A Study of Tyzen Hsiao's Piano Concerto, Op. 53
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A Study of Tyzen Hsiao’s Piano Concerto, Op. 53: A Comparison with Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 D.M.A Document Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Musical Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Lin-Min Chang, M.M. Graduate Program in Music The Ohio State University 2018 D.M.A. Document Committee: Professor Steven Glaser, Advisor Dr. Anna Gowboy Dr. Kia-Hui Tan Copyright by Lin-Min Chang 2018 2 ABSTRACT One of the most prominent Taiwanese composers, Tyzen Hsiao, is known as the “Sergei Rachmaninoff of Taiwan.” The primary purpose of this document is to compare and discuss his Piano Concerto Op. 53, from a performer’s perspective, with the Second Piano Concerto of Sergei Rachmaninoff. Hsiao’s preferences of musical materials such as harmony, texture, and rhythmic patterns are influenced by Romantic, Impressionist, and 20th century musicians incorporating these elements together with Taiwanese folk song into a unique musical style. This document consists of four chapters. The first chapter introduces Hsiao’s biography and his musical style; the second chapter focuses on analyzing Hsiao’s Piano Concerto Op. 53 in C minor from a performer’s perspective; the third chapter is a comparison of Hsiao and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concertos regarding the similarities of orchestration and structure, rhythm and technique, phrasing and articulation, harmony and texture. The chapter also covers the differences in the function of the cadenza, and the interaction between solo piano and orchestra; and the final chapter provides some performance suggestions to the practical issues in regard to phrasing, voicing, technique, color, pedaling, and articulation of Hsiao’s Piano Concerto from the perspective of a pianist. ii DEDICATION This document is dedicated to my mother. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Firstly, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor Professor Steven Glaser for the continuous support of my D.M.A. study, for his patience, motivation, and immense knowledge. His guidance helped me in all the time of research and writing of this document. Besides my advisor, I would like to thank the rest of my document committee: Dr. Anna Gawboy and Dr. Kia-Hui Tan, for their insightful comments and encouragement. My sincere thanks also goes to my former teacher Dr. Grace Chung, who helped me to reach out for the full score of Tyzen Hsiao’s Piano Concerto in Taiwan. Last but not the least, I wish to express how grateful I am to my family for their unconditional love and support during the past four years. None of this could have happened without my family. iv VITA 2009...................................................................................... Bachelor of Arts, piano performance, Tainan National University of Arts, Taiwan 2013........................................................................................ Master is Music, piano performance, Kent State University 2014 – 2017...................................................................................... Graduate Teaching Associate, School of Music, The Ohio State University FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Music v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGMENT .......................................................................................................................................... iv VITA ........................................................................................................................................................................ v TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................................................................. ix INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 1: A BIOGRAPHY AND THE MUSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF TYZEN HSIAO ................... 2 1.1 Life and Educational Background ........................................................................................................ 2 1.2 Three Periods of Hsiao ......................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Characteristics and Musical Style ........................................................................................................ 5 1.3.1 Taiwanese Folk Music ........................................................................................................ 9 CHAPTER 2: HSIAO’S PIANO CONCERTO OP. 53 ............................................................................................ 11 2.1 Brief Background ................................................................................................................................. 11 2.2 Analysis of Hsiao’s Piano Concerto .................................................................................................... 13 2.2.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 13 A) Thematic Material .......................................................................................................... 13 B) Rhythm ........................................................................................................................... 17 C) Texture ............................................................................................................................ 21 D) Harmony ......................................................................................................................... 24 2.2.2 First Movement – Allegro Moderato .................................................................................. 26 2.2.3 Second Movement – Adagio ............................................................................................... 38 2.2.4 Third Movement – Allegro con Fuoco ............................................................................... 47 vi CHAPTER 3: A COMPARISON OF HSIAO’S PIANO CONCERTO OP. 53 AND RACHMANINOFF’S PIANO CONCERTO NO. 2 ........................................................................................................... 57 3.1 A Brief Introduction of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 ......................................................... 57 3.2 Similarities ........................................................................................................................................... 58 3.2.1 Orchestration and Structure ................................................................................................ 58 3.2.2 Rhythm and Technique ....................................................................................................... 61 3.2.3 Phrasing and Articulation ................................................................................................... 66 3.2.4 Voicing and Dynamic ......................................................................................................... 67 3.2.5 Harmony and Texture ......................................................................................................... 69 3.3 Differences ........................................................................................................................................... 73 3.3.1 The Function of the Cadenza .............................................................................................. 73 3.3.2 The Interaction between Solo Piano and Orchestra ............................................................ 75 CHAPTER 4: PRACTICAL ASPECTS IN PERFORMING HSIAO’S PIANO CONCERTO IN C MINOR, OP. 53 ..................................................................................................................... 77 4.1 Phrasing and Voicing Issues ................................................................................................................ 77 4.2 Articulation, Sound, and Color Issues .................................................................................................. 88 4.3 Technical and Pedaling Issues ............................................................................................................. 92 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................................ 98 BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................................................... 100 vii LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Overview of Tyzen Hsiao’s Piano Concerto in C minor op. 53, 1st movement ........................................ 26 Table 2: Overview of Tyzen Hsiao’s Piano Concerto in C minor op. 53, 2nd movement ....................................... 38 Table 3: Overview of Tyzen Hsiao’s Piano Concerto in C minor op. 53, 3rd