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This is to certify that the
dissertation entitled
AN EXAMINATION OF THE NEG-CLASSICAL WIND WORKS OF
IGOR STRAVINSKY: THE "OCTET FOR WINDS" AND "CONCERTO" FOR
PIANO AND WINDS

presented by

Scott Charles Lubaroff

has been accepted towards fulﬁllment
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DNA degree in Wind Conducting

 

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l5.

AN EXAMINATION OF THE NEG-CLASSICAL WIND WORKS OF
IGOR STRAVINSKY: THE OCTET FOR WINDS AND CONCERTO FOR PIANO
AND WINDS
By

Scott Charles Lubaroff

A DOCUMENT
Submitted to
Michigan State University
In partial fulﬁllment of the requirements
For the degree of
DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS
Department of Arts and Letters

2001

ABSTRACT
AN EXAMINATION OF THE NED-CLASSICAL WIND WORKS OF
IGOR STRAVINSKY: THE OCTET FOR WINDS AND CONCERTO FOR PIANO
AND WINDS
By

Scott Charles Lubaroff

In each century throughout the history of music, there have been a few
individual composers who have asserted so great an influence that they are
thought by many to have been revolutionary. Their innovations were largely
responsible for re—evaluation of the language and syntax of music, whether it be
in regards to form, texture, orchestration, or content. Igor Stravinsky (1882-
1971) was clearly one of the most important and influential composers Of the
twentieth century. He shocked the music world with the 1913 premiere of Le
Sacre du Pn‘ntemps and again deﬁed expectations in Paris in 1922 with his
one-act opera buffa, Mavra. Stravinsky is widely recognized as one of the
leaders in the neo-classical movement beginning around 1920. His
innovations and leadership in this move away from the ideals of the Romantic
period as well as those of impressionism and expressionism are the most
crucial to elements of a discussion of his Octour pour instruments a vents
(1923) and Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments (1924).

Work on the Octet began in late 1922 and completed in the spring of
1923. lt was originally published by Edition Russe de Musique in 1924 and

then again in 1952 in a revised version by Boosey & Hawkes. The ﬁrst

performance of the Octet was conducted by the composer himself and given on
October 18, 1923 at a Koussevitsky Concert at the Paris Opera House. Serge
Koussevitsky was so pleased with the initial performance of the work that he
encouraged Stravinsky to write another work for one of his concerts the
following year, and so was born the Concerto for Piano and Winds.

Beyond biographical information and discussion of the early
compositional life of Stravinsky, this document will focus on the position of the
Octet and Concerto as pivotal within his body of works, both from the
standpoint of orchestration and instrumentation as well as formal
compositional practice. In the years leading up to these two works, Stravinsky
began moving away from the grandiose productions such as Le Sacre and
Petrushka. Not only did he start showing preference for works of a smaller
scale, but also made a conscious move toward writing for wind instruments
and piano for their clarity and precision. Always alert, and seeking new outlets
and idioms, Stravinsky also gradually began displaying tendencies toward the
neo-classical ideals midway into the second decade of the century.

The Octet is seen by some, and is presented here, as the completion of
this transition. Along with background and descriptive information on both
pieces, a full analysis of the Octet is also provided. This is followed by a
comparative analysis of the Concerto relative to the Octet. The aim of both of
these descriptions is to solidify the positions of these two compositions as the

pivotal works in Stravinsky’s output during this period of his career.

Copyright by
SCOTT CHARLES LU BAROFF
2001

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express sincere and loving appreciation to my beautiful
wife, Mary. Without her bravery, support, and encouragement, this document
and degree would not have been possible. I am forever indebted to her, and our
wonderful children, Andrew and Sarah, for always believing in what I do.

Grateful thanks to Dr. Myron Welch, Director of Bands, The University of
Iowa, and Professor John Whitwell, Director of Bands, Michigan State University.
There are not two better mentors in this profession. The trust and opportunity
that they both afforded me will not be forgotten. I would also like to thank Dr.
Anna Harwell Celenza, Professor of Musicology, Michigan State University for
her invaluable guidance and advice throughout the research, organization, and
writing process of this document.

Finally, sincere appreciation to the remaining members of my committee
who have openly and enthusiastically given of their time and expertise: Professor

John T. Madden, Dr. Charles Ruggiero, and Dr. Frederick Tims.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION
Chamber Winds and the Pre-history of Stravinsky’s Octet and Concerto for
Piano and Winds ................................................................................. 1
CHAPTER ONE
Igor Stravinsky’s Formative Years ........................................................... 6
CHAPTER TWO
Transitional Years: From Le Sacre to the Octet ....................................... 19
Orchestrational Choices .................................................................. 19
Transition of Form and Technique: A Look Back .................................... 28
CHAPTER THREE
The Octet for Winds ........................................................................... 39
History, Background, and Inspiration ................................................... 39
Instrumentation .............................................................................. 41
Form and Analysis ........................................................................... 46
CHAPTER FOUR
The Concerto for Piano and Winds ........................................................ 78
From the Octet to the Concerto ......................................................... 78
Background ................................................................................... 79
Comparative and Descriptive Analysis ................................................ 81
CONCLUSION
The Position of the Octet and Concerto in Modern Day Wind Performance
Programs ......................................................................................... 96
BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................. 103

vi

INTRODUCTION

CHAMBER WINDS AND THE PRE-HISTORY OF STRAVINSKY’S
OCTET AND CONCERTO FOR PIANO AND WINDS

The history of what we now frequently categorize as chamber winds or
wind ensembles is literally centuries old and responsible for a rich and varied
body of literature. For several decades, however, this part of the repertoire was
underutilized at best, and in many cases nearly ignored in most Western wind
performance programs. Beginning in the latter half of the twentieth-century, wind
programs at the American college and university level began to change their
programming practices, rediscovering many of the “hidden gems” that had lay
dormant for years. In more recent years much of the great music written for wind
ensembles of a ﬂexible and reduced instrumentation has also found its way onto
the programs of the ﬁnest professional symphony orchestras.‘ This document is
centrally concerned with two of the twentieth century’s ﬁnest chamber wind
mmpositions and their place in wind ensemble repertoire: the Octour pour
instruments a vents (1923) and Concerto for Piano and Wmd Instruments
(1924) by Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971).

