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PEDAGOGICAL WORKS POR PIANO BY SAMUEL ADLER by MEI-YUKTANG, B.A., M.M. A DISSERTATION IN FINE ARTS (MUSIC) Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved

August, 2003

Copyright 2003, Mei-Yuk Tang

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to those individuals who so kindly assisted me in the preparation of this study. My special thanks are extended to Dr. Lora Deahl w^ho patiently guided me through the preparation of this dissertation. Her encouragement, enthusiasm, and knowledge made fmishing this dissertation possible. She also provided excellent assistance in proofreading the entire document. The advice of Dr. Jason Sifford and Dr. Matthew Santa regarding the pedagogica! aspects and compositional techniques of Adler's works was invaluable. I also wish to extend my gratitude to Dr. Wayne Hobbs, Dr. Daniel Nathan, and Dr. John Stinespring for serving on my committee and for their guidance and support. My particular thanks are offered to Dr. Samuel Adler who graciously answered my questions and to Mrs. Suzanne Tapp who assisted me with my English on Chapter III. Grateful acknowledgement is also given to the Graduate School of Texas Tech University for granting me a Summer Dissertation/Thesis Research Award. Finally, I want to thank my family members in Hong Kong for their unfailing encouragement, patience, support, and understanding!

11

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ii

ABSTRACT

iv

LIST OF TABLES

vi

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION

1

II. BIOGRAPHY

15

III. COMPOSITIONAL TECHNIQUES

29

JV. PEDAGOGICAL ASPECTS

71

V. A COMPARISON OF PEDAGOGICAL WORKS FOR PIANO BY BARTÓK, KABALEVSKY, AND ADLER

99

VL CONCLUSION

118

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

122

APPENDIX A. ANALYSIS TABLES FOR GiL4i)C/5/

127

B. ANALYSIS TABLES FOR GRADUSII

161

C ANALYSIS TABLES FOR Gif^Z)f/5///

207

D. ANALYSIS TABLES FOR THE SENSEOF TOUCH

247

E. AGRADEDLIST0FADLER'SGi?^i)[/5AND THE SENSE OF TOUCH

264

111

ABSTRACT

Many new musical styles evolved during the twentieth century. The disjunct melodies, harsh dissonances, and irregular time-signatures, phrasings, rhythms, and notations featured in much music of the twentieth century were foreign to those accustomed to the tonai harmonies of the major-minor system. Consequently, new techniques and guidelines to performing and teaching this repertoire were in great demand. Samuel Adler is a prolific composer whose works include operas, symphonies, concertos, chamber music, vocal music, and piano music. Adler wrote the Gradus and The Sense of Touch to prò vide young students with a solid theoretical and technical introduction to the performance of contemporary music. The purpose of this study is three-fold: to analyze the pedagogica! piano pieces of Samuel Adler in terms of their musical and pedagogical content; to compare these compositions with the works of important twentieth-century piano pedagogues, Bartók and Kabalevsky; and to propose Adler's works as worthy additions to the pedagogical canon. The study of Adler's Gmdus set (1971 and 1981) and The Sense of Touch (1983) shows that these sixty-eight pieces are short in length but neh in musical content. The flowing melodies, driving rhythms, coloristic sound effects, and clarity of texture of Adler's piano pieces are appealing to students. They are recommended by music scholars, piano teachers, and pedagogues. A comparison of Adler's coUections with Béla

IV

Bartók's Mikrokosmos (1926, 32-39) and Dmitri Kabalevsky's Pieces far Children, Op. 27 (1937-38) and Twenty-Four Little Pieces, Op. 39 (1943) shows that each has its own function. Nevertheless, Adler introduces a greater number of innovative twentiethcentury techniques than either Kabalevsky or Bartók. Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch are valuable teaching materials. They contain a diversity of contemporary styles and systems. At the same time, these works exemplify Adler's expressive and eclectic compositional style. They are instructive piano works of high quality that deserve a wider circulation among piano teachers and students.

LIST OF TABLES

A.l. Gmdus I, No. 1

128

A.2. GmdusI,No.2

130

A.3. GmdusI,No.3

132

A.4. Gmdus I, No. 4

133

A.5. GmdusI,No.5

135

A.6. GmdusI,No.6

137

A.7. GmdusI,No.l

139

A.8. GmdusI,No.8

141

A.9. Gmdus I, No. 9

142

AIO. GmdusI,No.

10

144

A.11. Gmdus I, No. n

145

A. 12. Gmdus I, No. 12

146

A.13. GmdusI,No.

13

147

A. 14. Gra(/Ms/,No. 14

148

A.15. GmdusI,No.

15

150

A. 16. Gmdus I, No. 16

151

A17. GmdusI,No.

17

153

A. 18. GrarfM5/,No. 18

155

A.19. GmdusI,No.

19

157

A.20. GmdusI,No. 20

159

VI

B.l. Gmdus II, No. \

162

B.2. Gradus II, No. 2

164

B.3. Gradus II, No. 3

166

B.4. Gradus II, No. 4

168

B.5. Gradus II, No. 5

170

B.6. GradusII,No. 6

171

B.7. Gradus II, No. 7

173

B.8. GradusII,No. 8

175

B.9. Gradus II, No. 8A

177

B. 10. Gradus II, No. 8B

178

B.ll. Gradus II, No. 9

180

B.12. GraJw^//, No. 10

182

B.13. GradusII,No. 11

184

B.14. GradusII,No. 12

186

B.15. GradusII,No. 13

188

B.16. GradusII,No. 14

190

B.l7. Gradus II, No. 15

193

B.l8. GradusII,No. 16

196

B.l9. Gradus II, No. 17

198

B.20. GradusII,No. 18

201

B.21. Gradus II, No. 19

204

B.22. Gradus II, No. 20

205

VII

C I . Gradus III, No. \

208

C 2 . Gradus III, No. 2

210

C.3. Gradus III, No. 3

212

C.4. Gradus III, No. 4

214

C.5. Gradus III, No. 5

217

C.6. Gradus III, No. 6

219

C.7. Gradus III, No. 7

220

C.8. GradusIII,No. 8

222

C.9. Gradus III, No. 9

224

CIO. GraJM5///,No. 10

226

C U . GraafMi ///, No. 11

228

C.\2. GradusIII,No. 12

230

C.Ì3. Gradus III, No. 13

232

C.14. GraflfM5///,No. 14

235

C15. Gradus III, No. 15

237

C16. GraJM5///,No. 16

239

C.n.

