CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE GRADUATE
Transcription
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE GRADUATE
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE GRADUATE RECITAL IN CLASSICAL GUITAR An abstract submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Master of Music in Music Performance By Wilhermino Diaz Schimmeyer June 2007 r The abstract of Wilhermino Diaz Schimmeyer is approved: Professor Ronald Borczon Date Date California State University, Northridge 11 TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page 11 Abstract IV John Dowland . Johann Sebastian Bach. 2 Federico Moreno-Torroba. 3 Leo Brouwer. . 5 Observations of the Compositional Approaches to the Guitar. 6 Recital Program 8 Sources Consulted 9 111 John Dowland John Dowland (1563-1625) was an English lutenist during the Renaissance Period whose reputation as a performer and a composer was well-known throughout Europe. Dowland's most noted compositions are his lute-songs that are found in his collection of four books: THE FIRST BOOKE OF SONGS OR AYRES OF foure parts, with Table-ture for the Lute, 1 THE SECOND BOOKE of SONGS or AYRES, of2.4.and 5.parts: With Tableture for the Lute or Orpherian, with the Viall de Gamba, 2 THE THIRD AND LAST BOOKE OF SONGS OR AIRES, 3 and A Pilgrimes Solace. 4 Another noted composition is his Lachrimae or Seaven Teares that was "specifically written for five viols, or violins, and lute had never before appeared in England."5 Lastly, Dowland wrote numerous solo lute works such as pavans, almains, galliards, jigs, corantos, and fantasies. Of his fantasies, Dowland wrote a total of seven where "five are composed on diatonic themes while the remaining two are wholly chromatic in character."6 The opening melody ofFantasie No.7 that is found in his Varietie of Lute-Lessons, is based on the Italian lauda, Alia Madonna. An example of this Italian lauda can be found in a collection compiled by Matteo Coferati (1638-1703) entitled Corona di Sacre Canzoni. 1 2 3 4 5 6 John Dowland and Robert Dowland, English Lute Songs 1597-1632: A Collection ofFacsimi1e Reprints, General ed. F.W. Sternfeld, ed. Diana Poulton, vol. 4 (England: The Scolar Press Limited, 1970). Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Diana Poulton, John Dowland, new rev. ed. (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University ofCa1ifomia Press, 1982), 342. Ibid., 112-113. 1 p Alia Madonna along with "All of the 140 laude in this book are for one voice only"7 where "None is credited to a composer." 8 The characteristics of the laudas are described as to "to have a distinct popular flavor and may be imitations of actual products of folk art. " 9 Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was one of the most industrious German composers during the Baroque Period. His output consists of cantatas, oratorios, passions, motets, and chorales in addition to keyboard, solo, orchestral and chamber mUSIC. During this period, Bach was well aware of the lute since it was standard practice for it to be used in continuo playing in many musical settings. This is further enriched by his connection with Silvius Leopold Weiss (1686-1750) while Bach was the director of the Collegium Musicum: Finally, the concerts often featured debuts and returns of well-known guest artists, including the Dresden cappellmeister Johann Adolf Hasse, his wife, the diva Fuastina Bordoni, and the lutenist-composer Silvius Leopold Weiss, among many others, who came to visit Bach in Leipzig during the 1730' s. 10 Concerning Bach's contact with an actual lute composition, Weiss provides that opportunity: 7 Ennanno F. Gizzarelli, Laude spiritua/i, Bulletin of the American Musicological Society, no. 4 (September 1940): 19. JSTOR. California State University Northridge, May 2007. 8 Ibid. 9 Ibid. 1 °Christoph Wolff, Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2001), 355. 2 The Trio for violin and harpsichord in A major, BWV 1025, from around 1740, is a good example. Here Bach expands on a lute suite by Silvius Leopold Weiss of the Dresden court capelle by adding a contrapuntal line to the original lute part that alternates between the violin and the right hand of the keyboard. 