When Bruno Bartolozzi published his revolutionary treatise New Sounds for Woodwind in 1968, composers worldwide were inspired to create new compositions which incorporated the use extended techniques. Since, extended techniques have become an inevitable requirement of the contemporary performer, becoming more and more common place as time has progressed. However, it seems that Bartolozzi's original complaint and call for change regarding the general pedagogical reluctance to incorporate these techniques into a standard woodwind, or more specifically bassoon, curriculum has been met with continued resistance over the past 42 years. Too often, performers learn extended techniques only when and if they are required to perform them, resulting in a small number of largely self-taught specialized musicians and a large number of performers deficient in and ignorant of an entire genre of repertoire. Historically, the bassoon has not been overwhelmingly favored by the great composers as a solo instrument, many of whom have preferred to compose concerti and sonatas for the piano, violin or cello, and prefer to focus on the bassoon within the orchestral setting. However, in the post-war era the bassoon has been the recipient of many solo and chamber compositions by extremely celebrated composers such as Luciano Berio (Sequenza XII, 1995), Elliott Carter (Retracing, 2002, Au Quai, 2002), and Sofia Gubaidulina, whose multiple compositions for bassoon have expanded the repertoire significantly. However, bassoonists whose educational experience has lacked exposure to the modern aesthetic will have considerably more difficulty learning these works, should they develop an interest in performing them. Inexperience with executing extended techniques, atonality, and even comprehension of the scores themselves is often an intimidating and overwhelming endeavor for the perspective performer. Though composed a mere 30 years ago, the Concerto for Bassoon and Low Strings by Sofia Gubaidulina has already established itself as an essential part of the solo bassoon repertoire, as illustrated by its illustrious performance history. This work, being both of a large magnitude and composed by a celebrated composer, has been met with great enthusiasm in the bassoon community. Certainly, and perhaps more so than any other work in the solo bassoon repertoire, the Concerto for Bassoon and Low Strings is uniquely rich in its formal and narrative structure. Due in part to the work's unique instrumentation, however, performances of this work are rare and almost entirely on the professional level. It is to the benefit of all advanced bassoonists though, that they be aware of and familiar with this work. When studied at the appropriate level, this score has the potential to provide students with a better understanding of 20th Century music, its stylistic components which include atonality, extended techniques, alternative notation, indeterminacy, and, on a broader level, exposure to a work of great musical sophistication and interpretive value. The challenge, however, lies in the fact that many students have not been exposed to these 20th Century elements thoroughly enough, if at all, to navigate their way through such a demanding work. Additionally, the score contains many ambiguous elements; no program notes are provided, and the key which appears in the preface of the score explains a very limited portion of the non-traditional markings to come. The performer is given little relative guidance. This document will seek to reconcile this deficiency in the form of a manual intended to guide the performer who is largely unfamiliar with or inexperienced in the modern repertoire of the 20th century and the world of extended techniques as they navigate their way through the score. By way of analysis, and performance suggestions this performance guide will endeavor to acquaint prospective performers with the work's unique narrative structure, non-traditional notations and extended techniques in hopes that they might be enthused to embark on educated and interpretive performances of one of the true masterpieces of the solo bassoon repertoire.

Sofia Gubaidulina is considered one of the most important Russian composers of our time. A Moscow Conservatory student who studied with Dmitri Shostakovich’s pupil Nicolai Peiko, Gubaidulina went on to compose many pieces for orchestra, chorus, chamber instruments, and solo instruments. Her piano works include Toccata-Troncata (1971) and Invention (1974), as well as the more famous Chaconne (1962), Sonata (1965), and the concerto Introitus (1978). This essay will focus on a lesser-known piano work, Musical Toys (1969), consisting of fourteen pieces for children. Her intention in composing this collection of pieces was to present pictorial miniatures that she herself would have liked to play as a child. While these pieces create a unique sound quality with various imaginations that would be very appealing to children, my assessment of this work is that it would be quite difficult for children because of the pedal technique, frequent meter changes, accidentals, repeated notes, and irregular rhythmic subdivisions. My purpose is to examine how to help make this collection more accessible to young pianists. There are three chapters in this essay. Chapter I is an introduction to Gubaidulina and to Musical Toys. Chapter II consists of a brief biography of Gubaidulina. Finally, in Chapter III, I discuss the technical challenges, and propose a pedagogical approach to, as well as the performance practice of, Musical Toys.

This thesis illustrates how I hear processes of expansion organizing musical materials in the First String Quartet. By employing a flexible approach to expansion and developing models of wedge and additive expansions beyond the bounds of specific voice-leading or rhythmic augmentation procedures, expansion processes can be understood in each of the varied episodes of the quartet. Gubaidulina’s use of expansion processes, embodied organically in pitch, rhythm, form, and physical space, unifies the episodic materials of the First String Quartet and provides an inevitable conclusion to the work’s loose narrative.

