain kind of note unit. I compose directly that way. There is no act of selection or translation, and the unit of the note and tempo appear in my imacrination at the same time as the in- terval itself. Only rarely, too have I found that my original beat has led me into notation difficulties. The Dithyrambe of the Duo Concertant, how- ever, is one such example. "22

21Abram Loft, Violin and Keyboard, Volume II, (New York: Grossmand, 1973), p. 261.

221gor Stravinsky and Robert Craft, Conversations With Stravinsky, (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday & Co., 1959), p. 19. 23

crest. o a poco

Figure 9. Duo Concertant, Dithyrambe, measure 8.

Craft continues his questioning by asking if

Stravinsky believed the size of note had relation to the character of the music. Stravinsky's response reflected his characteristic aplomb.

"I do believe in a relation between the character of my music and the kind of note unit of the pulsation and I do not care that this may be undemonstrable.- it is demonstrable on the composer's side simply because I think that way. "23

The premier of Duo Concertant came in October, 1932 with Dushkin as violinist and Stravinsky at the piano. Years later, during the Norton lecture series at Harvard, Stravinsky continued to expound on the

Apollonian principle which had influenced him in the composition of the Duo Concertant.

23I, Stravinsky and R. Craft, Conversations, p. 20. 24

"Imagination is not only the mother of caprice but the servant and handmaiden of the creative will as well. The creator's function is to sift the elements he re- ceives from her, for human activity must impose limits upon itself. The more art is controlled, limited, worked over, the more it is free. "24

24Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music, Trans. by Alfred Knodel and Ingolf Dahl, (Cambridge, .: Harvard University Press, 1970), p.85. CHAPTER Iv SUITE ITALIENNE AND

The two works discussed in this chapter are trans- criptions made by Stravinsky himself of orchestral suites which generated from . In turn, each ballet owes its themes and style to an earlier com- poser. Stravinsky respected the music of earlier times and did not feel it desecration to incorporate the melodies and techniques of other composers within his own writing.

"I am only too familiar with the mentality of those curators and archi- vists of music who jealously guard the intangibility of relics at which they never so muchas look, while resenting any attempt on the part of others to resuscitate these treasurers which they themselves regard as dead and sacro- sanct."25

As previously discussed, Stravinsky utilized the melodies of Pergolesi in a ballet and later in a suite entitled Pulcinella. The suite would evolve into the

Suite Italienne (1933) for violin and piano. However

25I. Stravinsky, Autobiography, n. 128 -129.

25 26

movements from the concert suite also appeared in an earlier version, Suite for violin and piano, after themes, fragments and pieces by Giambattista Pergolesi in 1925 and a cello transcription in 1932. Transcrip- tions generate from the Pulcinella Suite, consisting of eleven movements from the original ballet. Stravinsky adopted the concertant style of hand- ling the orchestra and used unique instrumentation to obtain textures which would underscore the witty plot of the ballet. The ability to restructure the work for string solo and piano reveals Stravinsky's genius, as the freshness and spirit of the original score is retained.

The 1925 Suite, dedicated to Paul Kochanski, includes the Introduction, Serenata, Tarantella, gavotte con variazioni and Minnetto et Finale from the Pulcinella Suite. The piano and violin are treated in equal fashion. This version, edited by Albert

Spalding, is currently out of print and was made available by Doris B. Hansen, professor of violin at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The collaboration of Samuel Pushkin is apparent in the Suite Italienne of 1933. The origin of this version is the five movements from the earlier violin 27

suite, but a Scherzino from the ballet is also included.

The violin assumes a more dominant, soloistic role in this edition and the use of harmonics, pizzicato and special bowing effects found in the 1925 suite is lessened.. To illustrate the differences in editions, corres- ponding phrases from the Serenata are shown. In the first example, 1925 Suite, the piano plays the melody of the sicilienne while the violin accompanies. (Figure

10) In the Dushkin -Stravinsky edition, the violin takes prominence, playing the melody throughout the movement. (Figure 11)

That a work could survive this many transformations is amazing, but Stravinsky commonly revised his works for use in different musical idioms. 28

Larghetto id === - M= S M ` - ,___. .' P = `------_.' ----: \--- Larghetto

sommi ' " _L' `g 0T7Áo ro` :s" IT - i wiD Ir. -S ISmr1r .: _ I - a/ I . I -

- ...Ç' M - T- _ ,. . T t;: .Y

Figure 10. Suite for violin and piano, after themes, fragments and pieces by

(;iambattista Peraolesi, (1925) , Serenata, measures 1 -6.