To enable the best possible understanding of the place of the Octet and

Concerto within the modern repertoire, it is ﬁrst important to clarify the wind

 

‘ The phrase “reduced instrumentation” is used in here in contrast to the more standardized
instrumentation of a full conceit band.

ensemble traditions and practices that set the stage for their generation. The
wind ensemble as a distinct and speciﬁc musical entity dates back to the
eighteenth-century court of Louis XIV and beyond? The double-reed ensembles
called Les Grands Hautbois, and their Prussian counterparts, the Hautboisten
bands represented the beginning of the formal tradition for ensembles of wind
instruments. These were generally groups consisting of pairs of different sized
oboes, bassoons, cometts, and trombones that served to provide music for a
wide variety of occasions: state, ceremonial, private, public, chamber, and
chapel.3

Les Grands Hautbois and the Hautboisten bands led to the development
of the ﬁrst true concert wind ensemble, and that which remains the foundation of
the present-day chamber-wind tradition, the Hannoniemusik ensemble. These
were typically wind ensembles consisting of paired instruments: oboes,
bassoons, Clarinets, and horns. They might occasionally be augmented through
the addition of instruments such as ﬂute, basset—hom, trumpet, or trombone.
While they sometimes ranged from six to twelve musicians, the typical
harmoniemusik ensemble was a wind octet.

The wind repertoire enjoyed tremendous growth in the years surrounding
the turn of the nineteenth century. This was in no small part due to the great
demand for the new harmoniemusik groups in the upper levels of Austrian,

Bohemian, and Hungarian society. Well-known composers and arrangers began

 

2 There were, in fact, wind ensembles of various sorts before this time, including watchtower
musicians (waits), trumpet ensembles, and municipal and town bands. It was in the court of Louis XIV,
however, that the ﬁrst demand for a wind ensemble of a speciﬁed instrumentation was developed.

to be drawn to writing for them as well. Johann Wendt was perhaps the most
proliﬁc of those who produced nearly literal transcriptions of popular opera music
of the day for these octets. Mozart composed several wind divertimenti and
serenades, including that which is acclaimed by many as being the greatest
composition ever written for winds: his Serenade No. 10 in B-ﬂat Major, K. 361.4

Beyond the original traditions chartered through harmoniemusik, in the
decades to come their initial popularity prompted notable composers to continue
the musical and timbral possibilities inherent in the wind ensemble. Some of the
composers that contributed signiﬁcant works for winds in the remainder of the
nineteenth century included Richard Strauss, Anton Dvorak, Franz Krommer,
Gustav Mahler, Richard Wagner, Charles Gounod, Hector Berlioz, and Edvard
Grieg.

As the nineteenth century came to a close, however, the emphases and
philosophies within the world of performing wind ensembles began to evolve,
especially those of the Western world. The emphasis in regards to
instrumentation shifted more toward larger concert bands and military bands with
more standardized instrumentation, brass bands, and the like. In respect to
programming, the focus moved more toward music that was stereotypically
utilitarian in nature. Bands were often called upon to rouse patriotic public

sentiment or provide entertainment at outdoor events and parades.

 

3 David Whitwell, The History and Literature of the Wind Band and Wind Ensemble, Vol. 2, “The
Renaissance Wind Band and Wind Ensemble,” (Northridge, CA: WINDS, 1984), p. 39.

4 Mozart’s K. 361 was written for an inﬂated harmoniemusik ensemble of thirteen: two oboes,
two B—ﬂat Clarinets, two basset horns, four horns, two bassoons, and a contrabass

Consequently, the traditions of the artistic chamber-wind ensemble were pushed
more to the background.

It would be inaccurate to assert that no music of artistic merit was
produced for smaller wind ensembles during the ﬁrst half of the twentieth century,
nor would it be accurate to contend that none of this music was performed in the
West. A great deal of it, though, did have to wait, mostly under-appreciated, and
certainly less than well known to a great many wind conductors. It was not until
change was affected through a combination of substantial forces, inﬂuential
individuals, and fortuitous circumstances that the eyes of many wind conductors
were reopened to this portion of literature.

Mid-way through the twentieth century the leaders in the American wind
conducting profession became more focused on higher musical ideals. In an
effort to attract the best composers to help develop a wind repertoire of the
greatest artistic merit, many conductors began to explore the concepts of ﬂexible
instrumentation. To that point, the fact that a band had been linked to a
standardized instrumentation was one of the reasons that composers shied away
from the ensemble. To them this restriction meant that they would be required to
adapt the sounds that they imagined so that they stayed within pre-established
boundaries. This new idea of ﬂexible instrumentation was more reﬂective of
orchestral tradition. It allowed for the composers to retake control over the
music, in that they could again write for the instrumentation that they deemed

appropriate rather than that which someone else had determined.

At the same time the wind repertoire began to expand, conductors were
also rediscovering much of the chamber-wind and wind ensemble literature from
the previous 150 years, including Stravinsky’s Octet and Concerto for piano and
winds. Since that time, both of these works have earned wide acclaim as two of
the most important in the wind repertoire. Given that, the purpose of this
document is to present them as pivotal in Stravinsky’s body of work as well. As a
musician and composer, after his Rite of Spn'ng Stravinsky went through a
fascinating progression over a period of approximately ten years in which his
evolutions of orchestration, instrumentation, and formal design all came together
with the composition of the Octet and the successive Concerto for piano and
winds.

Stravinsky’s youth and early music education were ﬁlled with life-shaping
opportunities and encounters. He literally burst upon the worldwide musical
scene with his monumental stage and ballet productions. However, at a certain
point the composer and his music began to change. This enthralling transition
was profoundly affected along the way by speciﬁc relationships, circumstances,
and experiences that steadily steered this great composer toward a pivotal point
in his career. He constantly observed, learned, and adapted over this time and
the juncture at which everything aligned in his music was the 1923 composition
of the Octet for Winds. This work is not only a representation of that from which
Stravinsky had come, but also a launching pad from which his works over the

ensuing several years are rooted.

