Date of Award

2021

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Organizational Unit

College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Lamont School of Music

First Advisor

Jack Sheinbaum

Second Advisor

Gillian Gower

Third Advisor

Kristin Taavola

Fourth Advisor

Thomas Nail

Keywords

Concert champêtre, Francis Poulenc, Harpsichord, Les Six, Musical heritage, Neoclassicism

Abstract

Leaving behind an abundance of primary documents, Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) reveals himself to be a colorful, opinionated composer, with an intriguing mindset regarding the role of twentieth-century composers. Poulenc’s writings place importance on the idea of musical legacy, where engaging with the music of past composers can only enrich compositions of the present, as opposed to the idea that such inspiration makes one’s work less “original.” This idea of compositional heritage stems from Poulenc’s musical education, which was informal, and mainly the product of his robust social network of important musical and artistic figures. Poulenc’s ideology adds a new perspective to neoclassical composition, and is especially present in his harpsichord concerto, the Concert champêtre (1928). This thesis surveys Poulenc’s writings to form a compositional ideology and examines the ways these ideas appear within his music, especially in the Concert champêtre. By identifying his ideology, this thesis highlights the value of Poulenc’s ideas as a neoclassicist with a less-than-conventional career.

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Juliet E. Levy

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

en

File Size

138 pgs

Discipline

Music history, Musical composition

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