Date of Award
Fall 12-2023
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)
School
Music
Committee Chair
Dr. Elizabeth Moak
Committee Chair School
Music
Committee Member 2
Dr. Joseph Brumbeloe
Committee Member 2 School
Music
Committee Member 3
Dr. Michael Bunchman
Committee Member 3 School
Music
Committee Member 4
Dr. Ellen Elder
Committee Member 4 School
Music
Committee Member 5
Dr. Edward Hafer
Committee Member 5 School
Music
Abstract
The Roma people for many years led a nomadic lifestyle scattered across various parts of the world due to various reasons including discrimination and prejudice. After settling in a particular region, Roma musicians tended to incorporate local musical elements to varying degrees into their music, resulting in the diversity and complexity of their music. Hungarian-Gypsy music was partly a result of the combination of Hungarian folk elements with Roma performance style.
This dissertation primarily examines the Hungarian-Gypsy elements in German composer Carl Loewe’s Zigeuner Sonata, 107b. The elements are musical and extramusical. The author uncovered a multitude of Gypsy musical elements throughout the five movements of this programmatic sonata, drawing upon the characteristics of the style hongrois as discussed in Jonathan Bellman’s work and verbunkos characteristics stemming from Shay Loya’s work among others. Loewe’s work provides ample evidence of Kuruc fourths, ornamentation, the imitation of violin playing (double-stops, parallel thirds and sixths), evocation of cimbalom playing, augmented seconds, along with rhythmic elements such as alla zoppa, anapest, bokázó, Lombard, and spondee, underscoring at the same time the importance of music and dance in Bohemian culture. Regarding extramusical Gypsy elements, the Roma ancestral connection to India, the Roma belief in supernatural beings and reverence for nature, and a literary association with Goethe’s Mignon areexplored among others.
ORCID ID
0009-0000-9905-5797
Copyright
Yajing Lei
Recommended Citation
Lei, Yajing, "GYPSY ELEMENTS IN CARL LOEWE’S ZIGEUNER SONATA, OP. 107b" (2023). Dissertations. 2172.
https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/2172