You are on page 1of 23

Date: 08/26/14

Draft: 5.6
Meily J. Mendez
716 E. Fifth Street
Tucson, AZ. 85719
(858) 361-2950
mjmendez@email.arizona.edu

Major: DMA Piano Performance


Minor: Music Education (Piano Pedagogy emphasis)

Type of Study: Lecture Recital Document

I have read this proposal and believe it is ready for consideration by the Graduate Committee.

Signature Print Name Date


Major Professor

Signature Print Name Date


Committee Member

Signature Print Name Date


Committee Member
2

2. PROPOSED TITLE

Fluidity and Cyclicism in Lera Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41.

3. INTENT AND SCOPE OF STUDY

Russian-born American composer and pianist Lera Auerbach (b. 1974) stands out as a

brilliantly creative individual; she is also a painter, writer and librettist for her own operas and an

award-winning poet. Her works have been performed in such cities as San Francisco, New

York, Hamburg, Nuremburg, Madrid, and Beijing. Her strong, independent spirit is a result of

her experiences. In 1991, she entered the United States as a touring cultural exchange pianist and

defected at the end of her tour despite the possibility that she would never see her family in the

Soviet Union1. She was accepted to the prestigious Julliard School, where she received her

Bachelors in Piano Performance while studying with Joseph Kalichstein. She continued her

studies at Julliard and earned her Masters of Music in Composition, under the tutelage of Milton

Babbitt and Robert Beaser. Afterwards, she traveled to Germany for her postgraduate piano

studies; Germany has since become her second home.

Auerbachs catalogue to date includes eleven works for solo piano, including a pair of

piano sonatas, Chorale, Fugue, and Postlude for Piano, op. 31, Ludwigs Nightmare, 24

Preludes for Piano, op. 41, and a number of other works. Of these works, the 24 Preludes for

Piano, op. 41 stand out as both a series of miniatures and an organically cohesive large-scale

work. The 24 Preludes for Piano do not include extended techniques; instead, they focus on the

traditional performance practice of the piano and the sonic worlds the piano is capable of

1
Stewart Oksenhorn, Russian-born pianist Lera Auerbach Returns to Aspen, The Aspen Times Weekly, July 12,
2012, http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20120713/AE/120719950 (Accessed April 19, 2014).
3

creating. As a result of her formidable skills as a concert pianist, this significant work also

exemplifies her intimate knowledge of the pianos capabilities.

This study will analyze the 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41 in three ways: the form, the

harmonic language, and the motivic connections and cohesive elements that require the set of 24

to be performed as a whole. Although Auerbach is in demand as a composer and pianist, only

one scholarly work currently exists on one of her works, and this study will help fill this gap in

the literature. The analysis will guide the pianist studying this work through the relationships of

the preludes both singularly, and cohesively. As Auerbach has stated, The more you know the

work, the composer, you know what to listen for, and how it is made, the more you can

appreciate the work...2 She believes that the 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41, is one of her most

representative works for solo piano to date and it will be the focus of this study.

These twenty-four pieces are complex in their harmonic language as well as in their

correlation with one another. Each prelude is relatively small in length, ranging from half a page

(Prelude no. 11 in B major, Misterioso) to six pages (Prelude no. 24 in D minor, Grandioso);

however, gathered together, they contain a myriad of elements that would benefit from an

analysis of form and harmony to help performers fully understand their intricacies. Auerbach

retains the chord qualities of western traditional tertian harmony; yet, she uses the traditions

merely as references in order to build a unique set of progressions of tension and release. A

main component of this study will encompass an analysis of Auerbachs subversion of traditional

functional harmony. Additionally, in her program notes for this piece, Auerbach wrote, The

challenge was not only to write a meaningful and complete prelude that may be only a minute

2
Thomas Crampton, Lera Auerbach on the Meaning of Music, The Thomas Crampton: Social Media in China and
Across Asia Blog, entry posted April 7, 2008, http://www.thomascrampton.com/dalian/lera-auerbach-music-
meaning/ (Accessed December 13, 2013).
4

long, but also for this short piece to be an organic part of a larger composition with its own

form.3 Another key aspect of this study will be to identify and analyze the motives that the

preludes share; the motives reappear either verbatim or altered, meshing the separate preludes

cyclically into a united entity.

4. Statement of Primary Thesis

Lera Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41 adopts and subverts traditional functional

tonality by using diatonic and chromatically remote relationships and is unified as a single work

through foreshadowing and motivic connections.

