Lionel Tertis, York Bowen, and the Rise of the Viola
THE VIOLA MUSIC OF YORK BOWEN: LIONEL TERTIS, YORK BOWEN, AND THE RISE OF THE VIOLA IN EARLY TWENTIETH-CENTURY ENGLAND A THESIS IN Musicology Presented to the Faculty of the University of Missouri-Kansas City in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree MASTER OF MUSIC by WILLIAM KENTON LANIER B.A., Thomas Edison State University, 2009 Kansas City, Missouri 2020 © 2020 WILLIAM KENTON LANIER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THE VIOLA MUSIC OF YORK BOWEN: LIONEL TERTIS, YORK BOWEN, AND THE RISE OF THE VIOLA IN EARLY TWENTIETH-CENTURY ENGLAND William Kenton Lanier, Candidate for the Master of Music Degree in Musicology University of Missouri-Kansas City, 2020 ABSTRACT The viola owes its current reputation largely to the tireless efforts of Lionel Tertis (1876-1975), who, perhaps more than any other individual, brought the viola to light as a solo instrument. Prior to the twentieth century, numerous composers are known to have played the viola, and some even preferred it, but none possessed the drive or saw the necessity to establish it as an equal solo counterpart to the violin or cello. Likewise, no performer before Tertis had established themselves as a renowned exponent of the viola. Tertis made it his life’s work to bring the viola to the fore, and his musical prowess and technical ability on the instrument gave him the tools to succeed. Tertis was primarily a performer, thus collaboration with composers also comprised a necessary element of his viola crusade. He commissioned works from several British composers, including one of the first and most prolific composers for the viola, York Bowen (1884-1961).
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