Tradition and style in the works of Darius Milhaud 1912-1939 / Barbara L. Kelly.

Author/creator Kelly, Barbara L.
Format Book
Publication InfoAldershot, Hants ; Burlington, VT : Ashgate, ©2003.
Descriptionxv, 212 pages : music ; 26 cm
Subjects
Milhaud, Darius, 1892-1974--Criticism and interpretation.

Contents Milhaud, Les Six and musical politics in Paris. A group identity ; Challenging Debussy's legacy ; Vuillermoz v. Milhaud ; 'Plus fortes nourritures' ; Promotion of Schoenberg: Pierrot lunaire ; Stravinsky's Mavra as catalyst ; Honegger's Le Roi David ; Les Six and Satie: the significance of numbers ; Early assessments of Milhaud -- Milhaud's writings on tradition and identity. Milhaud's cultural and religious heritage ; Milhaud's sense of enracinement ; Milhaud's personal musical canon ; Debussy and Satie ; The nineteenth century: Berlioz and Magnard ; Dissolving the classical-romantic opposition -- Works for music theatre 1: collaboration with Paul Claudel. Claudel's ideas on music ; Music as rhythm ; From vocal to instrumental writing ; Polytonal experiments ; The role of music within drama -- Works for music theatre 2: the chamber operas. Parisian preoccupations ; Milhaud, Gounod and Satie ; Playing with time ; The 'operas-minute' sketches ; Timelessness and place ; Attachment to place: southern France and the internal exotic ; Reception and the idea of carnival -- Vocal music: texts and voices. Claudel and La Connaissance de l'Est ; Setting and revisiting Gide: Alissa ; Constructing melody ; Vertical v. horizontal thinking ; Milhaud and the English language ; Setting Jewish texts ; Taking liberties with French ; Text and meaning -- Polytonality, counterpoint and instrumentation. Outlining the debate ; Milhaud on polytonality ; Harmonic polytonality: precursors and early experiments ; Simultaneity and opacity ; Lessons in counterpoint ; Textural transparency and instrumentation -- Milhaud and the past. The Romantic heritage ; The 1920s: the academic tradition or creating new wholes? ; Homage to tradition -- Conclusion: Milhaud's musical achievements to 1939.
Abstract Described by Maurice Ravel as one of the most considerable talents in French music of his generation, Milhaud remains a largely neglected composer. This book reappraises his contribution, focusing on the emergence of the composer's style until his Jewish background forced his exile to the United States on the eve of the World War II. The period 1912-1939 spans the crucial years that mark the development of Milhaud's mature style. It was also during this time that he published his most important writings on contemporary music and its relationship to the past. The author discusses the extent to which Milhaud's complex views on the idea of a French national musical heritage relate to his own practice, and considers how his works reflect the balance between innovation and tradition. Drawing comparisons with contemporaries, such as Debussy, Satie, Schoenberg, Stravinsky and Poulenc, the book argues that the rhythmic vitality of Milhaud's style and his modal approach within a polytonal context mark him out as an original and distinctive composer.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 196-207) and index.
LCCN 2002074468
ISBN0754630331 (alk. paper)

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Music Stacks ML410.M674 K45 2003 ✔ Available Place Hold