5. Review of Scholarly Literature

To date, only two scholarly articles have been written on the works of Auerbach.

Florentine Gallwas masters thesis titled Lera Auerbach: Die drei Zyklen 24 Prludien, Op.

41, 46 and 474 was written in 2011 at the University of Hamburg and is currently unavailable.

The second is a doctoral dissertation by Kimberly Hain, Lera Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Violin

and Piano, Op. 46: Unity and Musical Narrative5. This latter dissertation is focused on a

different set of preludes. Auerbach composed an additional two sets after the solo piano set of

op. 41; one set of preludes for violin and piano and another for cello and piano, and these remain

as some of the very few prelude sets for instruments other than solo piano6.

3
Lera Auerbach, Program Notes, (http://sfperformances.org/notes/AuerbachNotes.pdf, accessed Sept. 15, 2012).
4
Regina Back, Musik und Gender im Internet: Lera Auerbach, (http://mugi.hfmt-
hamburg.de/Artikel/Lera_Auerbach, accessed June 13, 2014).
5
Kimberly Hain, Lera Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Violin and Piano, op. 46: Unity and Musical Narrative (DMA
dissertation, Florida State University, 2010).
6
Ibid, 11.
5

The dissertation by Hain focuses on a different set of preludes by Auerbach; however, her

work is particularly useful in providing evidence that Auerbach unifies her compositional sets.

Hains dissertation looks at three structurally unifying elements through the 24 Preludes for

Violin and Piano: direct quotation, two half-step motives, and musical narrative as an analytical

tool and unifying device. A similar look at the use of motives in the 24 Preludes for Piano, op.

41 will be a significant portion of the proposed dissertation.

Although there are very few scholarly articles on Auerbachs works, there are a number

of reviews written on her performances as a concert pianist as well as on performances and CDs

by others. Joshua Kosman from the San Francisco Gate Chronicle7 reviews her third set of

preludes, written for piano and cello. It eloquently discusses Auerbachs compositional approach.

The same reviewer also reviewed Auerbachs performance in early 2014 and described the

tonality where each prelude exists within the gravitational pull of a key without giving up its

freedom to maneuver8 Kosman goes on to describe the composer as follows:

Auerbach is a full-blooded Romantic, brooding deeply and often revealingly about love,
art, the universe and everything Her music is steeped in the sounds of Bach, Liszt,
Scriabin and Shostakovich, but not much after that. It spills forth in fervent waves of
tonal harmony and aggressive but sinuous melody. The only reason Auerbach doesn't
come off like a throwback - or rather, the reason her unapologetic neo-Romanticism
doesn't chafe - is that her music is so skillfully constructed and so rich in imaginative
beauty.9
Despite there being little analysis in the article, this quote firmly sets Auerbach in the tonal

tradition; it is a fundamental aspect of her compositions although her harmonic language is not

necessarily functional in the classical sense.

7
Joshua Kosman, Music review: Lera Auerbach, Alisa Weilerstein, San Francisco Gate (San Francisco
Chronicle), April 8, 2010, http://www.sfgate.com/music/article/Music-review-Lera-Auerbach-Alisa-Weilerstein-
3267747.php (Accessed July 7, 2013).
8
Joshua Kosman, Lera Auerbach review: A Romantic Original, San Francisco Gate (San Francisco Chronicle),
February 19, 2014, http://www.sfgate.com/music/article/Lera-Auerbach-review-A-Romantic-original-3413679.php
(Accessed March 3, 2014).
9
Ibid.
6

Daniel Hathaways review of her concert in the Mixon Masters series includes

Auerbachs description of her preludes. He wrote, They are throwaway ideas of fragile

beauty that disappear quickly. She liked the idea of arranging a series of evanescent miniatures

into a grand form a plan she also followed with the other two sets.10 Hathaway also mentions

Auerbachs hints of classical forms and procedures in her preludes. Having begun analysis of

the 24 Preludes for Piano before reading Hathaways review, the author of this proposal had

reached a similar conclusion.

Auerbach has given a number of interviews available in print, video, or audio formats

with Hillary Hahn, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, various newspapers and

magazines, and the researcher of this study. A significant amount of biographical information is

available on Auerbachs website11, and via interviews such as those written for The Aspen

Times12 and Sequenza2113. The interviews present a detailed personal account of her first visit to

the United States, her subsequent decision to defect, details of her education, and her thoughts on

being a composer and poet.

