"SYMPHONY NO. 2 ""SYMPHONY OF CHORALES€ BY LUKAS FOSS: A STUDY IN COLLAGE AND MUSICAL BORROWING"

ECU Author/Contributor (non-ECU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)

Alec Powers (Creator)

Institution

East Carolina University (ECU )

Web Site: http://www.ecu.edu/lib/

Abstract: In his second symphony , the Symphony of Chorales (1958) , Foss seems to be struggling to merge two identities , his Stravinskian Neoclassicism and his improvisation-influenced experimentalism. The mature Foss is first able to blend these two disparate styles with the premiere of American Cantata in 1976 , while his third (1991) and fourth (1995) symphonies show a mastery of this sort of collage. The second symphony is significant because it shows one of the composer's first attempts to reconcile two very disparate compositional approaches - yet this same process of eclectic reconciliation would fascinate Foss throughout the rest of his life , and impact other major works , such as Baroque Variations , American Cantata , Renaissance Concerto and many others. In this thesis , the tonal language of Foss's Symphony of Chorales will be examined within the context of his earlier and later styles , and the impact of collaged source material (Bach's chorale harmonizations) on the motivic and formal structure of the symphony will be discussed.

Additional Information

Publication

Thesis

Language: English

Date: 2018

Keywords

Symphony of Chorales, Symphony No. 2, J.S. Bach, Stravinsky, collage, musical borrowing

Subjects

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