INFORMATION TO USERS

This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly fi'om the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter &ce, while others may be fi'om any type of computer printer.

The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction.

In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion.

Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing fi-om left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book.

Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI A Bell & Howell Infonnation Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Aibor MI 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600

LUCIANO BERIO'S SEQUENZA XICHITARRA SOLA: A PERFORMER'S

PRACTICAL ANALYSIS WITH PERFORMANCE EDITED SCORE

by

Gerd Wuestemann

Copyright C Gerd Wuestemann 1998

A Document Submitted to the Faculty of the

SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND DANCE

In Paitial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of

DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS WITH A MAJOR IN PERFORMANCE

In the Graduate College

THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

1998 UMI Ntimber: 9829361

Copyright 1998 by Wuestemann, Gerd

All rights reserved.

UMI Microform 9829361 Copyright 1998, by UMI Company. All rights reserved.

This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code.

UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 2

THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUAXE COLLEGE

As members of Che Final Examinacion Commiccee* ve cerclfy chac ve have read the documenc prepared by Gerd Wu6Stem3nn entitled Luciano Berio's Sequenza XI per Chitarra Sola: A Performer's Practical Analysis with Performance Edited Score

and recomnend chac it be accepted as fulfilling the requlrenents for

the Degree of Doctor Of Musical ArtS

Trof. Thomas Patterson Date

- f Dr. CaiVol McLaughlin Date

Patr^'ck Neher Date — Prof. Daniel Asia Date / '

Date

Final approval and acceptance of this document is contingent upon the candidate's submission of the final copy of the dociunent to the Graduate Cullege.

I hereby certify chat I have read this document prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the requirement.

Director Date 3

STATEMENT BY AUTHOR

This document has been submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under the rules of the Library.

Brief quotations fi^om this document are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgement of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder.

SIGNED: 4

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author wishes to offer thanks to Maestro Luciano Berio, who graciously received me in his home and patiently answered a myriad of questions over a period of two days.

Being allowed to discuss a work with its composer is always a wonderful opportunity. It is especially rare to be given the chance to discuss a work of such magnitude with one of the greatest living composers. Maestro Berio's comments were important in providing direction and enlightenment for the author's subsequent investigation of the work.

Further thanks are due to Mr. David Tanenbaum, who inspired in the author a greater interest and deeper understanding in Berio's music and gave much direction to the initial stages of this study.

Deepest gratitude is owed to Mr. Thomas Patterson, whose inspiration, guidance and encouragement has helped to shape this document.

A Dissertation Summer Grant from the University of Arizona supported this research.

It enabled the author to travel to Italy for a personal interview with Luciano Berio and to visit Universal Edition in Vienna, Berio's publishing house.

Finally, the author wishes to extend thanks to each of the members of his graduate committee, Thomas Patterson, Carol McLaughlin, Patrick Neher and Daniel Asia, for their efforts and support 5

DEDICATION

The author wishes to dedicate this document to Mr. Alfred Lamson, dear friend and mentor. Mr. Lamson's friendship has been a tremendous source of knowledge, even though he is not a musician at all. His wit and story telling are urmiatched and he certainly is a great humanist Mr. Lamson also possesses the rarest of qualities; a true sense of humor. The author feels deeply indebted to Mr. Lamson for his inspiration and support. 6

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 7

ABSTRACT 9

INTRODUCTION 10

BERIO'S SEQUENZA XI IN THE SEQUENZA SERIES 15 Similarities and Differences 15 The Series as a Catalogue of Modem Performance Practice 22

THE SEQUENZA XI PER CHITARRA SOLA 24 Superstructure 24 Textures 33 Idiomatic Virtuosity 39 Concept of Tonalities 50 Berio's Musical Language 55

PERFORMANCE SOLUTIONS FOR THE SEQUENZA XI. 60 Creative Solutions for Technical Problems 60 Technical Solutions for Musical Problems 64

SUMMARY 67 Sequema XI's Place in the Guitar Repertoire 67

APPENDIX A: THE COMPLETE EDITED SCORE OF SEQUENZA XI 69

APPENDIX B: ILLUSTRATION OF EDITED CHORDS 79

APPENDK C: PERMISSION FOR USE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL 81

REFERENCES 82 7

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FIGURE I Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.I, line I 24

FIGURE 2 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 2 25

FIGURE 3 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.8, line 2 26

FIGURE 4 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 11, line 6 26

FIGURE 5 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l2, line 7 26

FIGURE 6 Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.5, line 6-10 28

FIGURE 7 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 3 29

FIGURE 8 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 8 29

FIGURE 9 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.3, ln.8, pg.4, in. 1 30

FIGURE 10 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, line 6&7 31

FIGURE 11 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 11, line 6 31

FIGURE 12 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 6 32

FIGURE 13 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, line 5&6 36

FIGURE 14 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, line 8 36

FIGURE 15 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.4, line 7&8 37

FIGURE 16 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l2, line 1 38

FIGURE 17 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 3 41

FIGURE 18 LucianoBerio,5eg'we/iraA7, pg.8, line 4&5 43

FIGURE 19 Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.6, line 1-4 45

FIGURE 20 Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 8 45 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - Continued

Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.4, In.5-9, pg.5. In 1-4 ,48

Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.5, line 4&5 .49

Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.l, line 1 .51

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 2 .52

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 2 .52

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 4 .52

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 4 .53

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 4 .53

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 7 .56

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 7 ,57

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 7 ,57

Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 4 .58

Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.9, line 6&7 .65 9

ABSTRACT

The Sequenza XI per chitarra sola is a recent work of great significance for the guitar repertoire. Written by one of the most accomplished living composers, the Sequenza XI is also part of a series of works that demonstrates the state of instrumental composing in the

20'*' century. This study examines elements of the composition in regard to their significance for the performer. It also discusses problems in the execution of the piece and attempts to outline ways in which to overcome these problems. After discussing possible revisions with the composer, the author has included an edited version of the score as part of this study.

The Sequenza XI is clearly linked to other works in the series of Sequenzas through their common concept of integrated development Berio's musical language often includes a very personal approach to tonality as well as a preference for meaningful virtuosity. A particularly effective compositional technique in the Sequenza XI is Berio's layering of sounds. The composer has a unique and individual understanding of lyricism in music that determines musical material and shapes structures. It is this lyricism that is often difficult to understand. Finally, the Sequenza XI was written as a challenge to the technical possibilities of the guitar. Furthermore, it was co-commissioned and written for

Eliot Fisk, a performer with unusual physical and technical ability. For that reason, I have created the attached critical edition of the score of the Sequenza XI, making the work more approachable for the majority of guitarists. 10

INTRODUCTION

Luciano Berio (b.l925) is considered the foremost Italian avant-garde composer of his time and one of the most influential composers in the 20**^ century. He is particularly well known for his modernist approach and his extensive and experimental use of electronic instruments in art music. Bom in Oneglia, Italy, Berio studied music with his father, an organist, before enrolling in music school in Milan. In 1950 Berio married the

American singer Cathy Berberian, a soprano who subsequently performed many of his works. He traveled to the United States in 1951 to study with the influential Italian composer Luigi Dallapicolla. Berio's travels helped broaden his musical interests to include electronic music, and, after returning to Italy, he co-founded the noted electronic music center Studio di Fonologia Musicale, in Milan in 1954. Berio was the center's director from 1954 to 1959. From 1965 to 1972 he taught at the Julliard School in New

York City; during this time he also held a number of international teaching responsibilities.'

Berio's music through much of his career is of a non-serial, atonal or sometimes tonally centered style, with rhythm and pitch organized in layers and sequences. His works, which include operas, symphonic compositions, concertos, chamber music and solo pieces, often incorporate a wide variety of resources, including folk songs, choreography, mime and acrobatics. In Berio's Ommagio a Joyce (1958), a spoken text is electronically manipulated. The powerfiil Visages (1960) combines electronic sounds and 11

vocally produced human sounds. Other major works include the operas Laborintus II

(1968) and Opera (1969, revised 1977), and the Cello Concerto (1976), all of which have

in common a musical language determined through complex lyrical gestures of great

virtuosity, incorporating dense harmonic layers. In most of Berio's important works, the

musician is asked to perform on the verge of his capability, often incorporating non-

musical, theatrical actions."

A cornerstone in Berio's oeuvre is his series of thirteen Sequenzas. Each of these

pieces is written for a solo instrument or voice, and demonstrates extended performance

practices. In virtually all Sequenzas these techniques are intended to expand the

boundaries of what was playable on the respective instrument. The Sequenza series,

written over a period of more than 30 years, can be understood as a manual of

instrumental composing in the 20*^ century. It is good fortune for the modem guitar

repertoire to be represented in such a monumental series. The majority of Sequenzas

were commissioned by or composed for a certain performer (usually an influential

interpreter of avant-garde music on his or her respective instrument), and Berio often collaborated closely with that performer to understand the particular abilities and limitations of the instrument. For example one of his most successful Sequenzas is

Sequenza III, for female voice, written for and dedicated to his wife Cathy Berberian, a pioneer in avant-garde vocal techniques. Sequenza XI was commissioned by guitarist

' David Osmond-Smith, Berio, pg. 27 ^ Osmond-Smith, Berio, pg. 35 12

Eliot Fisk in 1982 and finally, after a long collaboration with the composer, completed in

1988.'

In 1969 Berio also began to convert many of his Sequenzas into orchestra pieces for

various sized groups. These works, named Chemins, are more than just simple

arrangements of the original works; they translate the original concept of virtuoso solo

instrumental works into a new realm. In studying the Chemins with their sharp,

contrasting and fast changing instrumentation and dynamics, it is clearly visible what

Berio attempted in his Sequenzas: to express the multiple personalities of the instrument

in question. The Chemins also emphasize structures in the piece, identifying textural layers more precisely and through this adding some transparency.'* Examining the

Chemins certainly creates a deeper understanding of the Sequenzas. However, a full analysis of the Chemins or the whole Sequenza series would be beyond the scope of this study. As of yet, Berio has not written a Chemins on the Sequenza XI.