I..= 1111r41111M 1 !Q Ail MN. :AMI/ LIE II=711 M Y M. WM a=111I= .111=0.rY/r r7 --MO .M11 I 'WU , IIII7M IJ moor /mum cAmm/ mwsr-- mum= V.1 aEW- /IBM= ANN`= á=m r 1PNIN J1I A I= P.M7P I KM> IMIIIMINa UNMOORI 1 ../ il t1-=MM.. .I MEOW a....AM.

Figure 11. Suite Italienne, (Dushkin -Stravinsky), Serenata, measure 1 -6. 29

Before starting Pulcinella, Stravinsky was a stranger to the works of Pergolesi. However, he was intimate with the music of Tchaikovsky which was to be the basis for the ballet, The Fairy's Kiss. Stravinsky had orchestrated two numbers of Sleeping Beauty for a

London revival and championed compositions of Tchaikovsky at a time when those works were undervalued in Europe.

As Stravinsky assimilated the music of Tchaikovsky into his ballet score, he found himself able to continue original writing in the same vein. "The result was that although the major part of the score...consists of authentic borrowings, there are also numerous pas- sages and fragments of his own invention. "26

The ballet, produced in 1928 was not tremendously successful, but music was extracted from The Fairy's

Kiss to form a suite. The suite, called Divertimento, is comprised of four parts corresponding to the four parts of the ballet. The transcription for violin and piano was made by Dushkin and Stravinsky in 1932.

The Divertimento is a nostalgic work, a tribute to Tchaikovsky as well as Stravinsky's Russian heritage,

"not the atavistic heritage of folk melos which he

26E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 310. 30

had so fruitfully explored already, but that of Russian nineteenth century art music ".27 A major difference between the composition of the Suite Italienne and the composition of the Divertimento can be found in the treatment of melodic material. In the Suite Italienne, the Peroolesi melo- dies were used in entirety. By contrast, the Tchaikovsky motives used in the Divertimento are fragmented and combined with original motives of Stravinsky.

"The essential feature of this type of music is that it is based either partly or wholly on already existing musical patterns. This does not imply ...that the works are necessarily pastiches or hybrid in style. Tt is perfectly feasible for musical forms invented by composers of the past to be completely transformed by contact with the taste and sensibility of an artist of a later age as to acquire new meaning and result in genuinely original works. "28

The Divertimento and Suite Italienne came into the violin repertoire as a result of Stravinsky's desire to have his music heard in recital. Both audience and

27Fric Walter White and Jeremy White, "Ivor Stra- vinsky". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Vol. 18. Ed. Stanley Sadie, (London: Macmillan Pub- lishers, 1980), p. 253.

28Roman Vlad, Stravinsky, Trans. by F. Fuller, (London: Oxford University Press, 1978), p. 77. 31

performer have benefitted from the transcription of these works. CHAPTER V SHORT CONCERT PIECES

Dushkin and Stravinsky collaborated further on

transcriptions of other Stravinsky works. They sought

selections to complete programs for the European tours

they were undertaking as performers. These transcrip-

tions included the 'Scherzo' and 'Berceuse' from The

Firebird, 'Russian Dance' from Petroushka and 'Chinese

March' and 'Nightingale's Song' from the opera .

Dushkin's role in the collaboration was to select

the appropriate violin line from the original score to which Stravinsky added the piano voices "...which fre- quently resulted in something widely different from the original composition ".29

The trio version (violin, clarinet and piano) of

The Soldier's Tale was also included in the Dushkin- Stravinsky performances. The post war years showed marked acceptance of these transcriptions, the

29E. W. White, Stravinsky: The Composer, p. 82.

32 33

Divertimento and Suite Italienne into the repertoire of concert artists.