CHAPTER ONE
THE EARLY FAMILY AND MUSICAL LIFE OF IGOR STRAVINSKY

An understanding of the early family, intellectual, and musical life of Igor
Stravinsky (1882-1971) provides valuable insight into a perspective
understanding of the eventual evolution of his professional musical tendencies.
The atmosphere in which Stravinsky lived as a child and young man, much of
which was inﬂuenced by his father’s profession, had great impact upon the
development of his own attitudes. The acquaintances he made and the
relationships he fostered inﬂuenced him musically and creatively. The
educational paths he followed, some by his own choice and some impressed
upon him, enabled his progression as one of the great musical intellectuals and
innovators of our time.

Igor Stravinsky was born on 17 June 1882 in Oranienbaum on the Gulf of
Finland and was baptized into the Russian Orthodox Church. The name
Stravinsky comes from “Strava,” the name of a small river, tributary to the Vistula,
in eastern Poland. The family name had originally been Soulima—Stravinsky
(Soulima being the name of another vistula branch).1 The Soulima-Stravinskys
had been landowners in eastern Poland as far back as could be traced. During

the reign of Catherine the Great, the family moved from Poland to Russia and the

 

‘ Igor Stravinsky would later give the first name Soulima to his son.

6

Soulima was dropped from their name.2 Igor Stravinsky's family belonged to the
economically comfortable late nineteenth-century Russian bourgeois and
enjoyed strong social and political connections.3

Igor Stravinsky was born the third of four boys. Their father, Feodor
Ignatievich Stravinsky, had earned a strong reputation as an operatic singer.
Considered one of Russia’s ﬁnest, he had studied at the conservatory in St.
Petersburg and was ﬁrst bass in the opera houses, ﬁrst in Kiev and then back in
St. Petersburg. Feodor was a ﬁercely temperamental man, with whom his third
son was never comfortable. Many of the resources and experiences that were
made available to the young Igor through his father’s profession, however, were
central in sparking his initial interests in music.

Stravinsky’s youth was not a happy one. “I do not like to remember my
childhood,” he would later reﬂect.‘ Toward his mother, Anna, Stravinsky felt little
affection, if any, seeming to have preferred his nurse. In a later interview with,
Robert Craft, Stravinsky would say, “For my mother, I felt only ‘duties’.”5 While
he felt relatively close to his younger brother, Gury (two years his junior), he
apparently disliked his two older brothers, Roman and Yury, and lived mostly in

fear of his father, who evidently possessed a brutal temper.6 Discussing his

 

2 Robert Craft and I gor Stravinsky, Memories and Commentaries, (Garden City, NY: Doubleday,
1960), p. 15.

3 Curiously, it turns out that Stravinsky’s eventual patron with the Ballet Russe, Serge Diaghilev,
was actually his distant cousin, also descendant from Stravinsky’s great-grandfather Roman Funnan.

4 Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six lessons, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1942), p. xiii, quoted from Expositions and Developments, by Igor Stravinsky and Robert
Craft.

5 Robert Craft and I gor Stravinsky, Memories and Commentaries, p. 18.

6 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, (Berkely, CA: University of
California Press, 1966), p. 19.

relationship with his father in Memories and Commentaries, Stravinsky
explained:

I was constantly frightened of him, which, I suppose, has deeply harmed my

own character. He had an uncontrollable temper, and life with him was very

difﬁcult. He would lose himself in his anger, suddenly and unexpectedly, and

without regard to where he might happen to be... He was affectionate to me

only when I was ill... He impressed me in his death more than he had ever

done in his life... His death brought us close together.”7

The young Igor Stravinsky did not like school and had very few friendships
as an adolescent. Instead it was a relationship with an uncle and the Sights and
sounds experienced on visits to an aunt’s estate that may have made some of
the ﬁrst musical and cultural impressions on him. From the time he was about
three years old, Stravinsky had developed a strong bond with his Uncle
Ielatchitch who was a passionate amateur consumer of music. He explained that
his uncle introduced him to the music of Brahms and Beethoven. “The only place
where my budding ambition had any encouragement,” he said, “was in the house
of my uncle Ielatchitch.”8
The Stravinskys eventually began spending summers at the large estate

in the western Ukraine owned by one of Anna’s sister’s, Catherine. Igor did not
particularly care for his aunt, but the trips did afford him the distractions of a
nearby fair, at which he enjoyed watching dancing contests.9 Later, looking back
in his autobiography on his early memories of the summers in the country,

Stravinsky also recalled being taken by the singing of local women from a

neighboring village.

 

7 Feodor died of throat cancer in 1902.
8 Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1936), p. 7.

There were a great many of them and regularly every evening they sang in
unison on their way home after the day’s work. To this day I clearly
remember their tune, and the way they sang it... it is an odd thing that this
occurrence, triﬂing though it seems, has a special signiﬁcance for me,
because it marks the dawn of my consciousness of myself in the role of
musician.1o
Stravinsky displayed a love for music at a very early age, and while his
relationship with his father was almost entirely despairing, Feodor’s life as a
professional musician afforded his young son many resources and opportunities
that fed his musical hunger. Stravinsky would often listen to his father practice at
home, and was given access to Feodci’s personal library, where he would spend
hours at a time sight-reading vocal scores. Feodor also obtained a pass for his
son that enabled him to attend opera rehearsals at the Maryinsky Theatre. Ever
intrigued and curious, lgor Spent a great deal of his free time at the Maryinsky.11
When he was about seven years old, lgor was taken to see Tchaikovsky’s ballet
The Sleeping Beauty. The young boy was absolutely seized by the experience,
beginning an extensive attraction, both to the music of Tchaikovsky, and to
ballet.”
Stravinsky explained that his parents were not especially concerned with

his musical development in his early years. In fact, they were never supportive of

his desire to study music. They did allow him to begin taking piano lessons when

 

9 At thes dancing contests, Stravinsky watched the trepak, as well as the presiatka (heel dance),
and the kazachok (kicking dance), both of which he would later use in the ﬁnal scene Of Petrushka.

‘° Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 4.

“ Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 23, 24.

