An Empirical Analysis of Musical Expression in Recordings by Selected Cellists by Ju-Lee Hong A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the award of Master of Philosophy at Goldsmiths College, University of London, Department of Music March 2014 1 I declare that the work presented in this thesis is the outcome of my own original research. Ju-Lee Hong 2 Abstract This thesis aims to explain how recorded cello performance styles changed over the course of the 20th century, with particular reference to works by Brahms, J.S.Bach and Prokofiev. I show how reviews of these recordings changed over the same time scale. These changes are evidenced by a detailed empirical analysis of musical expression in selected cello recordings. This study addresses the following issues: The reception trends of recordings: I investigate how reviews of these recordings changed over the same time scale and how the study of record reviews could play an integrated role in the empirical investigations into cello performance practice on record. Performance trends of Brahms: I consider whether any particular trends were detected in the handling of musical expression in performances of Brahms, including pedagogical similarities. Performance styles of Casals' interpretations of Bach and Rostropovich's of Prokofiev and whether any stylistic changes were shown. An empirical analysis of musical expression in 20th-century cello playing on record reveals a number of issues in performance practice. 3 Acknowledgements The present research on an empirical analysis of cello performance on record has been supported by numerous individuals and organisations, to whom I would like to express my gratitude. Thanks are due to the supervisory staff, Stephen Cottrell and Tim Crawford. Other members of staff at Goldsmiths College, Craig Ayrey, Alexander (Sasha) Ivashkin, Christophe Rhodes and Keith Potter also guided me at various stages of my research beyond their supervisory duties. I acknowledge the music departmental research funding in 2004 and 2007 and the Society for Education, Music and Psychology Research (SEMPRE) conference awards in 2006 and 2010. A paper (an earlier draft of Chapter 4) deriving from this thesis won the joint Aubery Hickman prize (the best graduate paper) in 2010 from SEMPRE at the Society’s biennial conference on Empirical Musicology II: Empirical Approaches to Performance held at the University of Leeds in March 2010. Some preliminary findings from this thesis were also presented in several seminars,1 workshops2 and international conferences.3 I am thankful to Steve Gould for proofreading numerous drafts. Occasional conversations with Bruno Repp, Craig Sapp, Yu-Lee Hong, Michael Casey, Ben Finn, Peter Johnson and W. Luke Windsor have been useful indicators for shaping research ideas. I also thank colleagues and friends who were happy to share their pre-published materials and/or offprints of their publications. My sincere thanks to Mum and Dad for introducing me to the LPs of cello playing by Casals and Rostropovich at the early age of four, also to my late grandfather Hwan (Vincent) Kim for his everlasting advice on commitment and to my younger sister Yu-Lee for always reminding me that I am a musician writing about the empirical analysis of musical expression in cello performance on record. 1 Seminars presented in the Centre for Digital Music (C4DM), Queen Mary seminars in 2007 and 2009 and the Intelligent Sound and Music Systems (ISMS) group, Goldsmiths in 2010. 2 Performance analysis workshops in the music department, Royal Holloway in 2006, and Digital Music Research Network workshop in the Centre for Digital Music, Queen Mary in 2007. 3 International conference presentations include the RMA Annual conferences in 2004 (Birmingham) and in 2007 (Royal Holloway, CHARM/RMA), the Digital Music conference in 2006 (ISMS, Goldsmiths), the Reflective Conservatoire conference in 2006 (Guildhall School of Music and Drama, with a SEMPRE conference award), the Empirical Musicology conference in 2008 (IMR, London) and the Empirical Musicology II conference in 2010 (Leeds, with a joint SEMPRE Hickman award). 