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CONTENTS
Toccatina & Fughetta – Partita Op. 2 ...........................3
Arvo Pärt .......................................................................3
1 Biography..............................................................3
2 Compositions ........................................................3
3 Analysis of Piece ...................................................5
Sonata in F minor, Op. 54 Ludwig van Beethoven........7
4 Biography..............................................................7
5 Musical style .........................................................7
6 Compositional Overview .......................................8
7 Analysis of Piece ...................................................8
Etude Op. 25 No. 1 – Aeolian Harp Frédéric Chopin. 10
8 Biography........................................................... 10
9 Compositions ..................................................... 12
10 Analysis of Piece................................................ 13
Île de feu – Island of fire Olivier Messiaen ................ 14
11 Biography ......................................................... 14
12 Compositions .................................................... 14
13 Analysis of Piece............................................... 15
3
Toccatina & Fughetta – Partita Op. 2
Arvo Pärt
1 Biography
Arvo Pärt was born in Estonia in 1935. He is considered
a pioneer minimalism, that of “holy minimalism” and
“sacred minimalism”. Arvo Pärt is best known for his
choral works, though along with his contemporaries, they
are very popular.
Pärt’s musical life is generally described into two
periods. These are:
• severe Neo-classical style compositions, and
• the Twelve-tone technique and Serialism
At the age of seven, Pärt attended music school in
Rakvere at the Tallinn Conservatory, where his family
lived at the time. Being the start of his musical education,
by fifteen years old, he was writing his own
compositions. Often praised for his talent, his mentor of
composition Heino Eller quoted “he just seemed to shake
his sleeves and notes would fall out”. His composition
style at the time had little influence from outside the
Soviet Union. His early compositions show the influence
of the Soviet composers Shostakovich and Prokofiev,
using neoclassical or neobaroque forms and free
dissonance.
In the mid 1960s he experimented with avant garde
techniques such as serialism. He was the first Estonian
composer to use this technique. Other techniques include
polytonality and indeterminism. Pärt experienced a deep
personal crisis because of the ire in which the Soviet
establishment held towards his music. This type of music
proved to be a creative dead end.
His response to this impasse was to immerse himself in
early music — to go, in effect, back to the roots of
western music. So in 1976, Pärt’s compositions became
more toanl in style, with an emphasis on timbre and
texture, revealing the study he initiated with plainsong,
Gregorian chant, and the emergence of polyphony in the
Renaissance.
The music that began to emerge was radically different.
Tintinnabuli, as described by Pärt; like the ringing of
bells. It is characterised by triad chords, simple
harmonies and singular notes; the basis of western
harmony. Tintinnabuli works are rhythmically simple and
do not change tempo. His later works are also
characterised by frequent settings for sacred texts,
whether in Latin or Church Slavonic language used in
Orthodox liturgy instead of his Estonian language.
These latter works by Pärt are what makes him well
known. It has been said that his music is similar to light
going through a prism, meaning that to each listener, the
music may have a slightly different meaning. Thus it is
like a spectral rainbow of musical experience.
2 Compositions
2.1 Works for voices and orchestra
• Our Garden, Cantata for children's chorus and
orchestra (1959/2003)
• Credo for chorus, orchestra, and piano solo
(1968)
4
• Wallfahrtslied for tenor or baritone and string
orchestra (1984/2000)
• Te Deum for chorus, string orchestra and tape
(1984-5, rev 1992)
• Berlin Mass for chorus and organ or string
orchestra (1992)
• Litany for soloists, chorus and orchestra (1994)
• Como cierva sedienta for soprano, chorus and
orchestra (1998)
• Cantiques des degrés for chorus and orchestra
(1999/2002)
• Cecilia, vergine romana for chorus and orchestra
(1999/2002)
• In Principio for chorus and orchestra (2003)
2.2 Works for voices and ensemble (or piano)
• An den Wassern zu Babel saßen wir und weinten
for voices or choir and organ or ensemble
(1976/1984)
• Sarah Was Ninety Years Old for three voices,
percussion and organ (1977/1990)
• De profundis for chorus, percussion and organ
(1980)
• Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi secundum
Joannem for soloists, vocal ensemble, choir and
instrumental ensemble (1982)
• Es sang vor langen Jahren for alto, violin and
viola (1984)
• Wallfahrtslied for tenor or baritone and string
quartet (1984)
• Stabat Mater for 3 voices and string trio (1985)
• Miserere for soli, choir and ensemble (1989)
• Zwei Wiegenlieder for two women’s voices and
piano (2002)
• L'Abbé Agathon for soprano, four violas and four