’2 In fact, the vast majority of the live musical performances that the young I gor Stravinsky
experienced was probably oriented to the stage, due to his father’s operatic career. With this, a long with
his professed passion for ballet, a logical parallel could be drawn between these early experiences and his
initial commissioned works for the Ballet Russe.

 

 

he was nine years old. He learned to read music quickly and soon developed
aspirations in improvisation. For these exercises, Stravinsky was criticized for
wasting time. He was forever confused by this criticism. He felt the activity was
helpful, not only in developing his knowledge of the piano, but also in “sowing the
seeds of musical ideas.” “I think it is a thousand times better,” he would later
say, “to compose in direct contact with the physical medium of sound than to
work in the abstract medium produced by one’s imagination."13
Against the greater wishes of his parents, Stravinsky continued to focus
his time and energy on music. This had been, since his earliest years, his true
passion, and by his late teen years he had begun to immerse himself in the study
and practice of counterpoint, showing great interest in composition. “I do not
remember when and howl ﬁrst thought of myself as a composer,” he said. “All I
remember is that these thoughts started very early in my childhood, long before
any serious musical study.”14
In spite of his obvious love for music, however, Stravinsky’s parents
refused to give their blessings to the idea of him pursuing it as a career. Instead,
they insisted that he study law at St. Petersburg University.15 This attitude was
not so unusual in Russian society of that time. Stravinsky himself even
conceded that like most of the members of their social class, his parents simply

wanted for him the kind of education that would assure him a comfortable

livelihood. They saw his musical bent as amateurlsm, “to be encouraged to a

 

‘3 Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 5.
‘4 Robert Craft and I gor Stravinsky, Conversations, p. 15.
‘5 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 24, 25.

10

point,” but law school was what would allow him a good life.16 Stravinsky
commented further, saying, “I think that my father judged my possibilities as a
musician from his own experience and decided that the musical life would be too
difﬁcult for me. A new life began for me after [his] death, when I began to live
more in accordance with my own wishes.”17

While at St. Petersburg University, one of the students with whom the
young Stravinsky had become acquainted was Vladimir Rimsky-Korsakov, the
youngest son of the great Russian composer. Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, along
with Alexander Glazunov and Michael Glinka, was one of Stravinsky’s greatest
musical idols. Still maintaining aspirations in composition, Stravinsky eventually
decided to ﬁnd a way to consult the great master. What developed was the
beginning of a very important and inﬂuential student-mentor relationship that was
to last for the remainder Of Rimsky-Korsakov’s life.

Stravinsky’s training with Rimsky-Korsakov lasted for approximately three
years. During his meetings with his mentor, Stravinsky began learning about
orchestration and about the capabilities, idiosyncrasies, and ranges of the
various individual instruments in the orchestra. Rimsky-Korsakov would often
give Stravinsky works written by composers like Beethoven or Schubert, asking
his young student to orchestrate them and analyze their form and structure.
Eventually, Stravinsky began bringing his own works to Korsakov for discussion

and guidance 1"

 

‘6 Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 13.
‘7 Ibid., pp. 21-23.
‘3 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 27-29.

11

Stravinsky’s relationship with Rimsky-Korsakov also paid dividends
beyond the valuable instruction in many of the fundamentals of composition,
orchestration, and traditional forms. Through his teacher Stravinsky also began
making connections with others in the turn-of-the-century Russian musical world
that began stimulating him more intellectually. Two regular gatherings of
musicians and composers became very important. First when he began studying
with Rimsky-Korsakov, Stravinsky began routinely attending weekly meetings at
his teacher’s house where pupils’ compositions were performed and discussed.
At about the same time, three of his friends initiated a concert series called the
“Evenings of Contemporary Music.”

The “Evenings of Contemporary Music” were dedicated to the
performance and discussion of music of many sorts. At one of these meetings
was given the ﬁrst public performance of one of Stravinsky’s own compositions,
his Piano Sonata in F sharp.’9 These meetings were unique in that, despite their
name, they were not solely concerned with new music. The participants also
learned about music from centuries past. Stravinsky explained the importance of
these assemblies, saying that, “these St. Petersburg concerts, in spite of their
name, tried to match the new with the old. This was important, and rare, for so
many organizations are dedicated to new music, and so few to the centuries
before Bach. I heard Monteverdi there for the ﬁrst time, in an arrangement by
d’lndy, I think, and Couperin and Montéclair; and Bach was performed in

quantity.”20

 

‘9 Ibid., p. 26.
2° Robert Craft and I gor Stravinsky, Memories and Commentaries, p. 28.

12

In addition to the music that he heard and the intellectual exchange that
he was afforded, these gatherings were also signiﬁcant to Stravinsky in regards
to the important acquaintances that he was able to make. One such connection
that would pay dividends later in his career was Stravinsky’s initial association
with the conductor Serge Koussevitsky. Koussevitsky founded Musik Verlag
[Edition Russe de Musique], which would later become Stravinsky’s publisher. It
would be at one of Koussevitsky’s concerts that the Octet was premiered, and
the conductor was then perhaps the main impetus behind the composition of the
Concerto for piano and winds.

During the period in which he took instruction from Rimsky-Korsakov,
Stravinsky “learned the rules,” so to speak. With the help of the great master, he
had established a ﬁrm grasp on the more traditional techniques and practices of
composition. When this schooling ended and he was aware of where the
perceived conventional boundaries lay in music, Stravinsky was ready to step
beyond and begin to establish his own innovative place in the musical world.

With the death of his friend and mentor in 1908, however, Stravinsky
needed to ﬁnd a new advocate. He needed someone with whom he could
collaborate, and who could also help to publicize and promote his works.
Through fortunate chance, Serge Diaghilev was in the audience at a 1909
concert in St. Petersburg where Stravinsky’s Scherzo Fantastique and Fireworks
were performed.21 After working with the Paris Opera, Diaghilev had just

returned to Russia to begin the Ballet Russe. Upon this initial hearing, he was

 

2‘ Fireworks was originally conceived and intended to celebrate the wedding Of Rimsky-
Korsavov’s daughter Nadezhda.

