The Symbiosis Between Villa-Lobos's Carnaval Das Crianças and Momoprecoce: a Comparative Study
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City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 9-2015 The Symbiosis Between Villa-Lobos's Carnaval Das Crianças And Momoprecoce: A Comparative Study Vanessa Rodrigues Cunha Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/896 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] THE SYMBIOSIS BETWEEN VILLA-LOBOS’S CARNAVAL DAS CRIANÇAS AND MOMOPRECOCE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY by VANESSA CUNHA A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Center Faculty in Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts, The City University of New York 2015 This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Music in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts ______________________________________ Shaugn O’Donnell 04/15/2015 _______________ ______________________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee ______________________________________ Norman Carey 04/15/2015 ________________ ______________________________________ Date MusicProgram Executive Officer Professor Poundie Burstein Professor Antoni Pizà Professor Shaugn O'Donnell Professor Alison Deane Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK ii ABSTRACT THE SYMBIOSIS BETWEEN VILLA-LOBOS’S CARNAVAL DAS CRIANÇAS AND MOMOPRECOCE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY by Vanessa Cunha Adviser: Professor Poundie Burstein Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959), one the most important figures in Brazilian music, played a crucial role in establishing nationalism in Brazil through musical explorations of the unique character of Brazilian culture. This culture, a cacophonous mix of European lineage and African and indigenous influences, is exemplified in the country’s most popular and authentic celebration: the carnival. This dissertation explores Villa-Lobos’s musical portrait of the carnival through analysis of Carnaval das Crianças for piano, and that work’s reconfiguration as the piano fantasy Momoprecoce, focusing on a comparison of the two works to illuminate how Villa-Lobos kept the core of the original piece while metamorphosing its artistic intent and purpose. This document begins with a discussion of the tradition of reworking compositions for new purposes; followed by a biographical sketch of Villa-Lobos tracing his compositional language and the features that most impacted his works written before 1930s. The next section reviews the history of carnival in Brazil and the music traditionally performed for it, clarifying the connection between the music played during carnival in Rio and Villa-Lobos’s depiction of the Brazilian celebration. This background iii prepares the analysis of Carnaval das Crianças, exploring form, harmonic and rhythmic language, melodic structure and thematic development, texture and idiomatic elements. Subsequently, a comparative study between Carnaval das Crianças and Momoprecoce clarifies the symbiosis between the two works by detailing how Villa-Lobos amalgamated the musical ideas of Carnaval das Crianças into Momoprecoce. iv ACKNOWLEGEMENTS I would like to thank my wonderful husband Mika, for inspiring and supporting me during this whole process, always offering encouraging feedback. I also thank my loving mother, Cecília for teaching me endurance and inner strength and my most esteemed mentor Myrian Daueslberg, who has always found a way to make my goals achievable. I am also thankful for Professor Poundie Burstein and Professor Pizà, for their constant assistance and clever advice and for sharing their expertise in musical research. Finally, I would like to acknowledge my friend Rebekka Gold for always understanding my thought process. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................ iii Acknowledgments..........................................................................................................v List of Tables ............................................................................................................. viii List of Examples .......................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER ONE. Introduction ......................................................................................1 Villa-Lobos Reinvented .....................................................................................5 Biographical Overview ....................................................................................10 Nationalism and the “Week of Modern Art”……………………………….. .14 CHAPTER TWO. Musical Language………………………………………………..21 1. Impressionism ...............................................................................……….23 2. Primitivism and Experimentation………………….……………………. ..25 3. Quest for National Elements: Brazilian Images and Themes………….… 28 4. Folklore ……………………………………………………….….……… 32 5. African and Indigenous Influences………………………………………..34 6. Popular Music……………………………………………………. .………37 7. Themes of Childhood…………………………………………….… .……42 CHAPTER THREE. Brazilian Carnival: Introduction ................................................45 Carnaval Carioca ............................................................................................48 vi Costumes ....................................................................................................51 Music: Overview…………………………………………………………53 Modinha................................................................................................55 Polca .....................................................................................................58 Maxixe .................................................................................................60 Marcha-Rancho ....................................................................................61 Samba ...................................................................................................64 CHAPTER FOUR. Carnaval das Crianças ...............................................................71 Analysis: Carnaval das Crianças ....................................................................72 1. “Ginete do Pierrozinho” - The Little Pierrot’s Pony ..............................72 2. “O Chicote do Diabinho” - The Little Devil’s Whip .............................77 3. “A Manhã da Pierrete” - The Pierrette’s Morning .................................85 4. “Os Guizos do Dominozinho” - The Little Domino’s Jingle Bells........89 5. “As Peripécias do Trapeirozinho” - The Little Ragpicker’s Adventures .......................................................96 6. “As Traquinices de um Mascarado Mignon” - The Mischievousness of the Little Masked Boy ..................................101 7. “A Gaita de um Precoce Fantasiado” - The Fife of a Precocious Costumed Boy ...........................................109 8. “A Folia de um Bloco Infantil” - The Frolics of a Children’s Band ........................................................114 vii CHAPTER FIVE. Momoprecoce ...............................................................................124 Analysis: Momoprecoce .................................................................................126 Scene 1: “Ginete do Pierrozinho,” mm. 1-46 .............................................126 Scene 2: “O Chicote do Diabinho,” mm. 47-171 ....................................130 Interlude 1: mm. 172-278 ...........................................................................135 Scene 3: “A Manhã da Pierrete,” mm. 279-326 ..........................................141 Scene 4: “Os Guizos do Dominozinho,” mm. 327-442 ..............................144 Interlude 2: mm. 443-482………… ........………………………………...150 Scene 5: “As Peripécias de um Trapeirozinho,” mm. 482-530 .........…….157 Scene 6: “As Traquinices de um Mascarado Mignon,” mm. 531-636 ...…159 Interlude 3: mm. 637-674 ...........................................................................164 Scene 7: “A Gaita de um Precoce Fantasiado,” mm. 675-725 ...................168 Scene 8: “A Folia de um Bloco Infantil,” mm. 726 to 938………………..170 CONCLUSION ..........................................................................................................182 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................185 viii LIST OF TABLES CHAPTER FOUR Table 4.1: Formal structure of “O Ginete do Pierrozinho”………………………....73 Table 4.2: Formal structure of “O Chicote do Diabinho”…………………………..79 Table 4.3: Formal structure of “A Manhã da Pierrete”……………………………..86 Table 4.4: Formal structure of “Os Guizos do Dominozinho”……………………..90 Table 4.5: Formal structure of “Os Guizos do Dominozinho”……………………..98 Table 4.6: Formal structure of “As Traquinices de um Mascarado Mignon” .........103 Table 4.7: Formal structure of “A Gaita de um Precoce Fantasiado” .....................111 Table 4.8: Formal structure of “A Folia de um Bloco Infantil” ..............................116 CHAPTER FIVE Table 5.1: Formal structure of Interlude 1……………………………………….137 Table 5.2: Formal structure for the introduction to Scene 4……………………..146 Table 5.2: Formal structure of Interlude 3……………………………………….165 ix LIST OF EXAMPLES