"All these new versions...are in no sense docile, ready -made arrangements for another purpose, but rather pieces which have been thought out and written a second time for a new use. "30

30Frank Onnen, Stravinsky, (Stockholm: Continental Book Co., 1948), p. 33. CHARTER VI EPILOGUE

As World War II became imminent, Stravinsky was anxious to leave Europe. He was offered the oppor- tunity to speak at Harvard as part of the prestigious Norton lecture series. Two years later, the synopsis of these lectures was published under the title, "The

Poetics of Music ".

The last thirty years of Stravinsky's life were characterized by many 'firsts'; a mass, an opera in English and experimentation in serial music. These Years were filled with acclaim, awards, and perfor- mances of his works. On the occasion of his 80th birthday, Stravinsky was honored by Pope John XXIII, President and Mrs. Kennedy and many international figures. He was also able to return to the Soviet

Union to tour, conduct his works and speak with Soviet composers and students. Igor Stravinsky died April

6, 1971 at the age of 88.

34 APPENDIX VIOLIN WORKS AND CURRENT PUBLISHERS

A. Original Works for Violin

Concerto in D for violin and orchestra. 1931, Schott.

Duo Concertant. 1932, Boosey and Hawkes.

R. Transcriptions of Orchestra Suites Divertimento. Symphonic Suite from The Fairy's Kiss. 1932, Boosey and Hawkes. Suite Italienne. Orchestral from Pulcinella. 1933, Boosey and Hawkes.

C. Transcriptions of Shorter Pieces

Elegie for viola (transposed for violin). 1944, Chappell.

'Ballad' from The Fairy's Kiss. 1947, Boosey and Hawkes.

'Berceuse' from The Firebird. 1933, Schott.

'Prelude' from The Firebird. 1929, Schott.

'Scherzo' from The Firebird. 1933, Schott.

35 36

C. Transcriptions of Shorter Pieces (Continued)

'Russian Maiden's Sona' from . 1937, Boosey and Hawkes

'Russian Dance' from Petroushka. 1932, Boosey and Hawkes

'' from Vocalise. 1933, Schott. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cone, Edward T. "The Uses of Convention: Stravinsky and His Models ". The Musical Quarterly. July, 1962.

Emery, Frederick. The Violin Concerto. Chicago: Violin Literature Publishinc Co., 1928.

Gulli, Franco. "Evolution of Violin Technique in Relation to Interpretive Problems of Our Time ". Concepts in String Playing. Ed. Murray Grodner. Bloominaton: Indiana University Press, 1979. Loft, Abram. Violin and Keyboard: The Duo Repertoire. Volume II. New York: Grossman Publishers, 1973. Onnen, Frank. Stravinsky. Stockholm: Continental Book Co., 1948.

Silverstein, Joseph. "Violinists - Innovators, Col- laborators or Instigators ". American String Teacher. Vol. XXV, No. 4. (Autumn, 1975).

Siohan, Robert. Stravinsky. Trans. by E. W. White. New York: Vienna House, 1965.

Stravinsky, Igor. Concerto in D. Arthur Grumiaux, violin, with the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam. Philips PHS 900 -194. Jacket notes by Bernard Jacobsen, c 1965.

Stravinsky, Igor. Poetics of Music. Trans. by Alfred Knodel and Ingolf Dahl. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1970.

Stravinsky, Igor. An Autobioaraphy. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1936.

Stravinsky, Igor and Craft, pobert. Conversations With Stravinsky. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday & Co., 1959.

37 38

Stravinsky, Igor and Craft, Robert. Expositions and Developments. Garden City: Doubleday & Co., 1962.

Stravinsky, Vera and Craft, Robert. Stravinsky in Pictures and Documents. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1978.

Sziaeti, Joseph. Sziaeti on the Violin. New York: Dover Publications, 1969.

Vlad, Roman. Stravinsky. Trans. by F. Fuller. London: Oxford University Press, 1978.

White, Eric Walter. Stravinsky: A Critical Survey. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1948. White, Eric Walter. Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966.

White, Eric Walter and Noble, Jeremy. "Igor Stravinsky ". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Vol. 18. Ed. Stanley Sadie. London: Macmillan Publishers, 1980.