celli (2004/2005)
2.3 Works for chorus (and organ)
• Missa syllabica for chorus and organ (1977)
• Summa for chorus (1977)
• Magnificat for chorus (1989)
• Bogoroditse Djevo for chorus (1990)
• Kanon Pokajanen for chorus (1997)
• Triodion for chorus (1998)
• Which Was the Son of... (2000)
• Nunc Dimittis for chorus (2001)
• Peace upon you, Jerusalem for female chorus
(2002)
2.4 Orchestral works
• Nekrolog for orchestra op.5 (1960)
• Symphony No.1 for orchestra op.9 (1963)
• Perpetuum mobile for orchestra op.10 (1963)
• Symphony No.2 for orchestra (1966)
• Symphony No.3 for orchestra (1971)
• Wenn Bach Bienen gezüchtet hätte ... for piano,
wind quintet, string orchestra and percussion
(1976)
• Fratres for chamber ensemble (1976 and on,
many versions)
• Arbos for brass and percussion (1977/1986)
• Cantus In Memoriam Benjamin Britten for string
orchestra and bell (1977)
• Psalom for string orchestra (1985/1995/1997)
• Festina Lente for string orchestra and harp
(1988)
• Summa for string orchestra (1991)
• Silouans Song for string orchestra (1991)
• Trisagion for string orchestra (1992)
• Mein Weg for 14 string players and percussion
(1999)
• Orient & Occident for string orchestra (2000)
• Lennartile / Für Lennart for string orchestra
(2006)
• La Sindone for orchestra and percussion (2006)
2.5 Works for solo instruments and orchestra
• Pro et Contra, Concerto for Cello and Orchestra
(1966, for Mstislav Rostropovich)
• Credo for chorus, orchestra, and piano solo
(1968)
• Tabula Rasa, Double Concerto for two violins,
string orchestra and prepared piano (1977)
• Fratres for violin, string orchestra and percussion
(1992)
• Concerto piccolo über B-A-C-H for trumpet,
string orchestra, harpsichord and piano (1994)
• Darf ich ... for violin, bells and string orchestra
(1995/1999)
• Lamentate for piano and orchestra (2002)
2.6 Instrumental works
• Two Sonatinas, Op.1, for piano (1958)
• Für Alina for piano (1976)
• Variationen zur Gesundung von Arinuschka for
piano (1977)
• Spiegel Im Spiegel for violin or cello and piano
(1978)
5
• Fratres for violin and piano (1980)
• Summa for string quartet (1990)
• Mozart-Adagio for violin, cello and piano
(1992/1997, from Mozart's Piano Sonata in F
major (K 280))
• Passacaglia for violin and piano (2003)
• Annum per Annum (organ)
• Pari Intervallo (organ)
3 Analysis of Piece
A partita, or suite, is a collection of pieces (originally
dance pieces, the term becoming less specific in the 19th
and 20th Centuries).
3.1 Toccatina
A toccatina is a short toccata - a fast piece which
displays the performer's touch. The term toccata is
derived from the Italian toccare meaning "to touch"; it is
used for fast keyboard pieces with a driving rhythmic
pulse and a perpetual motion character due to the
virtually continuous repetition of a single note-value - in
this case, the semiquaver. Other composers of toccatas
include J. S. Bach, Schumann, Debussy, Ravel and
Prokofiev.
The style is highly chromatic, almost atonal, though some
notes are used more prominently than others, viz. A (the
tonal centre) and Eb (a tritone above). The structure of
the piece is partly determined by register - it begins with
both hands low in bass, rises in pitch until both hands are
high in treble, has a passage of wide pitch distribution
(the barred section, written over three staves) and ends
low in the bass again.
Section 1 - perpetual motion semiquavers, unbarred.
(Numbers refer to note numbers)
b.1-9 Motive 1A, beginning on Eb.
10-16 Motive IB.
17-32 Motive 2, beginning on Eb.
33-37 Codetta.
38-44 Motive IB, with the last two notes an octave
lower.
45-60 Motive 2, an octave lower, beginning on D#
(enharmonic equivalent of Eb).
61-76 Based loosely on Motive 2.
77-85 Motive 1A, beginning on A (up a tritone
from 1-9).
86-92 Motive IB (up a tritone from 10-16).
93-108 Motive 2, beginning on A (up a tritone from
17-32).
109-123 Based loosely on Motive 1A.
124-132 Motive 1A, two octaves higher than 1-9
(except for first note).
133-142 Motive IB, two octaves higher than 10-16,
with altered ending.
143-209 Virtually an exact repeat of 77-142, an
octave higher. 210-228 Similar to 191-209,
up a 3rd at first.
3.2 Fughetta
A fughetta is a short fugue - a polyphonic composition
written in several parts (or "voices", usually three to
five), based on a single theme (the "subject"). The subject
is presented by each voice in turn at the beginning of the
fugue.
This fugue contains only two voices (soprano and bass).
The tonal centre is A. It is in the standard fugal form, but
very concise.
Exposition - subject or answer presented by each voice
in turn.
b.1-2 Subject in Soprano, beginning on A, with
tonic pedal in Bass. 3-4 Real Answer in
Bass, beginning on E, Countersubject in
Soprano.
Modulatory Section
5-7 Episode: fragments of the Subject
(particularly the semiquavers from the
second beat of bar 2) are used in imitation
and inversion.
7-9 Subject in Soprano, beginning on F#,
Countersubject in Bass.
9-11 Inversion of Subject in Bass.
12-13 Partial inversion of Countersubject in
Soprano.
Recapitulation - subject returns in the original tonality.
14-15 Subject in Bass, beginning on A,
Countersubject in Soprano.
16-17 Real Answer in Soprano, beginning on E,
Countersubject in Bass.