Even though the style and structure of the Sequenzas have changed considerably over the past 30 years, three elements remain unaltered:

1. All Sequenzas are monumental single movement works, big blocks of music

without much rest or breath, usually 10 to 15 minutes in duration. They ask for all

of the performer's stamina and resources. (The famed Ciaccona by J.S.Bach has

' Eliot Fisk, Persona! Interview, 1995 '* Ivanka Stoianova, Luciano Berio: chemins en musique, pg. 55 13

served as an early model for Berio's idea of an all-demanding instrumental solo

work.)

2. The idea of virtuosity is taken to the extreme. True to his avant-garde concept,

Berio uses virtuosity to break down familiar technical restrictions, and develops

new playing techniques, colors and sounds on the instrument, often involving

almost impossible efforts from the performer. Berio's concepts of virtuosity are a

meaningful and integral part of the work rather than just an embellishment

3. The Sequenzas, aptly named, develop in sequences, carrying the work from point

to point with determination; giving the outcome of the work a sense of

inevitability. In the early Sequenzas the tonal language was of a loosely atonal,

sometimes almost serial style, highlighted by the sequential nature of the

material. But even in the latest works in the series, which are less predetermined

and based on a freer, tonally centered style, this sense of forward motion, of chain

reaction and sequence is well preserved.

It will be a main focus of this study to examine the above elements within the

Sequenza XI and to exemplify how these elements shape the interpretation of the work. A brief discussion of the significance of the guitar Sequenza within the series and how it compares to previous works will also be part of this document.

The Sequenza XI per chitarra sola, commissioned by guitarist Eliot Fisk and published in 1988, represents one of the most recently completed Sequenzas. Berio has been working on two new Sequenzas over the past few years, but neither a score nor a 14

recording is available yet. Even more interestingly, the Sequenxa XI had not been recorded until Eliot Fisk's premier recording for Music Masters in 1995 - 7 years after the piece had been written for him. Berio has since claimed that the guitar Sequenza cost him as much work as all the other Sequenzas put together,^ and the same level of effort seems to be required for anybody who approaches a performance of the piece. It is highly unusual for a work of this magnitude not to be embraced by guitarists around the world and not to be found in many professional concert programs immediately. There are very few works of this stature in the entire guitar repertoire. The general consensus in the guitar world is that the piece presents too many problems and difficulties. This study intends to make approaching the Sequenza XI more feasible and therefore more attractive to guitarists. Another element of this study is to explain creative solutions for many of the work's technical problems. It would be in the greater interest of music and the guitar community if this piece could take its rightful place as part of the 20*^ century's standard repertoire.

^ Lud&no Berio, Persona! Interview, 1995 15

BERIO'S SEQUENZA XI IN THE SEQUENZA SERIES

Similarities and Differences

The idea for Sequenza XI per chitarra was bom when the Philharmonic Society of

Rovereto, Italy decided to sponsor a commission from Luciano Berio for guitarist Eliot

Fisk. After a few initial meetings between Fisk and Berio, the composer decided to write

this new work for guitar as part of the Sequenza series. The fact that the first work that

Fisk played for Berio was Bach's Ciaccona might have influenced this decision. Fisk's

particular abilities may have had just as much influence. The unusual size of his hands

can execute just about any probable stretch on the fretboard. His extraordinary speed and

technical capabilities are frequently demonstrated in his passion for outrageously difficult

virtuoso transcriptions and original works.^ Finally, Fisk's high energy and fiery

performance style, as well as his advocacy of avant-garde music would make him a

perfect performer for a Sequenza. Berio almost always collaborates closely with a

particular artist for his Sequenzas. It is not unusual for these works to be closely custom-

tailored to a particular player's abilities. Sequenza XI seems a prime example of that symbiotic relationship between composer and performer. Many of the finest qualities of the work are directly inspired by Fisk's in-depth knowledge of the instrument.

This intimate knowledge of the instrument's capabilities and how to stretch them is an important factor in all of the Sequenzas. One of the best examples is Sequenza III for

^ Fisk has recently released a recording of the 24 violin caprices by Paganini. He has inspired composers such as Robert Beaser or Rafinan to create works for the guitar that are of extraordinary technical diiBculty. 16

female voice, written for Berio's wife Cathy Berberian in 1968. In this Sequenza Berio obviously enjoys taking full advantage of his wife's extraordinary vocal abilities.

Berberian was already the foremost pioneer in the field of avant-garde vocal techniques, but the Sequenza III revolutionized the genre. Berio incorporated laughter, moaning, screams, audible breathing, stutters, uttering of guttural sounds, spelling and contorting of words, and birdlike "whistle" passages to create a brilliant showcase for the full range of human expression through voice. The work since then has been a tremendous success for both the composer and the performer, and is still considered an avant-garde classic.

Unfortunately, it is hardly ever p)erformed, because of its extraordinary' difficulty. The performer must be well trained in extended vocal technique, possess close to perfect pitch and be part actress as well, since the work calls for a number of dramatic displays.'

Another good example for this type of collaboration is the Sequenza VII for oboe, written in 1973 for German oboist Heinz Holliger. At that time Holliger was probably one of only a few players in the world making serious attempts to extend traditional oboe techniques. In the Sequenza VII Berio tries to do what Bach had done for the violin in his

Ciaccona: to create poljfphonic, harmonic structures with thick vertical texture for an instrument that is presumably only capable of playing single notes. Only, in the

Sequenza's case, Berio goes further than Bach did. The oboe, when played with "normal" technique, is simply not capable of producing more than a single note at a time. Using a new technique of over-blowing and humming while blowing a normal note, the

^ Norbert Dressen, Sprache undMusik bei Luciano Berio: Untersuchungen zu seinen Vokalkompositionen, pg.68 17

performer of the Sequenia VII is able to play two lines at the same time.^ Berio uses a similar technique in the Sequenza VI for trombone (1970). Here singing through the mouthpiece while blowing at pitch produces a multi-phonic of overtones with up to four audible voices. Circular breathing, another new technique introduced in the oboe

Sequema, had first been pioneered by free-jazz saxophone players like Roland Kirk and

Archie Shepp in the 60's. Circular breathing, a technique in which the player inhales and exhales at the same time, allov^ang him to hold a note indefinitely, is much more difficult to execute on the oboe than on other woodwind instruments. Holliger had been experimenting with circular breathing for years, when finally the Sequenza VII gave him an opportunity to incorporate this technique into a repertoire piece. Many of the extended techniques pioneered in Berio's collaboration with these artists have now found their way into the standard technical repertoire of advanced players.

Eliot Fisk premiered Sequenza XI per chitarra in Rovereto, Italy on April 20'^', 1988.

During the early performances Berio was usually present and he would often ask Fisk to make slight changes to the work just before the performance. This shows more than anything Berio's response to the performer's feedback and his constant endeavor to fine- time and improve on the piece's practical aspects.'

Another similarity between all Sequenzas is Berio's use of idiomatic virtuosity. Berio claims he does not like to write against the instrument, and indeed his guitar Sequenza is remarkable particularly for a non-guitarist composer, in tliat its considerable technical

* Luciano Berio, Sequema VII, score ' Berio, Personal Interview, 1995. Also: Fisk, Personal Interview, 1995. 18

difficulties are somehow still idiomatic. As Berio writes in a note he sent to Fisk along

with the score: "Here it is, the 'maledetta' (accursed one). It will drive you to despair as it

has me. Coraggio! I don't consider it to be the final version, as I would like to introduce

many harmonics. Another thing we will later decide together is the overall dynamic

shape of the piece."'° The work begins quietly, come preludiando before leading

immediately and abruptly into an extensive section of fortissimo thematic material improvisamente violento. This starts the work on a "tour de force" through the guitar's gamut of expressive possibilities. Considerable use is made of the drum-like tambour, strumming rasgueado and bell-like harmonics. The Sequema concludes with a simple tritone, one of the most basic unifying elements of the work. Similar idiomatic writing is typical for all Sequenzas and is used throughout in a meaningful way. Berio makes this idiomatic virtuosity part of the structure of the piece rather than just an embellishment.

This is the same concept of virtuosity we find in Bach's Ciaccona where an arpeggiated chord passage makes up a full variation. These arpeggios are not only very difficult to execute and had never been heard before Bach's use in the Ciaccona, but they transport important thematic material and carry the structure of the work at that moment. They are much more than just difficult embellishment and most of all they are idiomatic and sound magnificent."

Berio claimed in an interview with David Osmond-Smith: "Anyone worth calling a virtuoso these days has to be a musician capable of moving within a broad historical

Berio, Personal Letter, Universal Edition Archives, Vienna, 1995 " Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 19

perspective and of resolving the tension between the creativity of yesterday and today."'^

This is clearly a quality that identifies Berio and distinguishes him from many composers

of his generation. He refuses to abandon the music of the past. He has been a superb

transcriber and transformer of music by Schubert and Mahler and of many and various

folk themes. This reflective aspect is present in all of the Sequenzas: sometimes as a direct (yet transformed) quote, sometimes in the style or format of the piece. Berio often

uses folkloric motives or patterns of a distinct folk style as a spiritual base for a

Sequenza. The guitar Sequenza is inspired by the Spanish folk tradition of flamenco,

which is predominantly guitar music. Even more, the classical guitar tradition is at least

partially rooted in flamenco guitar playing. The heavy use of rasgueados, fast scales, mixed cross-string trills and arpeggios are directly borrowed from flamenco playing.

