| dc.description.abstract | Political music is an emerging and relevant phenomenon. These works can pose challenges to performers in terms of understanding and interpreting their nuanced historical and political ideology. This dissertation is about the philosophical intersection of politics and works for solo piano. The primary works I examine are Thälmann Variations (1974) by English composer Cornelius Cardew (1936-1981) and North American Ballads (1979) by American composer Frederic Rzewski (1938-2021). I investigate the political ideology of each composer and connect it to their works. I explore the theoretical and philosophical implications of these works and offer my interpretive and programmatic recommendations to the performer.
Rzewski’s North American Ballads (Ballads for short) are well known and have received generous scholarship; however, missing is a deeper philosophical examination, especially of the inclusion of improvisation. I have drawn together the best research while offering my interpretations and performance recommendations. There is little existing research on Cardew’s Thälmann Variations, so I have provided an ideological and theoretical analysis.
I begin by establishing a foundation on the political music scholarship of Garratt, Mattern, and Rosenthal and Flacks as well as the philosophy of Foucault. I then draw on Rzewski’s lectures and interviews to understand his ideology and apply it to my interpretation of his Ballads, building on the work of Hayashi, Paul, Zuraw, Cornett, Hershberger, and Hamm. This provides the framework for my interpretation and analysis of Cardew’s Variations.
I argue that understanding the political underpinnings of the solo piano works of Rzewski and Cardew through the lens of Foucault’s philosophy of power structures will help pianists understand each work’s ideology while also allowing for better engagement with the repertoire. I additionally assert that these works act as objects of protest where the performer can embody resistance. To understand the political underpinnings, performers need to be aware of the broader political and historical connections of each work and composer. To present the best performance which communicates the composer’s intent, pianists will benefit from analysis of the music and philosophical examination of the ideology therein. | en_US |
