Jaime Mendoza-Nava (1925-2005) was an important Bolivian composer. In
addition to writing music for the concert stage, he worked as a composer of
film music in Los Angeles during the second half of the twentieth century.
His life and work remain greatly unstudied, with the majority of his
compositions existing only in manuscript form. The present study surveys
the available biographical information on the composer and supplements it
with new data collected through interviews with the composer’s family. The
information presented here focuses on the composer’s American period as
well as his personality traits. The study also examines the development of
musical nationalism in Bolivia and other important aspects of Bolivian
culture and society, thus creating a historical context through which key
influences on the composer are identified. This historical and cultural
information also contributes to an examination of Mendoza-Nava’s song
cycle *País de sombra* (1988). A close study of this work reveals Mendoza-Nava’s
sensitive setting of the poetry of Ricardo Jaimes Freyre (1868-1933) and
his musical references to his Bolivian heritage. A recording of the song
cycle by soprano Andrea Ramos and the current author and an edited copy of
the musical score conclude the study.
Hermann Ritter. These original compositions, written for viola alta, were published between 1878 and 1900. Without further reprint, these works are largely unknown by this generation of violists. Yet, these works are precious examples of viola alta repertoire from the late nineteenth century.
The viola alta was designed by Hermann Ritter with an instrumental length between 17 and 19 inches. Another version of this instrument was constructed with five strings, adding a high E-string. Higher pitches could then be played with relative ease in lower positions. Compositions for the viola alta often feature brilliant passages in the treble register and rarely showcase the sonority of the lower strings. Many of Ritter’s scores for the instrument are notated in the alto clef and contain numerous ledger lines. Due to the difficulty of reading the music and handling such a large instrument, the viola alta had a relatively short existence and its repertoire was soon forgotten.
Hermann Ritter actively promoted the viola alta during the late nineteenth century. His compositions featured the range of the instrument and captured the emotion and character of the late Romantic era. Ritter contributed a wealth of repertoire for the viola alta to increase its significance and importance. For today’s violist, it represents a body of work from the nineteenth century, and adds to the repertoire many wonderful, short, character pieces.
This document consists of a brief discussion of Hermann Ritter’s career and his contributions to the viola alta. Six of Ritter’s viola alta works are presented in order of difficulty with bowings and fingerings, along with a performer’s analysis and performance instructions. To aid ensemble issues, the revised version includes simplified piano parts. It is the author’s hope that this volume increases repertoire options for violists and becomes a valuable pedagogical resource.