241

Gradus III, No. n

C18. GraJM5 ///, No. 18

243

C19. Gradus III, No. 19

244

C20. GradusIILNo. 20

246

vili

D.l. The Sense of Touch, No. l

248

D.2. The Sense of Touch, No. U

250

D.3. The Sense of Touch, No. Ili

252

D.4. The Sense of Touch, No. lY

254

D.5. The Sense ofTouch,No.V

256

D.6. The Sense of Touch, No. Wl

258

D.7. The Sense ofTouch,No. VII

260

D.8. The Sense of Touch, No. Ylll

262

E. 1. Reference Chart for Grading

266

E.2. Graded List of Gradus I

267

E.3. Graded List of GraJu^//

267

E.4. Graded List ofGraJw^///

267

E.5. GradeàListof The Sense of Touch

268

ix

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

Twentieth-century music stili challenges us today even though we are several years into the twenty-first century. Most method and instruction books were developed to deal with Western musical language datingfi-omthe last quarter of the seventeenth century to the late nineteenth century. During this period, certain principles of tonality govemed Western music. During the twentieth century, this standard system was undermined by new musical developments. In Contemporary Music and the Pianist, Alice Canaday states that ".. .traditional defìnitions of the elements of music, viz. 'melody,' 'harmony,' 'rhythm,' and even the defmition of what is musical sound, are no longer adequate. We need to broaden and re-define such musical concepts so that our teaching, performing and listening can more accurately reflect the true state of music today."' There is a need to redefine and to expand our musical concepts to adjust to contemporary "musics." Within the context of contemporary Western art music, a diversity of styles and systems have emerged since the late nineteenth century. The music of our time is often more difficult to understand than that of the previous centuries, even for professional musicians. Since most of us are accustomed to the tonai sounds of the major-minor system, our ears tend to reject the unfamiliar dissonant sounds of contemporary harmonic ' Alice Canaday, Contemporary Music and the Pianist: A Guidebook of Resources and Materials (Port Washington, NY: Alfred Music, 1974; reprint, Tumbridge, VT: Trillenium Music, 1997), 5.

language. At the same time, the concept of musical sound has also changed. For example, in contemporary piano literature, new sonorities are created by tapping or knocking the piano's wooden or metal parts or by strumming or plucking the strings inside the piano. Piano pieces explore the full range of the keyboard, and composers exploit its percussive nature. Now sounds are created by the emphasis on single tones (for example, points of sound in a pointillistic style), textures (changing texture abruptly), sound masses (such as clusters), timbres (producing new sounds by using new techniques with conventional Instruments), and different rhythmic constructs (applying rhythmic displacement, metric modulation, etc.).^ Contemporary musical elements such as disjunct melodies, harsh dissonances, irregular time-signatures and phrasings, unpredictable rhythms, and non-traditional notations are difficult to comprehend and appreciate. Unfamiliarity with musical elements that are not used in the common practice language of Western music is at the root of these difficulties. In performing contemporary works for piano, EUen Thompson points out that "the fingers must adjust to new shapes and combinations of notes, such as clusters, quarta!, moda! or synthetic scale pattems, while the mind and eye must leam to grasp widely-spaced groups of notes, intricate rhytlmis, changing meters, a maze of accidentals, etc."^ Ways of leaming new techniques, gestures, symbols, and styles are

^ Ibid., 6-8. ^ Ellen R. Thompson, Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music (San Diego, CA: KjosWest, 1976), 17.

required to perform and interpret new music. There is a great demand for guidelines to understand the various styles and systems of contemporary musical literature. Frequent, early exposure to contemporary music can remedy the present state of ignorance about contemporary music. In IVhat to Listenfor in Music, Aaron Copland argued that the reason why ".. .so many music lovers feel disoriented when they listen to contemporary music [is that they] seem to accept with equanimity the notion that the work of the present-day composer is not for them. Why? Because they 'Oust] don't understand it.'"'* He suggested that "the key to the understanding of new music is repeated hearings."^ One of the major reasons why the music of previous centuries is well-received is that it is performed frequently. If contemporary compositions were performed more often, they would become more accessible and familiar to ali. No one denies the importance and greatness of our musical heritage. Nevertheless, we should also be prepared to appreciate and treasure the music of our time. It is easier to prepare young ears to comprehend contemporary musical literature before they are conditioned exclusively to traditional harmony. Nonetheless, young music students are often introduced to contemporary hterature very late in their musical training if at ali. One reason could be that teachers are struggling to understand contemporary musical elements themselves. These teachers need assistance in selecting appropriate contemporary musical literature and training in how to use and teach it.

' Aaron Copland, What to Listenfor in Music (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1957), 242. ' Ibid., 251.

Pedagogues such as Samuel Adler compose piano works to remedy this situation. He aims to prepare piano students who are inexperienced in contemporary literature to deal with the more common compositional techniques, styles, and systems of the twentieth century. Adler's piano coWectìons-Gradus I, II, III, and The Sense of Touchare intended to expose ".. .the ear as well as the fingers of the student to the demands of the present and the immediate past."^ Each of these pieces ".. .utìlizes a technique of composition which has become common practice in the last half-century."^

Justification The purpose of this study is three-fold: to analyze the pedagogical piano pieces of Samuel Adler in terms of their compositional techniques and pedagogical aspects; to compare these compositions with the works of important twentieth-century piano pedagogues, Bartók and Kabalevsky; and to propose Adler's works as worthy additions to the pedagogical canon. Bradford Gowen, concert pianist and professor of piano at the University of Maryland, describes Adler's piano music as of "exceptional quality, well worth the o

attention of pianists seeking inventive and engaging additions to their repertoire." He notes that "the clarity of texture, flow of melody, rhythmic vigor, satisfying construction, and, perhaps most characteristically, the hearty emotional communication of ali of bis * Samuel Adler, Gradus I (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), Preface. ^ Ibid. * Bradford Gowen, "Samuel Adler's Piano Music," The American Music Teacher 25, no. 3 (January 1976): 6.

best music, give to these piano works a distinction and an audience appeal not commonly found in today's music."^ One may find the same qualities in Adler's pedagogical works, which include the sixty pieces of the three-volume set, Gradus, and a later coUection of eight pieces called The Sense of Touch. According to Gowen, these works are attractive, brief, clear in intent, instrucfive, and are worthy of a wide circulation. The pieces in Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch contain a diversity of contemporary styles and systems. At the same time, these works summarize the eclectic compositional style of Adler. Adler, in fact, has called himself the "happy eclectìc."'° Contemporary musical elements include the use of lyrical, disjunct, angular, and static melodies; motorie rhythms; dissonant harmonic practices; and homophonic or polyphonic textures. These sixty-eight pieces are short in length but rich in musical content. The author hopes that this study will establisb these pieces as important additions to the teaching repertoire so that more people will benefit fi-om these works. In spite of the fact that some of the current commercially available piano method books include materials introducing contemporary music concepts, not ali of them are popular among piano studios. For example, the Hai Léonard series, published in 19961999, introduces a few cluster chords, whole-tone pattems, and some modality. The Music for Piano series, pubUshed in 1961 and revised in 1979 and 1994-1996, introduces pentatonic, modal, and twelve-tone music. The reasons for this lack of popularity are