Examples of folklore influences or reflection on musical tradition can be found in virtually any Sequenza, from the bel canto references in Sequenza III to the klezmer sounds in the clarinet Sequenza IX.

For the performer, playing a Sequenza is a true "tour de force" and there is no moment of relaxation until the end of the piece. For the audience, this structure literally makes for a breathtaking musical experience.

One of the most obvious developments throughout the Sequenza series is that of

Berio's pitch language. Over this 30-year period it is easy to follow Berio's compositional evolution. If the first and second Sequenza show a more direct, atonal

Osmond-Smith, 5er/o, pg. 107 20

approach, a style in which many composers worked in the 50's and early 60's, it may have been due to the influence of Berio's teacher Luigi Dallapicolla.'^ In Dallapicolla's

Integral Serialism all parameters of the composition are predetermined. The initial row's shape does not only affect pitch-classes but extends to every expressive nuance of the work: dynamics, duration, rests, expressive marks, tempi, et cetera. This unfortunately binds the composer completely and often leads to a form of automated composing.

Dallapicolla's influence seems to weaken in the Sequenza III, and Berio adapts a more flexible atonal style. This style is more reminiscent of other Italian composers such as

Goffredo Petrassi. In this realm Berio has been able to find the compositional freedom to develop his personal language. Some predetermination gives structural integrity to the composition, but the composer is able to make decisions about the works development at any time throughout the piece. Berio spent the next 20 years of his career, between 1965 and 1985, developing a very expressive, lyrical and fluid style of atonal composing. This free-atonal style might be best represented in the Sequenzas VI and VII, two of his most successful works in the series.

Over the past 12 years Berio's composing took yet another direction. He seems even more reflective of the past and his music draws much on past periods and is often based on older forms of folklore tradition. His tonal repertoire is often centered on a chord or interval that creates a kind of micro cell, a miniature element to determine much of the composition's superstructure. .Even though this style is far from being tonal, it creates

The New Grove, Luciano Berio Samuel Pellman, Horizon: an Examination of the Role of Timbre in a Musical Composition, pg. 45 21

much more of an association with tonal centers. Berio, in his mature style, is capable of drawing on all of the compositional tools he developed over the past decades and frequently will do so. 22

The Series as a Catalogue of Modem Performance Practice

The Sequenza series begins with Sequenza 1 for flute in 1958 and includes Sequenzas

for harp, female voice, piano, percussion, trombone, oboe, violin, clarinet, and trumpet,

concluding with the guitar Sequenza XI in 1988. Since 1988 Berio has been working on

two new Sequenzas.'^ A series of solo works by one of the periods most influential

compxjsers and including most instrumental categories, such as brass, percussion, piano,

strings, voice and woodwinds, is rare not only in this century but throughout music

history. Other composers in the past have created series for a particular instrument, like

Bach for violin, cello and harpsichord, Chopin for piano, Paganini for violin or Villa-

Lobos for guitar. However, to write a series of works following the same concept for all

major instruments is even more unique. As we have seen above, the relationship between all Sequenzas is a very close one and the only change reflected over the 30-year period is

that of Berio's maturing as a composer. This series presents us with a catalogue of 20''* century instrumental technique and will take a special place in the future of music if for

no other reason than being a manual of composing for a solo instrument. Each Sequenza

is a work that defines the limitations of our traditional instruments, often by expanding them. All works in the series are innovative and original, even if not all of the Sequenzas are of the same compositorial quality. A unified musical language binds them and it is part of the appeal of the series to hear how this language translates fi"om one medium to another.'^ Berio worked very closely with the respective performers to assimilate as

Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 Rosanna Dalmonte, Balint Andras Varga, Two Inteviews / Luciano Berio, pg. 37 23

much of the instruments idiomatic capabilities as possible and to respond to the unique

character of each instrument However, many of the musical elements are carried from

one instrument to another because they are part of Berio's vocabulary. It is clearly

audible how a nervous tremolando cluster on the piano translates into a narrow, repetitive

on the harp and finally becomes a cross-string trill/slur combination on the

guitar. The resulting sound in all three cases is almost identical, except for the different

timbres. But it is not just these relatively closely related instruments that exhibit Berio's

ability to adapt his concept of a sound to a variety of media. A number of excerpts in the

flute Sequenza can be identified almost verbatim in the violin Sequenza. Many pitch-

oriented passages in the percussion Sequenza appear closely related to and often almost

"revisited" in the guitar Sequenza. The guitar in return makes much use of percussive effects on the instrument, from slaps and taps on various parts of the body to the extensive and even motivic use of the tambour effect.

The Sequenza series has often been cited by contemporary composers as a

tremendous source of inspiration but has just as often been criticized for its lack of compositorial substance and for its focus on instrumental effects.'^ However, it will remain uncontested that the series provides the 20'*' century with a complete catalogue of instrumental composing and technique. If for no other reason than this, the Sequenza series will take an important place in music history. 24

THE SEQUENZA XI PER CHITARRA SOLA

Superstructure

The Sequenza XI is z, large-scale work of approximately 16 minutes duration, and

with a largely unified structure. The piece impresses the listener at first with its

seemingly endless cascades of sound and it displays a "mass of sound" quality (to speak

in Varese's terminology), that makes it difficult to discern any underlying structural segments on a first encounter. However, the piece can be separated into three large parts.

The opening is a fantasy-like, understated improvisation, reminiscent of a renaissance lutenist improvising a prelude or a jazz or flamenco guitarist trying out his tuning, (and interestingly enough, Berio includes tuning as an integral part of the composition in some later sections of the piece.) This first section is referred to by the composer as come preludiando, and represents in Berio's words "the quiet before all hell breaks loose."'^

But this "prelude" segment lasts only for a few moments, until the second line on the same page (the Sequenza is unmeasured, making it a little more difficult to describe particular points in the score - please refer to the included score and illustrations).

Fig.l. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l, line 1

= 50, ma libcramcnie, comc prdudiando

(P)

" Michael P. Allen, The Music of Luciano Berio, pg. 44 Berio, Persona! Interview, 1995 25

At this point the score introduces a fortissimo passage of thick chords played

rasgueado, and described as improwisamente violento or "violently improvised." Up to

this point the dynamic markings are piano to pianissimo, but here they change to a

brutally loud fortissimo, since the rasgueado strumming, a flamenco technique, produces

the loudest possible sounds on the guitar.

R ^

Fig.2. Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg. 1, line 2

The tempo mark for the beginning is quarter equals fifty. This mark changes to

quarter equals sixty, where it remains for most of the piece. This does not appear to be a

significant increase in tempo, but considering that most of the values in the Sequenza are

16''' and 32°^, it makes for a considerable change of pace. The first section of the work does not conclude here however. In the second line of page four, the tempo increases over a short, brisk accellerando to one hundred-six and settles in at sixty again, Berio

uses this type of accellerando again later in the piece to define important segments, and here it is used to separate the introductory section, in which he includes almost all of the motivic material, firom the main developmental section.The dynamic levels at this point change as well with forte to fortissimo dominating the composition. The tempo is increased once more in the piece, in the second line on page eight. A short accellerando.

V'lsk, Personal Interview, 1995 26

similar to the previous, is used to bring the tempo from sixty to eighty-four, where it

remains until the fifth line on page nine. After that it drops back to sixty for the

remainder of the main section.

accel. (accei.lLJ=84

L_r c_r

Fig.3. Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.8, line 2

On the sixth line of page eleven the tempo drops back to the quarter equals fifty for

the return to the sempre dolcissimo mode of the very brief opening of the piece.

J-50

scntpr^p e tiolrinsimu Fig.4. Luciano Berio, Sequenra XI, pg. 11, line 6

The segment from here to the end represents a free form of coda, in which the composer highlights motives from the two previous parts of the composition and resolves most of the motivic tension of the piece. Only the tritone, which is the dominant micro- cell of the Sequenza, is evidence of remaining struggle.

molto lento(J =ca40)

Fig.5. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l2, line 7 27

This coda section of the piece also returns to a calmer mood and most of the

dynamic marks are again in the piano to pianissimo range. However, the evidence to

support a separation into these three sections goes much beyond mere tempo or dynamic

changes. The basic musical material changes dramatically for each segment as well. The

"prelude" introduces three different motivic ideas and I will later illustrate how these

ideas become transformed in the development of the work. The first idea is based on a chain of close voiced, pianissimo chords, including the guitar's open strings as well as the important tritone motive that we will encounter more often throughout the piece. The chords are alternately strummed and played tambour (the strings are struck with the right

hand thumb from above, giving a percussive sound). The second motive is closely related, as it is based on similar, thick, six-voiced chords, however what Berio does here with these chords is entirely different: he uses rasgueado to create a fierce and powerful second element, developed from the same source but diametrically opposed in its appearance and impact. 28

accel. _ [J=60] * >» * * * ty^ i iifiiii '..liTTi'iS y ®® ®® g lllilliilllj -JT J J 1 N " R , R. R Hi , H % J % \ t R Em ii.i 1 3 1 = o L. 1 & 2 " ffH E I— »• 1 M 11* wt 3 Iw f i s * > > >

nrmi

Fig.6. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.5, lines 6-10

The rasgueados are to be executed as fast as possible and change constantly in

duration and rhythmic pattern, making for a very loose association to Spanish folklore

that is far more abstract and sophisticated than the flamenco-inspired paraphrases of the composers of the Spanish school such as Torroba or Turina."° The third and last idea of

this opening passage is based on two different musical events and provides contrast to the

preceding material in every respect: the first part is an arpeggiated figure based on ascending tritones. This is inunediately followed by a three note cross-string trill in half steps that is then often confirmed in a block or cluster shape. The tritone has already been

^ Berio was very careful to point out the imminent differences in his use of folklore 29

a major building block for the two preceding chordal passages, as we will more closely examine in a later chapter, but it now plays a central role. Berio uses the remainder of the first part of the Sequenza almost exclusively to develop the two main ideas that have followed his come preludiando introduction: the rasgueado motive and the arpeggio/tritone/trill motive. The only exception is that he slowly begins to develop a new motive that will determine the beginning of the next main part of the work. He introduces a figure of quickly repeated notes, at first as an embedded three-note idea on page two, line three.