The primary sources for this study will be the score itself, received from the German

publishing company, Sikorski, and the authors email exchanges with Auerbach. Only a few

secondary sources will be used, particularly the aforementioned interviews with Auerbach as

10
Daniel Hathaway, Review: Pianist/Composer Lera Auerbach Opens Mixon Masters Series on September 7,
Cleveland Classical Blog, September 24, 2013, http://clevelandclassical.wordpress.com/2013/09/24/review-
pianistcomposer-lera-auerbach-opens-mixon-masters-series-on-september-17/ (Accessed January 23, 2013).
11
Official Website of Lera Auerbach, Lera Auerbach: Official Website, http://www.leraauerbach.com (Accessed
July 1, 2014).
12
Stewart Oksenhorn, Russian-born pianist Lera Auerbach Returns to Apsen, The Aspen Times Weekly, July 12,
2012, http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20120713/AE/120719950 (Accessed Dec. 3, 2013).
13
Ilona Oituski, Pianist/Composer/Poet/Visual Artist/Lera Auerbach Surreal Creativity!, Sequenza21/:
Contemporary Classical, October 10, 2011 http://www.sequenza21.com/2011/10/pianistcomposerpoetvisual-artist-
lera-auerbach-surreal-creativity/ (Accessed August 24, 2013).
7

they provide further insight into her compositional approach. The following sources give further

insight into the prelude, both historically and analytically.

In order to understand the history of the prelude collection, two dissertations have been

invaluable. The first is a dissertation by Eric Gilbert Beuerman, The Evolution of the Twenty-

Four Prelude Set for Piano. Beuerman follows the history of the set of preludes as well as

categorizes the more than forty sets, analyzing four of them in particular. Of these, he classifies

the sets into those with twenty-four or twenty-five, noting that the sets that include the additional

prelude are often in a key scheme and cyclical as the first and last share the same key. Often,

the preludes in these [cyclical] sets seem to be independent preludes, capable of existing and

being understood independent of the set. However, when seen as part of a set, other

relationships and meanings may emerge.14 Also, the first and last preludes often share material,

implying that these sets should be performed in their entirety. But rarely do these cyclical sets

share motivic links between the inner preludes; they merely share a key scheme throughout.

Perhaps out of deference to the greatness of Chopins op. 28, many composers would find ways

to follow his same key sequence, regardless of how loose or fluid their own use of tonality.15

Modernism in Russian Piano Music: Skriabin, Prokofiev, and Their Russian

Contemporaries (Volumes 1 and 2) by Peter Deane Roberts approaches the analysis of the

different composers in different ways. Roberts uses the analytical approach that best fits the

composer in question; set theory for Roslavets, harmonic and structural analysis for Skriabin,

voice-leading charts for Prokofiev and Shillinger, etc. Because surface features, in the

weakened tonal context of much of this music, assume increased structural importance, attention

14
Eric Gilbert Beuerman, The Evolution of the Twenty-four Prelude Set for Piano (DMA dissertation, University
of Arizona, 2003), 24.
15
Ibid, 41.
8

has also been given, where appropriate, to motivic analysis.16 Due to Auerbachs fluid approach

to tonal relationships, motivic analysis will also be used in this study to highlight structural

cohesion within a prelude and through the set.

Additional sources that have been useful in the analysis process include Teaching and

Understanding Contemporary Piano Music by Ellen Thompson17, and A Readers Guide to the

Chopin Preludes by Jeffrey Kresky18, which were used as preparatory background references.

The pedagogical text by Ellen Thompson has been useful for the analysis of additional stylistic

elements that are part of the twentieth-century musical language. The book by Kresky includes

some analysis of the preludes of Chopin, and the format of Kreskys analysis has influenced the

researcher in taking a similar approach to the harmonic material.

Finally, two sources have been used to further understand certain aspects of Auerbachs

harmonic language: Chromaticism: Theory and Practice by Howard Boatwright19 and Sonic

Design: The Nature of Sound and Music by Robert Cogan and Pozzi Escot. These two analytical

sources have been particularly helpful in their approaches to analysis, influencing the approach

to Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41.

This study will provide pianists with insights into Auerbachs compositional techniques

and increase the scholarly literature available on her output. It is clear that this study is needed

because so little is available about her increasingly performed works. This may encourage

pianists to study a living composers works.