' Ibid., 8. '" Nelson W. Hill, "The Sacred Choral Works of Samuel Adler: A Study and Interpretive Analysis of Selected Compositions" (D.M.A. diss., University of Cincinnati 1999), 15.

varied. First, not ali piano teachers like to use method books. Second, it is possible that these series may not have been advertised to enough piano teachers. Third, teachers may not feel it necessary to introduce contemporary musical elements to elementary students. As a result, most piano students have not been exposed to these more up-to-date piano method books. The pedagogical piano pieces of early twentieth-century composers Bartók and Kabalevsky are stili commonly used to help fili the gap between music of the past and the present, especially the Mikrokosmos of Bartók. During the latter half of the twentieth century, composers such as David Diamond," Ross Lee Finney,'^ and Barbara Pentland'^ have written individuai contemporary short piano pieces or collections of piano pieces. Adler's works are among those that aim to introduce piano students to contemporary music. Adler's piano collections Gradus and The Sense of Touch exhibit a greater variety of contemporary styles and systems than the other available contemporary piano collections. For example, aleatorie music, twelve-tone music, and pieces that explore the inside of the piano are included. Anita and Louis Gordon suggest that ''Gradus is an extremely useful source, both for teaching the techniques necessary to play twentìeth-

' ' David Diamond's piano collection Then and Now, published in 1966 by Southern Music, contains eleven pieces and most are atonal. '^ Ross Lee Finney's 32 Piano Games, published in 1969 by Henmar Press, contains contemporary piano pieces firom easy to moderately difficult. '^ Barbara Pentland's three books of Music ofNow, published in 1970 by the Waterloo Music, introduce some contemporary musical elements.

century music, and as a brief and simple theoretical introduction to modem music."''' Lynn Freeman Olson, composer and piano pedagogue, comments that The Sense of Touch deals with both the technical skills and the compositional devices of contemporary music and emphasizes physical skills and tactile awareness.'^ The first two volumes of Gradus were published in 1971 and the third volume appeared in 1981. Each volume of the Gradus contains twenty pieces.'^ The third volume was composed in response to requests by teachers for works that would bridge the gap between the first and second volumes. The difficulty ranges from the lateelementary level to the late-intermediate and early-advanced levels. Each piece uses at least one twentieth-century compositional technique. For example. No. 5 of Gradus I and No. 3 of Gradus II feature parallel movement in fourths and fifths. There are twelve-tone pieces in Nos. 8a-l 1 oi Gradus //and Nos. 16-17 of Gradus III. Nos. 4, 7, and 14 of Gradus I and four pieces in Gradus //make use of church modes. No. 8 of Gradus III is written on octatonic collections. In the notes, Adler briefly discusses the compositional devices used and occasionally provides suggestions for studying these pieces. The Sense of Touch (1983) was commissioned by the piano journal Clavier. It contains eight short pieces also introducing the young pianist to techniques used in twentieth-century music.

'" Anita and Louis Gordon, "Contemporary Music for Pianists," The Piano Quarterly 80 (Winter 1972-73): 28. '^ Lynn Freeman Olson, ''Commissioned by Clavier," Clavier 23 (March 1984): 19-21. '* If Nos. 8 and 8a are included, there are 22 pieces in Gradus IL Nevertheless, these two pieces are not counted because No. 8 is the matrix table of the twelve-tone row and No. 8a is a preliminary exercise that notates the pitches of the tone row.

For example. No. 1 of The Sense of Touch explores the full range of the keyboard on a single pitch class. No. 2 features pandiatonicism and contrapuntai technique. No. 8 includes ostinati, clusters, and bi-tonality. The titles, Gradus and The Sense of Touch, refer to important pedagogical works of the eighteenth century. Muzio Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum (1817) is a collection of one hundred pieces that represents a summary of the composer's "keyboard creativity." The many exercises included in this collection may have been intended as preparatory material for the compositions included in the set (for example, preludes and 1 -7

canons).

Franfois Couperin's influential treatise L'Art de toucher le clavecin (The Art

of Playing [Touching] the Harpsichord, 1717) and C P. E. Bach's Versuch iiber die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen (Essay on the True Art of Playing Keyboard Instruments, part 1 [1743] and part 2 [1762]) discuss the styles and performance practices 1 S

of eighteenth-century France and Germany.

Likewise, Adler's Gradus and The Sense

of Touch offer preparatory pieces and instructive information conceming performance practice, but of the twentieth century. Adler's titles suggest a connection with the pedagogical purposes of the present and the past. In the Preface of the first two volumes of Gradus, Adler clearly states the intention of these pieces: ".. .it is evident that a good number of today's performing musicians are not well prepared to deal with even a few of the simplest compositional techniques. The present two volumes attempi to remedy this condition by exposing the '^ Stewart Gordon, A History of Keyboard Literature (New York: Schirmer Books, 1996): 202. '^ Ibid., 71 and 85.

ear as well as the fingers of the student to the demands of the present and the immediate past."

Although the situation may have improved since the publication of the work,

Gradus and The Sense of Touch continue to be useful and important vehicles for introducing twentieth-century music to piano students. There are six chapters in this dissertation. Chapter 1 provides introductory material stating the justification, review of related research, methodology and materials, and delimitations of this study. Chapter II focuses on the personal history, teaching philosophy, and philosophy of music of Samuel Adler. Chapter III discusses the compositional techniques exhibited in Adler's pieces. Chapter IV examines the pedagogical aspects of Adler's compositions and provides suggestions on how Adler's works could be integrated into more traditional courses of study. Chapter V compares pedagogical works by three twentieth-century composers: Samuel Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch, Béla Bartók's Mikrokosmos, and Dmitry Kabalevsky's Pieces for Children, Op. 27 and Op. 39. Chapter VI concludes the study. Appendices at the back of the dissertation contain information about each of the sixty-eight pieces studied and a graded list of ali the pieces. Although thorough studies have been made of Bartók's Mikrokosmos and Kabalevsky's Pieces for Children, there is virtually no research on Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch. The author believes that a thorough analysis of these sixty-eight pieces would reveal the distinctiveness of Samuel Adler's piano music and enable both

Samuel Adler, Gradus I (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), Preface.

teachers and students to have a better understanding of bis pedagogical and compositional techniques and of contemporary music. It is hoped that this study will achieve what Adler states in the Preface of Gradus: "The aim of these books is not to bring about the acceptance or rejection of any system, but rather to widen musical acquaintance and to stimulate the wish to consider more deeply a style, a notational system, or a musical philosophy."^^

Review of Related Research In order to uncover existing essential research related to the Gradus and The Sense of Touch by Samuel Adler, Pieces for Children by Kabalevsky, and Mikrokosmos by Bartók, many research methodologies were applied. The research process included: (a) researching different documents, articles, books on twentieth-century/contemporary music; (b) searching through the Dissertation Abstracts Online and Dissertation Abstracts published by University Microfilms, Incorporated, a listing of intemationally published subject-related dissertations and theses;^' and (e) exploring different computerassisted research databases such as Worldcat, RILN, RILM, ERIC, and EducationAbs. Results from searching in Dissertation Abstracts Online revealed that there were seven dissertations related to Samuel Adler's solo vocal works, chamber music, organ music, and operas. There is no specific research on Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch. The only existing publications on the subject of this dissertation are three journal ^°Ibid. ^' Dissertation Abstracts Online and Dissertation Abstracts, published by University Microfilms, Incorporated, also provide abstracts for documents written after 1982.

