Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) 1-1-2011 Not Just a Pretty Voice: Cathy Berberian as Collaborator, Composer and Creator Kate Meehan Washington University in St. Louis Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd Recommended Citation Meehan, Kate, "Not Just a Pretty Voice: Cathy Berberian as Collaborator, Composer and Creator" (2011). All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs). 239. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/239 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Department of Music Dissertation Examination Committee: Peter Schmelz, Chair Bruce Durazzi Craig Monson Anca Parvulescu Dolores Pesce Julia Walker NOT JUST A PRETTY VOICE: CATHY BERBERIAN AS COLLABORATOR, COMPOSER AND CREATOR by Kate Meehan A dissertation presented to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2011 Saint Louis, Missouri copyright by Kate Meehan 2011 Abstract During her relatively brief career, Cathy Berberian (1925-83) became arguably the best- known singer of avant-garde vocal music in Europe and the United States. After 1950, when she married Italian composer Luciano Berio, Berberian premiered almost thirty new works by seventeen different composers and received the dedications of several more. Composers connected to her include: John Cage, Igor Stravinsky, Darius Milhaud, Sylvano Bussotti, Henri Pousseur, Bruno Maderna, Bernard Rands, Roman Haubenstock- Ramati, and of course, Berio. Berberian’s creative activities ranged widely and she participated many of the major postwar musical movements, including tape and electronic music, music theater, the baroque music revival, and baroque-inspired covers of songs by the Beatles, in addition to her ongoing experiments with extended vocal techniques. She also created her own widely acclaimed compositions. Based primarily on archival research, this dissertation examines Berberian’s contributions to avant-garde musical culture from the 1950s until her death in the early 1980s. It relies on interviews, correspondence, manuscript scores, personal papers, concert programs, and reviews to argue that Berberian played a vital role in both the creation and reception of the music written for and with her. She was a central figure in postwar musical circles yet her story has been largely neglected. This study situates Berberian as one of the foremost interpreters of contemporary music in the second half of the twentieth century. Each chapter focuses on a different aspect of Berberian’s musical life, both in relation to the composers in her coterie and as an independent musician. The first chapter questions the nature of authorship by looking at the ways Berberian collaborated with ii composers on electronic compositions. Two subsequent chapters extend this idea to works meant for live performance by highlighting the specific musical characteristics associated with Berberian, including multilingual texts, extended vocal techniques, and a fundamental visual component. The final three chapters discuss Berberian’s activities as a composer and as a creator of wide-ranging recitals that involved diverse repertoire. As a whole, this dissertation challenges the traditional privileging of composers over performers by showing how a performer such as Berberian had a tremendous influence on the sound and image of contemporary music. iii Acknowledgments This dissertation would have been impossible without the assistance and support of numerous individual and organizations. First and foremost, I owe Cristina Berio the utmost gratitude for granting me access to her private collection. She generously opened her home to me and was always on hand to answer questions, decipher handwriting, and share memories. This project would not exist without her help. Funding to research and complete the dissertation came from multiple sources. The Paul Sacher Foundation in Basel, Switzerland generously awarded me a scholarship that allowed me to research their extensive collections for three months in the spring and summer of 2010. The Nussbaum Traveling Fellowship administered by the Music Department of Washington University in St. Louis supported my trip to Los Angeles to study Cristina Berio’s collection in June 2009 and helped fund my trip to Basel. Completion of the dissertation was made possible by a Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship from the Graduate School of Washington University. I am extremely grateful to my advisor, Peter Schmelz, for his advice, support, and impeccable editorial eye. This dissertation is much stronger thanks to his tireless efforts. Craig Monson consistently thought of new avenues of inquiry and often knew how to suggest just the right word. Thanks to Dolores Pesce, Bruce Durazzi, Julia Walker, and Anca Parvulescu for