Copyright by Kirk Michael Rich November 2018 TO LIFT OR NOT TO LIFT: SLURS AND ARTICULATION IN MENDELSSOHN’S ORGAN WORKS _______________ A Document Presented to the Faculty of the Moores School of Music Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts _______________ by Kirk Michael Rich November 2018 TO LIFT OR NOT TO LIFT: SLURS AND ARTICULATION IN MENDELSSOHN’S ORGAN WORKS _________________________ Kirk Michael Rich APPROVED: _________________________ Matthew Dirst, Ph.D. Committee Chair _________________________ Paul Bertagnolli, Ph.D. _________________________ Jeffrey Sposato, Ph.D. _________________________ David Breitman, D.M.A. Oberlin College Conservatory _________________________ Andrew Davis, Ph.D. Dean, Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts TO LIFT OR NOT TO LIFT: SLURS AND ARTICULATION IN MENDELSSOHN’S ORGAN WORKS _______________ An Abstract of a Document Presented to the Faculty of the Moores School of Music Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts _______________ by Kirk Michael Rich November 2018 Abstract A salient feature of Felix Mendelssohn’s organ works is the presence of many slur markings; these encompass as few as two notes and as many as several measures. Confusion surrounds the interpretation of these slurs. Some organists, particularly those trained in performance practices of earlier music, view Mendelssohn’s slurs as indications of articulation, as they would have been in the Baroque Era. Primary source evidence, however, suggests a shift in the meaning of slurs by the time Mendelssohn’s organ works were published. The study of these sources, primarily keyboard and violin methods from the last decades of the eighteenth century through the middle of the nineteenth century, paints a picture of articulation practices during Mendelssohn’s lifetime. Although previous scholarship on the topic has focused on organ methods, Mendelssohn’s relatively limited organ study suggests he may have never consciously attempted to acquire a proper organ technique. Therefore, piano methods of the day can shed light on Mendelssohn’s organ playing vis-à-vis his piano training. Analysis of select Mendelssohn organ works based on contemporaneous keyboard methods provides an idea of the general keyboard articulation appropriate to unmarked pieces, those without slurs. This, coupled with a catalogue of slur types and examples of each drawn from Mendelssohn’s organ pieces, provides a valuable resource for approaching this music in a historically informed way. v Acknowledgments I must first acknowledge Robert Bates, with whom I was privileged to study the organ; he encouraged me to pursue this thesis topic and served as committee chair for the document until his retirement. I thank Matthew Dirst for kindly stepping in as committee chair in a period of transition, and the other esteemed advisors, Paul Bertagnolli and Jeffrey Sposato, for their constructive feedback. To David Breitman, who was willing to lend his vast insight into this repertory at the eleventh hour, I am much obliged. With fond memories of our lessons in Stuttgart, I am indebted to Ludger Lohmann for his encouragement and interest in this study; his immense knowledge and artistry remain a source of inspiration. For nurturing my musical development, I recognize my former organ teachers: Douglas Reed, James David Christie, and Christopher Young. All my gratitude belongs to Philip Fillion, Sander Maarsman-Bayer, Paul Tegels, and Mother Seraphina Weber, for their assistance in translating pertinent resources. To my dear friend, Andrea Montano, for her assistance in retrieving library books, I owe a great deal. Finally, to my wife, Laura, who supported me through this process, all my love. vi Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ vi List of Musical Examples .................................................................................................. ix Dedication ......................................................................................................................... xii Introduction ..........................................................................................................................1 Chapter 1: Basic Articulation in Mendelssohn’s Organ Works ...........................................8 A Case for Legato ....................................................................................................8 Notational Practices: Score Directives...................................................................14 Primary Sources (Keyboard and Violin)................................................................17 Chorales .................................................................................................................20 Music of the Bound Style ......................................................................................23 Ludwig van Beethoven ..........................................................................................25 Mendelssohn as Performer .....................................................................................36 Conclusion .............................................................................................................39 Chapter 2: Towards an Understanding of Slurs in Mendelssohn’s Organ Works .............42 Articulation Slurs ...................................................................................................43 Accentuation Slurs .................................................................................................58 Continuous Legato Slurs ........................................................................................62 Slurs of Negative Function ....................................................................................65 Phrasing Slurs ........................................................................................................67 Conclusion .............................................................................................................68 vii Chapter 3: An Analysis of Articulation and Slurs in Mendelssohn’s Organ Works .........70 Unmarked Works ...................................................................................................70 Chorales .................................................................................................................70 Fugues ....................................................................................................................74 Exceptions to the Rule of Legato ...........................................................................88 Articulation Slurs ...................................................................................................91 Continuous Legato Slurs ........................................................................................94 Slurs of Negative Function ....................................................................................95 Phrasing Slurs ......................................................................................................100 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................103 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................105 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………109 viii List of Musical Examples Example 1. Felix Mendelssohn, Fugue in D Minor, op. 37b, mm. 1-18. Edition Breitkopf, ed. Julius Rietz (1874-82) ........................................................25 Example 2. Christian Heinrich Rinck, Praktische Orgelschule, op. 55 (1819-21) ...........30 Example 3. Samuel Scheidt, Tabulatura nova, vol. 1 (1624): “imitatio violistica” ..........44 Example 4. Samuel Scheidt, Tabulatura nova, vol. 1, no.1: Cantio Sacra Wir glauben all’ an einen Gott, Verse 4, p. 9, mm. 32-34. Edition Breitkopf, ed. Max Seiffert (1892) ......................................................................................... 45 Example 5. Samuel Scheidt, Tabulatura nova, vol. 2, no. 1: Fuga Contraria, p. 94, m. 5. Edition Breitkopf, ed. Max Seiffert (1892) .........................................45 Example 6. J. S. Bach, Sonata No. 4 in E Minor, BWV 528, I. Adagio-Vivace, mm. 4-6 ..................................................................................................................48 Example 7. Johann Gottlob Werner, Orgelschule (1807) ..................................................52 Example 8. Christian Heinrich Rinck, Theoretisch-practische Anleitung zum Orgelspielen, op. 124 (1839) .................................................................................53 Example 9. Wilhelm Volckmar, Orgelschule, op. 50 (1858) ............................................54 Example 10. Carl Czerny, Complete Theoretical and Practical Piano Forte School, op. 500 (1839) ........................................................................................................55 Example 11. Kalkbrenner, Méthode pour apprendre le piano-forte à l’aide du guide-mains, op. 108 .............................................................................................56