10

articles, the Preface and Notes in the piano score of Gradus, and the brief notes in the score of The Sense of Touch. The two journal articles about Gradus only provide an overview for the first two volumes of the set and do not cover the third volume of the Gradus, which was written ten years after the first two volumes. The journal article about The Sense of Touch only gives a brief remark on the collection and provides a short discussion of the piece No. 8. Research on other books on twentieth-century/contemporary music shows that a few other sources contain some information on Gradus I and / / Alice Canaday's Contemporary Music and the Pianist: A Guidebook of Resources and Materials suggests Gradus I and / / as contemporary pedagogical works. Ellen R. Thompson's Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music identifies briefly several contemporary musical elements found in selected pieces in Gradus I and //. Although Carole Thibodeaux's "Performance Analysis: A System for Increasing in Piano Students an Awareness of Stylistic Interpretation as Applied to Selected Twentieth Century Piano Music" analyzes two pieces from Gradus—No. 16, Gradus I and No. 17, Gradus II—no other reference is given to any of Adler's other works. Nevertheless, there are numerous documents available on the piano music, pedagogical contributions, and compositional techniques of Bartók and Kabalevsky, and

^^ Alice Canaday's Contemporary Music and the Pianist: A Guidebook of Resources and Materials (Tumbridge, VT: Trillenium Music, 1997); Ellen R. Thompson's Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music (San Diego, CA: Kjos West, 1976); Carole, Thibodeaux, "Performance Analysis: A System for Increasing in Piano Students an Awareness of Stylistic Interpretation as Applied to Selected Twentieth Century Piano Music" (Ph. D. diss., University of Oklahoma, 1976), 175-179 and 264269.

11

the musical elements, compositional techniques, and pedagogical ideas of the twentieth century. Many of these are listed in the selective bibliography as functional resources. This dissertation has provided an opportunity to study Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch. The author of this study believes that the thorough study of these piano works will serve as a guide for piano teachers and students to appreciate Adler's piano music and as a useful source for leaming about contemporary music.

Methodology and Materials A thorough analysis of Adler's sixty-eight pieces was conducted to identify the twentieth-century music concepts and compositional techniques that were used. Located in the appendices are discussions of each of the studied pieces, which bring to light three important aspects: compositional techniques, pedagogical elements, and practice suggestions. The pedagogical elements concentrate on a discussion of technical skills, rather than restating the contemporary compositional techniques covered in the previous category in the table. The practice suggestions provide ideas on how to prepare students with warm-up exercises related to the technical skills required in the pieces, how to practice or study specific rhythmic pattems or figurations, and how to introduce new elements such as modal scales and different intervals. Such discussions will help readers to better understand Adler's pieces and to prepare them to study the pieces. A graded list of ali sixty-eight pieces is presented in the Appendix E to serve as a general reference guide for studying the pieces.

12

Adler's pieces were compared to pieces in Béla Bartók's Mikrokosmos and Dmitry Kabalevsky's Pieces for Children, Op. 27 and Op. 39. The result reveals the similarities and differences among the selected works of these three composers. This study also provides suggestions for incorporating the pedagogical pieces of Adler into traditional courses of piano music and proposes Adler's pieces as worthy additions to the standard pedagogical canon.

Delimitations For the purpose of this study, the term "contemporary music" refers to serious Westem art music that has been composed from the late nineteenth century to the present. Since Adler's Gradus I, II, III, and The Sense of Touch were composed during the early 1970s and 1980s, the contemporary compositional techniques covered are limited to those that emerged from the late nineteenth century up to the early 1980s. The discussion in Chapter III, "Compositional Techniques," focuses on some of the major characteristics exhibited in contemporary music which are illustrated in Adler's piano pieces. Chapter rV, "Pedagogical Aspects," concentrates on exploring the teaching elements of Adler's pieces. In Chapter V, a comparison is conducted of Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch, Kabalevsky's Op. 27 and Op. 39, and the first four books of Bartók's Mikrokosmos. The last two books of Mikrokosmos are excluded from the comparison because they are on a more advanced level than the other selected works discussed in this chapter. The category called "Pedagogical Elements" in the analysis tables of the

13

appendices specifically discusses technical skills such as muscular relaxation and wrist flexibility in each of the sixty-eight pieces.

Conclusion Samuel Adler is a prolific composer, experienced teacher, and conductor. He plays a significant role in the contemporary musical scene, particularly in the United States. The author hopes that this study will establisb Adler's pieces as worthy additions to the current pedagogical canon. At the same time, this study will serve as a leaming guide to Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch and may inspire piano students to take a more serious interest in contemporary music. Like Adler, the author also hopes that "...the awakened student and teacher, having begun bere, will continue to explore the complex and diverse music which has been created in our century."

" Samuel Adler, Gradus (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), Preface.

14

CHAPTER II BIOGRAPHY'

Early Years Samuel Hans Adler was bom in Mannheim, Germany, on March 4, 1928. He was brought up in a musical family. His first musical influence was bis father, Hugo Chaim Adler. Hugo Adler was a cantor and the most important composer of the American Reformed Jewish synagogues in the twentieth century. Hugo Adler studied briefly with his Mannheim neighbor, Ernst Toch, but was largely self-taught.^ Hugo Adler was also a biblical scholar and he composed numerous large cantatas. Samuel Adler's mother was a mezzo-soprano and a pianist. She was able to accompany herself at the piano and sang songs by Brabms, Reger, Pfitzner, and Mahler. Samuel Adler's musical experiences began at an early age. He was a boy soprano in the synagogue choir. At the age of five, he began to leam the recorder, using the solfeggio system taught to ali Mannheim children. With the help of his grandfather, who was a violinisi, Adler leamed to read music. At the age of six, Adler heard his first opera. At age seven, Adler began daily violin lessons with Albert Levy, the former

' The biographical information is drawn from two major resources: Nelson W. Hill, "The Sacred Choral Works of Samuel Adler: A Study and Interpretive Analysis of Selected Compositions" (D.M.A. thesis. University of Cincinnati, 1999); and Joan Dawson Lucas, "The Operas of Samuel Adler: An Analytìcal Study" (Ph.D. diss., Louisiana State University, 1978). ^ Ernst Toch was later a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and professor at UCLA. See Nelson W. Hill, "The Sacred Choral Works of Samuel Adler: A Study and Interpretive Analysis of Selected Compositions" (D.M.A. thesis, University of Cincinnati, 1999), 1.