Fig.7. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 3

Next as a four grace-note figure on the bottom of the same page.

Fig.8. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 8

This idea does not re-appear until the bottom of page three, where it is developed into a reverse tremolo and finally leads, via an accellerando into part two of the composition. 30

accel.

®p ® ®• ®0 ® "® " 0®0 mm0®« <>5)0

Fig.9. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.3, line 8 and pg.4, line 1

Here it resurfaces as a real tremolo throughout the development of the piece.

Virtually all of the remainder of the Sequenza is based on these three main motivic elements. Not even the tambour/pianissimo idea resurfaces until the very end of the piece. Occasionally the motives are reduced to simple bare-bone tritone passages, but the rasgueados, tremolos, and arpeggio/cross-string trill shapes dominate the texture. The only exception is a very brief and very surprising two-voice counterpoint passage in lines six and seven on page nine. 31

Fig. 10. Luciano Berio, SequenzaXI, pg.9, lines 6&7

These two lines represent the only new idea introduced into the piece over all of its twelve pages! This passage is unique in an otherwise entirely homophonic and mostly linear work, it functions as an odd, and "anti-climactic" climax, an understated musical

"implosion".^' There is finally another break in the texture in line six on page eleven: the tempo is reduced to quarter equals fifty again and the mode of the piece also returns to sempre piano and dolcissimo.

J--50

l4l 'J % W e Joicttsititu Fig.11. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l 1, line 6

Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 32

We have entered a type of coda as Berio shows interest in bridging back to the opening passages of the piece. The association, however, is rather vague and the tremolo motive makes another appearance in two short accellerando passages before the work concludes in the slower tempo and with statements of the tambour (now based on entirely different chords), the tremolo again and finally, even slower now, the tritone.

J'60 poco rail.. _ . . . _ .. j'SO

Fig. 12. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l2, line 6 33

Textures

As we already pointed out, the Sequenza's texture is, with the exception of two lines of music, entirely homophonic! It is possible to go even further and claim that the entire work contains only single lines of notes, alternating with five and six-voiced chord structures. This makes for a rare and striking structural design and creates a work of great integrity, even if it gives a superficial impression of structural simplicity.^

The alternating texture of rasgueado chords and almost exclusively 32°^ note, linear material, is clearly reminiscent of two very different musical traditions. According to

Berio, both have served as somewhat of a model for the piece; the consonancias y redobles principle of the fantasias by the Spanish renaissance vihuelista Don Luis

Milan, and the alternating rasgueado, scale and trill passages typical for flamenco compositions and improvisations. It is important to recognize that these two musical traditions are also very much connected. The Spanish folklore style of flamenco evolved in part out of a musical tradition brought to Spain in the 12*'' and 13''' century by the

Moorish conquerors. Many of the patterns characteristic of Arabic music, such as long, melismatic lines and vocal ornaments or playfully arpeggiated passages, were readily adapted by the Spanish gypsies in the southern region of Andalucia. These middle- eastern sounds then blended with the music of the vihuela virtuosos of the renaissance, like Milan and Narvaez. The modem guitar itself may have evolved out of the vihuela and the Arabic el-ud. In Spain the vihuela and its repertoire, as well as the early guitar,

Janet Hander-Powers, Strategies of Meaning: a Study of the Aesthetic and the Musical Language of Luciano Berio, pg.I03 34

was held in such high regards that early on even composers like Domenico Scarlatti in

his harpsichord sonatas made many musical references to typical guitar sounds, like

strumming, rasgueado or tremolo}^ Through his use of similar texture in the Sequenza,

Berio creates an immediate link to the past and points into the direction he wants to give

to the piece; a display of virtuosity and a modem transformation of the guitaristic idiom

from the Spanish guitar tradition. The fascinating and unique feature of this Sequenza is

that Berio utilizes texture to create that link. He chooses texture over structure to create a

natural, musical reference.^^

In the consonancias y redobles fantasias by Luis Milan, chord passages containing thematic material of sometimes-contrapuntal character, alternate with fast redobles

passages. The redobles are scales in double tempo (redoble = doubled) that carry no significant thematic material and serve mainly the purpose of displaying the performer's speed and technical ability. The sudden and drastic changes from very thick and slow- moving vertical passages to rapid, horizontal lines create an interesting texture in these pieces and make for much of the fantasia's energy and distinction.'^ It is also interesting to hear the thick and seemingly slow moving passages provide all of the harmonic movement and in fact having a rather fast harmonic rhythm, while the fast scale parts do not develop in any direction - harmonically speaking. A fast gesture does not necessarily

^ The New Grove: Don Luis Milan, " Ralph Kirkpatrick; Domenico Scarlatti, pg.78 ^ Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 " Michael Teuchert, Gitarre andLaute, 1989 35

move the music forward. This, however, is different in Berio's piece: not all of the development of the piece takes place in the thick textured segments."

The flamenco influence in the piece is much more obvious than that of the consonancias y redobles. An ever-changing type of rasgueado determines the chord structures of the piece. Berio constantly alternates the rasgueados rhythmically, leaving the precise execution to the performers preference however. Rasgueados can be executed in an abundance of possible fingerings and neither Berio nor Fisk give many indications or guidelines. This may be a reference to the improvised character of flamenco's musical tradition, a style that is based on a given rhythmic and thematic grid, then brought to life by the performers ingenious and individual treatment. The exploration of left and right hand tricks in the fast passages is also part of the flamenco tradition. As a matter of fact, many of the extended techniques that are now part of the classical guitar tradition have originated in flamenco playing. The textures in these elongated virtuoso passages have a decidedly improvisational character and the melismatic qualities of especially the trill sections are a direct quote from the flamenco tradition. Melisma in flamenco, is a series of half-step progressions on a single breath, a carry-over from Islamic singing in prayer.^®

These long and somewhat meandering lines often create an air of stagnation and idling.

As rapid as these gestures may be, the illusion is that the piece is actually lingering.

The one passage of the Sequenza that does not fit the overall texture of the work at all are the two brief lines of two-part counterpoint on page nine. This passage evolves out of

^ Berio and Fisk both stated that one of the main concerns in the Sequenza was to fill every passage with meaning and to create thematic material that would be constantly present. 36

one of the many three note cross-string trills in the piece. This trill is written over a

rallentando from the faster quarter equals eighty-four to the main quarter equals sixty.

The trill is then converted into an arpeggio that begins in close half step voicing and proceeds to a major seventh of B-flat to B-natural. Any interval spacing greater than a tritone is highly unusual in the piece and Berio then develops the B-flat to C-sharp, while continuing the half step motion in the lower line — a second voice is created.

I®® raXl J = 60 a ^ 1. 1 "1 ^ f f f 1 r.. f ^ - M ^ k-x—i n rivrr trd d = — c f 0ipp

Fig. 13. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, lines 5&6

To reverse back to homophonic texture, Berio simply rests the top voice while developing the lower part into a sweeping, repeated arpeggio gesture.

® «/ Fig. 14. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, line 8

Paco Pefia, Classical Guitar, 1991 37

As interesting as the sudden appearance of two-voice texture is for the piece, the

passage is also fascinating in itself The two-voice counterpoint for the entire passage is

wntten in corresponding motion, with one voice tied over while the other is moving and

vice-versa. This equally simple and strict interpretation of counterpoint draws strongly

from an early Renaissance model and is yet another piece of evidence for Berio's

retrospective approach."'

One could argue that there is another use of two-voice texture evident in the piece.

The tremolo sections of the Sequenza obviously contain a bass-line accompanying the

treble-line, but since Berio uses open strings almost exclusively for the tremolo treble,

this does not really provide a two-voice texture. The treble appears to be rather static; its

function is that of an effect rather than an independent voice.

Fig. 15. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.4, lines 7&8

Another interesting textural aspect of the piece is the obvious thinning of the texture

in the coda section, extending over the last one-and-a-half pages. The entire Sequenza is

^ Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 ^ Fisk, Personal Interview, 1995 38

characterized by a very thick and busy texture, its density determined by either thick chords or rapid, breathless passages. In the coda however, Berio seems to be more reflective, he pays more attention to the quality of the individual gesture, rather than overwhelming the listener with a constant rush of new information. Every significant motive of the piece is summoned at least once and is independently given time for reflection. The overall tempo slows to fifty and Berio inserts many more quarter and half note chords and intervals into the texture to break up the breathless quality of the motivic figures.

tratLmolto J = 50

Fig. 16. Luciano Berio, pg.l2, line I

The motivic figures themselves appear unchanged, and all the important elements are represented: the tambour chords of the opening, the cross-string trills, the arpeggios, a small grace-note motive and the tremolo figure. The otUy element obviously missing is the powerftil rasgueado motive that determined much of the structure of the piece. Even if Berio does not try to create a direct link to the brief opening passage of the Sequenza, he is apparently interested in a more meditative ending to the piece. After 15 minutes of

"wall of sound", the coda does provide a moment of rest before it's all over. 39

Idiomatic Virtuosity

Virtuosity has always been a central part of any instrumentalist's range of expression.