16
Peter Deane Roberts, Modernism in Russian Piano Music: Skriabin, Prokofiev, and Their Russian
Contemporaries, vol. 1, (Bloomington & Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1993), xi.
17
Ellen Thompson, Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music, (San Diego: Kjos West Publishing,
1976).
18
Jeffrey Kresky, A Readers Guide to the Chopin Preludes, (Westport: Greenwood Publishing, 1994).
19
Howard Boatwright, Chromaticism: Theory and Practice, (Fayetteville, NY: Walnut Grove Press, 1994).
9

6. Organization

I. Chapter 1: Introduction

II. Chapter 2: Lera Auerbach


A. Biography
B. Background of the 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41

III. Chapter 3: Analysis of the 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41


A. (C major) Moderato
B. (A minor) Presto (G major) Moderato
C. (E minor) Allegro appassionato
D. (D major) Andantino
E. (B minor) Chorale
F. (A major) Andante
G. (F minor) Presto
H. (E major) Allegro ma non troppo
I. (C minor) Largo
J. (B major) Misterioso
K. (G minor) Allegro
L. (F major) Andante
M. (E minor) Allegretto
N. (D major) Moderato
O. (B minor) Moderato Allegro ma non troppo
P. (A major) Adagio
Q. (F minor) Grave
R. (E major) Andante
S. (C minor) Misterioso
T. (B major) Allegro moderato
U. (G minor) Andante
V. (F major) Allegretto
W. (D minor) Grandioso

IV. Chapter 4: Conclusions


A. Summary of musical language
B. Interrelated Elements
1. Recycling of motivic ideas
2. Enharmonic respellings
3. Leading tones
C. Significance to the continuation of the Prelude in the 21st Century

Viva-voce Presentation
Per the time limitations of the Viva-voce presentation, the lecture and performance will

be limited to a selected representation of the 24 Preludes for Piano, op. 41, specifically numbers
10

1-4, 11-13, 22-24. The performance will include four preludes from the beginning, three from the

middle, and three from the end to total 10 preludes. The viva-voce presentation will begin with

an introduction to Auerbach and an overview of the preludes. An in-depth discussion will be

presented of the chosen preludes, followed by a description of the interrelated elements that

create the cohesive aspect of the preludes as a whole. The conclusion will focus on the musical

language and the place of the prelude in the 21st century, closing with a performance of the

selected preludes.

7. METHODOLOGY

As a pianist and composer, Auerbachs compositional style takes advantage of her

intimate familiarity with the instrument and its literature. Her compositions explore pitch and

timbre options, harmonic relationships, motivic cells, and traditional forms for the piano. Her

writing often fits the hand comfortably and is written to encompass the entirety of the keyboard.

Cluster chords, tonal chords in non-functional progressions, as well as melodic and harmonic

motives are found throughout her works for solo piano.

The process of researching the topic of this proposal began with a meeting after one of

Auerbachs performances at the Tucson Friends of Chamber Music Festival in 2012 where she

was both a performer and the Festival composer. During our first meeting, Auerbach was

amenable to a dissertation written on one of her works for piano, resulting in a series of email

correspondences relating to the dissertation topic. The influences on her compositional style and

what she considered her most representative work for the piano were discussed. Once the author

of this proposal received affirmation, research for this project began.

Three essential elements will be analyzed to uncover the depth of each prelude and the

set as a whole. The elements chosen for this study are as follows: form, harmony, and the
11

motivic connections of the preludes. The following sections will further clarify how they will be

analyzed.

Form

Scrutinizing Auerbachs use of form and comparing it with traditional forms offers a look

at the overall structure of the prelude as well as the framework upon which Auerbach establishes

her harmonic motion and the motivic cells. Knowledge of the form illuminates the reasons why

there may be a tonicization or a change in features that either alters or melds together different

musical ideas. This will require a review of phrases and motives, a search for resolutions of

major sections, and an identification of repeated sections.