15

concertmaster of the locai Pfalz Orchestra. At the same time, he began taking piano lessons from his father but did not really practice. Adler regrets this rebellion against his father. When Adler was ten, his family moved to America and settled in Worcester, Massachusetts, where his father became cantor and musical director of Tempie EmanuEl. Adler began to compose music some time after he arrived in America. His first attempts were songs. Adler recalled that he persuaded his sister, Marianne, to "interpret" the songs. Soon after realizing his son's interest in composition, his father sent Adler to Boston every week to study theory, harmony, counterpoint, and form with Herbert Fromm. At age 12, Adler started his first composition lessons with Fromm; they established a lifelong friendship. Adler stated that Fromm had a great impact on his early compositions, especially on his religious music.^ During the same period, Adler also took violin lessons with Maurice Diamond, a former member of the New York Philharmonic who was living in Worcester. Adler recalled that he would play violin sonatas and other pieces for two hours daily accompanied by his father on the piano. By

^ Nelson W. Hill, "The Sacred Choral Works of Samuel Adler: A Study and Interpretive Analysis of Selected Compositions" (D.M.A. thesis, University of Cincinnati, 1999), 2. " Joan Dawson Lucas, "The Operas of Samuel Adler: An Analytical Study" (Ph.D. diss., Louisiana State University, 1978), 12. ^ Hill, 2. Lucas, 13.

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the time Adler went to college, they had read through ali the violin literature he could afford to borrow from libraries or to buy with the money he eamed as a soda jerk.^ Adler had excellent opportunities to enrich his musical training during his high school years in Worcester. He took part in school ensembles as a French hom player in the band, violinist in the orchestra, and singer in the choms. Adler also served as the assistant conductor for the high school orchestra. During his high school years and his first two years at Boston University, Adler and seven friends met every Saturday evening at Adler's home to play chamber music. The group consisted of four violinists, one violisi, two cellists, and a pianist. Each group member made arrangemenls of orchestrai pieces for the group. Under the slrong encouragement of his high school teacher, Albert W. Wassell, Adler also composed, arranged, and orchestrated works for the different ensemble groups at school. In addition to his high school courses, Adler also took three years of theory and two years of music history. By the time Adler was eighteen, he was quite an accomplished musician.

College Life After high school, Adler received a full scholarship to major in composition at Boston University. He studied musicology with Kart Geiringer and Paul Pisk and violin with Wolf Wolfinsohn. Hugo Norden was his composition teacher. Adler thought at that

' Ibid.

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time that Norden was "not the greatest influence."^ Norden was a contrapuntalist who wanted his students to "leam the crafì of composition, i.e., counterpoint in the strici and old sense." Adler wishes that he had taken full advantage of Norden as his teacher. During this period, with the encouragement and help of Robert King, founder of the publication Music for Brass and theory professor at Boston University, Adler wrote pieces for brass instìiiments and published several of them. Adler now considers these early works unsatisfactory and regrets that they are stili being performed.'° Besides composition, Adler showed interest in organizing and conducting during his Boston years. Because Adler and some other music students were not satisfied with how the orchestra, choms, and chamber ensemble at school were led, he organized the Inter-Collegiate Symphony Orchestra. Adler conducted the orchestra, which performed in the Boston area every six weeks. A choms and a chamber group were also formed. Although Adler states that these were "very exciting" opportunities, the school disapproved of these outside performing groups." Consequently, Adler was suspended from school on three occasions. Eventually, the issue was settled and Adler graduated from Boston University with his Bachelor of Music degree in 1948. In the fall of 1948, Adler entered Harvard University and he received his Master of Arts degree in 1950. During his Harvard years, he took composition lessons with 'Ibid., 15. 'Ibid. •"Hill, 4. " Lucas, 16.

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Walter Piston, Randall Thompson, and Paul Hindemith and studied musicology with Archibald T. Davison and Arthur Tillman Marritt. Of the three composition teachers, Adler was influenced most by Paul Hindemith. As a visiting professor from Yale University, Hindemith presented his Norton lectures in residence at Harvard for one year. Adler described Hindemith as "a tremendous teacher—very exacting. He made his students write in [Hindemith's] own style."'^ Adler had two lessons a week from Hindemith for a year. He states that it was hard at the beginning to understand the master, but after he had dose contact with Hindemith, it "took many years to shake the actual Hindemith sound."'^ Adler has been thankful for Hindemith's teaching technique and style. Adler characterizes his relationship with Walter Piston, the other composition teacher at Harvard, as a "cool one, but a very good one. Piston was not the kind of man you could know very well."''' The friendship between the two became much closer after Adler graduated. Adler claims that Piston was a very tmstworthy and good friend. Although Adler studied with Randall Thompson for one year, he was not greatly influenced by Thompson. Adler thought that "Thompson did not particularly like my music. There was never very much of a relationship, although I respected the man and stili do."'^

'^ Ibid., 18. '^Ibid. '^Ibid. ''ibid., 19.

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In the summers of 1949 and 1950, Alder participated in the Tanglewood Music Festival. He studied conducting with Serge Koussevitzky and composition with Aaron Copland. Adler claimed that Copland "was the greatest teacher and had the greatest influence on me."'^ Adler also stated that Copland helped him get out of the heavy 17

influence of Hindemith.

Adler has high regards for Copland.

I leamed more from Copland in those two summers than from other teachers with whom l spent more time. Copland had a marvelous way of putting his finger on just what the problem was in every passage. If I can teach a little bit like that, I feel I would be a success as a teacher. Copland was a great teacher and a beautiful person.

Careers After graduating from Harvard in 1950, Adler joined the US Army and was sent to Germany. He organized the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra and conducted more than 75 concerts in Germany and Austria. The Department of Psychological Warfare of the United States recognized that these concerts were effective in developing cultural relationships among the United States, Germany, and Austria. Adler was awarded the Army Medal of Honor for his musical services. He was subsequently selected to conduci concerts and operas and to lecture extensively throughout Europe and the United States. In 1953, Adler took a position as the Music Director at Tempie Emanu-El in Dallas, Texas. He remained in this position until 1966. From 1954 to 1958 he worked as

" Hill, 6. "ibid., 10. '^ Lucas, 19.