It is distinctly satisfying to see a performer move completely effortlessly about his

instrument. As a composer, Berio has been an advocate of virtuosity, of true instrumental

craftsmanship, even "flashiness".^' He has composed virtuoso music at a time when that

concept had all but vanished from composer's palettes. During the post-World-War-II

era, a time in which most avant-garde composers wrote in an integral-serial or post-serial

style, virtuosity was regarded as an anachronism, something that belonged in the 19*^

century. It was therefore very much out of fashion to write anything even faintly flashy.

Of course, works from this period often present the performer with extraordinary

technical difficulties, but these are usually due to the structure and complexity of a work

or because the composer tried to write something non-idiomatic: music that didn't use

the natural capabilities of the instrument. The last thing most composers, (especially

Europeans) in the 50's and 60's wanted to write, was music that "fit" the instrument, that employed naturally occurring idioms. Music, even instrumental solo-works, had become somewhat cerebral, and there may have been some truth in Ligetti's witty remark that

"nobody enjoyed total Serialism - not even the serial composers themselves".^" In this time of great seriousness, Berio declared how much he adored bel-canto singing, that virtuosity of the kind of Paganini Caprices was brilliant and how much he admired

Dalmonte, Varga, Two Interviews / Luciano Berio, pg.22 Gyorgy Ligetti, Neue Zeiischrift fuerMusik, 1964 40

Bach's instrumental solo-works for their technical brilliance and innovative spirit''

While other composers of the period would share Berio's admiration for Bach, if for entirely different reasons, they could not identify with Berio's general perspective on virtuosity. Inevitably, colleagues often harshly criticized Berio's compositions for their superficial flashiness and declared them to amount to not much more than collages of interesting sounds and effects. Audiences too found themselves confronted with strange sounds produced on familiar instruments and were often incapable of getting past their initial surprise. But, the one thing the audience always responded to was the obvious and very effective technical difficulty of the respective work. Response came in some cases with an amused notion - like at the premiere of the vocal Sequenza III, because of the comical quality of the pieces moaning and screaming.''* At other times, listeners were awed and sometimes even annoyed, but never bored. Virtuosity in Berio's work is motivated by the texture of the piece and is always an integral part of the compositorial process, not an embellishment or afterthought. By the same token, his compositions also always "fit" the instrument, use the instrument's range of expression very cleverly, and

(in this author's opinion) just "sound great". In the Sequenza XI's fast, arpeggiated scales are a motivic element as much as they sound exciting. Berio does not write music and then inject it with a few fast patterns or scales to make it a virtuoso piece. All of the virtuostic elements "make sense"; they are not detached elements without meaning.

Every Sequenza is a display of this meaningful virtuosity.

Osmond-Smhh, Berio, pg.l42 ^ Berio describes with great sense of humor the stunning effect this first performance had on the audience. 41

With the guitar Sequenza, Berio has created a vehicle for display of speed and

dynamic variety. He uses the instrument in a very effective and idiomatic way. This is in

part due to Eliot Fisk's influence, who in many of his collaborations asks the composer to

write a piece as difficult as possible, particularly in regard to speed and thick texture, to

demonstrate two of Fisk's most brilliant abilities. Writing on such an advanced technical

level for an instrument such as the guitar makes a close collaboration between the

composer and the performer absolutely necessary. Many of the great 20''^ century pieces

of the guitar repertoire were conceived in that way: for example Benjamin Britten's

Nocturnal and Hans Werner Henze's Royal Winter Music were both written for and in

close collaboration with Julian Bream.^^

The technically challenging passages of the Sequenza XI often sound even more

difficult than they are. For example on page two, still in the introductory section of the

work, Berio employs a combined left/right hand trill that is often referred to as a tapping

technique and incidentally was first used by rock-guitarists such as Eddy van Halen.

Fig. 17. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 3

This technique makes for a spectacular effect but, once mastered, is little more than a trick. Berio makes excellent use of the cross-string capabilities of the guitar, which

Bream is one of the most influential guitarists in terms of his collaborations with modem composers. He 42

enables the player to finger many fast passages utilizing four of the right hand fingers.

This makes a much faster execution of the passage possible. It also creates a much different sound than playing the same notes in a standard, single string scale configuration would have.'^

Berio did not know about these different options of execution and how different they would sound, until he met with Fisk. In the initial stages of the composition, Fisk would meet with Berio at regular intervals. At first he would just play various pieces for him, to acquaint him with the instrument and its capabilities. Later on, Berio would ask Fisk to play particular passages or would have him demonstrate certain techniques. Once the composition was under way, he had him try out some passages and make adjustments to adapt better to the instrument.^' As I mentioned before, during the first few performances of the piece, Berio would be present and make adjustments, responding to the demands the lengthy, complete Sequenza made on the instrument, the performer, and the listener.

For example, Berio wrote a section where the performer can tune the individual strings of the instrument during the performance. He developed this idea after hearing the piece's official premiere. The extensive use of rasgueado had all but ruined the tuning of Fisk's instrument, and there was no chance for him to correct the intonation short of stopping in the middle of the piece!^® Berio's solution is as ingenious as it is pragmatic. Across page

inspired and guided a whole generation of composers in writing for the guitar. ^ This technique is often referred to as finger-pedal, it results in a ringing, more legato sound. It is also a reference to the campanella style, usually associated with early guitar music. Fisk, Personal Interview, 1995 Comments Berio: "I was horrified! How could this have happened. Little did I know about the fi^gile nature of the guitars tuning. All I could think of was: I have to come up with something!" 43

eight of the Sequenza are marked spots at which the player is supposed to check the

respective string for tuning. This is in most cases a spot where the open string is

compared to another open string, so that the player can clearly hear the intonation. If the

respective string requires tuning, there is another spot shortly after in which it is optional

to repeatedly play this open string, only if tuning is necessary. This process is repeated

throughout the entire page eight, interspersed with "normal" musical events.

Fig. 18. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.8, lines 4&5

What is so remarkable about this process is that Berio turns the troubling necessity of

frequent re-tuning of the guitar, particularly in this piece, into an interesting musical event. He is not afraid to expose tuning problems and to create short micro-tonal passages. If he wrote quarter-tones, bends and overtone-shifts for other instruments in other Sequenzas, why not do the same for the guitar and take practical advantage of it.

The passage also serves to remind us that we are listening to the guitar, with its unmistakable tuning in fourths; a clear reference to the instrument's properties. Berio does not go through the strings in order; he rather prefers a random appearance, probably to diffuse the pragmatic character of the passage. This "tuning" motive is another indication of the tremendous preparation that Berio has invested in this Sequenza, as well as his intimate knowledge and understanding of the guitar and its properties. 44

Another limitation of the guitar that is often overlooked or misunderstood by composers is the guitar's limited dynamic range. Dynamics are obviously a powerful expressive tool and the guitar's range is compressed when compared to that of most other instruments, barely exceeding a true mezzo forte. Berio extends the dynamic capacity of the instrument through long rasgueado passages, the loudest possible sound on the guitar.

The rasgueado is used throughout the piece in all chordal passages. To avoid repetitiveness, Berio constantly changes the shape, length and style of the rasgueado.

Sometimes a fast, one finger dedilo sweep is the best choice, sometimes a circular four- finger rasgueado, or a fingers against thumb rasgueado. Neither Berio nor Fisk suggests many fingerings, leaving the performer with interpretive choices but also little insight.^'

Berio claims that it is a key to the piece to vary the rasgueado technique as much as possible. It is also remarkable how Berio juxtaposes those powerful rasgueado passages with either tambour or very fast and pianissimo 32"'' note passages.

The list of playing instructions included in the score is of very little help, providing only with the most basic information on the execution of trills and rasgueados. 45

TP

traU.

accel J«60

[

Fig. 19. Luciano Berio, Sequeri-a XI, pg.6, lines 1-4

This simple procedure enhances the dynamic range even more by contrasting the loudest and quietest sounds of the instrument. Another device used throughout the piece is a tremolo repetition of a note that ends in a Bartok-pizzicato. The Bartok-pizzicato is very effective on the guitar, resulting in a sharp, loud "shot". Berio uses this effect to punctuate sections or to surprise the listener, giving the illusion of a "loud" instrument.

-=rjOr -=/ Fig.20. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 8 46

He also realizes how important it is to find expressive alternatives to dynamics. The

piece uses an abundance of articulation, which often works as a substitute for a dynamic

measure. Interestingly, the one articulation virtually absent from the score is staccato.

Berio perceives the guitar as a percussive instrument. He realizes that a true legato is

impossible and works around this problem creating phrasing patterns that emulate legato.

The use of cross-string techniques is another way to improve the legato capabilities of the

instrument. Cross-string playing on the guitar ftmctions similar to holding down the pedal

on the piano. Different strings can resonate simultaneously and create the illusion of a

legato. The pedal is what enables pianists to connect long, melodic phrases, and cross-

string playing does essentially the same for guitarists. However, use of this technique is

much more limited. Due to the guitar's tuning in fourth's excepting one third, it is only

possible to create certain interval distances across the strings. With clever fingerings and

using slurs and open strings as tools, longer, more elaborate sections can be fingered across the strings, but there is still a limit to what can be done. Since the main cell of the

Sequenza is the tritone and one of the major ideas is a rapid close-voiced arpeggio, Berio

is able to keep much of the non-chordal musical material in a cross-string format

The Sequenza employs one more guitar specific virtuostic technique; the tremolo.

Tremolo is a very effective technique emulating bell-like trebles through the use of rapid

repetition of the same note. Berio puts a spin on traditional tremolo, as he often leads the treble line of repeated notes below the bass line, effectively trading the voicing- This also

requires thorough knowledge of the guitar's properties, since the crossover is only

Fisk, Personal Interview, 1995 47

possible in certain configurations, requiring a higher bass note than treble. Most of the tremolo in the piece is used as a developmental measure, in either an accellerando/rallentando or crescendo/decrescendo situation. It usually introduces a new motive, a new section or the return of a motive or section. The transitional character is sometimes even more pronounced, as Berio develops the tremolo out of a repeated single note, creating the separate bass note in stepwise motion. Even if almost all tremolo in the piece is interspersed in short bits, there is a long, unbroken tremolo passage, beginning on the fifth line of page four and extending virtually uninterrupted to the fourth line of page five.