11 Fortunately, Bach did compose several works for lute: (1) Suite (BWV 995) (2) Suite (BWV 996) (3) Prelude, Fugue and Allegro (BWV 998) (4) Prelude (BWV 999) (5) Fugue (BWV 1000) (6) Suite (BWV 1006a). The Suite (BWV 1006a) was originally composed for violin as part of the Violin Sonatas and Partitas (BWV 1001-1006). From there, the Suite underwent two transformations: The first is the arranged for lute (BWV 1006a) that is notated on the grand staff in the key of E-Flat Major. The second is the use of the Prelude in a larger body of work: sinfonia to cantata BWV 29, for concertato organ, 3 trumpets, timpani, 2 oboes, strings, and continuo, first performed at the annual city council election service on August 27, 1731 12 Federico Moreno-Torroba Bringing the early nineteenth-century guitar out of obscurity, the innovative construction technique of fan bracing by Antonio de Torres Jurado (1817-1892), significantly increased the guitar in size. This outcome resulted with a wider fingerboard that enabled greater ease in playing contrapuntal music and a larger body that provided more volume and projection. II 12 Ibid., 388. Ibid. 3 Soon afterwards, the tireless effort of Francisco de Asis Tarrega Eixea (18521909) to promote the new instrument gave way to the standardization of the playing technique, and more importantly, the expansion of the repertoire. This new foundation would produce Tarrega's most notable pupils, Miguel Llobet (1878-1938), Maria Rita Brondi ( 1889-1941) and Emilio Pujol ( 1886-1980). They would further the cause of the guitar towards the 201h century by bringing it back to the concert stage on an equal level as with most solo concert instruments such as the violin or piano. A self-proclaimed, self-taught composer-guitarist, Andres Segovia (1893-1987), was also part of the movement to bring the guitar to the concert stage. Not only by performing public recitals but also by approaching composers to write music for the guitar. One of many composers that he approached is Federico Moreno-Torroba (1891-1982) from Spain and as Segovia described, "there was a 'first' in the field of the guitar: For the first time, a composer who was not a guitarist wrote a piece for the guitar." 13 At a premiere of one ofTorroba's compositions performed by the National Symphony conducted by Maestro Arb6s, Senor Frances, the first violinist, introduced Segovia to Torroba which led to the germination of Suite Castellana: It did not take us long to become friends, nor for him to accede to my suggestion: Would he compose something for the guitar? In a few weeks he came up with a slight but truly beautiful Dance in E Major. 14 13 Andres Segovia, Segovia: An autobiography of the years 1893-1920, trans. W. F. O'Brien (New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1976), 194. 14 Ibid., 194-195. 4 Over time, Torroba finally completed the three movement work: The abovementioned Dance in E Major in time became part ofTorroba' s Suite Castellana, joining the other components of the suite, the Fandanguillo and the Arada. These last two Torroba composed after my return from South America. 15 From this simple act of a collaboration of a performer and a composer, this encouraged other composers to recognize the feasibility of the guitar as a new medium for creativity. As Segovia described of Suite Castellana, "That success prompted Manuel de Falla to compose his very beautiful Homage, and Joaquin Turina his splendid Sevillana." 16 Leo Brouwer Leo Brouwer ( 1939- ), from Cuba, is one of the leading contemporary composers for the guitar. His writings for the instrument consist of solo, ensemble and concerto music that ranges from traditional to atonal styles. El Decameron Negro, dedicated to concert guitarist Sharon Isbin (1956- ) was written in 1981. The three movement work is based on African folk tales documented by the German ethnologist, Leo Frobenius (1873-1938). These folk tales provided insight on the different aspects of African culture in regard to their moral, mystical, and heroic beliefs. From the movement titles ofEl Decameron Negro along with its corresponding music, Brouwer has essentially created a largely programmatic work. In one example, La Huida Los Amantes Par El Valle De Los Ecos or The Flight of the Lovers through the Valley of the Echoes, Brouwer uses a repetitive arpeggio pattern in the right hand along 15 16 Ibid., 195. Ibid. 5 with the use of forte and subito piano dynamics in order to imitate the echoes that one would hear in a large valley. From a tonal standpoint, Brouwer's unique compositional style has gone through three distinct stages: the first, nationalistic (1955-62); the second, avant-garde (1962-7); and a third in which avant-garde elements diminish and, particularly after 1980, a creative process described by the composer as 'new simplicity' emerges. 