Victorian College of the Arts - Theses
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ItemAustralian piano music 1980-2010 from a pianist's perspective: a presentation of two performance events( 2011)The interpretation and performance of new Australian solo piano music 1980-2010 are both under-researched. The ten representative solo piano works upon which this thesis is based were written by two distinct generations of composers between 1980 and 1994, and 1994 and 2010 respectively. These two periods contain a wealth of compositions that range across numerous genres, styles, compositional methods, idioms and musical languages which, as I shall argue below, nevertheless constitute a degree of consistency in style and approach in each case. Due to a number of key historical, socio-cultural and professional factors, examination of the two periods reveals a multi-faceted shift in compositional style between the first and second generations. These factors include the composer’s professional development; the impact of Australianism, modernism, post-modernism and polystylism; the extraordinary growth of emphasis on pianistic virtuosity resulting from the commissioning of new works; and the reduction in the emphasis on national identity as expressed in references to the Australian landscape and Indigenous Australian music. External factors such as the support of commissions by the Australian Council for new works also play a role. This dissertation delineates the role of the pianist in the interpretation of the selected works and formulates a theory of performance that may be applied more generally to this oeuvre. I based my interpretations of this mostly atonal literature on a new model of dynamic form, derived from my assessment of the composers’ compositional methods, including the form or ‘shape’ of the dynamic markings throughout the score. In interpreting the styles, idioms and character, I examined the implications in the scores for the pianist’s gestures and approach to dynamic markings and sonic qualities. My theory of dynamic form is based on the notion that the dynamic markings throughout the score – referred to as ‘dynamic scheme’ – provide a general indication of dynamic intensity throughout a work. As the interpretative process progresses, the resulting ‘sketch’ of the dynamic form is tempered, or at times significantly altered, as other factors that influence variations in the dynamic intensity are taken into account. Traditional models of dynamic form, which tend to assume the inevitability of links between such musical elements as tempo, rhythmic vigour and harmony, run the risk of ignoring surprising new musical relationships that are continually presented by composers of new music. From the performer’s perspective, this methodology also has the benefit of ensuring that every facet of the music has been rigorously examined.