Treatise (D.M.A.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: James Streem, Florida State University, School of Music. Title and description from treatise home page (viewed 9-23-04). Document formatted into pages; contains 86 pages. Includes biographical sketch. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1942. / Title from title screen (viewed Nov. 15, 2007). Includes bibliographical references. Online version of the print original.

Thesis (D.M.A.)--UCLA, 2009. / Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 127) and discography (leaves 127-128).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1942. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.M.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1961. / Typescript. Title from title screen (viewed Nov. 7, 2007). Includes bibliographical references (leaves [172-173]). Online version of the print original.

Thesis (M.M.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1961. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [172-173]).

Thesis (D.M.A.)--UCLA, 2009. / Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 90-93).

The present diploma thesis deals with the life and compositional style of an important composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. The work of Sergei Rachmaninoff belongs to the basic pianistic repertoire. Pianists approach it in different ways, and their concepts often differ greatly. The purpose of the the diploma thesis is to compare several interpretative performance and draw general conclusions.

Sergei Rachmaninoff’s (1873-1943) Vocalise, a song without words, is possibly the most well-known song by the composer, though nowadays it is most often played by instrumentalists. In this thesis I will, with a focus on Rachmaninoff’s Vocalise, explore whether interpretation methods differ in the presence of versus the absence of text, and whether one can develop one’s expression through working on the latter. To do this, I read the book Singing &amp; Imagination by Thomas Hemsley to gain insight into the art of singing as a whole and then applied it to my work, as well as interviewing a total of nine people—both singers and instrumentalists—about their views on the topic to acquire a broader mass of data from which to find common themes. Through this thesis, I discovered that, though the essence of interpretation stays the same even in the absence of text, one must use their imagination to a larger extent—or, perhaps, a better choice of words: in a different way—to compensate for the lack of words that usually give the singer clear guidelines about the meaning of, for example, a certain chord. I also learned to expand my understanding of the possible expressive means of the human voice—not limiting myself to the traditional ideal of a beautiful singing voice—as singing without words forces you to find other alternatives to verbal communication. Through this work, I feel like I have gained a larger toolbox for my artistry and freed myself from the limits I so easily put myself into when trying to do everything “right”. / <p>KONSERTPROGRAM:</p><p><strong>André Previn (1929-2019) </strong></p><p>Vocalise</p><p><em>Eveliina Ainsalo, sång</em></p><p><em>Blanka Hillerud, cello</em></p><p><em>Erlend Løvgren Auestad, piano</em></p><p></p><p><strong>John Corigliano (1938) </strong></p><p><em>Three Irish Folksong Settings:</em></p><p>1. The Salley Gardens (<em>Padraic Colum</em>)</p><p>2. The Foggy Dew (<em>Anonym</em>)</p><p>3. She Moved Through the Fair (<em>William Butler Yeats</em>)</p><p><em>Eveliina Ainsalo, sång</em></p><p><em>Tiitta Moilanen, tvärflöjt</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><strong>Frank Bridge (1879-1941)</strong></p><p>Come to me in my dreams (<em>Matthew Arnold</em>)</p><p>E’en as a lovely flower (<em>Kate Kroeker</em>)</p><p></p><p><strong>Sergej Rachmaninov (1873-1943) </strong></p><p>Vocalise</p><p><em>Eveliina Ainsalo, sång</em></p><p><em>Erlend Løvgren Auestad, piano</em></p><p></p><p><em>Medverkande</em>:</p><p>Eveliina Ainsalo, sång</p><p>Blanka Hillerud, cello</p><p>Tiitta Moilanen, tvärflöjt</p><p>Erlend Løvgren Auestad, piano</p><p></p><p>Ljudfilen innehåller inspelningen av Rachmaninovs Vocalise.</p>

This document identifies elements of a stylistic change which occurred in several of the pieces Rachmaninoff wrote during the last years of his life. These elements reflect a progressive trend in his music, which certainly maintained in spite of the change, its characteristic sound. The Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op. 42 illustrate these new developments in their lean, angular unison sonorities, stripped of chordal padding and virtuosic display, in their percussive, staccato and incisive ostinato rhythmic figures, astringent chromatic harmony and modern air of detachment. The Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43 confirms this stylistic development in its remarkable similarity to the Corelli Variations. In the last twenty-six years of his life in exile from his homeland, making his way around the world as a concert pianist, Rachmaninoff wrote only six major works. Perhaps his increasing age, separation from homeland, and the musical revolutions surrounding him in the Western world produced this stylistic development.