Contrasts? practical and abstract ideas in Bartók’s compositional process

Kerékfy, Márton (2012) Contrasts? practical and abstract ideas in Bartók’s compositional process. Studia Musicologica, 53 (1-3). pp. 41-52. ISSN 1788-6244

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Abstract

Most analyses of Bartók’s Contrasts focus on abstract compositional ideas such as musical language, form, and motivic unity. Manuscript sources, however, show that practical considerations played an equally important role in the compositional process. Bartók adventurously exploited the potentials of the instruments (clarinet, violin and piano) as well as that of the musicians (Benny Goodman and Joseph Szigeti) for whom he composed the piece, but, within certain boundaries, he was also ready to make concessions to them. Since Bartók was commissioned to write Contrasts, the composition had to fill a number of essentially practical requirements. When he began composing, he had to regard as given some of the basic characteristics of the work such as the instrumentation, the need to include virtuoso cadenzas for both soloists, number, tempi, and approximate duration of movements, as well as some stylistic features. Even so, the composer did not adhere strictly to all of the requirements. The compositional process of Contrasts, therefore, can be interpreted as a simultaneous realization of both practical and abstract ideas.

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