In 1964, Benjamin Britten met the multi-instrumentalist twins Zoltán and Gábor Jeney while traveling in Budapest. At their behest, Britten composed Gemini Variations: Twelve Variations and Fugue on an Epigram by Kodály, a work which exploited the brothers' abilities on multiple instruments: Zoltán on flute and piano, and Gábor on violin and piano. In foreseeing the difficulties of programming this work, Britten simultaneously arranged a version for four players: flute, violin, and four-hand piano, eliminating the need for switching instruments. Despite this arrangement, as well as a very public and highly anticipated premiere at the Aldeburgh Festival in 1965, Gemini Variations has remained neglected by performers and scholars alike. This document serves to 1) promote a work that can justifiably be considered as part of the chamber music repertoire involving flute; 2) advocate for its musical merit and appropriateness for chamber music concerts made up of more traditional groups of players; 3) compare the two-player and four-player versions Britten wrote; and 4) explore the likely reasons why a piece by one of the most celebrated composers of the twentieth century has remained largely ignored for over fifty years.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc1703357 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Gibb, Charles, 1991- |
| Contributors | Scott, James Copeland, Sundberg, Terri, Corporon, Eugene |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | vi, 70 pages : music, Text |
| Rights | Public, Gibb, Charles, 1991-, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights Reserved. |
| Relation | Recital: March 27, 2017, not yet digitized, Recital: March 26, 2018, not yet digitized, Recital: February 22, 2019, not yet digitized, Lecture recital: February 26, 2020, not yet digitized |
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