13

taken by the potential he heard in Stravinsky’s music, and so began the
approximately tvventy-year relationship between Stravinsky and the Russian
Ballet.22

Diaghilev chose Stravinsky as one of several Russian composers whom
he commissioned to orchestrate two pieces by Chopin, his Noctume and Valse
Bn'IIante. They were for the ballet Les Sylphides, which was to be given in Paris
during the spring of 1909. Shortly after the performance of Les Sylphides,
Diaghilev engaged Stravinsky in his ﬁrst commission for the Russian Ballet,
contracting the composer to write the music for the ballet L’Oiseau de Feu (The
FIrebIrd).23 The Firebird was premiered in Paris during the Ballet Russe’s 1910
season. Interestingly, Diaghilev had actually intended to extend the commission
to Anatol Liadov but wasn’t convinced that he would be able to complete it in
time.‘24 This change of heart turned out to be enormous in regards to the career
and fortunes of Igor Stravinsky. L’Oiseau received enthusiastic ovations at its
opening performance and earned high praise from the press as well. Stravinsky
was transformed nearly overnight into an international ﬁgure in the musical
world.25

The collaborative relationship that had been formed with Diaghilev and the
Russian Ballet through his work on L’Oiseau, for all intensive purposes, initiated

Stravinsky’s separation from his Russian homeland. At this point he was living

 

2’ Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 32.
23 I gor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 25.

2" Liadov was actually a former professor of Diaghilev’s.

25 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 33.

14

mostly in France and in Switzerland, in Ustilug, near the Polish border.26 But his
new connection to the Ballet Russe and the new fame and stature that he had
achieved afforded Stravinsky, on ensuing regular visits to Paris, opportunities to
meet other established leaders In composition such as Claude Debussy, Maurice
Ravel, Florent Schmitt, Eric Satie, and Giacomo Puccini.27
Along with the notoriety that Stravinsky earned through his work on The
Firebird, the music was pivotal in that it was the ﬁrst of his three most
monumental stage works written for the Russian Ballet (The Firebird, Petrushka,
and The Rite of Spring). These three productions came to best represent the
music of Stravinsky’s so-called “Russian Period.” The latter two works in this
“trilogy” came about through very different, yet equally profound inspirations, and
while he actually conceived of Le Sacre ﬁrst, it was Petrushka that received the
earlier premiere. In fact, Stravinsky himself illustrated his initial inspiration for the
subject of Le Sacre.
One day, when l was ﬁnishing the last pages of L’Oiseau de Feu in St.
Petersburg, I had a ﬂeeting vision which came to me as a complete surprise,
my mind at the moment being full of other things. I saw in imagination a
solemn pagan rite: sage elders, seated in a circle, watched a young girl
dance herself to death. They were sacriﬁcing her to propitiate the god of
spring. Such was the theme of the Sacre du Printemps. In Paris I told
Diaghileff about it, and he was at once carried away by the idea.”28
Continuing, however, he explained that before beginning Le Sacre, he felt
that he wanted to “refresh” himself by composing an orchestral work, “a sort of

Konzertstiic ” in which piano would play the most important role. He said that he

had a clear picture in his mind, while composing the music, of a puppet,

 

’6 Stephen Walsh, The Music of Stravinsky, (New York: Routledge, 1988), p. 2.
27 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 35.

15

“suddenly endowed with life, exasperating the patience of the orchestra with
diabolical cascades of arpeggios. The orchestra in turn retaliates with menacing
trumpet blasts.” After deciding on the name for the work, Petroushka, Stravinsky
played it for Diaghilev, who had actually come to him expecting to see sketches
of Le Sacre. Instead, Diaghilev was so taken with the music of Petrushka, that
he would not relent until he had convinced Stravinsky to develop it into a full
ballet production.29 The premiere of the resultant ballet was given in Paris on 13
June 1911, with Pierre Monteux conducting and Vaslav Nijinsky dancing the lead
role. The performance received the same popular acclaim that The Firebird had
garnered.

Stravinsky’s music of this period was unique in very distinct ways. First,
as its very foundation, it attempted to transmit a certain essence of Russian life.
It brought to life through music much of the folklore, custom, tradition, and culture
of the composer’s homeland. Second, Stravinsky’s Russian period music,
through elaborate and complicated orchestration, appealed to the exotic and
sensual in the minds of its audience. Third, the music explored the cohesive
capabilities of various modular or patterned groupings, strongly metricized accent
structures, and pitch repetitions and ostinati.

Stravinsky was very fond of the use of Russian, or at least “Russian-
sounding” tunes, as well as stories based in Russian folklore. The Firebird, for
example, makes frequent use of borrowed native folksongs throughout, and so

too does Petrushka. The opening scene in the latter begins with an Easter Song

 

2‘ I gor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 31.
29 Ibid., p. 32.

16

called Song of the Volochebniki. Later, the ﬁrst theme of the “Nursemaids’
Dance” is taken from a popular Russian dance song that had previously been
used by composers such as Balakirev.3o

The story of The Firebird is based on the Russian story by Michel Fokine
about the young prince, Ivan Tsarevich and his battles between evil and good,
represented respectively by the fairies Kashchei and the Firebird. Petrushka is
the tale of the ambitions and disappointments of a Russian puppet, charmed to
life by a street performer. Finally, in The Rite of Spring, Stravinsky created
scenes from pagan Russia that delved into the mythological and cosmic. In it, he
was expressing the resurrection of nature as spring emerged from the stiﬂing
indeterminacy of winter.

Stravinsky’s music for the Russian ballet often broke from the rules or
boundaries of traditional harmony, structure, and orchestration, instead relying
heavily on “instinct.”31 He wrote for an extremely large orchestra, frequently in
quite complicated divisi, enabling him to investigate innovative techniques of
scoring and orchestration.32 The large forces for which Stravinsky wrote also
allowed him to make use of many imaginative instrumental effects, the end goal
always being the creation of various exotic colors and textures, or as described

by Claudio Spies, “elaborately detailed and complex soundscapes.”33

 

3° TheSong of the Volochebniki was amongst several that were actually taken from Rimsky-
Korsakov’s collections Of Russian Folk Songs.

