Thesis (D.M.A.)--Boston University.

The term ballade is the French and German spelling of the English word "ballad" and the Italian ballata. Although each of these terms is derived from the Latin ballare, meaning "to dance," each denotes an entirely different meaning. The synonomous usage of these terms is definitely misleading (1,p. 67), Frederic Chopin, 1810-1849, was first to use this term as a title for piano compositions. The purpose of this study is to reveal the formal characteristics of each of the four ballades that Chopin wrote for solo piano and to determine,through a comparison of the similarities and differences, some identifying characteristics of a ballade. These characteristics will be illustrated through a formal analysis of each ballade.

xxi, 222 p. : ill., music. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / When published 1836, Chopin's first Ballade in G minor, Op. 23, was not only the first instrumental ballade of his own, but also the first ballade ever written without words. Since Chopin himself never disclosed any literature behind his idea, a question arises: how did he express the narrative nature of the Ballades in his purely instrumental music? The purpose of this dissertation is to explore Chopin's logic and the coherence that governs and connects every detail of the piece and how he "narrates" without words in his instrumental works. I use two compositional and analytical ideas established by Schoenberg-- Grundgestalt and tonal network--to explore Chopin's compositional idea. According to Schoenberg, the real compositional idea of tonal music is how balance is restored. The Grundgestalt becomes the source of conflict and unity throughout the Ballades while the story unfolds, and the balance is restored in a unique way in each Ballade. I attempt to apply two features of Grundgestalt : functional Grundgestalt , which is responsible for the piece's structural development, and motivic Grundgestalt , which creates thematic development. Another focus of the dissertation is how Chopin's excursion to the outskirts of the tonal boundary, the manifestation of octatonic pitch collections, was created and later assimilated into the tonal structure. Traditionally, the use of octatonic scales was considered a tool for much later compositions, typically in the early twentieth-century works of Russian composers such as Stravinsky. However, recent research reveals that the application of the octatonic scale goes back considerably farther. Chopin's use of the octatonic scale is for the most part manifested by tonally ambiguous chords, such as diminished 7th chords and modal mixtures, to lengthen octatonic pitch-sets already existing in diatonic scales. Although Chopin's application of octatonic scales is subtle, it usually relates to other sections of the piece motivically and is smoothly integrated into his tonal scheme and graceful style of writing. / Committee in charge: Jack Boss, Chairperson, Music; Stephen Rodgers, Member, Music; Timothy Pack, Member, Music; Hal Sadofsky, Outside Member, Mathematics

Orientadores: Mauricy Matos Martin, Silvio Ricardo Baroni / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Artes / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-18T01:58:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Grosso_HideraldoLuiz_D.pdf: 55265405 bytes, checksum: b67dc8d1db8dd26287ba5547b685f411 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006 / Resumo: Este trabalho estabelece uma relação entre os Prelúdios para Piano de Almeida Prado e o Opus 28, de Frederic Chopin, através da comparação de aspectos técnicos de execução, em ambas as coleções, tendo em vista a concepção de uma interpretação a mais criteriosa possível. A metodologia utilizada parte de nossa experiência como intérprete, da leitura dos textos originais, da anotação de dedilhados, assim como da segmentação de cada Prelúdio em seções ou partes, permitindo a apreensão de componentes estruturais selecionados como o espaço, a linguagem, o tempo e o timbre, além da dinâmica, andamento, fraseado e pedalização, com sugestões de recursos técnicos à execução. O caminho percorrido é o da performance para a análise e as ferramentas utilizadas são primeiro as do intérprete e depois as do teórico ou analista. Complementa o trabalho os dois cadernos de Prelúdios para Piano, de Almeida Prado e uma bibliografia reunindo obras a partir das quais nos embasamos. A conclusão revela a interação entre os recursos de execução, exigidos pela linguagem de Chopin e de Almeida Prado, apresentando a possibilidade de um intercâmbio de procedimentos tanto para um como para outro compositor / Abstract: The purpose of this work is to study a possible relationship between the Preludes for Piano by the Brazilian composer Almeida Prado and Op. 28, by Frederic Chopin through the comparison of technical aspects of performance and a critical interpretation. The methodology is based on my experience as a performer, from readings of the original scores, fingering notations, as well as the segmentation of each Prelude. This permitted the comprehension of structural components such as space, musical language, time, timbre, dynamics, tempo, phrasing and pedaling indications. This study departs from performance to analysis and the tools employed thus began with the performer's resources, then those of the theorist or analyst. In this manner, technical resources for interpretation were suggested to obtain a refined performance. Besides, this study was also complemented by both volumes of Preludes for the Piano by Almeida Prado, followed by a bibliography. The conclusion reveals the possibility of interaction between the performance resources required by the musical language presented by Chopin, as well as by Prado. It demonstrates the possibility of an inter-exchange of procedures for either composer / Doutorado / Doutor em Música