Tonality as drama : closure and interruption in four twentieth-century American operas

Tonality as drama : closure and interruption in four twentieth-century American operas /

This is an analytical monograph by a Schenkerian music theorist, but it is also written by one performer and enthusiast for another. Tonality as Drama draws on the fields of dramaturgy, music theory, and historical musicology to answer a fundamental question regarding twentieth-century music: why do...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Latham, Edward David
Format: Electronic eBook
Language:English
Published: Denton, Tex. : University of North Texas Press, ©2008.
Subjects:
Joplin, Scott, > 1868-1917. > Treemonisha.
Weill, Kurt, > 1900-1950. > Street scene.
Gershwin, George, > 1898-1937. > Porgy and Bess.
Copland, Aaron, > 1900-1990. > Tender land.
Operas > Analysis, appreciation.
Opera > United States > 20th century.
Online Access: Full text (Emmanuel users only)
Table of Contents:
  • Tonality as drama: an introduction
  • Dramatic closure: the Stanislavsky system and the attainment of character objectives
  • Tonal closure: a Schenkerian approach to tonal drama
  • The completed background line with open-ended coda: Scott Joplin's grand opera Treemonisha (1911)
  • The multi-movement Anstieg or initial ascent: George Gershwin's folk opera Porgy and Bess (1935)
  • The multi-movement initial arpeggiation: Kurt Weill's Broadway opera Street scene (1947)
  • The prolonged permanent interruption: Aaron Copland's operatic tone poem The tender land (1954).

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