Open and Shut
Fiona M. Ryan
Doctor of Musical Arts
Graduate Department of Music
University of Toronto
2013
Abstract
“Open and Shut” is a short opera in two scenes composed with concert opera performances in mind; it could be performed with or without staging. There are five characters in this work. The protagonist is Bridget (Soprano). In the first scene Bridget encounters Martha (Soprano) and Rose (Mezzo Soprano), two fundamentalist Christians who are handing out religious pamphlets on the street. In the second scene Bridget meets her friends Frank (Tenor) and Paul (Baritone) in a café and tells them of her encounter with these two women (Martha and Rose); a heated discussion of religion ensues.
Each character is represented by a distinctive style of music that fits with their personality and ideology. Martha's music and singing style is inspired by Baroque and Classical sacred music (well suited to a coloratura voice) to represent her traditional and authoritarian viewpoint: the instrumentation for her music is similar to a Baroque orchestra (strings, oboe, bassoon, and sometimes brass). Rose's music is inspired by traditional folk hymns and spirituals to represent both her traditional ideals and her earnest simplicity: her vocal lines feature repetition and gospel-inspired inflections, she is accompanied by textures featuring piano, bass, and flute. Frank is an opinionated, cynical atheist whose music is atonal (flexibly based on 12 tone procedures) and is filled with harsher chords and jagged melodies to represent his modern but rigid view; his vocal lines are often paired with cello. Paul is a hippie who supports people exploring spirituality, but is opposed to institutions; Paul's music is based on use of non-traditional modes and aleatoric principles with an emphasis on the interaction of percussion and voice. Bridget is caught between all of these worlds so her music is an intuitively composed fusion of tonal, modal, and atonal styles; Bridget's individuality is represented by a recognizable melodic theme (introduced at measure 41 and repeated throughout the piece by alto flute, viola, clarinet, and piano). Additionally, each scene starts with music inspired by the sounds of a city.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:OTU.1807/35947 |
| Date | 09 August 2013 |
| Creators | Ryan, Fiona |
| Contributors | Chan, Ka Nin |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | en_ca |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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