18-21 Episode: similar to the earlier episode.
22-24 Coda: Subject in Bass, beginning on A and
ending on Bb.
The answer is a transposition of the subject up a 5th or
down a 4th. Since the answer in this fugue is an exact
6
transposition of the subject, it is described as a real
answer rather than a tonal answer. There are several
episodes (contrasting passages) making use of the
standard fugal techniques of imitation and inversion, but
no examples of stretto (where two or more subjects are
heard simultaneously, like a canon).
20th Century characteristics of this piece include:
• avoidance of major or minor scales in
establishing the tonality.
• highly chromatic, and often tonally ambiguous.
• use of non-triadic harmony, and frequent
dissonance.
• use of baroque structures or genres (neo-
baroque).
• angular melodies, often containing wide leaps.
• free metrical structure (in toccatina).
• use of the extreme registers of the keyboard.
• absence of romantic sentiment.
7
Sonata in F minor, Op. 54
Ludwig van Beethoven
4 Biography
Ludwig Van Beethoven was born in 1770 in Bonn,
Germany as the son of a court musician. His talent for the
piano was soon realized and he gave his first public
performance at the age of eight. Beethoven's father
wanted to promote him as the next child prodigy, another
Mozart.
Nevertheless, Beethoven was employed as a court
musician in Bonn from 1787. At the age of 17 he studied
briefly under both Haydn and Mozart, although it was
certainly not a satisfying relationship for Beethoven. It
turns out that events in Beethoven's life greatly affected
(or seem to have affected) him writing. Because of this
Beethoven's musical output is very episodic. As we shall
see, there are three main periods in Beethoven's life,
known simply as the early, middle, and late periods.
In 1792 he settled permanently Vienna, studying briefly
with Joseph Haydn and then with Johann
Albrechtsberger. After leaving Bonn, Beethoven never
became directly attached to another court; he nevertheless
developed friendships with a number of aristocrats who
were keen musicians, including Count Waldstein, Baron
van Sweiten and Prince Lichnowsky, who supported him
financially.
In 1801, Beethoven became aware of the first signs of
deafness; by 1824 he was totally deaf. In spite of this and
poor health, he continued to write music of great genius
and strength of character.
5 Musical style
Beethoven underwent three major periods in his music
career. Each period shows his different musical style.
5.1 Vienna period (1792-1802)
Beethoven left Bonn and settled Vienna in the middle of
November 1792. Then he studied with Franz Joseph
Haydn during the first decade in Vienna and received
some of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's musical style;
therefore, about half of Beethoven's thirty-two piano
sonatas composed in his first Vienna period (1792-1802)
show Haydn-Mozart Classic influences.
Although Beethoven's music was in the stage of imitation
at this stage, his music in this period seems stronger but
rougher in texture and dynamic contracts than those of
his predecessors. Beethoven's early piano sonatas show
characteristic of symphonies (or string quartets) rather
than piano sonatas because of minuet movement,
Mannheim rockets (sudden dynamic rise over a wide
range in broken chord or tremolo), quartet harmonization,
and a symphonic slow introduction.
Important works from this period include:
• 6 String Quartets (Op.18)
• The first 10 piano sonatas (through to Op.14)
• Symphonies 1 and 2.
5.2 Heroic period (1803-1816)
After Beethoven had mastered the Haydn-Mozart Classic
styles and achieved a degree of economic success, his
middle period (1802-1814) arose. Beethoven's musical
style in this period was more like the Romantic rather
than the Classic; he more sought the potential of dramatic
musical expressions in emotion rather than musical form.
Beethoven's piano sonatas between 1802 and 1814 show
the rise of the Romanticism and his heroic inspirations in
Music.
8
Beethoven's compositions in his middle period (also
known as his heroic style era) obviously show the
Romantic approach. An increase in degree of contrast
that affected the scoring and dynamics gave a varied
strength to the music. In addition, the scherzo movements
replaced the minuets of the Classic four-movement
sonata plan in many cases. Beethoven's music in this
period expressed much more instabilities in harmonic,
tonal fashion, and rhythm. Climax and resolution tended
to be delayed, and the development became extremely
large.
Important works from this period include:
• Symphonies 3 to 8
• Egmont
• Coriolan overture
• Fidelio
• Piano concertos in G and Eb
• Violin concerto
• String quartets:
o Op.59 No.1-3 Rasumovsky
o Op.74 Harp
o Op.95 Quartetto serioso
• Piano sonatas through to Op.90
5.3 Isolated/creative period (1817-1827)
About 1815, Beethoven was almost totally deaf; it was
arrival of his last period. Because of deafness, he was
isolated; consequently, the last five sonatas he composed
in the final period seem more communications between
the composer (artist) and music (art) than
communications between the composer and public
audience. Consequently, he achieved fulfillment in his
compositions, and experimented with non-standard (at
that time) musical form, structure, and tonal plan.
Important works from this period include:
• Last 5 piano sonatas
• Diabelli Variations
• Missa solemnis
• 9
th
Symphony
• String Quartets (op.127,130-132, 135)
• Grosse Fuge (originally the finale of Op.130).
