JEAN-MICHEL DEFAYE’S Á LA MANIÉRE DE DEBUSSY POUR TROMBONE ET PIANO: A COMPOSITIONAL COMPARISON TO CLAUDE DEBUSSY’S HARMONIC, MELODIC, AND RHYTHMIC PRACTICES Aaron Christian Rader, B.M., M.M. Dissertation Prepared for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS December 2011 APPROVED: Vern Kagarice, Major Professor Steve Wiest, Minor Professor Tony Baker, Committee Member John Holt, Chair of the Division of Instrumental Studies Lynn Eustis, Director of Graduate Studies in the College of Music James D. Meernik, Acting Dean of the Toulouse Graduate School Rader, Aaron Christian. Jean-Michel Defaye’s Á La Maniére de Debussy pour Trombone et Piano: A Compositional Comparison to Claude Debussy’s Harmonic, Melodic, and Rhythmic Practices. Doctor of Musical Arts (Performance), December 2011, 40 pp., 30 examples, references, 34 titles. Jean-Michel Defaye composed Á La Maniére de Debussy in 2001 as part of a series of trombone solos written to emulate the compositional styles of significant predecessors. This study compares Á La Maniére de Debussy to the harmonic, melodic, and rhythmic practices of Claude Debussy (1862–1918), an innovative French composer and recognized figure of musical Impressionism. At present, there is limited scholarship on Defaye’s Á La Maniére de Debussy and its compositionally imitative nature. The first section of this document presents a survey of historical information, current literature, and methods of examination. The second section provides biographical information on composers Jean-Michel Defaye and Claude Debussy. The third section exhibits a compositional comparison of Á La Maniére de Debussy to Debussy’s use of harmony, melody, and rhythm. The final section draws a conclusion to the piece’s importance to the trombone solo repertoire and includes an interview with French trombonist Jacques Mauger who collaborated with Defaye on Á La Maniére de Debussy. Although this document is not a performance guide, an informed performance of Á La Maniére de Debussy requires a trombonist to understand Debussy’s unique treatment of harmony, melody, and rhythm. Copyright 2011 by Aaron Christian Rader ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Vern Kagarice, Tony Baker, and Steve Wiest for serving as members of my doctoral committee. Your guidance through this project has been deeply appreciated. Vern Kagarice encouraged me to perform Defaye’s Á La Maniére de Debussy almost five years ago, and it quickly became one of my favorite pieces for trombone and piano. I had never envisioned this document being the result. Jacques Mauger greatly broadened my research by speaking to me about Jean- Michel Defaye and Á La Maniére de Debussy. I hope to share his thoughts and sentiments with as many trombonists as possible. Etienne Stoupy translated my electronic interview with Jacques Mauger, and he also provided first-hand knowledge of his native France. Nataliya Sukhina accompanied me during my lecture recital and made the performance of a great piece even more enjoyable. My parents John and Carol Rader have encouraged my musical aspirations throughout the years, and I am forever grateful of their unconditional love and inspiration. To my wife Erin Rader, thank you for unknowingly giving me the motivation to finish my doctoral degree. Your faith in my potential is truly a gift. All images in this document are reproduced under Public Domain or Fair Use Provisions. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ vi LIST OF EXAMPLES ..................................................................................................... vii INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 1 Survey of Historical Information ............................................................................ 1 Current Literature ................................................................................................. 3 Methods of Examination ....................................................................................... 6 COMPOSER BIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................. 7 Jean-Michel Defaye .............................................................................................. 7 Achille-Claude Debussy ....................................................................................... 8 HARMONIC COMPARISON ......................................................................................... 11 Non-Functional Pedal Point ................................................................................ 11 Parallel Chord Succession.................................................................................. 15 Extended Tertian Chord Tones ........................................................................... 19 MELODIC COMPARISON ............................................................................................ 23 Medieval Church Modes ..................................................................................... 23 Pentatonic .......................................................................................................... 26 Whole-Tone ........................................................................................................ 29 RHYTHMIC COMPARISON .......................................................................................... 31 Horizontal Polyrhythms ....................................................................................... 31 Tempo Fluctuation .............................................................................................. 33 iv CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................ 36 Importance to Trombone Solo Repertoire .......................................................... 36 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................... 38 v LIST OF TABLES Page 1. Extensions in trombone part – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy ........................... 22 2. Tempo Fluctuation – Debussy, Arabesque No. 1 ...................................................... 34 3. Tempo Fluctuation – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy .......................................... 35 vi LIST OF EXAMPLES Page 1. Monet, Impression – Sunrise ....................................................................................... 2 2. Pedal Point – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 20–25 .................................. 12 3. Pedal Point – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 45–49 .................................. 12 4. Pedal Point – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 56–61 .................................. 13 5. Pedal Point – Debussy, La Cathedrale Engloutie, mm. 28–41 .................................. 14 6. Pedal Point – Debussy, La Cathedrale Engloutie, mm. 72–77 .................................. 15 7. Fauxbourdon – Binchois, Da Pacem Domine, line 3 ................................................. 15 8. Parallel Succession – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 29–30 ..................... 16 9. Parallel Succession – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, m. 40 .............................. 16 10. Parallel Succession – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 50–56 ................... 17 11. Parallel Succession – Debussy, Girl with the Flaxen Hair, mm. 33–35 ................... 18 12. Parallel Succession – Debussy, La Cathedrale Engloutie, mm. 62–67 ................... 19 13. 16 Partials of the Overtone Series........................................................................... 20 14. Extensions – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, m. 1 ........................................... 21 15. The Medieval Church Modes .................................................................................. 24 16. Church Modes – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 20–28 ........................... 25 17. Church Modes – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 35–49 ........................... 25 18. Church Modes – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 56–63 ........................... 26 19. Pentatonic Scale compared to Major Scale ............................................................. 26 20. Pentatonic – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 1–5 ..................................... 27 21. Pentatonic – Debussy, Printemps, mm. 1–5 ........................................................... 27 22. Pentatonic – Debussy, Arabesque No. 1, mm. 6–9 ................................................. 28 vii 23. Pentatonic – Debussy, Girl with the Flaxen Hair, mm. 1–7 ..................................... 28 24. Whole-Tone – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 50–56 .............................. 29 25. Whole-Tone – Debussy, Beau Soir, mm. 9–11 ....................................................... 30 26. Whole-Tone – Debussy, Clair de Lune, mm. 29–30 ................................................ 30 27. Rhythmic Outline – Guiraud, Cavatine de Marthe, mm. 55–58 ............................... 32 28. Horizontal Polyrhythms – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 12–13 ............. 32 29. Horizontal Polyrhythms – Defaye, Á La Maniére de Debussy, mm. 71–75 ............. 32 30. Horizontal Polyrhythms – Debussy, Clair de Lune, mm. 1–4 .................................