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the music director of the Dallas Lyric Theater. In 1957, he was hired as professor of composition at North Texas State University. He remained there until 1966. In 1966, Adler became professor of composition at the Eastman School of Music and was named chairman of the Composition Department in 1974. In 1984, he was made a Mentor of the University of Rochester. In 1994, Adler retired from the Eastman School of Music and became Professor Emeritus there. Since then he has taught at Ithaca College, the University of Cincinnati, Bowling Green State University, the University of Missouri (Kansas City), and the University of Utah. He has been a guest composer, clinician, and conductor at over 300 universities and colleges worldwide. Adler has also taught at major music festivals such as Tanglewood, Aspen, Brevard, and Bowdoin, as well as others in Austria, France, Germany, Israel, Korea, Poland, Spain, and South America. He is currently on the faculty of The Juilliard School of Music in New York City.'^

Honors, Commissions, and Others Adler has received numerous commissions and prestigious awards and honors including grants from the Rockefeller (1965) and Ford (1966-71) foundations, a Koussevitzky Foundation commission (1983), the 1983 ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award for his book, The Study of Orchestration, a Guggenheim Fellowship (1984-5), the MTNA Award for Composer of the Year (1988-1989), the designated Phi Beta Kappa Scholar Award (1988-1989), the Eastman School's Eisenhard Award for Distinguished Teaching

" Sigma Alpha Iota Philanthropies, Inc., Composers Bureau: Samuel Adler, December 2002, (20 February 2002).

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(1989), an award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters (1990), the Charies Ives Award, the Lillian Fairchild Award, the Composer of the Year Award by the American Guild of Organists (1991), a Special Citation by the American Foundation of Music Clubs (2001), a number of teaching awards, and several honorary doctorates (a Doctor of Music degree from Southem Methodist University, a Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Wake Foresi University, a Doctor of Music degree from St. Mary's College, fridiana, and a Doctor of Music degree from Saint Louis Conservatory).^" Adler has also been honored intemationally. During his second trip to Chile, in 1993, he was elected to the Chilean Academy of Fine Arts "for his outstanding contìibution to the world of music as a composer."^' In 1999, he was elected to the Akademie der Kuenste in Germany for distinguished service to music.^^ Many orchestras, chamber ensembles, colleges, music schools, magazines, and other organizations, including intemational groups, have commissioned Adler to compose works for them. Some recent commissions include: the New York Chamber Symphony Orchestra {Show an Affirming Flame for Orchestra), the American String Quartet {Piano Quintet, 2000),^" the Beaufort Ensemble {Scherzo Schmerzo, 2000),^^ the

^"Ibid. ^' Ibid. ^^Ibid. ^^ This work was commissioned by the New York Chamber Symphony Orchestra in memory of the victims of the attacks on September 11, 2001. It was premiered by the New York Chamber Symphony and conducted by Gerard Schwarz at the Alice Tully Hall of New York City on November 3, 2001.

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Dallas Symphony Orchestra {Lux Perpetua for Organ and Orchestra, 1998),^^ the Friends of Today's Music for the Music Teachers Association of Califomia {Concerto No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra, 1997),^^ and the keyboard magazine Clavier {The Sense of Touch, 1981).^^ In addition to composing, Adler has conducted many major symphony orchestras in numerous concerts in the United States and other countries. In 1970, he conducted the Vierma Symphony Orchestra in a recording for the Decca Recording Company, with Eugene List as the soloist. They performed a work by Louis Moreau Gottschalk that was orchesfrated and arranged by Adler. In 1972, Adler conducted the Berlin Symphony with List as the soloist on a performance for Tumabout Records. They performed the Gottschalk work and Gershwin's Piano Concerto in F and Rhapsody in Blue.

Composer and Educator Adler is a prolific composer, teacher, lecturer, and conductor. His catalog contains 400 published works in ali media: 5 operas, 6 symphonies, 8 concerti, 8 string quartets, 4 oratorios, and numerous other musical compositions such as orchesfral music, ^* It was written for the American String Quartet and was premiered at the Aspen Music Festival in the summer of 2002. ^' It was commissioned by the Beaufort Ensemble and was premiered in Berlin, Germany in August of 2001. ^* This work was commissioned and first performed by the Dallas Symphony Orchestra with Wayne Poster as the organist and Andrew Litton as the conductor on February 12, 1999. " This second piano concerto was commissioned by Friends of Today's Music for the Music Teachers Association of Califomia for their lOOth anniversary in 1997. ^* The Sense of Touch was commissioned by Clavier in 1981.

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chamber music, vocal music, and piano music. The publishers of his compositions include: Theodore Presser Company, Oxford University Press, G. Schirmer, Cari Fischer, E.C. Schirmer, Peters Edition, Ludwig Music, Southem Music Publishers, and Transcontinental Music Publishers. These works have been performed in the United States and abroad. Adler's music has been recorded on Albany, CRI, Crystal, Gasparo, RCA, and Vanguard. Adler is not only a great composer, but he also takes educating future musicians as his mission. He has published three books and numerous articles in major joumals, magazines, and reference books, both in this country and abroad.^^

Although Adler has

a busy schedule, he remains active in teaching and composing. To him, teaching enhances his creative life. "Teaching isn't draining; it tums me on. It doesn't inhibit creativity; it inspires me."

Teaching Philosophy Because Adler takes educating future musicians seriously, he has high standards for college music education. He feels that universities play a significant role in preparing future composers and musicians. He makes an analogy comparing the universities of today with the churches and the aristocracy of the past. Adler believes that "the university is the 'officiai guardian' of the composer, as the church and the aristocracy

^' Adler's three books: Choral Conducting, Sight-Singing, and The Study of Orchestration. ^° Hill, 8-9.

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were in previous ages."^' Since universities and colleges are important places for training the future music teachers, future composers, and professional musicians, Adler has concems about the current college music curricula. He comments that too many music schools in the United States have curricula in the first two years which "are often like kindergarten rather than college courses."^^ Adler emphasizes that universities should raise the requirements of music theory and music history for ali music students to provide better preparation for music professionals. He thinks that to achieve this goal, the entrance requirements should also be raised. Adler points out that the basic facts~for example, biographies and outputs of composers, and facts about the times—should be leamed by college music students themselves, not taught by professors in classes. He also thinks that every new music student should have acquired a basic knowledge of harmony (at least through the dominant seventh chord and inversions), a certain level of proficiency in keyboard harmony, and sight-singing skills when they start the program.^^ Before this goal can be reached, Adler thinks that the early education of future musicians in the basics of music theory and history should be in greater deplb.^"*

^' Lucas, 28. ^^ Samuel Adler, "Problems of Teaching Composition in Our Colleges Today," American Music Teacher 13:2 (1963), 19. " Ibid. ^'Ibid.

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Adler also argues that most current music curricula are irrelevant to the needs of students. He suggests that a more creative and student-oriented approach to education which allows more participation in analysis, performance, evaluating, and teaching should replace the more common "spoon-feeding" type of education.^^ Adler beHeves that students in composition should be competent in the techniques of the past before they decide whether or not to use them. "Students should leam that ali forms of music must be considered valid until [students] are able to reject them by knowledgeable consideration rather than because of an abysmal ignorance of the 'main stream' of music."^^ Adler suggests that composition students should prepare themselves by establishing a foundation in the classics, by being open-minded to new repertoire appearing in recent decades, and by having a well-rounded knowledge of traditional harmonies and melodie skills. Adler has considered the advancement of contemporary music seriously. He especially puts emphasis on the pedagogical level. For example, Adler's solo piano collections Gradus I, II, III, and The Sense of Touch aim to expose ".. .the ear as well as the fingers of the student to the demands of the present and the immediate past."