17 In the third movement, Ballada De La Doncella Enamorada or Ballad of the Love-Sick Maiden, he has shown a delicate balance between the traditional tonal and atonal practice of music. This is can be found in the A section ofthis Rondo by the many second and seventh intervals. Brouwer also juxtaposed his programmatic content onto traditional classical forms . This can be seen in the second movement, La Huida Los Amantes Por El Valle De Los Ecos, where he employs the use of theme and variations. In section A, the main theme is gradually developed and then further presented in varying forms throughout the movement in either contrapuntal, section F, or arpeggiated forms, section C. Observations of the Compositional Approaches to the Guitar The compositions performed on this program bring to light the creative process of two types of composers: ( 1) Those who are just familiar with the mechanics of the instrument (2) Those who are avid performers of the instrument. 17 Victoria Eli Rodriguez: Brouwer, Leo, Grove Music Online (Accessed 17 May 2007), (http://www.grovemusic.com). 6 In the case of the former, there is a strong tendency for composers to write beyond the practical playability ofthe guitar. Although this may seem to be a disadvantage to the performer in the ease of the execution of passages, the positive aspect lies in the fact that the explorations of musical ideas are not determined by physical means. One example is Johann Sebastian Bach's Prelude from Suite (BWV 1006a) where the many sequences undergo dramatic key changes that are not typically found in sonatas by Silvius Leopold Weiss. Another example is Federico Moreno-Torroba's Arada from Suite Castellana which calls for unusual left hand chord shapes in order to preserve the voice leading of harmonic passages. In the case of the latter, the composer/performer who has the advantage of the working knowledge of the idiomatic qualities of the instrument is faced with the challenge of avoiding common musical cliches. In the case of John Dowland, his Fantasie is based on the single line melody from the Italian lauda Alia Madonna, yet his virtuosic skill as a lutenist and composer, gave him the necessary components to exploit the limits of the lute in a conservative manner. Similarly in Leo Bouwer' s Ballada De La Doncella Enamorada from El Decameron Negro, the simple technical execution of the left hand provides the clear distinction between the rhythm in the lower strings and the melody in the upper strings. 7 1 California State University Northridge Mike Curb College of the Arts, Media, an(! CommuQication Department of Music Presents: Program Fantasie No, 7 John Dowland (1563-'1625) Suite F:!JNV 1006a (In E Major) Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Prelude II. Laure Ill. Gavotte en Rondeau IV. Menuett I V. Menuett II VI. Boum~e VII. Gigue Intermission 00 Suite Castellana Federico Moreno-Torroba (1891·1982) I. Fandanguillo II. Arada Ill. Danza El Decarneron Negro The Black Decameron In Partial Fulfillment of the, Master of Music in Performance Thursday, 1 Q May 2007 Leo Brouwer (1939- ) El Arpa Del Guerrero The Harp of the Wllrrior II. La Huida De Los Ama.ntes Por El Valle De Los Ecos The Flight of the Lovers Through the Valley of Echoes Ill. Ballada De La Doncella Enamorada Ballad of the Love-Sick Maiden 8:00PM Brand library Recital Hall 1601 West Mountain Street Glendale. CA 91201 Mr. Schimmeyer is a student of Dr. Steven Thachuk. Sources Consulted Brouwer, Leo. El Decameron Negro. Paris: Editions Musicales Transatlantiques, 1983. Dowland, John, and Robert Dowland. English Lute Songs 1597-1632: A Collection ofFacsimile Reprints. General ed. F.W. Sternfeld, ed. Diana Poulton. Vol. 4. England: The Scolar Press Limited, 1970. Frobenius, Leo, and Douglas C. Fox. African Genesis: Folk Tales and Myths of Africa. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1999. Gizzarelli, Ermanno F. Laude spirituali. Bulletin of the American Musicological Society no. 4 (September 1940): 19. JSTOR. California State University Northridge, May 2007. Koonce, Frank, ed. Johann Sebastian Bach: The Solo Lute Works, 2d ed. San Diego: Neil A. Kjos Music Company, 2002. Noad, Frederick. The Renaissance Guitar: Selected and transcribed by Frederick Noad. The Frederick Noad Guitar Anthology. New York, London, Sydney: Amsco Publications, 1974. Poulton, Diana. John Dowland, new rev. ed. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1982. Rodriguez, Victoria Eli. Brouwer, Leo, Grove Music Online, (Accessed 17 May 2007), (http://www .grovemusic.com). Segovia, Andres. Segovia: an autobiography ofthe years 1893-1920. Translated by W.F. O'Brien. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1976. Torroba, Federico Moreno. Suite Castellana: London: Schott & Co. Ltd., 1954. Turnbull, Harvey. The Guitar from the Renaissance to the Present Day. New York: Charles Scriber's Sons, 1974. Wolff, Christoph. Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2001. 9