Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

D.M.A.

Program

Music

Advisor

Scott Burnham

Committee Members

Kofi Agawu

L. Poundie Burstein

Norman Carey

Subject Categories

Musicology | Music Performance

Keywords

Joseph Haydn, Seven Last Words, String Quartet, Orchestra, Oratorio

Abstract

Joseph Haydn’s Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross stands as an anomaly not just in Haydn’s oeuvre but in the catalogues of all formidable composers over the past three hundred years. It is unique in its construction: seven slow sonata form movements sandwiched by an introduction and a surprising earthquake finale; and even more outstanding that Haydn published three distinct versions of the work over a ten-year period. Further, the transformation of the Seven Last Words from a sacred to secularly performed work in Haydn’s time warrants further discourse, especially considering its present-day performance practice and reception.

This dissertation aims to codify Haydn’s distinct alterations between his three versions of the Seven Last Words and present the original composer’s own malleable view of the work as a model for unique modern day recastings of Haydn’s composition. Three modern versions from prominent string quartets are presented in the second half of this dissertation: the Juilliard String Quartet, the Brentano Quartet, and the Attacca Quartet, which respectively combine Haydn’s versions together, recast the poetic symbolism of the work, and recompose the piece itself. Analysis of the Juilliard and Attacca Quartet arrangements was collected by listening to the recorded albums of the work by the quartets, as no published score of their arrangements has been made. The poem commissioned by the Brentano Quartet was published in Man and Camel by Mark Strand in 2008.

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