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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/70844
Description
Title
The Choral Music of Elliott Carter
Author(s)
Detweiler, Greg Jeffrey
Issue Date
1985
Department of Study
Music
Discipline
Music
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
D.M.A.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Music
Abstract
Elliott Carter has been hailed as one of the most original composers of his generation. This recognition, however, only began after the completion of his last choral work in 1947. The choral works in themselves are, however, a significant body of compositions of great depth. It is the purpose of this paper to investigate these early works which have always taken a back seat to his enormous later accomplishments. The aim of the paper is to present analyses of the choral works which will allow fellow conductors to have a firmer musical grasp of these scores so that they will, in turn, be able to obtain better performances.
In order to gain insight into Carter's choral works, the first portion of the paper is occupied with analysis of his early life experiences and the impact of the musico-historical setting in which he wrote.
The remaining chapters contain detailed descriptive analyses of the seven choral pieces. Each of these analyses include: (a) an explanation of the meaning and a summary of the salient characteristics of the poem or prose passage which affects the music; (b) a summary of the musical materials and formal structure; (c) a narrative analysis of the tonal and formal events unfolding within the context of the work with special emphasis on shape and flow combined with (d) a discussion of the relationship of the music to the structure and various levels of meaning of the text; (e) evaluation of such problems as text audibility, prosody, and vocal ease; and (f) a summary of the piece's outstanding characteristics and the characteristics it shares with the music trends of its day and the later Carter works.
Flow and shape are emphasized in the analyses because of their primacy in Carter's thinking. Since the musical solutions usually have an intimate and intricate relationship with their texts, this complex relationship between word and music is also emphasized.
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