Fig.2l. Luciano Berio, Sequema XI, pg.4, lines 5-9 and pg.5, lines 1-4

See next page. § r

§ i i r i! P i i

V i •!

§

I i [ i

00 49

I have described the development of this tremolo earlier, as it marks the beginning of the second main segment of the work. The repeated notes of the tremolo are restricted to the open E, G, D, and A string of the guitar. This again focuses the tonal center of the piece on the natural spectrum of the guitar. But at the same time it enables the composer to develop the bass line of the passage with utmost freedom. The use of open strings for the treble leaves Berio with few restrictions. The tremolo passage is interrupted periodically by a short burst of tritone-based arpeggios, cross-string trills, and one brief rasgueado block. It dissolves into a four-note tapping figure that then evolves from a half-step cluster into a tritone shape to end the section.

Fig.22. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.5, lines 4&5 50

Concept of Tonalities

The Sequenza XI is neither a tonal nor a serial work. The tonality of the piece is, as is often the case in Berio's mature works, determined by interval structures. These interval relationships are then examined and in the course of the piece develoj)ed into various shapes and transformations of the original configuration. Three interval groups shape the image of the Sequenza: the tritone, the half-step cluster and layers of perfect fourths. It is possible to argue that these three interval groups are closely related, since a minor second added to a perfect fourth makes a tritone. Berio does not organize the musical structure according to any horizontal events. Even the linear appearances of the motivic material are shaped from interval structures.

As much as Berio's concept of tonality is shaped by interval structures, these structures allow him an astounding degree of freedom, without completely losing some sense of structural integrity or compromising the coherence of the piece. The interval based motivic elements are used like the pieces in a mobile. They are fused to create a complete shape that is constantly changing, offering us a different perspective on the musical material every time we look. The intriguing idea behind this concept is to create a shape that is flexible rather than static, but without giving up control. The problem with many contemporary compositional techniques is that the composer surrenders control over the work and its overall structure. This can be witnessed in alleatoric works as well as in serial pieces, if for very different reasons. Berio's approach puts him in complete control and guarantees the flexibility of ever-changing perspectives on the piece. The motivic building blocks are developed throughout the composition and spin around each 51

other, so that the listener is constantly presented with a new listening experience/' Berio

re-arranges the order of the three main motives to create different thematic groupings.

These longer thematic blocks build the tonal centers of the piece. Usually hovering

around a tritone, the group's shape is constantly kept in relationship to this tritone. To

change to a new tonal center, Berio just rearranges the order of the motivic groups: the mobile has moved. This strategy creates clear associations with momentary tonal centers

throughout the piece for the listener. We feel not so much as if listening to a traditional

piece of music that has a beginning point, a direction and that takes time to sound.

The first definition of a tonal center is created in the very first chord of the Sequenza, a layer of perfect fourths and one major third.

t:L_ Q j

p Fig.23. Luciano Boxio, Sequenza XI, pg.l, line 1

Berio opens the Sequenza with a tambour on the open strings of the guitar. This interval structure becomes determining for all of the chord passages of the piece. Berio develops harmonic material that begins to diverge firom layered fourths, but is always drawn back to it. The first extensive chord passage on page one begins with the open strings again, this time with A doubled on the sixth string.

Hander-Powers, Strategies of Mecming, pg.94 52

R ,

i lib iill™ .xr-== Fig.24. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l, line 2

Berio then carefully introduces the two other intervals of choice into the chords, the

minor second and the tritone.

ntc violcnlo

W

Fig.25. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l, line 2

Finally the passage ends on a chord that combines open strings (E6, G, B), a tritone

(C/F-sharp) and a minor second in disguise (B/B-flat).

Fig.26. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l, line 4

This is clear evidence that the tonal language of the piece is determined by combining and rearranging the key intervals.

The opening section is immediately followed by the tritone motive. At the conclusion of the chords, the vertical texture dissolves into an upward arpeggio that is constructed of three tritones: G/C-sharp, F-sharp/C and F/B. 53

3" RH

Fig.27. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI. pg.l, line 4

The next three arpeggio groups represent the same tritones in slightly altered organization. The 32"^ note arpeggio is now established as a structural element, just as much as the tritone is a key element of the piece's tonality. Berio will keep this relationship in tact for the remainder of the piece.

This opening arpeggio motive is actually presented in conjunction with the third motivic element of the Sequertza. Immediately following the first arpeggio is a minor second trill of E/F/F-sharp. This cross-string trill "resolves" into a D/E-flat/E cluster.

Again this relationship between the trill and the resulting cluster is found throughout the piece. The tonal center of E becomes defined through the tension between the trill and the cluster. The base-note of the trill, E, creates tension towards a resolving E-based chord. This resolve is somewhat obscured however, by turning the E into the top note of a three note cluster.

3" HH

p a t m ltr«ra

(1)(3)®

Fig.28. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 1, line 4 54

The motivic elements, structured as interval relationships, do determine the tonality

of the work. The tritone constantly leaves his arpeggio-based motive to change the tonal

layers of the chords. The half step trills constantly evolve into clusters and from there either into a tremolo or a chord passage. The motive of the guitar's open strings is transposed into chords of layered fourths, which then accommodate a tritone and turn

back to the open strings. The listener is always reminded of the three tonal centers of the

piece, even if these centers are in constant motion. 55

Berio's Musical Language

Most of Berio's mature works are characterized by a very clear and individual

expressivity, a language that is unmistakably his own."*^ The Sequenza XI is di good

example of this. The piece displays a very personal musical language, whose references

are not always easy to understand. As we have already discussed, the Sequenza reacts

indeed in a sequential fashion. One event triggers the subsequent ideas, and from the

beginning it seems impossible to stop this chain reaction. Part of the power of the work

results directly from this phenomenon. The piece reminds me of a vision that Ligeti once

used to describe his own work; A room filled with spider-webs in which many tiny bugs are trapped, all struggling to escape. When one bug gets lose and falls dovm into another

web, it triggers a chain reaction causing others to move as well and so on. This makes for a chain reaction that is far from functioning like a domino effect; it makes for a shimmering, ever-shifting and seemingly unorganized texture. The parallels to Ligeti's compositorial style do not end here. Berio's textures are also constantly evolving, and the developmental, successive clusters in Ligetti's compositions are echoed in the constantly spiraling trills and rasgueados of the Sequenza.

The work has a very playful component in its twirling, bubbly texture. Berio has often shown a tremendous sense of humor in his compositions and the constant shifts; misleading expectations and juxtapositions in the Sequenza make for an aloof and often times almost lighthearted spirit in the piece. The first time Berio develops a Bartok- pizzicato out of a silent passage is sure to surprise and humor the listener. 56

The most oersonal musical treatment in the piece is given to the tritone. As an interval, the tritone is normally used to create tension and give a strong leading tone character to a passage, creating a rather dialectic tension/release situation. Berio gives the tritone a very different function. He usually leaves the interval unresolved or leads it out of an arpeggio into a cluster - which does not stabilize the harmonic tension. If the tritone is part of a chord, he balances it with perfect fourths to take the bite out. In other words, Berio sets tritone after tritone without taking the interval to its resolution. The result has a shimmering, unbalanced quality that is strongly reminiscent of impressiom'st composers and their glistening scores full of parallel dissonances, seemingly lacking direction."*^

The tritone is also given the opportunity to close the piece. The Sequenza ends with a group of five simple intervals, returning to the tempo (quarter = 40) and dynamic marking (piano) of the opening. The very last interval is a mezzoforte "tritone" of E/B- flat.

V Fig.29. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 7

This interval is separated from the rest of the closing passage by a quarter rest. Rests are extremely rare throughout the Sequenza, another unusual musical feature that helps to

Osmond-Smith, Berio, pg.75 Allen, The Music of Luciano Berio, pg.66 57

give the whole piece its breathless, sequential appearance. The last "tritone" interval is

not really a tritone; it is just a reflection on the elemental interval of the work. The B-flat

is actually the low note and the E is played as a harmonic three octaves above. The

second to last interval however presents the tritone in its real form E/B-flat to highlight

the presence of this motivic cell.

Fig.30. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg. 12, line 7

The final statement is more obscured, as if Berio does try to avoid having the tritone

dominate the work, just hinting at its omnipresence. The motive survives, but it does not

triumph."*^

molto lentoCJ =ca40)

Fig.31. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.l2, line 7

The appearance of the Sequenza as a large block of music betrays its fascinating lyrical qualities, and yet lyricism was one of Berio's main concerns for the concept of the 58

Sequenza. The piece has probably more passages in the piano-pianissimo range than in

forte. Berio extensively uses a "trademark" expressive element in the piece. The element

consists of a slowed down quintuplet arpeggio that is constructed of wide range intervals

- unusual for the Sequenza. This element appears for the first time on page two in line

four.

Fig.32. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.2, line 4

This motive has a yearning character, an almost sighing quality, and is the only

motive in the piece that is not quick. This lyrical element is used consistently throughout the work to halt the turbulent speed of the other elements and to make the listener reflect on time and space.

