Date of Graduation

2020

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

DMA

College

College of Creative Arts

Department

Not Listed

Committee Chair

David Taddie

Committee Member

Matthew Heap

Committee Member

Lynn Hileman

Committee Member

Travis Stimeling

Committee Member

Beth Royall

Abstract

Kaija Saariaho’s work Maan Varjot is a relatively new addition to a set of repertoire that includes the organ as a part of the orchestra. This commission from the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Orchestre National de Lyon, Southbank Centre, and the Philharmonia Orchestra, was premiered in 2014 and features the organ as a timbral enhancement and contrast to the orchestra. The 52nd Stanza from the poem Adonais, written by Percy Shelley and dedicated to John Keats, provide an important insight into the analysis and interpretation of the work. Two lines in particular are important: “The One remains, the many change and pass/Heaven's light forever shines, Earth's shadows fly.” These lines imply two interacting elements, similar to how the organ and orchestra are orchestrated in conjunction and opposition to one another in Maan Varjot. This paper seeks to show how Saariaho manipulates the musical possibilities of the instruments, particularly those of the organ, in contrast and complement to the orchestra through the lens of the Shelley poem.

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