3‘ Stephen Walsh, The Music of Stravinsky, p. 24.

3’ In his Expositions, Stravinsky actually refers to the size Of his orchestra in The Firebird as
“wastefully large.”

33 Claudio Spies, “Conundrums, Conjectures, Construals; or, 5 vs. 3: The Influence Of Russian
Composers on Stravinsky,” from Stravinsky Retrospectives, edited by Ethan Haimo and Paul Johnson,
(Lincoln Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1987), p. 82.

17

The music possessed a raw vigor. It was often strongly accented,
sometimes creating an almost primal impression, as in the “Auguries of Spring”
from Le Sacre du Printemps. The accent patterns were strongly metricized. This
practice is signiﬁcant to a later discussion of Stravinsky’s coming preoccupation
with Russian folk texts as he began his transition out of his Russian period.
There his focus would be upon the syllabic, rather than metric accent and
sequence of the words.

Stravinsky utilized a variety of subdivisions and note groupings to create
totality through modular “cells,” not only rhythmically, but also thematically,
motivically, and harmonically. He also created background texture through pitch
repetition and through the use of various ostinati.

By the time Le Sacre was premiered in Paris, on 29 May 1913, Stravinsky
had, in a relatively short period of time, established himself amongst the great
names in music in the early part of the twentieth century. His music had earned
him great fame and fortune and taken him to the top of his profession. VVlth a
clear understanding of how he arrived at this point, one can now effectively
venture on to examine the next stage of this great composer’s career: the
transition away from the enormity of the stage toward the intimacy of the concert

hall.

18

CHAPTER TWO

TRANSITIONAL YEARS:
FROM LE SACRE TO THE OCTET

ORCHESTRATIONAL CHOICES

After producing such large-scale works as The Firebird, Petrushka, and Le
Sacre, and having developed public expectations for the grandiose, the intensely
dramatic, and the boldly dynamic, Stravinsky began seeking new outlets and
idioms through which he could express his music. He would come to be widely
considered one of the central ﬁgures in the neo-classical movement in music in
the 19203 and 19303. Stravinsky began displaying signs of a progression toward
these musical and compositional ideals in about the year 1914, when he moved
permanently from Russia to Switzerland.

Stravinsky’s initial move began along two paths. On the one hand, he was
becoming more interested in the folk music of Russia, speciﬁcally with the
syllabic rhythm and sequence of the text. On the other hand, he also began
writing for gradually smaller and more intimate performing forces, in opposition to
the lavish stage productions of the past several years, and began developing his
orchestral vocabulary, evolving a more concertante style and manipulating
instrumental textures in different ways. Some of the latter came about primarily
through the manner in which Stravinsky felt the Russian folk texts should be

transmitted through his music, but changes also came about due to much more

19

practical considerations. Stravinsky had already spent the majority of the colder
months over the previous four years in Switzerland, and with the outbreak of the
war, in 1914, he moved his family to permanent residence in Clarens.1 His
separation from his homeland and his Russian publishers, as well as from
Diaghilev and the temporarily disbanded Russian Ballet, necessitated some
changes in the mediums for which Stravinsky wrote. At first, this was simply due
to the resources that were available to him, but in the years to come these
adaptations began to manifest themselves in the form of a professed preference
for the sounds of wind instruments and piano, as opposed to strings.

Stravinsky brought a collection of Russian folk stories and poetry with him
when he left Russia, some of which he had borrowed earlier from his father’s
library.2 Musically, he later referred to the composers Glinka and Dargomyzhski
as models in whom he observed the use of folklore in Russian music, and
Balakirev, Moussorgsky, Borodin, and Rimsky-Korsakov as those who latched on
to the use of popular melodies and liturgical chants in their works.3 In fact,
Stravinsky referred to Glinka as his childhood Russian musical hero... "all music
in Russia stems from him.”4 Again, Stravinsky was not so concerned with the
stories and their images as he was with the syllabic sequences. He felt that the
rhythms and cadences in the words created an effect that was innately musical.

His settings generally made use of simpler melodic material, usually more

 

1 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 51.

2 Ibid.

3 Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press), p. 94.

4 Robert Craft and I gor Stravinsky, Conversations with Igor Stravinsky, (Garden City, NY:
Doubleday), p. 44.

20

diatonically based than the stage productions of the preceding years. The
accompaniments were designed more with the goal in mind of allowing the vocal
line to stand out. This he did through manipulation and contrast of instrumental
combinations and timbres.5

In 1913 Stravinsky took melodies he had composed several years prior
and set them to Russian popular texts. Dedicated to his own children, the
collection was published under the title Three Little Songs, subtitled
Recollections of my Childhood.6 The vocal melodies are symmetrically phrased
and the accompanying ensemble is simply a small chamber orchestra of strings
and woodwinds. The following year, after returning from a trip to London,
Stravinsky began work on Les Noces (The Wedding), a cantata in four scenes
celebrating Russian wedding customs. The libretto is based on wedding songs
and verse from Kireievsky’s collection of Russian folk poetry, which the
composer had brought with him from his homeland.7

Stravinsky’s 1914 composition of his Pribaoutki, which is a series of very
short, simple, sung stories was, by his own admission, important in that it was
during its composition that he realized the musical qualities of the accent patterns
of the Russian popular texts. “One important characteristic of Russian popular
verse,” he stated, “is that the accents of the spoken verse are ignored when the

verse is sung. The recognition of the musical possibilities inherent in this fact

 

5 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey. (New York: Philosophical Library, Inc., 1948),
p. 58.

6 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 49.

71bid., p. 251.

21

was one of the most rejoicing discoveries of my life.”8

The two-minute .
composition for voice and piano, Three Tales for Children, written in 1915/1917 is
another example of Stravinsky’s setting of Russian popular texts.

Like The Wedding, Pribaoutki is important in that it is a further example of
Stravinsky’s transition to more limited, intimate performing forces. “It is often
believed that power can be increased indeﬁnitely by multiplying the doubling of
orchestral parts,” explained the composer, “a belief that is completely false:
thickening is not strengthening... the blowing up of sound does not hold the ear’s
attention.”9 Pribaoutki, a four-movement work lasting approximately ﬁve minutes,
is written for voice, ﬂute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, viola, cello, and bass.