serving as members of my committee, asking important questions, and pushing me outside my comfort zone. I would also like to extend my appreciation to a number of librarians and archivists. The staff of the Paul Sacher Foundation made frequent trips up from the depths of the archives, often carrying very large scores. In particular, Matthias Kassel, iv Ulrich Mosch, Claudia Grzonka, Sabine Hänggi-Stampfli, and Henrike Hoffmann made my stay in Basel both pleasurable and productive. Gene Caprioglio at Edition Peters helpfully found materials related to Berberian. Greg MacAyeal at the Northwestern University Music Library graciously scanned letters from Berberian to John Cage. Brad Short at the Gaylord Music Library of Washington University tracked down obscure scores and recordings and happily added them to the general collection. Thanks to Bernard Rands and Candace Smith for sharing their memories of Cathy Berberian and answering specific questions about events that happened decades ago. I am grateful to some of my undergraduate professors for starting me on this path. Sabine Feisst originally sparked my interest in this project when she taught Cage’s Aria in a class on twentieth-century music. Madeline Williamson opened my eyes to the often hidden roles played by musical women and first encouraged me to pursue musicology. Kay Norton was a great mentor who helped launch me on this journey. My friends and colleagues helped a great deal over the course of my research and writing. David Chapman, Liza Dister, Ryan Dohoney, Mitch Ohriner, and Matt Pace read early drafts, helped me talk through ideas, and gave insightful comments. Erin Brooks, Jerome Camal, Liza Dister, and Alyssa Yorgan provided specific help with translations. Finally, I need to express my considerable appreciation to my family. My parents, Cathy and Edward Meehan, have supported me every step of the way. And of course, my partner Patrick, my biggest fan. I lovingly dedicate this dissertation to him. v Table of Contents Abstract ii Acknowledgements iv List of Examples vii Introduction 1 Chapter One: Cathy’s Disembodied Voice 27 Chapter Two: Cathy’s Musical Style 64 Chapter Three: Cathy on Stage 130 Chapter Four: Cathy as Composer 171 Chapter Five: Cathy’s Changing Repertoire 206 Chapter Six: Cathy’s Recitals 240 Conclusion 270 Appendix A: Works Dedicated to and/or Premiered by Cathy Berberian 279 Appendix B: Selected programs of Berberian’s performances, 1958-83 282 Bibliography 309 vi List of Examples 1.1 Helms, “Text for Bruno Maderna” 43 2.1 Cage, Aria MS 1, p. 8 75 2.2 Cage, Aria MS 1, p. 4 76 2.3 Cage, Aria MS 2, p. 1 77 2.4 Cage, Aria MS 3, p. 10 78 2.5 Berio, Epifanie, movement “a,” p. 7 88 2.6 Berio, Epifanie, movement “c,” p. 2 89 2.7 Bussotti, Voix de femme from Pièces de chair II, p. 18 107 3.1 Berberian dress design for Epifanie 135 3.2 Berberian Folk Songs costume list 137 3.3 Berio, Circles, stage layout 141 3.4 Berberian dress design for Circles 143 3.5 Bussotti, La Passion selon Sade, stage layout 151 3.6 Bussotti, La Passion selon Sade, p. 7 152 3.7 Scherchen, Wai, stage layout 159 3.8 Scherchen, Wai, p. 4 160 3.9 Rands, Ballad 2, p. iii 163 4.1 Carmi, Stripsody, p. 1 182 4.2 Berberian, Stripsody, p. 1 (excerpt) 183 4.3 Berberian, Stripsody, p. 8 (excerpt) 186 4.4 Berberian, Stripsody, p. 11 (excerpt) 187 4.5 Berberian, Stripsody, p. 11 (excerpt) 187 vii 4.6 Berberian, Stripsody, p. 11 (excerpt) 189 4.7 Photo of Berberian singing Stripsody 191 5.1 Andriessen, “Ticket to Ride” from 4 Beatles-Liedjes, p. 10 212 5.2 Ardley, “She’s Leaving Home,” p. 7 217 5.3 Berberian’s planned 1967 Venice Biennale recital program 219 6.1 Program list, “From Monteverdi to Cage” 245 6.2 Program list, “À la recherché de la musique perdue” 253 6.3 Stage set for “À la recherché de la musique perdue” 256 6.4 Program list, “Second Hand Songs” 260 7.1 Program for “Hommage à Cathy Berberian” 275 viii Introduction During her relatively brief career, Cathy Berberian (1925-83) became arguably the best- known singer of avant-garde vocal music in Europe and the United States. Between 1950, when she married Italian composer Luciano Berio (1925-2003), and her death in 1983, Berberian premiered almost thirty new works by seventeen different composers and received the dedications of several more. Composers connected to her include: John Cage (1912-92), Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971), Darius Milhaud (1892-1974), Sylvano Bussotti (b. 1931), Henri Pousseur (1929-2009), Bruno Maderna (1920-73), Bernard Rands (b. 1934), Roman Haubenstock-Ramati (1919-94), and of course, Berio. She also commissioned and premiered arrangements of works by composers as varied as Monteverdi, Puccini, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Berberian’s creative activities ranged widely.