6 Compositional Overview
• 9 symphonies
• 11 overtures
• Incidental music to plays
• 1 violin concerto
• 5 piano concertos
• 16 string quartets
• 9 piano trios
• 10 violin sonatas
• 5 cello sonatas
• 32 large piano sonatas
• Numerous piano variations
• 1 oratorio
• 1 opera
• 2 Masses (including the Missa Solemnis in D)
• Arias, songs and 1 song cycle
7 Analysis of Piece
A sonata (from the Italian "to sound") is a work for one
or two instruments in several contrasting movements.
The virtuoso element is employed in op. 54 in F major,
the octave passage in the first movement. However, some
opinions suggest that this sonata is one of the weakest
sonatas, which Beethoven had ever written.
7.1 First movement - Tempo d'un Menuetto
This movement is in the style of a Minuet, with two trios
and a coda. The themes of the Minuet undergo variations
on each subsequent appearance.
Minuet I All in F major.
b. 1-4 Theme A, moving through 3 octaves, ending
with a perfect cadence.
5-8 Theme A, repeated exactly.
9-16 Theme B, also moving through 3 octaves,
ending with a perfect cadence.
There is a tonic pedal in the first four bars,
and some chromaticism.
17-24 Theme B, slightly ornamented.
Trio I Modulating to the dominant.
25-38 Fugato passage, containing sequences and
chromaticism.
Begins in F major and modulates to C major,
ending with a perfect cadence.
Much stronger (sempre f, sf) and more
detached than the Minuet.
39-54 The fugato passage is now transposed into Ab
major.
Modulations by 3rds (C-Ab) are
characteristic of the early romantic style.
55-69 Begins with a sequence in F minor then Db
major.
9
Returns to F major/minor with a dominant
chord in b.62,
followed by a repeating figure based around
the dominant note.
Minuet II All in F major.
70-77 Theme A, heard twice, decorated with
appoggiaturas the second time.
78-93 Theme B, heard twice, with appoggiaturas
and rhythmic changes the 2nd time.
Trio II Remaining in F major.
94-105 The fugato passage, now abridged, ending on
a dominant 7th. Minuet III All in F major.
106-113 Theme A, heard twice, decorated with
semiquaver filigree the second time. 114-131
Theme B, heard twice, with semiquaver
filigree and an extended ending. 132-136
Transition, beginning with trills and leading
to a brief cadenza (Adagio).
Coda All in F major.
137-154 Based on bars 3-4 of the main theme, usually
with a tonic pedal in the bass.
7.2 Second movement - Allegretto
This movement has a perpetual motion character, like a
Toccata. It is in a binary (AB) form with coda. In
Section A the main theme is stated, and it is continuously
developed in Section B.
Section A Statement of the theme.
b.1-20 Theme introduced in F major in imitative
counterpoint.
Modulates to C major (dominant) in b.12,
with tonic pedal in b. 13-17.
Section B Development of the theme.
21-36 Theme restated in A major (a modulation by
3rd) then D minor from b.29.
37-44- Transition passage, with bass descending in
semitones to the dominant of G.
45-60 Opening of main theme in G major, C minor
(b.51) and F minor (b.59).
61-74 Second half of the main theme in Db major,
leading to a free fantasia with
chromatic sequences.
75-98 Figure based on the first bar of the main
theme in Ab major - Db major (b.79),
then another sequence traversing many keys
and eventually ending in C major.
99-114 Opening of the main theme in C major,
returning to F major around b. 109.
115-129 An apparent recapitulation of the main theme
in F major, but refusing to remain
in the tonic, modulating to Bb major in b.121
and Db major in b.127.
130-133 Transition, with chromatically descending
bass.
134-161 Figure based on the first bar of the theme in
C major - Bb major - Ab major,
followed by a free fantasia which arrives in F
minor in b.152, with a soft passage of respite
based around the dominant.
Coda Piu Allegro.
162-188 All in F major, with some chromaticism,
based on the main theme. There are perfect
cadences in b.169-170 and 179-180, and a
tonic pedal in b.184-188.
The early romantic characteristics of the piece include:
• a freer approach to form than in Beethoven's
earlier works (i.e. only two movements, neither
of which is in Sonata Form.
• modulations mostly to closely related keys,
though sometimes to more distant keys, or
between keys which are a 3rd apart.
The classical characteristics of the piece include:
• light, elegant style.
• short balanced phrases, often based around scales
or broken chords.
10
Etude Op. 25 No. 1 – Aeolian Harp
Frédéric Chopin
8 Biography
Frédéric François Chopin, (March 1, 1810 October 17,
1849) was a Polish pianist and composer. He is widely
regarded as one of the most famous, influential, admired
and prolific composers for the piano.
claimed child prodigy in his homeland. At the age of 20,
he left for Paris and made a career as a performer and
teacher as well as a composer. He had a turbulent 10-year
relationship with the French writer George Sand
(Baroness Dudevant) from 1837 to 1847. Always in
fragile health, he succumbed to pulmonary tuberculosis at
the age of 39.
