Programmatic Music in Violin Literature

Abstract

This dissertation explores programmatic music in the violin literature, highlighting how composers convey extra-musical meaning in their works, inspired from literature, stories, or even personal experience. The research is organized into three thematic recitals: "Love," "Nature," and "Legend," each showcasing a range of compositions unified by a common theme. The paper will explore each piece from a variety of perspectives: cultural influences, composers' style, and their life experiences. It aims to investigate how music can tell stories while emphasizing how composers use similar themes yet with their unique approaches create distinctly personalized works. These programmatic pieces often make a deep emotional connection with the audience all the while inspiring the imagination. The paper also addresses, with specific suggestions, the technical challenges of performing transcriptions of orchestral scores that have been arranged for much smaller instrumentation, such as solo violin with collaborative piano. The "Love" themed recital includes Poème, Op. 25, by Ernest Chausson (1896); Suite from Romeo and Juliet for Violin and Piano, by Sergei Prokofiev (1935) and arranged by Lidia Baich and Matthias Fletzberger; Three solos for Violin and Piano from Swan Lake, Op.20, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1875-1876) and arranged by Endre Granat; Suite from West Side Story for Violin and Piano, by Leonard Bernstein (1957), and arranged by Raimundo Penaforte. The "Nature" recital features Sonata Representiva for Violin and Continuo in A Major, by Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1669); The Lark Ascending, by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1914); Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, RV 315, "Summer" (L'estate), by Antonio Vivaldi (1718- 1720) and arranged by Christopher Hogwood; Verano Porteño Trio for Piano, Violin and Cello, by Astor Piazzolla (1965) and arranged by José Bragato; Summer Night, by Shanle Yang (1952); Summertime, by George Gershwin (1935) and arranged by Jascha Heifetz. The "Legend" themed recital presents Butterfly Lovers’ Violin Concerto, by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang (1959); Myths, Op.30, by Karol Maciej Szymanowski (1915); Red Violin Caprices, by John Corigliano (1999). This dissertation also contains three live recitals. The live audio recordings of these three recitals can be found in the Digital Repository of the University of Maryland (DRUM).