The European arts in the nineteenth century went through significant changes with the advent of romanticism. In respect to music, more and more composers at that time set out to express their emotions through the beauty of sounds and rhythms, imbuing their works with multiple elements and alterations. However, the overemphasis on the subjective experience of the composers led to the gradual loss of simplicity and purity in their music. At that time, Brahms abondoned the artistic trend of the epoch and refused its pompous and exaggerated style. Devotedly following Bach, Beethoven and Schuman in their aesthetic perspectives and musical creations, Brahms composed absolute, introspective, sincere and in-depth works in the classical form. Variations on a Theme by Haydn, op. 56 composed by Brahms in 1873, was the representative piece marking his shift from large piano works to orchestra works, exhibiting the master¡¦s habitual use of composition skills and mature variation techniques. The two pianos version (op. 56b), as Brahms¡¦ most important work of its kind, illustrated how he took advantage of the strength of two pianos to arrange multiple voices with expertise. This piano piece pushed the artistic value of Brahms¡¦ two pianos works to its peak in the musical history and launched their golden age. Chapter One of this thesis gives the definition of variations, introduces its types and discusses the historical specificity of the variations of the nineteenth century. Chapter Two introduces the life of Brahms and his variations. Chapter Three probes into the composing skills, variation techniques and features illustrated in Brahms¡¦ Variations on a Theme by Haydn, op56b. Chapter Four examines the history of two pianos and gives suggestions on the performing of two pianos works.

Combining traditional source and modern technique in musical composition has become one of the major trends in the contemporary music development. William Bolcom (1938- ) is an important composer in the 20th century, who followed this trend to compose the two-piano work Recuerdos ¡V Three Traditional Latin-American Dances for Two Pianos (1991). Inspired by characteristics of traditional Latin American dance, Bolcom employed the elements of the Latin American music as the structural foundation. In each of the three movements, Bolcom has tried to recall the stylistic features of the folk music in Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela, as well as musical languages of Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934), Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869), Ramón Delgado Palacios (1863-1902). Bolcom uses a lot of Latin America music materials in Recuerdos, and also applied contemporary compositional technique to this work, such as polytonality, serialism, collage, etc. Chapter One in this paper will introduce Bolcom¡¦s life background and musical composition experience, and the special characteristics of his five two-piano works. Chapter Two contains the historical background of Recuerdos, mainly discussing musical styles of three countries and three composers which Bolcom wanted to evoke in this composition. Chapter Three includes the compositional manners of Choro, Paseo, and Valse Venezolano, and researches how Bolcom intergrating diverse musical materials and still creating the unity among three movements.

Human life in Europe started to change radically in the first half of the twentieth century between two world wars. Comparing to the nineteenth-century Western musical environment, employing the early compositional technique and style of the past, mainly the Baroque and Classic period, Neo-classicism among the various movements in the twentieth century is extremely important but also controversial. With diversity of the musical style, Igor Stravinsky composed Concerto for Two Solo Pianos in 1935, which combined the compositional principles of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and the new musical innovations of the twentieth century. The piece reveals characteristics of Neo-classicism thoroughly. In addition to adopting four traditional forms and thematic development technique, Stravinsky replaced the orchestra part with the second piano and still kept the concertante textural treatment of a traditional concerto format. The first chapter will introduce the life and musical style of Stravinsky. In the second chapter Neo-classicism movement and how deeply Stravinsky was influence by it will be discussed. The third chapter focuses on the compositional background and formal analysis of the Concerto for Two Solo Pianos. And final part will be the conclusion of this topic.

