Lecture_Demonstration

Today I am going to play Rebecca Clarke’s viola sonata. I arrived at my interpretation by listening to various recordings by Daniela Kohnen, Gunter Schmidt, Leslie Howard, Philip Dukes and Yizhak Schotten. I researched its context and background by reading essays by Bryony Jones, Liane Curtis and others. I found that this sonata is a revolutionary piece for Viola as there weren’t many pieces that featured the viola as a soloist and significant for women composers. It was composed in 1919 where it was anonymously entered in the Coolidge competition where it came second to Ernest Bloch’s Suite. Politically this was the interwar period between World War 1 and World War 2. This sonata is influenced by Debussy and Ravel and is fantasy like in character which was common in England in the 16th and 17th centuries. This sonata begins in an attention grabbing and assertive way with a short introduction that begins with a Perfect 5th interval which is referred by Bryony Jones as a ‘bugle call’ which reappears often. I would like to show a version of this Sonata by Daniela Kohnen (PLAY CD) I particularly like the break between the two perfect 5th intervals as it immediately grabs the audience’s attention. However I also enjoy the use of an intense vibrato in Paul Coletti’s interpretation. (PLAY CD) I decided to combine these two ideas to create this (PLAY HERE) This melody (PLAY HERE) here is pentatonic like. I like to play this sul tasto because I imagine that in England in the 1900s the East was considered far, far away so by playing on the fingerboard it creates the idea of a distant place. My teacher and I agreed that having two bars of exactly the same rhythm and nearly the same pitch needs to be played differently. In this case I have decided to differ the two bars in dynamics playing one louder than the other like this (PLAY HERE) After this short introduction, begins the exposition. The tempo becomes ‘poco agitato’ – more agitated. In order to highlight this change my teacher and I decided to highlight the swells in dynamics because it adds to the restless mood. (PLAY HERE) When I listened to several recordings, there was hardly any attention given to this feature. For the rest of this section I chose to use similar vibrato to that of the introduction to maintain intensity. Near the end of this section the performer is given an instruction ‘risoluto e allarg’ – I found that this recording by Paul Coletti really captured this.(PLAY CD) His deep tone colour matches the big chords in the piano and I try to recreate this by really emphasizing the accents. There is complete change of mood seen with a simpler accompaniment and to a much softer dynamic. This is because there is new pitch material here. Therefore I believe a change in tone colour is needed. I really like Gunter Schmidt’s interpretation here. (PLAY HERE) It is a sweeter tone, yet mysterious. My teacher encourages me to highlight the chromaticism here by slightly holding it longer. This luscious part dies away with the use of rests which leads to the octatonic melody from the introduction returning. With it comes a military inspired motif- (PLAY HERE). I would like to show you Yizhak Schotten’s interpretation (CD HERE). I like the way Yizhak Schotten plays it by emphasizing the strong beats of the bar really giving it a rhythmic, soldier feel. These military motifs can also be found in her Piano Trio. These military motifs are extended and it is as if they have been warped in terms of speed like this: (PLAY HERE) Another sudden contrast occurs; these sudden changes in tempo, dynamics and moods are all very similar to her contemporaries like Bloch. By taking a very quick breath or break between sections really creates suspense. I like how Paul Coletti does it. (PLAY CD) 8 The recapitulation begins suddenly like the beginning and really grabs the audience’s attention once more with just a crotchet rest and a semiquaver before the viola suddenly begins. (PLAY HERE) 12 The piece begins to wind down with the viola playing an accompaniment and repetitive pattern (PLAY HERE). My teacher and I agreed that sul pont will create an eerie effect and alter the colour. Personally I feel as though the end is as though the viola is exerting the last bits of its energy that’s why there are huge dynamic swells. (PLAY HERE)