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- Creators: Bolanos, Gabriel
Description
This study compares the Hummel Concertos in A Minor, Op. 85 and B Minor, Op. 89 and the Chopin Concertos in E Minor, Op. 11 and F Minor, Op. 21. On initial hearing of Hummel's rarely played concertos, one immediately detects similarities with Chopin's concerto style. Upon closer examination, one discovers a substantial number of interesting and significant parallels with Chopin's concertos, many of which are highlighted in this research project. Hummel belongs to a generation of composers who made a shift away from the Classical style, and Chopin, as an early Romantic, absorbed much from his immediate predecessors in establishing his highly unique style. I have chosen to focus on Chopin's concertos to demonstrate this association. The essay begins with a discussion of the historical background of Chopin's formative years as it pertains to the formation of his compositional style, Hummel's role and influence in the contemporary musical arena, as well as interactions between the two composers. It then provides the historical background of the aforementioned concertos leading to a comparative analysis, which includes structural, melodic, harmonic, and motivic parallels. With a better understanding of his stylistic influences, and of how Chopin assimilated them in the creation of his masterful works, the performer can adopt a more informed approach to the interpretation of these two concertos, which are among the most beloved masterpieces in piano literature.
ContributorsYam, Jessica (Author) / Hamilton, Robert (Thesis advisor) / Levy, Benjamin (Committee member) / Ryan, Russell (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Temporal Creative Entanglement and the Composer’s Search for a Unique Voice is about some of the creative challenges inherent in the composing process. Creative entanglement is when a composer gets caught up—entangled—in the creative process and it tarnishes their sense of how to appropriately assemble the formal structure of a piece. The word temporal means that I’m focusing on how a lot of creative entanglement happens because of process / product disparities related to time. Process / product disparity is the term I use to describe the enormous differences between the experience of composing and the experience of hearing the premiere of a work. And, I bring up the composer’s search for a unique voice because composers are especially vulnerable to creative entanglement when they are trying to write in a new style. I try to identify some different ways a composer can become entangled by discussing some specific ways that people subconsciously process music (musical expectations and information flow). I draw on the works of David Huron, Fred Lerdahl, and John Sloboda, among others, to paint a picture of the different mental processes that occur during composing and listening. I discuss how schematic, veridical, and dynamic expectations work in the mind of composer and the listener, and how these relate to creative entanglement. I also discuss how the conception of large-scale form fits into this topic. In the conclusion, I offer some thoughts on approaching composing from the perspective of creative entanglement. To close, I offer a perspective about artistic satisfaction and composing.
ContributorsClay, William (Author) / Bolanos, Gabriel (Thesis advisor) / Temple, Alex (Committee member) / Knowles, Kristina (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021