Thursday, April 3, 2008

Marion Bauer

Entry 2

Though not well known today, in the 1920s Marion Bauer was part of a small but growing community of female composers in America. Most notably, she was the first American student of the great pedagogue Nadia Boulanger. Bauer, in turn, taught Ruth Crawford. She was also friends with Amy Beach and Miriam Gideon. Her career included jobs that would not have been attained by women in previous generations. She was a prominent author, writing numerous articles in Musical Quarterly and Musical Leader. She was also a well-respected educator, holding a position as a music professor at NYU for twenty-five years from 1926 to 1951. She was also on the executive board of several composer's societies like the Society for Publications of American Music and the American Composer's Alliance. Unlike previous women composers to gain fame, though, Bauer was not widely known as a performer, but she certainly kept a busy schedule as a teacher, author, executive and lecturer. Despite this, she still found time to write some wonderful music.

The selections of her work that I listened to for this entry are the American Youth Concerto, op. 36 and the Symphonic Suite for Strings, op. 33. Though Bauer was a proponent of twentieth century music (even composing a few twelve tone works), these two pieces clearly illustrate her close ties to tradition. Both are written in a basically tonal style, though the harmonies are advanced and chromatic. Both are also in three movement Classical forms. Yet her music does not sound old, her style is imbued with modern techniques in orchestration, harmony, instrumentation, melody, and especially the use of folk and popular style.

The American Youth Concerto is unique in several regards. It was written in 1943 for the High School of Music and Art in New York City. Despite being written for younger musicians, Bauer did not write a simple piece—my high school never performed a piece as complex as this. Upon first listening one may wonder what instrument is the soloist in this concerto. The first movement clearly features the piano in the soloist role, including a cadenza. But the cadenza is exceptionally melodic and not virtuosic. It acts more as a solo recapitulation than a spot for the soloist to show off. The second movement, though, shows off the beauty of Bauer's orchestrations. Winds and strings carry the bulk of the melody in lush, full orchestrations. The pianist adds frequent comments on and embellishments to the orchestral textures, but the part does not have the featured soloist quality of a Classical or Romantic concerto.

The last movement is the most American sounding of the three. It is a melting pot of dance style accompaniments. In the opening, the piano and orchestra trade lightly swinging ragtime-like phrases, but this is soon interrupted by a jazzy saxophone soloist that finds the orchestra playing an accompaniment figure reminiscent of a Jewish bulgar—a nod to both Bauer's Jewish heritage and the folk dance that was popular at the time. The use of the saxophone is a very unique feature of this work. Even today, this instrument is rarely used in the context of an orchestra, but here it is treated as an equal with the piano. Soon after this first saxophone feature, the instrument reappears with an even longer solo, this time accompanied only by the piano. This duet evokes the spirit of jazz that was in the air in New York in the 1930s and 40s. The saxophone player bends and smears pitches while playing a melody evocative of a Negro spiritual. This melody is then fleshed out in a dramatic chorale-type orchestration, utilizing all of the sections of the orchestra to bring out the emotional quality of the tune. This ABA movement is then rounded out by a recapitulation of the opening ragtime feel. Overall, it is a varied and emotional trip through the cultural stew of America, and specifically New York, in the beginning of the twentieth century.

The other piece that I listened to was the Symphonic Suite for Strings, op. 33. This work does not have the variety of sound and texture that the Concerto has. One reason for this rests in the instrumentation. The string orchestra is blessed with one of the most homogeneous sounds of any ensemble, due to the fact that all of the instruments are made of the same materials and have similar proportions. Orchestrationally, though, this means that the ensemble cannot produce as large a range of instrumental timbres that a full orchestra could. This puts much more importance on the melody, harmony, and rhythm of the work to provide interest. This work falls short in these aspects, though.

The piece shows the influence of older forms on Bauer's composing. Dance suites had been around since the Baroque era. Her suite is in three movements: Prelude: Andante, Interlude: Commodo, and Finale-Fugue: Allegro ma non troppo. In a break with tradition, though, none of these titles suggest a specific dance. Even though these types of concert suites were never intended to actually accompany dance, composers usually took some type of dance as a jumping off point for each movement. Bauer does not use these affectations and gives the pieces only generic names. The first two movements are tonal and homophonic. These movements are filled with a sense of melancholy and feature modern sounding melodies and harmonies, but the lack of sonic variety in the string orchestra becomes tiresome. The third movement most strongly ties Bauer to the past. It is in the form of a fugue and shows that she was intimately familiar with the music of J.S. Bach. The four-voice fugue maintains all of Bach contrapuntal ideas and textures, but adds a great deal of chromaticism to the harmonic language. Once again, though, the work is limited by a lack of color.

This work does not deserve to be added to the Classical Canon. It is a well put together piece of music and it could certainly appeal to a great deal of listeners, but it is not essential listening. Repeated listening to the work does not reveal extra depth or subtlety in the work. It is just like many other work in the genre.

American Youth Concerto, on the other hand, definitely deserves to be added to the standard repertoire for young groups. Few works written for this type of ensemble are worth real musical value. My experience with high school music has shown a great deal of dullness and repetitiveness. This work is varied and interesting—showcasing a wide variety of musical styles, colors, and textures. It would be a worthwhile experience for a group of talented young musicians to perform this work.