Harmony

Analysis of the disjunct harmonic relationships that undermine traditional function is the

second integral part of this study. Auerbachs harmonic language uses diatonic and chromatically

remote relationships to shape tension and resolution expectations. This study will use American

Standard Pitch Notation (also known as Standard International Acoustical Terminology20) to

refer to the registers, i.e. middle C is C4. Auerbachs harmonic structures are analyzed in terms

of their quality and placement to demonstrate her unique approach to harmony and tonality. In

Russian music of [the early twentieth century] period pitch centers were created by a variety of

means, including voice leading, the repetition of a single triad, ostinatos, and reference chords,

any of which may occur in conjunction with dominant and tonic functions.21 Auerbach employs

voice leading and chromaticism to flow from one chord to the next, which smoothly shapes the

harmonic progression despite their disjunct connections. These small steps in voice leading are

combined with larger leaps, allowing her to shift into different directions and guide her

20
Robert Cogan and Pozzi Escot, Sonic Design: The Nature of Sound and Music, (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-
Hall, Inc., 1976), 430.
21
Roberts, 53.
12

progressions into the tension and resolution relationships similar to those found in traditional

functional harmony.

Motivic Connections

The third significant element in this research is the correlation of the preludes both one to

the next and as a whole through the use of motivic connections. The preludes canvas the entire

range of twenty-four major and minor keys, following the circle of fifths in the same manner as

Chopin, Scriabin, and Shostakovich in their respective sets of preludes. Despite the tonal

functioning key scheme, Auerbach merely uses the key as an overarching correlation of the

preludes as a cyclical set and as a tone center for the specific prelude. Elements of the harmonic

structure hint at the following pieces key, and there are motivic structures within and between

them. In this way, each one is like a prelude to the next, where organic growth transpires into,

during, and out of the small piece. The challenge for the performer is to understand the details

and their resulting relationship from one to the next.

The following is an example analysis of Prelude no. 1 in C major, Moderato.

Prelude 1 in C Major, Moderato


Form

Prelude no. 1 has a loosely binary form with a cyclical construction: A (a b) B and a

codetta that uses fragments of the A section. The common feature of the subsections of A is a

double-pedal C major chord, which is first heard in m. 1 and resounded in m. 6. This double-

pedal creates a sense of familiarity and stability for the internal motivic material of the

contrasting subsections of a and b. The second phrase of the A section leads to the B section

(mm. 9-14), which is in F minor and contains completely new material. The A section ends with

a flourishing trill on B6, a trill which is then used again at the end of the B sections first

subsection, this time on B3. This transitions smoothly to the codetta (mm. 15-20), pulling the F
13

minor tonality back to C through fragments from the A section bringing the prelude full circle

and preparing the listener for the next prelude.

Figure 1. Form of Prelude no. 1. Mm. 1, 6, and 19 include the double-pedal C major chord.

Harmony

The first prelude opens with a pianissimo C major chord at the sixth octave and an

interval of an open fifth of C1 and G1, written on the outer staves of a set of three (Figure 2).

Auerbachs widely-spaced C chord becomes a set of pedal tones above and below nearly half of

the prelude, firmly placing the tonality of the prelude in C major. This is a chord that is struck

and held through three parts of this prelude and serves as significant source of the tonality. This

version of the C major chord will be called for the rest of this discussion as the double pedal.

Fig. 2. Prelude no. 1 in C major, mm. 1-4.


14

The first double pedal is held with a fermata, allowing the opening C major tonality to

decay before a sudden fortissimo outburst of pedaled, staccato, and accented chords that are far

from the expected C major tonality. These double pedals emphasize that C is an underlying

tonality rather than the forefront element for the developments made in the prelude. The double

pedal occurs three times over the course of the piece like the tolling of a bell; between the tolls

we can hear the overtones and internal music within the metals resonance.

Although it is important to note that this C major chord is a tonal center to the piece, it is

equally vital to understand that the traditional harmonies of classical and romantic era music are,

although present, not always used in their functional capacities. Roberts, in his discussion of

tonal structures, states that traditional functions have not been eliminated but are part of a wider

system.22 This is pertinent to Auerbachs harmonic language because it is the sound and pull of

one chord to the next that is most important to the momentum of the motives rather than the

functional relationships of one chord to the next. The quiet, nearly subliminal, double pedal

haunts the motives and never leaves the auditory memory despite the contrasting B section and

distant chord choices.

