A reassessment of Frank Bridge's Phantasm – Rhapsody for pianoforte and orchestra H. 182, this thesis explores in depth its reception, structure, and manuscript sources in order to develop an informed performance interpretation of this ill-fated work. Although in the last two decades, an increasing number of doctorate projects and research have been conducted on Bridge, they have mainly examined his works from the analytical and historical perspectives. So far, no manuscript sketches have been studied or documented extensively, nor have the findings been used to aid the process of constructing an interpretation of his work. In view of Phantasm's troubled première reviews and subsequent unpopularity, I seek to find the possible contributing factors by examining the British music scene around the 1930s, and comparing Phantasm's initial reception with a number of relevant British works. The available manuscripts, together with an analysis of Phantasm's structure and a consideration of its generic affiliation are used to elucidate Bridge's creative process, and determine his conception for this composition. In addition, this approach offers insights into Phantasm's interpretation, which combined with an investigation of its somewhat scarce performance tradition and recordings, culminate in an informed performance of this work. As well as the written component, this submission consists of recorded music and a DVD demonstration of the sketch revisions. Excerpts from commercial recordings are used to illustrate issues relating to the performance practice of Phantasm, and the self-recorded two-piano performance demonstrates the interpretative findings of this project.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:576928 |
| Date | January 2011 |
| Creators | Chan, Hsin-Ting Jessica |
| Publisher | Royal College of Music |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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