Chopin wrote almost exclusively for the piano, solo
or accompanied, and his compositions are widely
considered to be among the pinnacles of the
instrument's repertoire. Although his music is among
the most technically demanding for the instrument,
Chopin's style emphasizes poetry, nuance, and
expressive depth rather than mere technical display.
He invented some musical forms, but his most
significant innovations were within existing
structures such as the piano sonata, waltz, nocturne,
étude, prelude and Polonaise. His works are often
cited as among the mainstays of Romanticism in
nineteenth-century classical music.
8.1 Subperiods of the composer’s life
8.1.1 Formative years
The family moved to Warsaw in October 1810. The
young Chopin's musical talent was apparent early on in
his life, and in Warsaw he gained a reputation as a
"second Mozart". At the age of 7 he was already the
author of two polonaises (in G minor and B-flat major),
the first being published in the engraving workshop of
Father Cybulski, director of the School of Organists and
one of the few music publishers in Poland. The prodigy
was featured in the Warsaw newspapers, and "little
Chopin" became the attraction at receptions given in the
aristocratic salons of the capital. He also began giving
public charity concerts. At one concert, he is said to have
been asked what he thought the audience liked best. 7-
year-old Chopin replied, "My shirt collar." He performed
his first piano concert at age 8. His first professional
piano lessons, given to him by the violinist Wojciech
Zywny (born 1756 in Bohemia), lasted from 1816 to
Chopin's skills soon surpassed those of his teacher.
The further development of Chopin's talent was
supervised by Wilhelm Würfel (born 1791 in
Bohemia). This renowned pianist, a professor at the
Warsaw Conservatory, gave Chopin valuable
(although irregular) lessons in playing organ, and
possibly piano. From 1823 to 1826, Chopin attended
the Warsaw Lyceum, where his father was a
professor. In the autumn of 1826, Chopin began
studying music theory, figured bass, and
composition with the composer Józef Elsner (born
1769 in Silesia) at the Warsaw Conservatory.
Chopin's contact with Elsner may date to as early as
1822, and it is certain that Elsner was giving Chopin
informal guidance by 1823.
11
In 1829 in Warsaw, Chopin heard Niccolò Paganini
play, and he also met the German pianist and
composer Johann Nepomuk Hummel. It was also
back in 1829 that Chopin met his first love, a singing
inspired Chopin to put the melody of the human
voice into his works. Chopin also paid his first visit
to Vienna in that year, where he gave two piano
performances and received mixed notices, including
many very favourable reviews and others that
criticised the small tone he produced from the piano.
In Warsaw in December he performed the premiere
of his Piano Concerto in F minor at the Merchants'
Club. He gave the first performance of his other
piano concerto, in E minor at the National Theatre
on 17 March 1830. He visited Vienna again in 1830,
playing his two piano concertos.
In Vienna, he learned about the November Uprising
and decided not to return to Poland, thus becoming
one of the émigrés of the Great Polish Emigration.
He stayed in Vienna for a few more months before
visiting Munich and Stuttgart (where he learned of
Poland's occupation by the Russian army), and
arrived in Paris early in October. He had already
composed a body of important compositions,
including his two piano concertos and some of his
Études Op. 10.
8.1.2 Career in Paris
In Paris, Chopin was
introduced to some of
the foremost pianists
of the day, including
Friedrich Kalkbrenner,
Ferdinand Hiller and
Franz Liszt, and he
formed personal
friendships with the
composers Hector
Berlioz, Felix
Mendelssohn, Charles-Valentin Alkan, and
Vincenzo Bellini (beside whom he is buried in the
Père Lachaise). His music was already admired by
many of his composer contemporaries, among them
Robert Schumann who, in his famous review of the
Variations on "La ci darem la mano", Op. 2, wrote:
"Hats off, gentlemen! A genius".
From Paris, Chopin made various visits and tours. In
1834, with Hiller, he visited a Rhenish Music
Festival at Aachen organised by Ferdinand Ries.
Here Chopin and Hiller met up with Mendelssohn
and the three went on to visit Düsseldorf, Koblenz
and Cologne, enjoying each other's company and
learning and playing music together.
Chopin participated in several concerts during his
years in Paris. The programs of these concerts
provide some idea of the richness of Parisian artistic
life during this period, such as the concert on March
23 1833 in which Chopin, Liszt and Hiller played
the solo parts in a performance of Johann Sebastian
Bach's concerto for three harpsichords, or the
concert on March 3 1838 when Chopin, Charles-
Valentin Alkan, Alkan's teacher Pierre Joseph
Zimmerman and Chopin's pupil Adolphe Gutman
played Alkan's 8-hand arrangement of Beethoven's
seventh symphony.
A distinguished English amateur described seeing
Chopin at a salon
Imagine a delicate man of
extreme refinement of mien and
manner, sitting at the piano and
playing with no sway of the
body and scarcely any
movement of the arms,
depending entirely upon his
narrow feminine hand and
slender fingers. The wide
arpeggios in the left hand,
maintained in a continuous
stream of tone by the strict
legato and fine and constant use
of the damper pedal, formed a
harmonious substructure for a
wonderfully poetic cantabile.
His delicate pianissimo, the
ever-changing modifications of
tone and time (tempo rubato)
were of indescribable effect.
