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Harmonium or organ? : the instrumental question in Louis Viernes 24 Pices en style libre

Louis Vierne indicated his 24 Pices en style libre as being for organ or harmonium and he provided separate registrations for each instrument. Nevertheless, several organists and authors have noted a disparity in the work's success on the two different instruments. This study begins with a look into the development of the harmonium and a consideration of sorne important traits of standard harmonium literature as exemplified by Franck and Guilmant. An examination of Vierne's pieces from this harmonium perspective reveals several problems, mostly in the areas of compositional texture, the harmonium's air supply; and Vierne's harmonium registrations, which often point in opposite directions from his verbal indications in the score and his organ registrations. This study concludes that Vierne's 24 Pices are genuine organ music and that Vierne made little attempt to conform to the musical capabilities and constraints of the harmonium, even as he hoped that indicating the harmonium would increase the market appeal of this volume. / Louis Vierne indiqua que ses 24 Pices en style libre taient crites pour orgue ou pour harmonium, et il fournit des indications de registration pour les deux instruments. Toutefois, plusieurs organistes et auteurs ont not une disparit entre le succs de l'oeuvre sur l'un ou l'autre des instruments. Cette tude s'intresse tout d'abord l'histoire de l'harmonium ainsi qu' la littrature pour harmonium, telle qu'illustre dans certaines oeuvres de Franck et Guilmant. Une analyse des pices de Vierne, du point de vue de l'harmonium, rvle plusieurs problmes, notamment en ce qui concerne la texture musicale et le systme de vent de l'harmonium, ainsi que les registrations pour harmonium, qui souvent indiquent le contraire de ce qu'indiquent les instructions verbales et les registrations pour orgue. Cette tude conclut que les 24 Pices de Vierne constituent une musique d'orgue vritable, et que Vierne ne fit que peu d'efforts pour les adapter aux capacits et limitations de l'harmonium, en esprant que l'harmonium permettrait ce recueil de trouver un public plus large.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.96148
Date January 2010
CreatorsFehr, Nikolas
ContributorsHuebner, Steven (Supervisor)
PublisherMcGill University
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageFrench
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
Formatapplication/pdf
CoverageDoctorat of Music. Performance Studies (Schulich School of Music)
RightsAll items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.
Relationalephsysno: 003456516

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