The first motive clearly demonstrates that the momentum of the motives is significant to

the harmonic language. The motives are reserved for the middle staff, and they are separated

visually from the double pedals outer staves. The first motive appears in measure (m.) 2: a

startling statement of an unanticipated A half-diminished seventh chord (A7), and a second

inversion F major chord, neither of which are part of the diatonic C major tonality. The A7

chord is played without its third, the C, which the listener hears from the opening chord, weaving

the two chords together. Also, the A7 chord can be considered an atypical relation to the C major

22
Roberts, 53.
15

tonality because it ought to have a minor quality. Instead, Auerbach has given the chord a half-

diminished quality that is far more dissonant. The A7 and C major chords share two notes in

common, namely the C and the G, which allow the wayward chord to fit with the tonal center.

The other two notes, A and E, are a diminished fifth interval, one that resolves inward, so the A

slides up to a B, which is an enharmonic spelling for the A of the coming F chord. Although

far from the tonality, the F chord is an enharmonic spelling of G (Figure 3), which would fully

diminish the A7 chord, further forging the strong relationship between the motives two chords.

The enharmonic relationships and the intervallic motions paint an organic relationship within the

faade of irrelativeness that is the basis for the prelude.

Fig. 2. Prelude no. 1, m. 2. A7.

Over the next two measures, the motive is expanded to include an additional F chord and

a D minor chord that seems like a resolution of the motive. The third measures added statement

of the F chord an octave higher emphasizes the major quality of the chord. With the repetition, it

becomes more compelling to hear the F chord as the new tonality until it is refuted by a

second inversion D minor chord, a lowered vi chord of the F tonality. This newly elongated

motive returns again in the fourth measure to be played twice in a kind of stretto (Figure 4),

where the listener can tell there is an expectation of a resolution to F. However, instead, the D

minor chord is held and decays, and a pianissimo return of the double pedal realigns the ear to

the C major tonality.


16

Fig. 4. Prelude no. 1, mm. 2-4. In measure four, boxes separate the two complete presentations of the
motive and demonstrate their overlapping stretto-like interaction.

The second phrase uses a new motive (see Figure 5.1), and, while the harmonic structure

is now removed, this phrase acts in a pseudo-dominant function to an approaching B section.

The tonal center of C is still accentuated through the double pedal, but there is a sudden increase

of subdivisions that stresses forward motion. The new motive of this second phrase is a series of

steps that are separated by their octave equivalents, using seventh and ninth intervals. Figure 5.2

is a reduction of the larger intervals from Figure 5.1 to more conjunct spacing and this reduction

demonstrates that there is a relationship of steps. The disjunct relationships allow for a contour

that leads to the whole notes of Figure 5.2. Unsurprisingly, the whole notes lead directly into the

tonal center of C, and the contour of the fast subdivisions also lead to C. The leading is created

in an ever-increasing expansion of one note at a time. The increase of notes pushes forward into

the B section because of the strong need for release from the chromatic nature of the second

phrase. This phrase clearly demonstrates Auerbach's fluid approach to tonality - unlike the first

phrase's chordal structure, the second phrase moves incrementally, inexorably, back to C.
17

Fig. 5.1. Prelude no. 1 m. 7-8 with added indications of important features. See Figure 5.2 for a reduction
of the material.

Fig. 5.2. Prelude no. 1 m. 7 and 8, in reduced form, demonstrating the layers of these two measures. The
whole notes are from the circled notes of figure 4.1. The boxed quarter notes are the 32nd notes.

Figure 5.1 is an excerpt of measures 7 and 8 that includes a repeated cell of 32nd notes

(the large square boxes) that begins on C, continuing the tonal center. Each repetition of the cell

includes an additional note that is part of the upper melodic line (circled notes in Figure 5.1,

whole notes in Figure 5.2). In looking at the reduction of Figure 5.2, we see a layering of the two

elements, which are the repeated cell and the upper melodic material. The higher whole notes of

figure 5.2 clearly move to C through the auxiliary notes of the trills, indicated with the

parentheses and Trill. These trills emphasize both the primary and auxiliary tones, increasing

the auditory kinetic motion rising into the tonal center of C.

However, although both lines of the second phrase move towards the tonal center of C,

the B section's tonal center is actually F, using the C as the fifth of the new key. The C chord is
18

employed secondarily as a dominant function as well, an elegant nod to traditional harmony. The

left hand continues the idea of the open fifth from the A sections lower pedal part, this time on

F, and it operates as a drone bass repeating through this new section. The open fifth leaves the

modality open to the right hands move to the A creating a minor quality, a bright contrast to the

double pedal. The F tonality can also be seen as a relation to the second chord of the first motive

the F as an enharmonic equivalent of G and a kind of Neapolitan chord to this new sections

F. This is a strong emphasis towards the F tonality, based previously in the prelude, creating an

internal unity of the sections.