Each

of these pieces ".. .utilizes a technique of composition which has become common

" Samuel Adler, "The CMP Institutes and Curriculum Changes," Music Educators Journal 55 (September 1968): 36-84. ^* Adler, "Problems of Teaching Compositions," 19. "Ibid. '* Samuel Adler, Gradus I (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), Preface.

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practice in the last half-century."'''' One other aim of these Adler's pieces is "...to widen musical acquaintance and to stimulate the wish to consider more deeply a style, a notational system, or a musical philosophy."''" Adler also has been active in exposing more people to contemporary music by participating in workshops and projects and by writing and pubHshing articles and books. He enjoys spending time teaching, lecturing, and conducting his music in order to introduce new music to different audiences.

Philosophy of Music Although there is a variety of styles in Adler's compositions, his main goal is not to emphasize compositional technique. Communication is the primary intent of Adler's music. "If I am successful at ali in my music, I would like it to be a sucessfiil fransmission of feelings from me to a performer to an audience."'" Adler argues that the aesthetic value and the communicative quality of music should be the main focus. "It is the convincing quality of the music resulting from any technique that validates the use thereof. Too much emphasis is placed upon the technical aspect of contemporary music and not enough on its communicative and aesthetic impact."" To Adler, the musical content and the aesthetic value are more important than the other aspects of music. Even

39

Ibid.

^''Ibid. "' James McCray, "An Interview with Samuel Adler," ChoralJournal 18, no. 9 (1978): 16. "^ Charles B. Fowler, "American Composer Sketches: Samuel Adler," Music Educators Journal 53 (March 1967): 41.

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for a performer, the technical aspect of a composition should be secondary to the importance of the musical enjoyment of the work. Adler suggests that "technical considerations should always be secondary to the musical content and the joy these exercises are designed to give to performer and listener."''^

Conclusion This chapter provides us with information on Adler's background, philosophies, and pedagogical ideas. His early education in music and the musical experiences of his youth laid a solid foundation for Adler's musical development. His parents and teachers also had a great impact on Adler's musical life. Adler's musical experiences reveal that early and Constant exposure to music was of paramount importance in his musical development. HopefuUy this information will help us to understand Adler's Gradus and The Sense of Touch and will awaken in us a curiosity about the complex and diverse music of our time.

"^ Samuel Adler, Gradus I, Preface.

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CHAPTER ni COMPOSITIONAL TECHNIQUES Certainly not ali the myriad styles and systems can be included and in order to keep the music reasonably uniform, many inherent complexities have been simplified. But it is my hope that the awakened student and teacher, having begun bere, will continue to explore the complex and diverse music which has been created in our century. —S. A. '

Adler is a prolific composer. He uses a wide variety of compositional techniques and modifies them according to his personal style and taste. "To heck with certain techniques, I used them all."'^ Adler considers compositional techniques as a way to achieve a specific goal. That is, "techniques should be used to express the emotional and personal...too much is made out of technique—it's just a tool. Let's hsten to the music; let's bear it right from your own conviction."^ In his Gradus and The Sense of Touch, Adler incorporates his own style with different contemporary compositional techniques. The sixty-eight pieces of the Gradus and The Sense of Touch represent most of the contemporary compositional techniques that emerged during the first three quarters of the twentieth century. Not only are these works useful as an introduction to contemporary music, but they also summarize Adler's eclectic compositional style. Adler's melodies may be lyrical, angular and disjunct, or static. The texture of his pieces may be homophonic or contrapuntai or may contain passages that shift rapidly between ' Samuel Adler, Gradus I (New York: Oxford University Press, 1971), Preface. ^ Nelson W. Hill, "The Sacred Choral Works of Samuel Adler: A Study and Interpretive Analysis of Selected Compositions" (D.M.A. thesis. University of Cincinnati, 1999), 2. ^Ibid.

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open and closed voicing. His harmonic language is diverse: modal, pentatonic, pandiatonic, whole tone, and octatonic. He also uses twelve-tone technique. Overall, there is a tendency toward deviation from functional harmony and toward less restriction in dissonance. Aleatorie techniques are also found in his works. Motorie rhythm and rhythmic vitahty are cmcial in Adler's compositions. Adler's eclectic approach to composition makes variety an inherent feature of his style. This eclecticism makes Adler an ideal composer for a contemporary pedagogical survey. The categories examined in this chapter are largely based on the discussions featured in Stefan Kostka's Materials and Techniques of Twentieth-Century Music and Ellen Thompson's Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music. The discussion concenfrates on the foUowing categories: melody, harmony, tonality, rhythm, form, texture, new notational procedures, and new timbres. The contemporary compositional techniques highlighted in each category include: aleatorie procedures, bitonality, canon, changing meters, irregular rhythm, mirror writing, modes, octatonicism, pandiatonicism, parallelism, clusters, twelve-tone techniques, expanded notational systems, and the use of innovative piano sonorities. A discussion of ali the details and devices in contemporary music is beyond the scope of this study. The following discussion will therefore focus on some of the major characteristics exhibited in contemporary music that are illustrated in Adler's piano pieces. The appendices

' Stefan Kostka, Materials and Techniques of Twentieth-Century Music (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1989). ' Ellen R. Thompson, Teaching and Understanding Contemporary Piano Music (San Diego, CA: KjosWest, 1976).

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provide a more detailed discussion on compositional techniques used in each of the sixtyeight pieces.

Melody Although contemporary composers make use of new approaches in composing melodies, as well as in other categories, many of these occur within the context of traditional practices. Nevertheless, contemporary melodies exemplify themselves by their characteristic sounds and distinguish themselves from their predecessors. In general, melodie organization in contemporary music does not seem as apparent at the surface level as that of previous eras. The qualities of predictability, symmefry, and regularity are also found to a lesser degree than in conventional melodies. In addition, the rhythmic stracture of many contemporary melodies departs distinctively from that of the earlier periods. Unconventional rhythm and more rhythmic variety commonly occur in many twentieth-century melodies. Other features of contemporary melodies include more expression marks, more chromaticism, and fewer harmonic implications than traditional melodies. In contrast to classic-romantic melodies, the style of contemporary melodies is not vocal in character. They can encompass a wider range, contain more leaps, and possess more angular or disjunct contours. Limited range melodies are also commonly found. Ellen Thompson describes the pitch characteristics of contemporary melody as including

'' Kostka, 78-

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".. .extended range, limited range (tuming around within a very small compass of notes), exploitation of extremely high and low registers, angular and disjointed lines caused by numerous wide and dissonant leaps (sevenths, ninths, tritones), and successive skips in the same direction often outlining non-tertial chords (consecutive leaps of fourths and fifths)."^ Nevertheless, some contemporary composers recali the "simplicity and gently undulating" qualities of medieval plainchants, reproducing these traits in plainsong-like melodies. In addition, contemporary melodies sometimes use scales or systems which are outside the major-minor system such as modal scales, pentatonic scales, whole-tone scales, octatonic scales, chromatic scales, and twelve-tone rows.