4 Table of Contents Abstract 3 Acknowledgements 4 Table of Contents 5 Preface 10 Chapter 1 Background to the Empirical Approaches to Musical Expression in Performance 13 1.1. Performance as research 14 1.2. Empirical musicology 19 1.3. Empirical approaches to reception trends on record 26 1.4. Empirical approaches to performing trends on record 29 1.5. Towards the discovery of performance aesthetics 33 Chapter 2 Empirical Measurement of Musical Expression 39 2.1. An empirical approach to listening to performance 40 2.2. A measurement approach to musical expression on record 42 2.3. Statistical analyses of musical expression data 55 Chapter 3 The Changing Focus of Record Reviews in Cello Performance Practice 61 3.1. Record reviews of cello performance practice on record 62 3.2. Changing from work to performance 68 3.3. Changing tastes in performance styles 75 3.4. Increasing sense of “historicisation” which comes through a longer time span (different formats), including HIP and early recordings 91 3.5. Changing focuses of record reviews in cello performance practice 94 Chapter 4 Brahms Performance Trends 96 4.1. Pedagogical relationships between the selected cellists 97 4.2. General trends 105 4.3. Expressive timing on record 119 4.4. Expressive dynamics in relation to expressive timing 138 5 4.5. Portamento and vibrato 140 4.6. Musical expression in recordings of the Brahms cello sonatas 148 Chapter 5 Performance Aesthetics of Casals’ Bach 150 5.1. Casals’ performance philosophy and Bach 151 5.2. Casals’ expressive timing 153 5.3. Casals’ expressive dynamics 166 5.4. Casals’ vibrato and portamento 172 5.5. Casals’ musical expression 181 Chapter 6 Artistic Innovations of Rostropovich’s Prokofiev 182 6.1. Rostropovich and Prokofiev 183 6.2. Rostropovich’s repeated renditions of Prokofiev’s op.119 184 6.3. Musical expression in Prokofiev’s “unfinished” solo cello sonata renditions 199 6.4. Rostropovich’s Prokofiev 207 Chapter 7 Conclusion 208 References 212 List of Figures Figure 2.1. Sample beat-level timing data plot using the tap along approach 43 Figure 2.2. Sample beat tracking plot 44 Figure 2.3. Sample audio alignment 46 Figure 2.4. Sample note onset detection plot 47 Figure 2.5. IOI data converted into time-series analysis 48 Figure 2.6. Sample power curve 50 Figure 2.7. Sample strong peak identifier (Praat script) 51 Figure 2.8. Portamento in spectrographic analysis 52 Figure 2.9. Sample spectrum: frequency measurement tool 53 Figure 2.10. Vibrato in spectrographic analysis 54 Figure 4.1. Bar level Timing fluctuation in performances Brahms op.38, ii 109 6 Figure 4.2. Beat level Timing fluctuation Brahms op.99, ii 116 Figure 5.1. Beat level rubato of the Prelude performance 155 Figure 5.2. Crotchet beat level rubato of Casals’ Sarabande performance 157 Figure 5.3. Casals’ beat level rubato: x =1st time; y = repeat 159 Figure 5.4. Rhythmic pattern examples 162 Figure 5.5. Casals’ execution of rhythmic patterns of the Sarabande 163 Figure 5.6. Rhythmic motive and Casals’ rubato execution of the Menuet I 164 Figure 5.7. Rhythmic motive execution in the Menuet I 165 Figure 5.8. Expressive dynamics and timing, Casals (1936) on the Sarabande 167 Figure 5.9. Casals’ non-vibrated sound in spectrographic analysis: bar 1, Prelude 173 Figure 5.10. Casals’ vibrato in bar 22, Prelude 174 Figure 5.11. Casals’ vibrato in bars 39-42, Prelude 174 Figure 5.12. Casals’ vibrato in bars 1-2, Sarabande: repeat structure 176 Figure 6.1. Expressive timing of the sonata op.119 second movement: the 1950 and 1955 performances 189 Figure 6.2. Expressive dynamics in bars 50-93 192 Figure 6.3. Performing motives in bars 53, 55-57 and 63-66: 1950 Rostropovich 196 Figure 6.4. Performing motives in bars 53, 55-57 and 63-66: 1990 Yo-Yo Ma 197 Figure 6.5. Expressive timing of the four performances and their average 204 List of Equations Equation 2.1. Pearson’s product-moment correlation 56 Equation 2.2. Inter-beat-interval (IBI) & Individual musical expression style 59 List of Tables Table 3.1. Selected recordings of Brahms’ cello sonatas 65 Table 3.2. Selected recordings of J.S.Bach 67 Table 3.3. Selected recordings of Prokofiev 67 Table 4.1. Proportional relation of duration between movements in the E minor 105 7 Table 4.2. Proportional relation of duration between movements on the F major 106 Table 4.3. Phrase structure of the Allegretto quasi Menuetto, Brahms Op.38 108 Table 4.4. Phrase structure of the Adagio affettuoso, Brahms op.99 115 Table 4.5. Relative level of expressive timing data: E minor 119 Table 4.6. Relative level of expressive timing data: F major 129 Table 4.7. bar-level expressive timing and dynamics, Section B, Trio (N = 41) 138 Table 4.8. bar-level expressive timing and dynamics (N = 141) 138 Table 4.9. Portamento of the Brahms cello sonata in F, Adagio sostenuto 141 Table 4.10. portamento occurrence in relation to 142 Table 4.11. Portamento in Brahms' Sonata in F major, Adagio affettuoso 143 Table 4.12. Portamento in relation to recording dates and the age of artists 144 Table 4.13. Vibrato speed and depth of the E minor sonata, 2nd movement 145 Table 4.14. Correlation of vibrato in the E minor sonata 146 Table 4.15. Vibrato speed and depth of the F major sonata, 2nd movement 146 Table 4.16. Correlation of vibrato in the F major sonata 147 Table 5.1. Overall tempo of Casals 153 Table 5.2. Menuet repeat structure 161 Table 5.3.