Ligeti's stylistic crisis : transformation in his musical style, 1974-1985 / Michael D. Searby.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Searby, Michael D., 1960-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Ligeti, György, 1923-2006--Criticism and interpretation.

Ligeti, György.

Ligeti, György, 1923-2006.

Style, Musical.

Ligeti, György, 1923-2006. Grand macabre.

Criticism and interpretation.

Physical Description:

xviii, 201 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Scarecrow Press, 2010.

Summary:

The Hungarian composer György Ligeti (1923-2006) was one of the most innovative and influential composers of the last fifty years. He was one of a number of Central and East European composers, including Witold Lutostawski and Krzysztof Penderecki, who have created musical languages that combine elements of the modernism of the West with a more flexible attitude to compositional technique. Ligeti's Stylistic Crisis: Transformation in His Musical Style explores how Ligeti's compositional style completely transformed during and after the composition of his only opera, Le Grand Macabre (1974-1977). Michael D. Searby examines Ligeti's music from 1974 to 1985 in detail, with a particular emphasis on Le Grand Macabre, analyzing his works and providing possible explanations for the stylistic and compositional changes, as well as considering the consequences for Ligeti's subsequent music.

In this first English-language book to focus on Le Grand Macabre, Searby investigates Ligeti's music and its relationship to tonality, considering his return to tradition, use of quotation and pastiche in the opera, and the transformation of Ligeti's style and technique after the opera. The Horn Trio (1982), with its romantic phrase structure, is also analyzed to demonstrate the radical change in the composer's stylistic approach. Searby examines Ligeti's relationship with postmodernism, addressing the modernist versus postmodernist polemic as it pertains to Ligeti's works. Many musical examples support the discussion, and an appendix summarizing the opera and photographs from a recent production, along with an extensive bibliography, add to this valuable reference work.

Contents:

Ligeti's music and its relationship to tonality

The return to tradition in Le grand macabre

Ligeti's use of quotation and pastiche in Le grand macabre

Ligeti's stylistic transformation after Le grand macabre

Ligeti the postmodernist?

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780810872509

0810872501

9780810872516

081087251X

OCLC:

428436848