Ligeti’s Macroharmonies

A Graphical-Statistical Analysis of Book 3 of the Piano Etudes

verfasst von: Dr. Nicolas Namoradze

Verlag: Springer International Publishing

Buchreihe : Computational Music Science

Enthalten in: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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In the third and final book of his iconic piano etudes György Ligeti charts a new path relative to the rest of his musical output, representing a significant arrival in a composer’s oeuvre known for its stylistic transformations. This monograph is the first dedicated study of these capstone works, investigating them through a novel lens of statistical-graphical analysis that illuminates their compositional uniqueness as well as broader questions regarding the perception of stability in musical texture.

With nearly 200 graphical illustrations and a detailed commentary, this examination reveals the unique manner in which Ligeti treads between tonality and atonality—a key idea in his late style—and the centrality of processes related to broader scale areas (or “macroharmony”) in articulating structures and narratives. The analytical techniques developed here are a powerful tool for investigating macroharmonic stability that can be applied to a wide range of repertoire beyond these works.

This book is intended for graduate-level and professional music theorists, musicologists, performers and mathematicians.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter

Chapter 1. Introduction

Abstract

Let us begin by observing the opening page of the first etude of Book 3 of Ligeti’s piano etudes, Etude 15, White on White (Fig. 1.1). There is no varying of rhythm: it is a string of uninterrupted half-notes. The legato articulation is constant—as is the volume, given that there are no accents or dynamic changes. There is a general homogeneity of texture as most simultaneities consist of three notes, with the occasional dyad and tetrachord. The register is relatively constant, the passage occupying the central area of the keyboard. Importantly, the two hands are in canon: the left hand is an exact repetition of the right an octave below and a single pulse later. There is repetition in thematic material as well, given that bars 6–10 reiterate and reharmonize the melody presented in the first five bars. (In fact, the following bars 11–15 are an almost literal repetition of bars 1–5, with a written-out ritardando at the end.) Finally and crucially, the passage is entirely diatonic: there is no departure from the strict seven-pitch class framework, the white-note set.

Nicolas Namoradze

Chapter 2. Alternating Diatonic Qualities in Etude 15, White on White

Abstract

As mentioned in the introduction, the perhaps defining feature of the etudes of Book 3 is the restricting of the gamut of PCs used at any one time, as opposed to the freer chromatic saturation of his previous piano etudes. There is perhaps no more radical example of this than Etude 15, White on White, which for the majority of its duration does not stray at all from the white-note set—and the few black notes that do appear towards the end of the piece come across as specks of pepper in a sea of salt.

Nicolas Namoradze

Chapter 3. Gradual Disintegrations in Etude 16, Pour Irina

Abstract

Among the etudes of Book 3 it is the second one, Pour Irina (“For Irina”), that is perhaps the most reflective of the techniques Ligeti adapted from chaos theory in mathematics and often deployed in his music—namely, the introduction of a slight disturbances in a system that cause it to eventually spiral out of control. While this chaos principle is a primarily rhythmic one in his earlier work, in Etude 16 Ligeti applies it to scale area as well as tempo in a novel manner that makes the piece perhaps the greatest outlier among all of the 18 etudes. The central claim of this chapter is that Pour Irina is primarily a study in departure from the framework with which it opens; there is never a return home, but rather an arrival at a distant destination. This is effected by a number of processes through the etude, and each section approaches this question of disintegration in unique ways.

Nicolas Namoradze

Chapter 4. Articulating Ternary Structures in Etude 17, À bout de souffle

Abstract

Etude 17, À bout de souffle (“Breathless”) is the only etude of Book 3 not to contain any tempo changes: the entire work is one mad dash, Presto con bravura. However, this is not to say that it does not have a clearly defined structure. In fact, the nature of the etude’s formal design is among its most fascinating and surprising features.

Nicolas Namoradze

Chapter 5. Tonal Procedures in Etude 18, Canon

Abstract

Ligeti’s groundbreaking final piano etude is in two main sections. The bulk of the work is a Vivace poco rubato (Fig. 5.1) in unbroken running eighth notes that is then repeated in full even faster, Prestissimo—interestingly, the first appearance of the repeat symbol in all of his piano etudes. This is followed by a brief epilogue, Lento con tenerezza (Fig. 5.2), comprised of a string of trichords in each hand arriving at a final A-minor triad. Both sections are in canon: in the Vivace, the LH follows the RH two octaves lower with a delay of two RUs, whereas in the conclusion the LH is an octave down with a delay of a single RU. In the Vivace there are two voices in each hand (save for occasional single notes, which may be interpreted as unisons), making Canon is something of a double-note etude. This thick yet extremely rapid texture poses such extreme technical challenges that Ligeti originally considered calling the piece Casse doigt—“Fingerbreaker” (Steinitz 2003, 164).

Nicolas Namoradze

Chapter 6. Conclusion

Abstract

Beyond the significance of the A minor triad in Canon as the final chord of the piece (or indeed of the last work in Ligeti’s oeuvre) is its relation to the previous etudes of Book 3. As has been intimated in earlier chapters, there is something of a meta-harmonic progression taking place over the course of these four etudes. The conclusion of White on White is anchored on the A minor triad; Pour Irina ends with a section that articulates a movement from an A minor triad to an E major one; in À bout de souffle, the E minor triad (the first rhythmic and acoustic consonance of the work) announces the conclusion of the etude; and finally, Canon comes to a halt on an A minor triad. In each of the etudes, these triads are outliers in the texture, coming across as moments of particular importance to the listener. They also all take place in the conclusions of each etude, essentially functioning as capstones or final destinations.

Nicolas Namoradze

Backmatter

Titel: Ligeti’s Macroharmonies
verfasst von: Dr. Nicolas Namoradze
Verlag: Springer International Publishing
Electronic ISBN: 978-3-030-85694-6
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-85693-9
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-85694-6

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Über dieses Buch

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter

Chapter 1. Introduction

Chapter 2. Alternating Diatonic Qualities in Etude 15, White on White

Chapter 3. Gradual Disintegrations in Etude 16, Pour Irina

Chapter 4. Articulating Ternary Structures in Etude 17, À bout de souffle

Chapter 5. Tonal Procedures in Etude 18, Canon

Chapter 6. Conclusion

Backmatter

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