Even in energetic passages he
12
scarcely ever exceeded an
ordinary mezzoforte.
In 1835 Chopin visited his family in Karlsbad,
they lived, and then to Warsaw. He returned to Paris
via Dresden, where he stayed for some weeks, and
then Leipzig where he met up with Mendelssohn,
Robert Schumann and Clara Wieck. However on the
return journey he had a severe bronchial attack - so
bad that he was reported dead in some Polish
newspapers.
In 1836 Chopin was engaged to a seventeen-year-old
Polish girl named Maria W
insisted that the engagement be kept secret. The
engagement was called off in the following year by
her family.
8.1.3 Chopin and George Sand
In 1836, at a party hosted by Countess Marie
d'Agoult, mistress of fellow composer Franz Liszt,
Chopin met Amandine-Aurore-Lucile Dupin,
Baroness Dudevant, better known by her pseudonym
George Sand. She was a French Romantic writer,
noted for her numerous love affairs with such
prominent figures as Prosper Merimée, Alfred de
Musset (1833–34), Alexandre Manceau (1849–65),
and others.
The composer initially did not consider her
attractive. "Something about her repels me," he said
to his family. However, in an extraordinary letter
in June 1837, she debated whether to let Chopin go
with Mari
another affair in order to start a relationship with
Chopin. Sand had strong feelings for and was
attracted to Chopin, and pursued him until a
relationship began.
A notable episode in their time together was a
turbulent and miserable winter on Mallorca (1838–
1839), where they had problems finding habitable
accommodation and ended up lodging in the scenic,
but stark and cold Valldemossa monastery. Chopin
also had problems having his Pleyel piano sent to
him. It arrived from Paris after a great delay, to be
stuck at the Spanish customs who demanded a large
import duty. He could only use it for a little more
than three weeks; the rest of the time he had to
compose on a rickety rented piano to complete his
Preludes (Op. 28).
During the winter, the bad weather had such a
serious impact on Chopin's health and his chronic
lung disease that, to save his life, he, George Sand
and her two children were compelled to return first
to the Spanish mainland where they reached
Barcelona, and then to Marseille where they stayed
for a few months to recover. Although his health
improved, he never completely recovered from this
bout. He complained about the incompetence of the
doctors in Mallorca: "The first said I was going to
die; the second said I had breathed my last; and the
third said I was already dead."
Chopin spent the summers of 1839 until 1843 at
Sand's estate in Nohant. These were quiet but
productive days, during which Chopin composed
many works. On his return to Paris in 1839, he met
the pianist and composer Ignaz Moscheles.
In 1845 a serious problem emerged in Chopin's
relationship with Sand at the same time as a further
deterioration in Chopin's health. Their relationship
was further soured in 1846 by family problems; this
was the year in which Sand published Lucrezia
Floriani, which is quite unfavourable to Chopin. The
story is about a rich actress and a prince with weak
health, and it is possible to interpret the main
characters as Sand and Chopin. The family problems
finally brought an end to their relationship in 1847.
9 Compositions
9.1 Piano:
• 4 ballades
• 1 barcarolle
• 1 berceuse
13
• 1 bolero
• 2 bourrées
• 1 cantabile
• 1 contredanse
• 3 écossaises
• 27 études
• 3 fantaisies (including the Fantaisie-
Impromptu and the Polonaise-Fantaisie)
• 1 fugue
• 4 impromptus (3 if you exclude the
Fantaisie-Impromptu)
• 57 mazurkas
• 21 nocturnes
• 18 polonaises (15 if you exclude the
Polonaise-Fantaisie and the curious hybrid
piece containing a section for piano solo
(Andante spianato), and a section for piano
and orchestra (Grande Polonaise brillante).
• 27 préludes
• 5 rondos
• 4 scherzos
• 4 sonatas
• 20 waltzes
9.2 Piano and Orchestra
• 2 piano concertos
• 4 other works — Variations on Là ci darem
la mano; Krakowiak; Grande Fantaisie on
Polish Airs; Andante spianato and Grande
Polonaise brillante
9.3 Voice
• 20 songs in Polish, for voice and piano
9.4 Chamber Works
• 1 piano trio for violin, cello and piano
• 1 sonata for cello and piano
• 2 other works for cello and piano
Chopin composed 3 books of Etudes, the first 2 books,
Opus 10 and Opus 25 contained 12 each, and the third
which was numbered posthumously, Opus 27, contained
3. Each of the etudes in Opus 10 had a partner in Opus
25. The partner to Op. 25 No. 1 is Op 10. No. 11. They
are similar in that they both contain the same
configuration, and pivoting and rotary movement.
10 Analysis of Piece
An etude is a composition written to train the performer
in a specific technique. Usually the entire piece is based
on a single thematic idea or motive that contains the
particular difficulty. This etude is designed to develop
long cantabile phrases in the right hand over a broken
chord accompaniment in the left hand. It is also known as
the Aeolian Harp.
This etude is in ternary form with a coda.
Section A
b. 1-16 Consists of two 8-bar phrases, the
first ending with an imperfect
cadence in Ab major, moving briefly
into F minor (b.4 and 6) and Eb
major (b. 7). The second phrase is
the same as the first, ending in a
perfect cadence in C major.
