So, I shall write about the wonderful Music Seminar.
Heading into the Monteverdi project is like visiting a friend. Monteverdi has been a part of my life since last May, he is definitely one of those composers that will stay with me for quite a while. I've written a general paper on the Vespers, have been singing it since September. Where do I go from here? Well, my first topic: analyzing the excerpts of Gombert within the vespers fell through in class. I quickly looked up Gombert in some of the monographs and realized the topic was too cloudy and might possibly go nowhere. I talked a little about the great falsobordone in Dixit Dominus. Ever since we started singing this I was fascinated by those little quick parts throughout the music that didn't completely fit but would be missing if not there. They are fabulous little parts of the music and they really intrigued me. I came to find while reading around blogs Josh already took the topic...
So, where does this leave me. Another piece I would like to rip apart is Nisi Dominus. After singing it for an entire semester, every time I listen to it I am still taken by the piece. The imitation is incredible and especially how at times the parts are not very far apart but contrast dramatically and create such a rich antiphonal effect. This is my piece for analyzation. Now, for my topic? Ever since the last paper I have been interested in the debate about the geographical intention of the Vespers - Mantua or Venice? This could possibly be an extremely hard topic with sources few and far between and the speculation weighted. But, this is one of the biggest controversies around this piece, and could have shaped the compositional intention of the piece. Another topic which really interests me is the format of the piece (I am not sure if Beth has this) but this work has many different usages. The Vespers, the mass, the magnificat so many major works in one volume, what was Monteverdi's intention! (Then again thats like asking the big question: What came first the chicken or the egg!??)
I realize I need to focus my topics, hone it down, but I want to get away from the common topics, 1st and 2nd practice, Artusi/Moneteverdi controversy, the basic history. To some degree I feel as if I have done this already, not in incredibly great depth but I have covered it. I would like to move on to something more challenging, and in the two topics as noted above I believe I will have a challenge, if not find myself up in the (meg) tree once more. I will continue mulling over these ideas and post here with any update.
So, where does this leave me. Another piece I would like to rip apart is Nisi Dominus. After singing it for an entire semester, every time I listen to it I am still taken by the piece. The imitation is incredible and especially how at times the parts are not very far apart but contrast dramatically and create such a rich antiphonal effect. This is my piece for analyzation. Now, for my topic? Ever since the last paper I have been interested in the debate about the geographical intention of the Vespers - Mantua or Venice? This could possibly be an extremely hard topic with sources few and far between and the speculation weighted. But, this is one of the biggest controversies around this piece, and could have shaped the compositional intention of the piece. Another topic which really interests me is the format of the piece (I am not sure if Beth has this) but this work has many different usages. The Vespers, the mass, the magnificat so many major works in one volume, what was Monteverdi's intention! (Then again thats like asking the big question: What came first the chicken or the egg!??)
I realize I need to focus my topics, hone it down, but I want to get away from the common topics, 1st and 2nd practice, Artusi/Moneteverdi controversy, the basic history. To some degree I feel as if I have done this already, not in incredibly great depth but I have covered it. I would like to move on to something more challenging, and in the two topics as noted above I believe I will have a challenge, if not find myself up in the (meg) tree once more. I will continue mulling over these ideas and post here with any update.
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