Although he was still writing for the stage, the size of Stravinsky’s
performing forces were becoming much more moderate. Mile in Paris,
Stravinsky’s friend, the Princess Edmond de Polignac, suggested that he write a
short work for her small orchestra. “I had the impression,” she states in her
memoirs, “that, after Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss, the days of big
orchestras were over and that it would be delightful to return to a small orchestra
of well chosen players and instruments.” The result was Reynard, the sketches
of which Stravinsky had already begun.10 It is a burlesque based on Stravinsky’s
adaptation of the Russian popular versions of Dutch and French folk tales about
a fox, a rooster, a cat, and a goat. Reynard is written for four solo male singers

and a limited chamber orchestra of woodwinds, strings, and percussion.

 

8 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 236.
9 I gor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, pp. 130, 131.
’° Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 60.

22

The 1918 production of Histoire du Soldat is a further example of
Stravinsky’s continued allegiance to the stage, while simultaneously shrinking the
performing forces for which he was writing. His output during these years also
included works such as Waltz of the Flowers (1914) and Three Easy Pieces
(1915), both for piano duet, and Four Russian Peasant Songs (1914) for
unaccompanied female voices.

While Stravinsky’s move toward works of a smaller scale had an aesthetic
element behind it, there was also a very important utilitarian aspect to his
choices. Having been cut off from his homeland, the family estate, and more
speciﬁcally from his publishers and from the Russian Ballet, Stravinsky was
faced with a corresponding lack of resources. He no longer had available to him
a large pool of performers, nor did he have the backing and promotional
resources of the Ballet Russe. Consequently, in the course of conversations with
his friend, Swiss author C. F. Ramuz, who himself was in difﬁcult ﬁnancial and
professional times, the question arose: “Why not do something simple?"11 From
these discussions, was born Histoire.

Histoire du Soldat is set to a French libretto by Ramuz that is based on a
collection of stories by Alexander Afanasiev dealing with the enforced recruitment
during the Russo-Turkish wars.12 The libretto focuses on the stories of a soldier
and the devil“. In its full production, Histoire involves a narrator and dancers

with a chamber ensemble of a clarinet, a bassoon, a comet, a trombone, a violin,

 

“ Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey , pp. 76—79.
‘2 Les Noces was also extracted from this same collection of stories.
‘3 Eric Walter White, , Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 264.

23

a double-bass, and multiple percussion instruments. It also exists in a piano
reduction, a trio version (violin, clarinet, and piano), and concert suite setting.

Beyond its demonstration of Stravinsky’s focus on smaller ensembles,
Histoire can also be viewed as important from two other points of view. First, it is
representative of Stravinsky’s development of what is referred to as a
concertante style of orchestration in which he not only divides his ensembles into
solo and accompaniment textures, but also conceives of them as representing
“families” of like instruments. This is a technique that will be seen in the following
years leading up to and including the Octet and Concerto for Piano and Winds.”
Second, Histoire , is reﬂective of the composer’s new professed taste for the
sounds of wind instruments and piano, one which would be fully realized in his
Symphonies of Wmd Instruments and Mavra.

While acknowledging a real lack of ﬁnances and resources at the time,
Stravinsky also explained his choice of instrumentation for Histoire, saying that
he had decided on a group of instruments which included the most
representative types (treble and bass) of the different instrumental families:
strings, woodwind, brass, and percussion.15 Likewise, The Wedding had
originally been conceived for a very large orchestra of about 150 players, which
created separate categories of sound: wind (including voice, woodwind, and
brass) and percussion (two string orchestras, one playing pizzicato and the other

bowed). Knowing that he would not be able to engage that many players,

 

‘4 In his autobiography, written in 1936, Stravinsky refers to his 1916/17 work on the symphonic
poem version of Song of the Nightingale as the beginning of his use of the concertante technique. He
referred to it as an “orchestral experiment,” revealing that in this work he chose to emphasize a concertante
setting, not only of the solo instruments, but also to entire instrumental groupings.

24

Stravinsky realized that the instrumentation for the piece was too big. He
ultimately produced a score for an orchestra of percussion instruments (including
four pianos) which was divided into families of pitched instruments and non-
pitched instruments.16 In 1917 in The Song of the Nightingale, Stravinsky also
used solo instruments along with like instrumental groupings in concertante
treatments, resulting in a lighter, more transparent textural effect.17

Stravinsky was already displaying some of the clearer, more ordered
approaches to his music that are fully represented in his later wind works.
Orchestrationally, in the years approaching the composition of the Octet and
Concerto, he began professing a preference for wind instruments and piano. Of
wind instruments he stated that they were “more apt to render a certain rigidity of
form I had in mind than other instruments... their differences of volume render
more evident the musical architecture.” And of the piano, Stravinsky explained
that its “neat, clear sonority and polyphonic resources suited the dryness and
neatness l was seeking in the structure of the music I had composed.”18 In fact,
after the completion of his Concertino for string quartet in 1920, Stravinsky

actually avoided writing for strings for some time because of their expressive

 

‘5 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 271.

‘6 Ibid.,. 254.

‘7 The Song of the Nightingale is a symphonic poem utilizing the music from Stravinsky’s earlier
stage work The Nightingale produced for the Russian Ballet. It is based on a story written by Hans
Andersen. The ﬁrst movement of The Nightingale was conceived and sketched as far back as 1908 when
the composer was still under the instruction of Rimsky-Korsakov. By 1913 when he set about to complete
the work, his techniques and styles had changed, reﬂecting slightly more regularity in phrasing.
Consequently, the symphonic poem discards the music of the ﬁrst movement and uses only material from
the second and third, which are much more alike.

‘3 Stephen Walsh, The Music of Stravinsky, (New York: Routledge, 1988), p. 123.

25

qualities.19 The following examination of Stravinsky’s output during these years

further conﬁrms his new allegiance to wind instruments and piano, sometimes in

somewhat unorthodox combinations.