Section B
b. 17-36 Begins in F minor, moving via
sequence to Ab major (b. 19) and C
minor
(b. 21), then to Ab major (b. 24),
returning to Ab major in b. 26. The
remainder of this section makes use
of chromaticism, pitch range,
dynamic intensity and a dominant
pedal point from b. 31-35. There is
an interrupted cadence in b. 28-29
and a perfect cadence in b. 35-36.
Section A & Coda
b. 37-49 All in Ab major, makes use of a
tonic pedal point.
14
Île de feu – Island of fire
Olivier Messiaen
11 Biography
One of the most unique and uncompromising composers
of the modern era, Olivier Messiaen introduced many
stylistic innovations into the stagnating classical idiom
throughout the course of his career. Very early in his life
he began to develop an interest in music, composing and
performing on the piano and investigating the scores of
various operas. At the age of eleven he enrolled at the
Paris Conservatoire, where he would spend a substantial
portion of his life - attending as a student from 1919 to
1930 and returning as an instructor between 1941 and
1978. By 1929 - the year of his first published work,
Eight Preludes for Piano - he had already developed his
own modal system, which he would outline more fully
over the next six years.
In 1931, after completing his studies, Messiaen assumed
the role of Titular Organist at L'Église de la Trinité in
Paris, a position he would maintain for the rest of his life.
Utilizing the exceptionally wide range of textures
available from the organ at La Trinité, he developed a
(not entirely favorable) reputation for his adventurous
improvisations on the instrument, as well as composing a
number of organ cycles over the years. Although a deeply
religious person himself, Messiaen's peculiar approach
did not endear him to Catholic authorities, who would
frequently direct scathing public criticism against him for
what they considered to be 'vulgar' music.
Throughout the 1930s Messiaen continued to develop his
methodology of "modes of limited transposition" and
"non-retrogradable rhythms", both in his compositions
and through published theoretical works. With a few
other like-minded composers he founded the Jeune
France collective in 1936, issuing a manifesto and
organizing concerts until the outbreak of World War II,
when circumstances compelled the group to disband. As
were many of his generation, Messiaen was drafted into
service during the mobilization of France; following the
Nazi invasion, he would end up spending all of 1941 in a
prisoner of war camp in Sileisia. It was during his time in
the camp that he would compose one of his best-known
works, Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End
of Time).
Upon his release, he began his long tenure as a professor
at the Paris Conservatoire. Free from many of the musical
prejudices of the time, Messiaen became popular among
students but was never particularly well-liked by the
fuddy-duddy establishment. Among the future notable
names that benefited from his tutelage were composers
Pierre Boulez, Iannis Xenakis and Karlheinz Stockhausen
- although many of these would later develop their own
inflexible prejudices and heap bile upon their former
teacher. An exception to this - the remarkable pianist
Yvonne Loriod - would return Messiaen's encouragement
with a long-standing support of her mentor's music; most
of the works he would compose throughout the remainder
of the 1940s contained parts written especially for her.
In the 1950s Messiaen turned to even more abstracted
apporaches to composition, exploring the approaches of
twelve-tone and serial music (his Mode de Valeurs et
d'intensities was the first piece to fully utilize the serial
method). This proved a short-lived detour, however, and
his subsequent work would be dominated by the two
predominant interests in his life: his religious beliefs and
his love of the natural world. An enthusiatic
ornithologist, he spent an enormous amount of time
translating the songs of birds into musical notation; most
of his compositional output for the remainder of his life
would draw upon these transcriptions.
12 Compositions
12.1.1 Opera
• Saint François d’Aussise (uses 3 ondes
martenot).
15
12.1.2 Orchestral
• Les offrandes oubliées;
• L’ascension;
• Oiseaux exotiques;
• 7 haikai; Turangalila-symphonie for piano,
orchestra and the ondes martenot;
• Alarm clock of the Birds for piano and small
orchestra.
12.1.3 Vocal and Choral music
• 12 rechants for 12 voices;
• La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-
Christ;
• Poémes pour Mi for soprano and pianoforte;
Harawi.
12.1.4 Piano music
• 8 preludes;
• Visions de l’amen, for piano due;
• Vingt regards sur l’enfant Jésus;
• Piece pour le tombeau de Paul dukas;
• Catalogue d’oiseaux (catalogue of the birds);
• Rondeau.
12.1.5 Organ music
• L’ascension;
• La natavité du Seigneur;
• Les corps glorieux (the bodies glorified).
12.1.6 Chamber music
• Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the end
of time) for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano;
• Theme and variations for piano and violin.
13 Analysis of Piece
Île de feu (Island of fire), composed in 1950, is the first
of Messiaen's four etudes de rythme; the other three are
Modes de valeurs et d'intensités, Neumes rythmiques and
He de feu 2. The second piece, Modes de valeurs et
d'intensités, is historically interesting, as Messiaen
applied serial techniques to duration and intensity, a path
he decided not to pursue further himself, but one which
strongly influenced the integral serial works of Boulez
and Stockhausen.
