First Advisor

Bellman, Jonathan, 1957-

Second Advisor

Reddick, Carissa Ann

Document Type

Dissertation

Date Created

5-1-2013

Department

College of Performing and Visual Arts, Music, Music Student Work

Abstract

Edmundo Villani-Côrtes is currently one of the most performed Brazilian live composers. Born during a remarkable cultural moment in the history of Brazil, he developed a unique style of writing that employs avant-garde techniques with popular music of his country. His music has increasingly been the subject of scholarly research and has received more and more national and international interest. An overview of the music scene in Brazil during the twentieth century provides a context to the development of Villani-Côrtes’s compositions, as well as to his diverse sources of inspiration. A detailed analysis of his Piano Concertos nos. 2 and 3, in addition to a brief discussion of his work Ânfora, for piano, vibraphone and string orchestra, exemplify his compositional styles, including a variety of harmonic procedures and avant-garde techniques. His compositions demonstrate his profound understanding of traditional harmonic language as well as his extended experience with the popular music of Brazil. Villani-Côrtes’s pianism reveals his intimate relationship with the instrument. His piano compositions show careful idiomatic writing and demonstrate his expertise in the piano literature, particularly related to the nineteenth-century pianistic writing.

Abstract Format

html

Keywords

Musical composition; Brazilian music; Piano concertos

Extent

180 pages

Local Identifiers

Nicolau_Thais. Dissertation

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by author.

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