Thesis (MMus (Performance)--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The work represented here is a transcription for two pianos of Vladimir’s Round Table, a relatively unknown, large-scale orchestral work by Stefans Grove. This particular transcription involved an intensive study of the orchestral score in order to best reproduce the work in the most effective way possible for two pianos, as well as to create a sound and convincing work for the two-piano repertoire. The process involved academic as well as pianistic substantiations regarding the inclusion or exclusion of various elements of the orchestral score. It is my hope that the final product is a good representation of a work supported by academic research but not so much as to exclude the possibility of freedom of performance. The ultimate aim of this transcription is to hopefully re-ignite interest in the work as well as to expose it to a wider audience and, in turn, encourage performance of the work in its original form. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die werk wat hiermee voorgelê word, is 'n transkripsie vir twee klaviere van Stefans Grové se minder-bekende orkeswerk, Wladimir se Tafelronde (die Afrikaanse titel wat op die titelblad van die manuskrip verskyn). Die transkripsie het 'n deeglike studie van die orkespartituur behels om sodoende die werk ten beste in die klavier-duo genre weer te gee, en om n oortuigende dog bruikbare werk vir hierdie tipe repertorium te skep. Ten einde die insluiting of weglating van bepaalde elemente van die orkespartituur teen mekaar op te weeg, is die proses deur sowel akademiese- en pianistiese oorwegings ingegee. Ek hoop dat die finale produk verteenwoordigend is van n transkripsie wat deur n akademiese ondersoek ondersteun is, terwyl dit ruimte laat vir praktiese oorwegings wat met die uitvoeringsmoontlikhede en -beperkinginge van die klavier-duo weergawe ter sprake kom. Die hoofdoel met die transkripsie is om hopenlik hernude belangstelling in Grove se orkeswerkte te wek; om dit aan 'n wyer publiek bekend te stel, en op sy beurt uitvoerings van die werk in sy oorspronklike gedaante aan te moedig.

¡§Transcription¡¨ was a common compositional technique used by composers during the nineteenth century. Composers arranged pieces in order to obtain various acoustic effects or fulfill different requests for performers; this type of arrangement is referred to as a ¡§transcription.¡¨ During that time, because the broadcast had not yet been created, the phonograph was uncommon; however, music became popular, pianos gradually owned by the bourgeoisie and polite societies. Composers often arranged pieces of music for the solo piano or small ensembles in order to help audiences easily understand the large musical work. This also contributed to an increased demand for piano works in the music publishing market. Most of Brahms¡¦s transcriptions are transcribed from his original pieces. In the transcriptions of his original works, Brahms often changes the instrumentation, with the piano being the most important instrument in many of his transcriptions. Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b which this paper discusses as being the first composed for the string quintet, was altered in its instrumentation by Brahms to create two different versions, including Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b and String Quintet, Op. 34. The contents of this thesis are divided into three parts besides introduction and conclusion. The first part describes various transcriptions and the features of these works. The contents first discuss the compositional techniques of transcription in the nineteenth century, and then investigate the characteristics of transcription in the works of Brahms. The second part is the motives behind Brahms¡¦s choice of instrumentation in his transcription. The last part describes the historical context of Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b. This part discusses Brahms¡¦s procedures in his transcription of Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b, and discusses the influence of Schubert¡¦s String Quintet, Op. 163 on Brahms¡¦s Sonata for Two Pianos, Op. 34b.

This dissertation is divided into six chapters. The first chapter explains the purpose and significance of the study. The second chapter presents an analysis about Wanderer Fantasy, D.760 composed by Schubert, employing Schenker analysis to elucidate important motives. Chapter 3 provides an analysis of Schubert-Liszt, Wanderer Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra, S. 366 and shows how Liszt transcribed the original to emphasize certain motives, and further, describes the development of the piano history. Chapter 4 delves into an analysis of Schubert-Liszt, Wanderer Fantasy for Two Pianos, S. 653a transcribed by Franz Liszt and further explains the historic development of piano, in particular Érard's grand piano. Chapter 5 explains the analysis of Schubert-Liszt, Wanderer Fantasy for Piano Solo, S.565a and expands upon Érard's grand piano. Finally, Chapter 6 leads to this paper's summary and conclusion.