Mexican Composers

Entry 1


For this journal I listened to a collection of music by Mexican composers. All of these pieces were written between 1932 and 1950, yet they cover a wide range of styles and genres. The works range from transcriptions of Baroque and Classical pieces to modernist atonal works. They can be humorous and playful at times and wistfully sentimental at others. Some of the works feature Mexican folksongs, while others sound positively European. This recording portrays a wide and diverse musical scene in Mexico around the turn of the century. I had no idea that the Mexican music scene was so diverse and vibrant in the early twentieth century.


European classical music in the early twentieth century can be defined by a wave of nationalism. Composers from the various countries tried to create a style that drew upon the traditions, personalities, and melodies of their homelands. Across the ocean, Mexican composers were following this trend. Perhaps they were merely jumping on the bandwagon of nationalism because Europe had always been the center of musical development, but I believe there is a deeper explanation for this trend. The Mexican Revolution which lasted from 1910 to around 1920 had just recently freed Spain from the longtime rule of dictator Porfirio Diaz. Perhaps their new found social freedom inspired their nationalism much in the way that the creation of new European countries inspired its composers. The different artists presented here each tackled this nationalistic task with a different technique.

Like Bartók and some other European composers, Mexican composer Blas Galindo Dimas sought to incorporate native folk music into his works. Dimas' Sones de Mariachi from 1940, is a tribute to the Mexican mariachi band. The work is written for full orchestra, but the trumpets, clarinets, violins, and percussion—which often make up the core of a small mariachi group—are prominently featured. The work is light hearted, using traditional melodies and dance rhythms. It is in ABA form, with quick and happy A sections and a sentimental and lyrical B section. Harmonically, this piece is not very adventurous, staying decidedly tonal throughout. Dimas' use of the orchestral palette is wonderful, though. He takes the basic textures of a small mariachi group and expands them to encompass a whole orchestra. The dance-able rhythms and joyous rhythm make this a rousing listening experience. 


Rodolfo Halffter shows evidence of the influence Stravinsky had over Mexican (and most other) composers of the time. Halffter draws mostly on the master's later “neo-classical” style. He has two works presented on this CD. The first is three Classical harpsichord sonatas by Antonio Soler that Halffter arranged for full orchestra. The orchestrations are not particularly compelling, but show that he was highly aware of older musical styles and wished to share them with the people of his time. The second work is Obertura Festiva, op. 21, written in 1952. Despite being described as “neo-classical” this piece has numerous thoroughly modern features. His harmonic language is highly chromatic, yet never atonal, and his rapid shifts in orchestration show, yet again, the influence of Stravinsky. Often, he deals with juxtaposing blocks of sound, but, unlike Stravinsky, the melodic line will continue. It threads a path through the rapid textural and timbral changes. In these examples, Halffter shows how he wanted to combine the traditions of the past with new musical devices.


On this less modern side of the musical spectrum, Manuel Ponce's Estrallita shows the influence of European art and parlor songs. The piece was originally a song with piano accompaniment, but the version on the CD is an instrumental arrangement for string orchestra. It is a very simple tune, but with a distinctly Mexican flair. It has short phrases with many repeated notes that create a lively, almost frivolous character. The accompaniment style and are harmonization, though, are purely Romantic. This string version delivers the melody in a highly syrupy, sentimental way. This tune was very popular in its day and was probably distributed mostly by sheet music sales.


The star of this CD is undoubtedly Silvestre Revueltas. He was the only composer on this disc that I had heard of before, though only in passing, and I had never heard his music. The set includes three of his works: Janitizio (1933), Ocho por Radio (1933), and Sensemayá (1938). The last of these is Revueltas' most widely known piece. The piece is often compared to Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, and with good reason. Firstly, the pieces share similar programmatic stories. Sensemayá is based off of a poem describing the ritual killing of a snake—similar to Stravinsky tale of a young virgin's death. Primitive rhythms, haunting timbres, violent brass, dissonant voicings, and block-style changes are elements that both composers utilize in their pieces. Nonetheless, Sensemayá would probably not be confused for a Stravinsky work. Revueltas may have used some of Stravinsky's ideas, but he put his own nationalistic stamp on it. The main difference in Revueltas' style is his use of melody. While he does not quote folk tunes directly, the piece has a melodic line with a few large leaps and many repeated notes that is uncannily Mexican. Elements of Stravinsky technique of juxtaposing blocks of sound can be heard frequently in this piece, but the infectious melody always pervades despite radical style changes in the accompaniment. This technique can be heard often in Janitizio and Ocho por Radio, as well. Sometimes he juxtaposes musical blocks that share no instruments, but the melodic line will continue uninterrupted in a new voice. This gives the piece a unity and flow that Stravinsky did not strive for. The technique makes the piece more accessible because it is easier to follow.

Overall, Revueltas works are more predictable than Stravinsky's, especially in the rhythms, which tend to be more repetitive. His works show a light-hearted nature that seems to be a hallmark of the Mexican nationalist style.

Mexico certainly had a wide variety of music happening between 1930 and 1952, but there is little revolutionary. The works continue the nationalist trends of incorporating folk melodies and rhythms into the music, but the orchestrations, harmonies and forms are all drawing on the pioneering works of others. The one exception to this is Revueltas. His music, while drawing heavily on Stravinsky, shows more of a digestion of his break-throughs more than direct copying. It has a sense of daring and individuality that makes it compelling even today. Sensemayá is already a well-known piece played by many orchestras and it certainly deserves to be a part of the Canon. The other works on the disc, while charming and a worthwhile listen, are not essential to the understanding of Western music.