For the move back to a C tonal center, this contrasting section borrows the second

motives trill on B to close. The B is used as the leading tone to C major. This new note is also

found in the second motive, special in its repetition in that motive. This precedes a kind of

dominant-like series of disjunct notes (see m. 18 in Figure 4) that, like the second motive, is a

series of octave equivalent steps. Suddenly, there appears a fragment from the first motive of the

prelude, in which the first and last chords of the motive are used as an interjection.
19

Fig. 6. Prelude no. 1, mm. 13 to end, showing the use of classical harmonic motion beneath chromatic
melodic relationships.

The fascinating aspect of this last section is the return to functional harmony from the

previous chromatically fluid subsection. Auerbach returns to the opening material, with the A7

chord paired with the D minor chord. However, this version includes an A, an enharmonic

respelling of G that is the leading tone for the next prelude. This interjection dies away as the

trill on B resumes with the left hand droning away, but the second chord includes a D. This

unexpected inclusion can be thought of as part of the harmony; in this case, the Neapolitan chord

with a seventh, in anticipation the codettas fragment of the A section.

The strong cadential progression uses a functional harmonic motion although the actual

figures may not be perfect renditions of the Roman numeral chords indicated in Figure 6. A

Neapolitan is often followed by the dominant, though in this case, it is a dominant-sounding


20

figure that is reminiscent of the second phrase of the piece using largely separated intervals.

When the notes of this dominant-sounding figure are reduced to their conjunct equivalents, they

move around a G center, the dominant of the key center of C. This dominant-like material moves

through silence to a return of the double pedal for a third and final time in the last few measures

of the prelude, returning and insisting on the tonality of C major. Over this final return, however,

there is an A that resolves to G that rings over the double pedal ending. The chromatic A can

also be heard as an enharmonic of G, the leading tone to Prelude no. 2 in A minor.

Throughout this short two-page prelude, Auerbachs fluid use of tonality for her music

both alludes to and forsakes functional harmony. The tonal center is stated from the outset and

repeated through the prelude, and although the motivic elements draw from a chromatic pool,

there seems to be an underlying tonality that is given at the outset, broken down during the B

section, only to revert and renew itself in the codetta. And in its conclusion it open the doors to

the next tonality.

Motivic Connections

An important part of this study is to look at the relationship between the preludes.

Auerbach has stated that these preludes are a cohesive work and that the context and order of

preludes is important for their understanding.23 They are like a kaleidoscope where a very

simple idea can be the basis of a new image. Chopins preludes began the new tradition of the

prelude as a stand-alone piece from its previous position as a preparatory piece. Chopin

developed the prelude individually while following a key scheme for his set; Auerbach takes the

prelude set to the next level by creating connections through the set.

23
San Francisco Performances, Program Notes: Lera Auerbach,
http://sfperformances.org/notes/AuerbachNotes.pdf (Accessed Sept. 15, 2012. No longer available online.)
21

The first prelude in C major, Moderato, and the second prelude in A minor, Presto,

appear dissimilar due to their respective chordal versus scalar themes yet they share similar

qualities. Beginning with their form, both preludes use cyclic returns to the opening material at

the conclusion. However, the return is treated differently; fragments of the opening A section

are constructed for the first preludes codetta, whereas the second prelude reinvents the opening

A material.

In a similar manner, the second prelude reflects back on the first prelude through a

similar use of groups of three. The C major prelude returns to the double pedal three times

(beginning in mm. 1, 6, and 19), and the A minor prelude uses the A minor scales in three ways

(beginning in mm. 1, 6, and 16). There are some dissimilar elements as well; the first prelude

does not change the double pedal and instead alters the motivic material after each double pedal;

whereas, and the second prelude repurposes or reconstructs the A minor scales.

One important idea that Auerbach returns to in the A minor prelude is the additive

scheme. In Prelude no. 1, m. 6-8, the second phrase increases the number of notes and its range

with each subsequent repetition of the motive. In Prelude no. 2, the second phrase (interestingly

also m. 6-8, see Figure 5) mimics its predecessor by increasing the RHs clustering.

Fig 7. Prelude no. 2, mm. 6-8 (only RH shown), demonstrating the additive nature of the second phrase.