Reflection has always been an important part of Berio's work, be it within a piece itself or in his general concept of composition. One of Berio's most recent pieces is an orchestral work, a type of reconstruction or rather recreation of Schubert's 10'*'

Symphony. The original symphony was written as one of Schubert's last works during the final weeks of his life. The work itself is only preserved in fragments of the and

2°^ movements. These fragments give us a magnificent glimpse into the last weeks of

Schubert's life. Berio did not try to re-compose the missing pieces but rather filled the

** Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 59

gaps between the Schubert fragments with his own music, showing tremendous sensitivity to the texture and timing of what the original might have been. This is as fascinating a homage from one great composer to another as can be imagined. The work shows true admiration and understanding of a past style, effortlessly bridging more than

100 years. It is also truly original."*^ In the Sequenza Berio does not make any direct reference to a historic model, but the soundscape of the piece refers to some of the most pertinent guitaristic styles. As I mentioned before, there is the direct reference to the

Spanish Vihuelista school with its consonancias/redobles form. Then we have the extensive use of tremolo, a technique most prominently employed by the great virtuosos of the late 19''' century, like Tarrega and Barrios. There is also the contrapuntal passage that is reminiscent of early polyphony. Berio's language is powerfully modem and reflective at the same time. As with his great colleague Witold Lutoslawski, Berio much prefers to listen to the masters of the past five centuries than to his contemporaries. He often refers to these old masters as sources of inspiration."*^

Michael Tilson Thomas, Pre-Recital Talk, San Francisco Symphony, 1996 ^ Dalmonte, Varga, Two Interviews/Luciano Berio, pg.24 60

PERFORMANCE SOLUTIONS FOR THE SEQUENZA XI

Creative Solutions for Technical Problems

The Sequenza XI presents the performer with an abundance of technical difficulties.

Not all of these difficulties are effectively solvable and not all of them seem necessary to guarantee the integrity of the piece. It seems prudent for most performers to choose some carefully placed, critical edits. Even considering the close collaboration between Berio and Fisk on the Sequenza, the technical aspects seem at times unnecessarily complicated and slightly overwritten. Eliot Fisk is a guitarist with unique technical ability and a work catering to these abilities is likely to create problems for most other performers.

One of the most obvious problems of the score lies in the thick vertical textures.

Many of the chords in the Sequenza will put a performer's ability of stretching and the size of his hands to the test. Fisk is a player with unusually large hands and many guitarists will face similar problems with this piece as pianists do with some works by

Schumann, Liszt or Ravel. There are various solutions to this problem. In some cases a simple, careful re-voicing of one or two notes in a chord makes a passage playable.

Another solution is to arpeggiate the chord and to incorporate a position change into the arpeggio. This may cause one or two notes of the chord to be cut off early, but it leaves the chord essentially intact A good example for this technique is the second to last chord on the first line of page one. The high note harmonic gives the arpeggiated chord additional resonance, disguising the "trick" even more. The original chord would be impossible to execute for almost any guitarist. Occasionally it is necessary to cut a note 61

from a chord, either to make the chord itself playable, or to facilitate a shift or position change. On page 1 in line three is a chord A/D/G/B/F/B-flat, which is beyond the reach of any guitarists hand. Immediately after the first statement of the chord it is repeated in the slightly altered spelling A/D/B/F/B-flat. The missing G enables the performer to utilize the open A and D strings and to reach the remaining notes comfortably in the fourth position. I took a cue from Berio's second spelling and dropped the G in the first chord as well. All of these "tricks" are carefully considered edits and should not disturb the actual properties of the score in the least. Most of these editing techniques are widely used by acclaimed performers such as John Williams in standard repertoire pieces (listen to

Williams' recording of the Concierto de Aranjuez). It seems legitimate to employ them in a work such as the Sequenza.

If the thick textures present the performer with the most obvious problems, many slight changes in the fingering of the fast, linear passages can improve the overall playability of the score. The Sequenza allows for very little rest for the guitarist during its performance and one of the problems of the piece is the accumulation of tension in both hands. Some creative fingering can prevent this. In the fourth line of page two we find a cross-string trill of B/C/C-sharp. The given fingering for this passage utilizes the third and fourth string only, shifting the first finger up and down between C and C-sharp. This fingering creates much movement in the left hand and the coordination between left and right hand is fairly demanding. I choose to play the trill across three strings, using the open B-string and a second finger slur for the C-sharp. The right hand can now be performed as an easy P/I/M arpeggio. The sound of the passage remains essentially the 62

same, with actually a little more resonance and legato from the use of the extra string.

When I played this passage for Berio, he (to my surprise) preferred the sound of the

alternate fingering to that of the original. Numerous other trills throughout the piece can

be altered similarly, using an open string or finding a three-string-plus-slur fingering.

Another problem is a motive that occurs a few times throughout the piece. It is a

unison tremolo passage on the first and second string that first appears on page three in

line six. The doubled unison notes are F/E/F-sharp/E/F/E. The stretch in the left hand

required to reach a unison over two adjacent strings is almost impossible to perform and

usually causes the player to muffle one of the strings in the process. I solved this problem

by using my thumb on the left hand, employing it like a cellist would in the upper

positions of his instrument. This makes the stretch easy, saving the left hand fi-om fatigue and making for a clear sound. The passage is intended to be played as a tremolo with

P/I/M/A sweeping across both the first and second string simultaneously. I found this technique tedious and the sound not very satisfactory. I decided to use a middle-finger dedilo sweep, which is much easier to play. It also enables me to follow the dynamic directions of decrescendo from forte to piano.

Mr. Fisk has been a long time advocate of a somewhat unusual instrument. He performs on a guitar with an elevated fretboard that gives him much easier access to the high positions above the 12*^ fret. The instrument also includes a 20'^' fret to accommodate a high C. Fisk credits this guitar for new technical possibilities. The

Sequenza reflects this development. Many of the chord and scale passages in the high positions would be very uncomfortable and difficult to execute on a traditionally 63

designed guitar, especially at the required speed. One can argue that the Sequenza was designed for this particular guitar. I am very fortunate in that I own a guitar with a new design that makes access to the high positions even more comfortable. The design is a cut-away, also possessing a 20"* fret. With the cut-away virtually any fret on the guitar can be reached effortlessly. It will be interesting to see how the interaction and collaboration between composers, guitarists and luthiers will affect new works, techniques and instruments in the future. 64

Technical Solutions for Musical Problems

We have already discussed how much influence the choice of fingering has on the

sound properties of a guitar piece. This is true to some extent for any instrument, but has

a special importance for guitarists. The guitar has probably the greatest flexibility of all

instruments in terms of fingering possibilities. Many notes on the guitar can be played in

three, often four different positions on the fi-etboard. The other unique feature of the

guitar is its range and diversity of tone colors, often making for striking contrasts in a

piece. To perform the Sequenza successfully, a guitarist must take advantage of these

instrumental properties. In Berio's music expression is often linked closely to the text

itself A solution that works technically is almost always also musically successful. A

similar relationship between technical and musical solutions can be found in Bach's

music. If a fingering for a Bach fugue works technically on the guitar, enabling the

performer to hold all the voices for their full value and leading separate voices on

separate strings, it is also musically satisfying, giving the piece transparency and legato.

The entire Sequenza A7 is a work very much depending on thoughtful fingerings. Its

idiomatic character creates a close dependency between the execution of certain

fingerings and the audible results. Here are a few examples. On line three, page four we

find the "sighing" motive, a slower group of 16''^ note quintuplets, followed by 32°^ note

groups. If this passage is smartly fingered in the 10*^ position, it is technically less challenging and, by way of the cross-string fingering, is automatically phrased properly.

But beyond that, the fingering in the high position also assures a warm, singing color that complements the musical intention of the passage very well. Another good example is 65

the piece's first tremolo passage at the top of page two. In this "reversed tremolo" the

"bass-notes" sound higher than the tremolo "trebles". To emphasize this unusual effect

even more, I chose to finger the single notes in the Q*** position on the E and A-string.

This gives the passage added impact and a more warm, sonorous sound. Fingering on the

guitar becomes particularly important in polyphonic textures, and the two-voiced passage

on page nine is no exception. In the example below it becomes evident what types of

stretches and finger acrobatics are necessary to always connect the two voices. In this

passage easier fingerings would be possible, but they would ruin the voice leading and

the integrity of the legato, two things that Berio obviously does not want to be compromised.

Fig.33. Luciano Berio, Sequenza XI, pg.9, lines 6&7

In many places throughout the Sequenza Berio's main concern is speed and speed soon becomes the main concern of the performer. Sometimes a motivic group is reduced to its basic gesture and shape and the player should focus on giving the impression of the 66

gesture as well as trying to play every note/^ Most of the very fast sections of the piece require the easiest and fastest fingering, because it reflects the spirit of the passage, making the gesture as rapid as possible.

For more ideas on fingering solutions I have included a complete critically edited and annotated score of the Sequenza XI with this document. This edited score does by no means represent a status quo of fingerings for the piece, but is rather meant to be viewed as a discussion piece and point of departure for other performers.

Berio, Personal Interview, 1995 67

SUMMARY

Sequenza XI's place in the guitar repertoire

In his Sequenza XI Luciano Berio has created a major new work for guitar. It incorporates the essence of virtuoso guitar composition and the Spanish flamenco guitar tradition and presents them in a modernistic language that is lyrical and intelligent at the same time. By the same token, the Sequenza XI is firmly rooted in the musical and structural integrity of the Sequenza series and is therefore part of one of the most exciting and significant catalogues in all of contemporary music. Most of all, the Sequenza XI is an energetic and compelling work that presents Berio's unmistakable style and language in a most fascinating and brilliant piece.