Île de feu 1 has a tonal centre of E. A recurring theme
gives the piece a rondo structure. Some of Messiaen's
characteristic techniques found in this piece include:
• irregular note groupings and bar lengths.
• use of non-retrogradable rhythms.
• frequent accents.
• use of angular melodies, including those derived
from birdsong.
• use of recurring intervals, especially the tritone.
• use of modes of limited transposition
• use of chords for their resonance or colour rather
than their harmonic function.
• use of the extreme range of the keyboard.
• exploration of the percussive qualities of the
piano.
A b.1-2 Presque vif. Main theme (martelé) in right hand.
The theme is centred on E; it begins and ends
on E, and in between each return of the E
there is an increasing number of other notes
(i.e. 1 - G#, then 2 - F-F#, then 3 - F-C#-G).
Most of the notes of the melody form a
chromatic pitch cluster above E (i.e. E-F-F#-
G-G#). The rhythm is irregular, although the
return of each E usually coincides with an
implied beat. The first three notes ( ± Å ±) are
an example of a non-retrogradable rhythm.
The left hand plays at the extreme bass of the
piano; the notes are used for their percussive
resonance rather than their actual pitch. The
left hand part is accented; these accents
operate completely independently from the
right hand melody, and occur at
progressively shorter then longer intervals
(i.e. there are 5 semiquavers between the first
and second accents, then 3,1,4,7 and 17).
B 3-4 Très vif. Begins with a rising sequence,
forming one of Messiaen's most frequently
used chords - a perfect 5th plus a tritone (Db-
Ab-D$], Ab-Eb-A$, etc.).
Bar 4 returns to the extreme bass. There is a
bitonal feel - the right hand is mostly on
black keys [Eb minor] while the left hand is
all on white keys [A minor]; the actual
pitches used, though, are of less important
than the sonority or colour of the chords.
A 5-6 Modéré. Main theme in left hand, two
octaves higher than originally, combined
16
with birdsong (oiseau) in the right. The
birdsong makes particular use of tritones,
major 7ths and minor 9ms, as well as
repeated notes. The passage freely uses all 12
chromatic pitches.
C 7-11 Presque vif. This episode has a more
expressive feel; it is in the middle register of
the keyboard rather than at the extremes, and
is less percussive in character. The harmony
is still quite dissonant, with many tritones in
the right hand and major 7ths or minor 9ths
in the left. The harmonies are often derived
from semitone clusters -e.g. the left hand
chords in b.7-9 come from E-[F]-F#-G-G#-
A-A#-B.
A b. 12 Très modéré, lourd. Main theme (first half
only) returns, mostly in the left hand, Jff. The
right hand chords are mostly tritone + perfect
5th, as introduced in b.3.
D 13-20 Très vif. This episode has an energetic
character, with many semiquavers. It
contains numerous sequences of recurring
intervals (b.13, b.15, b.17), often with the
black and white key bitonality (as introduced
in b.4). The passage in b. 19-20 is based on
one of the modes of limited transposition -
specifically, a 10-note scale consisting of two
sets of five notes, each a tritone apart (C-C#-
D-D#-F and F#-G-Ab-A-B). A similar mode
can be observed in b.14 (C#-D-D#-E-F# and
G-G#-A-A#-C). The left hand part alone in
b. 19-20 is based on a more familiar mode of
alternating tones and semitones, known as
the octatonic scale (C-D-D#-F-F#-Ab-A-B).
A 21-23 Très modere, lourd. Main theme, mostly in
the left hand, in a chordal texture. The right
hand has parallel chords of minor 2nd +
perfect 5th, as introduced in b.15. The theme
is extended in b.22, using some further short
examples of non-retrogradable rhythms (± Ä ±
and ± Å ±) before coming to rest on a unison
tonic note in b.23.
E 24-25 Très vif. Glissandi or rising scales, with
further black/white key bitonality.
26-35 The left hand has a transformation of
the main theme in double octaves, remaining
clearly centred on E, and beginning with the
same rising and falling major 3rd (though
now using the rhythm J J> J instead of j j* J
). The transformation is heard twice (b.26-30,
b.31-35); the second time is identical to the
first except that the last note is omitted.
The right hand has a countermelody
consisting of staccato semiquavers,
embellished with some acciaccatura. This
melody is centred on C, but freely chromatic.
The right hand melody is also heard twice,
but its second statement begins in the middle
of b.31 rather than at the start, so that it feels
independent of the left hand theme.
A b.36 Fragment of the main theme, with birdcall
countermelody (as in b.5).
37-40 Coda. Begins with another sequence of
parallel chords (now in contrary motion, but
still using a black/white key bitonality). It
ends in the extreme bass, with the tonic note
strongly reiterated in b.39-40.
Presque vif means rather (or almost)
lively.
martelé means hammered;
percuté means percussive (i.e. struck).
Très vif means very lively.
sec means dryly.
Modéré means at a moderate speed.
piu f means louder.
lourd means heavy.
mf (résonance) means moderately loud, but
resonant.
dr[oite] dessus means right hand above the
left.
g[auche] means left hand.
avec un pen dé pedale means with a little pedal,
gliss[ando] touches blanches means white
key glissando.
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