Extended Range The range of contemporary melodies may encompass two or more octaves and extend from the bass clef to the treble clef. For example, in No. 3 of Gradus II, the melody rises from the bass clef to the treble to cover a range of more than three octaves. In No. 11 of the same volume, the melody almost extends to a three-octave range. Also, in No. 6 of The Sense of Touch, the arpeggiated melody covers a range of more than two octaves.

' Thompson, 43. * Ibid., 42.

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Limited Range Most of the pieces of Gradus I use a five-finger or shifting five-finger position. The melodie activity in each band is limited in most cases to a fifth. In No. 10, twelve chromatic notes are introduced within a span of a seventh with both hands in the treble clef.

Extreme and Full Registers of the Keyboard Although No. 1 of The Sense of Touch makes use of only one pitch class, C, the two hands shift among the low, middle, and high registers of the keyboard. The last piece in Gradus I, No. 20, applies shifting-five-finger positions in different registers of the keyboard. In No. 8B of Gradus II, the notes are distributed ali over the keyboard. The two hands sometimes go in the same direction to the same register; at other times, they move in contrary motion to reach the extremes of the keyboard. In No. 11 of Gradus III, there are measures in which the two hands reach the extremes of the keyboard and are six octaves apart.

Angular and Disjointed Lines In No. 11 of Gradus II, the right band begins with an angular and disjointed melody including intervals of a tìitone, minor second, and augmented fifth. fri No. 8 of Gradus III, while the left-hand ostinato contains a skip of tritone, the right-hand melody includes a downward minor seventh.

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Successive Skips In conventional melodie writing, skips are often preceded by stepwise motion and a change of direction usually foUows a large skip. In contemporary melodies, however, successive skips are common. For example, in No. 6 of Gradus III, notes move in consecutive fifths in the same direction to suggest quintal chords. The first piece of The Sense of Touch is derived from the pitch class C. Wide skips of two octaves and even four octaves (in m. 17) altemate between hands.

Modal Scales Several pieces in Gradus I use church modes. No. 4 (mm. 5-8) and No. 14 in Gradus / employ the Phrygian mode;^ No. 4 (mm. 1-4 and mm. 9-12) features the AeoUan mode. The Locrian mode is introduced in No. 7. The second piece of Gradus II infroduces four church modes: the Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, and Aeohan.

Pentatonic Scale No. 10 of Gradus I uses the AeoUan mode on D and pentatonic scale on C-sharp simultaneously. The first four measures speli out the first five notes of the C-sharp pentatonic scale in the left band. In No. 20 of Gradus III, mm. 6-12, the left-hand line emphasizes the E-flat minor pentatonic scale.

' E-Phrygian and F-Phrygian, respectively.

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Whole-Tone Scale In Gradus I, No. 3 is based on a whole-tone scale on D. The dissonant major ninths throughout the piece and the abmpt ending, with the final note on the eighth-note F-sharp, reveal the twentieth-century flavor of this piece.

Octatonic Scale No. 8 of Gradus III is based on the octatonic collection C#-Eb(D#)-E-F#-G-ABb-C that is used in the ostinato pattems, the melodie line, and the coda. The collection shifts in m. 14 to a new ostinato based on D-Eb-F-F#-G#-A-B-C. In No. 20 of Gradus III, mm. 1-5 of the A section contain a left-hand octatonic collection E-F-G-G#-A#-BC#-D against a five-note ostinato figure.

Twelve-Tone and Serial Writing Adler demonstrates how the twelve-tone serial technique can be used to create different styles in Nos. 8-11 of Gradus II, and Nos. 16-17 of Gradus IH. The twelve-tone row is used melodically and harmonically in No. 16 of Gradus III. The other twelve-tone pieces range in style from jagged and pointillistic to contrapuntai, dissonant, or consonant.

Harmony From the seventeenth century to the decline of the tonai system in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the system of triadic major-minor tonality had

35

been the primary organizing force in Westem music, hi the early tonai era, the primary triads of the tonic, subdominant, and dominant were emphasized in the harmonic and melodie aspects, and the secondary triads were favored for color and variety. Chromatic chords functioned primarily as decoration and embellishment.'" During the nineteenth century, chromatic harmony became increasingly significant, leading to a predominance of nondiatonic tones over diatonic tones. The common use of ali twelve tones of the chromatic scale disguised the diatonic foundation of the music and made tonality more and more ambiguous to Hsteners." By the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, composers expanded the use of tertian sonorities to an even greater extent. Chords with ninths, elevenths, and thirteenths became popular and were even constmcted on scale degrees other than the dominant. Instead of providing any harmonic function, the primary function of these chords was to provide color. Composers in this period showed a declining interest in fraditional tonai harmony. "Evaded cadences and irregular resolution of dissonant chords produced long, unbroken passages which meandered from key to key or dissolved ali sense of key. Functional harmony gave way to non-functional, where harmonic color and emotive whim govemed the choice of chords."'^ Ellen Thompson describes the changes occurring in the harmonic language of this period by noting that "successions of

Thompson, 79. " Koskta, 1-15. "Ibid., 194.

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unrelated chords, parallelism, consonant use of previously considered dissonances, and chords with both major and minor thirds became normative."'^ In the twentieth century, composers are free to determine their own mles and they share no common harmonic language. Traditional procedures or practices such as principles of voice-leading and harmonic progression are stili available, but some important conventions of tonai harmony have become options rather than mles. Consequently, ali kinds of parallel motion and the free treatment of dissonance (without resolution) are acceptable. On the other band, while much contemporary music is basically tertian, non-tertian stmctures such as chords built from seconds, fourths, fifths, and combinations of different intervals are also used. At the same time, stacked-third chords beyond the seventh, chords with added notes (usually seconds or sixths, less commonly fourths), and chords with split chord members (commonly split thirds but also including split roots, fifths, and sevenths) provide new tertian sonorities.''' In addition, harmonic procedures such as polychords/bichords and serial chords also emerge in contemporary music.'^ According to Kostka, contemporary composers show less interest in the vertical dimension in music. Although traditional harmonic progression continues to exist in some contemporary music such as different kinds of popular music and a small

'^ Thompson, 80. '"Kostka, 47-115. '^ Thompson, 79-96.

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percentage of "classical" music, ".. .a good deal of twentieth-century music is not harmonic in conception."'^ While composers have become more interested in linear counterpoint, the simultaneous sounding of chords seems to be a result of the "relatively uncontroUed relationships between independent lines."''

Tertian Chords Adler often uses traditional major and minor triads, but they are not organized in standard harmonic progressions. No. 9 of Gra