No description available.

No description available.

abstract: Sofia Gubaidulina’s Dancer on a Tightrope (Der Seiltänzer, 1993) for violin and piano is an excellent example of the sonic capabilities of both instruments. To convey the balance and uncertainty of a circus act, Gubaidulina makes ample use of rhythmic variation, flexible melodic gestures, compound meters, dissonance, and indeterminacy in notation of musical time. Due to the intricate nature of both parts, this can be a difficult work to perform accurately. This paper is an accompanying document to the score to explain notations, suggest performance techniques for both instruments, and provide a thorough analysis of the complete work. Students of Gubaidulina’s music can find numerous studies detailing her biography as a Soviet and post-Soviet composer. There are many dissertations on her string works, including the string quartets and string trio. However, there is no performer’s guide or existing study that would provide insight to Dancer. Most of the existing literature on Gubaidulina is not based on sketches but relies on analysis of published sources. In researching this document, I drew upon the manuscript collection for Dancer on a Tightrope housed at the Paul Sacher archives in Basel, Switzerland. I compare sketches with the published score and analyze the work’s structure, melodic aspects, harmony, timbre, and practical applications of the extended notation. I will also compare Dancer on a Tightrope to Gubaidulina’s works from the same period, violin writing, and other chamber music. Many of the rhythmic and pitch ambiguities in the published score will be clarified by a sketch study of the piece. For assistance with piano notation and performance, I suggest techniques for the most careful way to play inside the instrument to avoid damage. I contextualize Gubaidulina within a Soviet and international context. It is essential to view her work within a broader twentieth-century framework, her life as a composer in the USSR, and in light of broader socio-political trends. Gubaidulina is one of the foremost Soviet composers who has earned international recognition. This performer’s guide will advance and encourage performances of Dancer on a Tightrope and help disseminate knowledge about this work. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Music 2017

Sofia Gubaidulina is one of the leading composers in the contemporary music world. Her compositional interests have been stimulated by the exploration of and improvisation with rare folk and ritual instruments, and by a deep-rooted belief in the mystical properties of music. Gubaidulina is the author of orchestral and choral works, compositions for solo instruments, chamber music, as well as electronics music. Gubaidulina's Piano Sonata sums up the composer's thinking within her piano music, and at the same time projects the development of her spiritual vision within other genres that are to come. The analytical approach in this paper is based on the correlation between each of the elements of the musical material (form, rhythm, sound, etc.) and its contextual meaning in terms of musical dramaturgy. Set-theory is applied to the analysis of motivic components of the work. The traditional form is just the basis for the original intonational structure within a modern musical idiom. Varieties of rhythmic patterns, as well as an unconventional sound production, make this work breath with an impetuous power. The examination of the Sonata's musical language and content should give some insight not only into Guabaidulina's piano music, but also into a consequent development of her compositional thinking.

No description available.

No description available.

Detta examensarbete handlar om orgelmusiken i Östeuropa – Ryssland och Sovjetunionen. Orgelrepertoar från denna del av världen brukar inte spelas i Sverige så ofta och många tonsättare och verk förblir helt okända. Svenska organister kan dessutom inte få tillgång till källmaterialet på grund av språkbarriären då majoriteten av tillgängliga källor är på ryska. Orgelkulturen i Ryssland har haft en annorlunda utvecklingsväg jämfört med orgelkulturen i Västeuropa – på grund av den ortodoxa kyrkan har orgeln i Ryssland nästan alltid varit ett profant konsertinstrument. Detta arbete ger en historisk överblick över orgelmusikens utveckling i Ryssland och Sovjetunionen och fokuserar på orgelrepertoar från ca 1850-talet till nutid. I detta arbete finns även en beskrivning av interpretativa förslag till gestaltning av orgelverk av Aleksandr Glazunov, Vladimir Odoevskij, Sofia Gubaidulina, Georgij Muschel och Juri Butsko. / This master thesis focuses on the organ music from Eastern Europe - Russia and the Soviet Union. Organ repertoire from this part of the world is not often played in Sweden and many composers and works remain completely unknown. Moreover, Swedish organists lack access to the source material due to the language barrier as the majority of available sources are in Russian. The development of the organ culture in Russia has had a different path compared to that of Western Europe - because of the Orthodox Church, the organ in Russia has almost always been a profane concert instrument. This thesis provides a historical overview of the development of organ music in Russia and the Soviet Union, focusing on organ repertoire from about the 1850s to the present. It also includes a description of interpretative proposals for the performance of organ works by Aleksandr Glazunov, Vladimir Odoevsky, Sofia Gubaidulina, Georgy Mushel and Yuri Butsko. / <p>Examenskonsert</p><p>Orgelverk av A. Glazunov, V. Odoevskij, S. Gubaidulina, J. Butsko, G. Mushel</p><p>Mila Thoors - ogel</p>