Drawing from his own lyrical and loosely serial language, Berio also utilized many technical elements of the flamenco tradition as well as guitar-idiomatic techniques that were a result of his close collaboration with Eliot Fisk. Berio used the essential differences between these traditions as a further source of inspiration and to create musical tension in the Sequenza XI. Another source of tension and intensity in the work is the extraordinary technical difficulty with which the performer is burdened. It creates a breathless experience on the performers side and at the same time makes for a breathtaking experience for the listener. As in most of the previous Sequenzas, Berio explores the outer limits of instrumental technique and often goes beyond what was assumed possible, creating new, extended techniques. The extensive use of rasgueado in long passages of thick vertical texture and in conjunction with tambour effects and 68

harmonics is a good example. Berio's imagination produces a brilliant and exciting

showpiece filled with irregular accents, intricate rhythms and subtle sequential texture

changes.

The Sequenza XI per chitarra has been acknowledged by some as one of the most

important works in the guitar repertoire, just as the Sequema series is one of the most

significant groups of works in this century. However, the great technical difficulty of the

piece combined with a somewhat abstract musical language have so far prohibited the

work from the broad recognition it merits. Berio's ability to draw upon a rich guitaristic

heritage for the creation of irmovative and distinctive music is amply demonstrated in

this study. It is the author's hope that this document will allow performers, teachers,

students and enthusiasts to reach a deeper understanding of Berio's complex and exiting

music, and will stimulate further study. The included critical edition of the score, without

claiming to present definitive solutions for the piece, should serve as a viable alternative

to performers attempting the Sequema XI. It provides a more pragmatic and playable edition of the score and hopefully will inspire guitarists to explore and perform this

magnificent work. 69

APPENDIX A; THE COMPLETE EDITED SCORE OF SEQUENZA XI 70

Fingered and Edited by Gcrd Wocstcmann sequenza XI P®'' chitarra sola (19881 luciano berio jim.Tr «: so. ma liberaniente. come prehidiando t:: T , , T-.—

9/

2 ew#mrr uwprorcwamowc WO/CHIO f , fc ^ 9 S TTi-Jf ,mM L H 'i' »• '[J:J'*L=«fcO ''"g\:f-i ^Wi# 1

f T, i '2(1. n

e«Mf- ns^

.nrirr^ 9 w9 ^ '-"'r a/p* «>r TT

C7SS

SstdMAwaaiAgiefiwMMNltn/A«paarM

f\ ftintctJ: =^——= ^ R ^ g— >U L-J ^ Ba ^K~—S» ^ —rJ 1 a ^ ' ^i'W ^-!l'«J^lj'j^'^ f"^ i»\ ^ ,0 i5~n., **OiJP !^, I 1 I j,5i,n\w 9 w m » ^ ^ ^ ^ if V- *• ^ ;=» jgr''

• «.*i ? I ««.»,•; ^m •• :« P»«'pi*.- r~""f»ti ^ ' t e:r-« ft ===!=== !••'•' £ , ^=.=rt8Sg >al t^s"' i.. *S rtr^' f**>r ^ u~i » u, r-r-^^^l H U^l=:-^ V9 I ',• Bldi.ii "'iW'. "Itjtjiiii-j ® ® ®

1 m

p ( Joictmtntt 5—^ Z. 1 , h

f i

lb—.A(»> I H ;; E ll 'iWh P 'Q ll

It—Ah i I f §1 U^_A„ % *'l ;9» 74

j/uL. R R M. Kr accel.

(acceljLJ=84 imm^J r << P ** ^ p«nt pont. ord.

ir«'-» ^r r"-'itmrnrnfO /».>/ W J j > J i >' 'li jy-sT jy p«"> I =(?*i J si "' 5^ 1J»0 ^ X- •«A»»w ^ V efef« V-

e«'=c /-i tt

fT ertt'tln^ pmift

'X/S^r»isiol ec-fmut: p ^_x5 P t m a ttM [o J] ^ ponl...... ord.. ..pont.. . . .ord.

1) dtr E-Saiii (VI) pfOttn / Ctoc* aifMV e^£ (VI) 4) Sttmmung (V) pfOlifi / CfMcft tunngofA tmg nc 2) dsrH-Se* on piOlii/ OWUMWwg praon^ 5) Sammung dm (IB) pntftrt ' OMcftftnns fl#G 3) dirP gaiii (TOpHMmtfOmeMiunnffefOsmngfrvj C) Swuming d»r (I) piiHn t Ch^ek ajnng of e MWing Ot •) 9A Bai§m Mrt> •liilirftuHii. wur Irtfc ^ SiO minwrn mmdtn wuS l OpbouM: npmi • iwr pwtt cn» w cti mmu tunmg 75

84 rail.

(rail.) J=60 accel. J =84

''" i! IM[sjl IH^ji 1 #'I i4li'p"S'pii®

po® yr J = 60 1 »j—=±_j

j^f^V f UL. r -M

: 'fm tf^r "eTwrt «n T<-e»<6 »»r^e

P'" "gPo'^ I iJ»t

'I i I VpT "If ^ r I 'I I I L « IC^B i e 99 1^9®® ^ 76

accel.

$ mmtm

: ^1--

iLiP ifiJ'V4»^

re< "J 77

pont.

[V'-' '>T i

dcUtmente t/tU. n*—tt4 ail. •»-•'r^ •**r"•• i*» gTi'.s

H

RH V

i 78

tratLfflolto j = 50

J-60

(f)

tu) jrU.

poco accel. Jc72 W

CO rail.

^ moKo lento(J*ca40) f' L 7 'i: J. T 79

APPENDIX B: ILLUSTRATION OF EDITED CHORDS ftr ill ^v^ E 'iftl a, iU b u P. i 81

APPENDIX C; PERMISSION FOR USE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL

This document reproduces musical excerpts from the Sequenza XI per Chitarra Sola by Luciano Berio, © Copyright 1988 by Universal Edition, A.G., Wien. It also includes an edited sample score of the work. All excerpts and samples are used by permission of

Universal Edition, A.G.

Universal Edition, A.G. also grants permission for the placement of one copy of this document with University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan, for single reproductions for scholarly use only. The author can provide copies of the letter from

Universal Edition, A.G., granting permission to use this copyrighted material upon request. 82

REFERENCES

Allen, Michael P. "The Music of Luciano Berio." Dissertation: UCLA, 1974.

Altmann, Peter. Sinfonia von Luciano Berio: eine analytische Studie. Vienna: Universal Edition, 1977.

Berio, Luciano. Beszelgetesek Luciano BeriovaL Budapest: Zenemukiado, 1981.

—. Personal Interview. Lago Majore, July 21 & 22, 1995.

—. Sequenza I: perflauto solo. Vienna: Universal Edition, 1958.

—. Sequenza II: per harpa sola. Vienna: UE, 1965.

—. Sequenza III: per voce femminile. Vienna: UE, 1968.

—. Sequenza IV: per pianoforte. Vienna: UE, 1967.

—. Sequenza V: per percussione. Vienna: UE, 1969.

—. Sequenza VI: for trombone. Vienna: UE, 1970.

—. Sequenza VII: per oboe. Vienna: UE, 1973.

—. Sequenza VIII: per violino solo. Vienna: UE, 1977.

—. Sequenza IX: per clarinetto solo. Vienna: UE, 1980.

—. Sequenza X: per tromba in do (e risonanze di pianoforte). Vienna: UE, 1984.

—. Sequenza XI: per chitarra sola. Vienna: UE, 1988.

—. Two Interviews / Luciano Berio: with Rosanna Dalmonte and Balint Andras Varga. Edited by David Osmond-Smith. New York: M. Boyars, 1985.

Bidlack, Rick. 'Time, Music, Life." Dissertation: UC San Diego, 1986.

Bolton, Philip M. "Structural Organization and use of Text in Selected Vocal Compositions by Luciano Berio." Dissertation: UCLA, 1982. 83

REFERENCES - Continued

Dambricourt, Jean P. "Accordo (Luciano Berio): Mille Musiciens pour la Paix." Dissertation; UCLA, 1983.

Dressen, Norbert. Sprache imd Musik bei Luciano Berio: Untersuchungen zu seinen Vokalkompositionen. Regensburg: Bosse, 1982.

Dalmonte, R.; Lorenzini, N.; Azzaroni, L.; Frasnedi, F. II gesto della forma: musica, poesia, teatro nelVopera di Luciano Berio. Milano: Arcadia, 1981.

Fisk, Eliot: Personal Interview. Salzburg, July 29, 1995.

Hander-Powers, Janet. "Strategies of Meaning: a Study of the Aesthetic and the Musical Language of Luciano Berio." Dissertation: UCLA, 1988.

Holmes, Reed K. "Relation Systems and Process in Recent Works of Luciano Berio." Dissertation: UC San Diego, 1981.

Krupnick, Robert J. "Performance Problems and Solutions in Luciano Berio's Sequenza IV." Dissertation: UCLA, 1985.

Menezes, Filho F. Luciano Berio et la phonologie: une approche jakobsonienne de son oeuvre. Frankflut: P. Lang, 1993.

Osmond-Smith, David. Berio. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991.

—. Playing on Words: a Guide to Luciano Berio's Sinfonia. London: Royal Music Association, 1985.

Pellman, Samuel. "Horizon: an Examination of the Role of Timbre in a Musical Composition: as Exemplified by an Analysis of Sequenza V by Luciano Berio." Dissertation: UCLA, 1979.

Sanderson, Roy V. "Luciano Berio's use of the Clarinet in Sequenza IXa." Dissertation: UCLA, 1986.

Stoianova, Ivanka. Luciano Berio: chemins en musique. Paris: Ed. Richard-Masse, 1985.

Tassone, Pasquale S. "The Musical Language in Luciano Berio's Points on the Curve to Find." Dissertation: UCLA, 1987. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (QA-3) •

•

n

150mm

IIWIGE.Inc 1653 East Main Street Rochester, NY 14609 USA Phone: 716/482-0300 Fax: 716/288-5989

01993. AppTied Image, Inc., All Rights Resened