As seen in this excerpt of just the RH, the number of notes increases with each repetition. The

LH, not included in this excerpt, plays rapid 32nd note A minor ascending scales. In comparing
22

this to Figure 4.1, it is clear to see that the additive theme has been brought to the second prelude

as well. In both cases, the increased dissonance builds and builds to a changing point.

Although Auerbach uses a similar structural cohesion between these preludes, it should

be noted that this only one connection that Auerbach has used to connect these two preludes.

Different connections are developed as the prelude set continues. While a single prelude can

stand alone, it is fascinating how the ear perceives the pair as a set when played together.

These are preludes to preludes, each one setting the stage for the next. Because some of

the preludes are quite short, the material that is used to prepare for the next is equally small at

times, merely a hint at the next one. Regardless of size, the organic inclusion of the preceding

material develops the preludes into an integrated work over the course of the twenty-four

preludes.

8. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Antokoletz, Elliott. Twentieth-Century Music. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, Copyright
1992.

Official Website of Lera Auerbach. Lera Auerbach: Official Website.


http://www.leraauerbach.com (Accessed July 1, 2014).

Back, Regina. Musik und Gender im Internet Lexicon. Lera Auerbach. http://mugi.hfmt-
hamburg.de/A_lexartikel/lexartikel.php?id=auer1973 (Accessed August 1, 2013).

Beuerman, Eric Gilbert. The Evolution of the Twenty-Four Prelude Set for Piano. DMA diss.,
University of Arizona, 2003.

Boatwright, Howard. Chromaticism: Theory and Practice. Fayetteville, NY: Walnut Grove
Press, 1994.

Cogan, Robert, and Pozzi Escot. Sonic Design: The Nature of Sound and Music. Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1976.

Crampton, Thomas. Lera Auerbach on the Meaning of Music. April 7, 2008.


http://www.thomascrampton.com/dalian/lera-auerbach-music-meaning/ (Accessed
December, 2013).
23

Hain, Kimberly. Lera Auerbachs 24 Preludes for Violin and Piano, op. 46: Unity and Musical
Narrative. DMA diss., Florida State University, 2010.

Kosman, Joshua. Music review: Lera Auerbach, Alisa Weilerstein. San Francisco Gate (San
Francisco Chronicle), April 8, 2010. http://www.sfgate.com/music/article/Music-review-
Lera-Auerbach-Alisa-Weilerstein-3267747.php [Accessed July 7, 2013].

. Lera Auerbach review: A Romantic Original. San Francisco Gate (San Francisco
Chronicle), February 19, 2014. http://www.sfgate.com/music/article/Lera-Auerbach-review-
A-Romantic-original-3413679.php (Accessed March 3, 2014).

Kresky, Jeffrey. A Readers Guide to the Chopin Preludes. Westport, Conneticut: Greenwood
Press, Copyright 1994.

Lera Auerbach Official Website. Lera Auerbach. http://www.leraauerbach.com/ (Accessed


April 1, 2014).

Oituski, Ilona. Pianist/Composer/Poet/Visual Artist/Lera Auerbach Surreal Creativity!


Sequenza21/: Contemporary Classical, October 10, 2011.
http://www.sequenza21.com/2011/10/pianistcomposerpoetvisual-artist-lera-auerbach-surreal-
creativity/ (Accessed August 24, 2013).

Oksenhorn, Stewart. Russian-born pianist Lera Auerbach Returns to Apsen, The Aspen Times
Weekly. July 12, 2012. http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20120713/AE/120719950
(Accessed Dec. 3, 2013).

Roberts, Peter Deane. Modernism in Russian Piano Music: Skriabin, Prokofiev, and Their
Russian Contemporaries, vol. 1. Bloomington & Indianapolis: Indiana University Press,
1993.

San Francisco Performances. Program Notes: Lera Auerbach.


http://sfperformances.org/notes/AuerbachNotes.pdf (Accessed Sept. 15, 2012. No longer
available online).

San Francisco Performances. Press Release: San Francisco Performances Presents


Composer/Pianist Lera Auerbach with Cellist Alisa Weilerstein, and Soprano Lina Tetriana
March 14. February 2, 2012.
http://sfperformances.org/press/presspdf/020212AuerbachWeilersteinTetriani.pdf (Accessed
March 3, 2014).

Thompson, Ellen. Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music. Kjos West
Publishing, Copyright 1976.

You might also like