 

Title and Year of Composition

Instrumentation

 

Valse des Fleurs for two pianos (1914)

Three Easy Pieces for piano duet (1914/1915)
Five Easy Pieces for piano duet (1916/1917)
Valse pour les Enfants (1917)

Piano solo or duet

 

 

Piano-Rag Music (1919)
Cat’s Cradle Songs (1915/1916) contralto and three clarinets
Pribaoutki (1914) male voice, ﬂute, oboe, clarinet,

bassoon, violin, viola, cello, and
double-bass

 

Rag-Time for eleven instruments (1918)

ﬂute, clarinet, horn, comet,
trombone, two violins, viola,
double-bass, and percussion

 

Reynard (1915/1916)

four male soloists, seven winds,
percussion, cimbalom, and
string quartet

 

Histoire du Soldat (1918)

clarinet, bassoon, comet,
trombone, violin, double-bass,
and percussion

 

Symphonies of Wind Instruments (1920)

twenty-three winds

 

 

Mavra (1921/1922)

 

one-act opera with
accompanying wind and
percussion ensemble

 

Beyond what has already been reviewed in regards to Histoire du Soldat,

perhaps the two most signiﬁcant works in a discussion of Stravinsky’s writing for

winds in the years prior to the Octet and Concerto, are Symphonies of Wind

Instruments and Mavra. The Symphonies of Wind Instruments was written in

dedication to Claude Debussy after his death in 1918. The work actually began

 

‘9 The Concertino for string quartet was written while in Carantec and dedicated to the Florrzaley
String Quartet. Interestingly, Stravinsky later arranged the original version for twelve instruments: ten

26

 

 

as a short, wordless chorale written in a piano version for the Revue Musicale
under the title Tombeau de Claude Debussy, and later expanded.20 This was the
work immediately following the Concert/no for string quartet - further illustration of
his break from string writing. Its original instrumentation included three ﬂutes,
alto ﬂute in G, two oboes, english horn, three B—ﬂat clarinets, alto clarinet, three
bassoons, four horns in F, two trumpets in C, trumpet in A, three trombones, and
tuba.21 Structurally, Symphonies still displays much of the modular construction
typical in Stravinsky’s earlier Russian period works like Le Sacre. But he also
continues in his development of concertante writing. Stravinsky frequently
divides the ensemble into smaller groupings or choirs of like instruments,
whether it be single-reed or double-reed groupings, or various brass
combinations, to achieve speciﬁc dynamic or timbral effects. Stravinsky
described the work as an “austere ritual which is unfolded in terms of short
litanies between different groups of homogenous instruments.”22

Mavra, an opera buffa in one act based on the rhymed story of Aleksandr
Pushkin called The Little House in Ko/omna, surprised the Paris listening
audiences who were expecting something more like the dissonance and rhythmic
agitation of Le Sacre. In the music of Mavra the vocal lines are freer and more
ﬂuent, and the accompaniment is far less harsh, often written in quite complex

counterpoint. Stravinsky explained that he conceived of the work partially

 

winds with violin and cello obligate (published in 1953 by Wilhelm Hansen).

2° Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 96.

2‘ The Symphonies of Wind Instruments was published in a revised version in 1947. Its
instrumentation is for three flutes, two oboes, english horn, three Boflat clarinets, three bassoons, four horns
in F, three B-ﬂat trumpets, three trombones, and tuba.

’2 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 296.

27

 

“because of a natural sympathy I have always felt for the melodic language, the
vocal style and conventions of the old Russo-Italian opera.”23 Metrically, the
work is very straightforward, in strong contrast to the constant time changes of
Histoire and Symphonies of Vlﬂnd Instruments. Of most signiﬁcance to the
current discussion is the unusual accompanying instrumentation. The orchestra
is essentially a wind ensemble of twenty~three instruments with timpani and nine
strings, resulting in a bright and aggressive sound.24 Stravinsky said that he
used this instrumentation, “because the music whistled as wind instruments
whistle, and also because there was a certain jazz element in it... that seemed

to require a ‘band’ sound rather than an ‘orchestral’ sound.”25

TRANSITION OF FORM AND TECHNIQUE: A LOOK BACK

Mavra is also signiﬁcant in that it is indicative of the further transition that
Stravinsky was beginning to make in his compositional techniques. In addition to
the aforementioned change in focus in regard to instrumentation and scope, he
was now beginning to show a tendency to “look back” to forms, structures, and
textures of the past. This was the beginning of his move toward neoclassicism.

Stravinsky explained that in Mavra he was trying to stay within traditions
that had been set forth by earlier Russian composers such as Glinka and

Dargomisky. He felt that the contemporary embodiment of opera-bouffe would

 

23 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 103.

2" The instrumentation of the accompanying ensemble in Mavra includes three flutes, three oboes,
three clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, four trumpets, three trombones, one tuba, timpani, two violins,
one viola, three cellos, and three basses.

’5 Igor Stravinsky and Robert Craft, Expositions and Developments, reprinted in Eric Walter
White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 268.

28

be the best method through which to tell Pushkin's tale, and he wanted to renew
the “dialogues-in-music” styles that had been pushed out of vogue.26 The
published score is dedicated to “the memory of Pushkin, Glinka, and
Chaikovsky.”27

Mavra is a one-act opera without recitative. It is constructed of an
uninterrupted series of vocal airs and ensemble music. Simply from the
standpoint of metric design, in comparison to earlier works such as Le Sacre,
Histoire du Soldat, and Symphonies of mm Instruments, Mavra is far more
conventional. The harmonic language is also more traditional. For example, in
the opening air, sung by the character Parasha, Stravinsky takes liberties within
the vocal part, yet the music is almost entirely based on tonic, dominant, and
sub-dominant chord progressions. As in many operas of nearly a century before,
the orchestra in Mavra is used throughout to imitate and develop selected
melodic material taken from the vocal parts. There is even a brief fugato, a look
back to a classical technique that to this point had not appeared in Stravinsky’s
music.28

Stravinsky himself acknowledged that the completion of the “Polka,” the
ﬁnal movement of his Three Easy Pieces for piano duet, was the actual beginning
of this return to more ordered formal techniques in the years approaching the

t. 29

composition of the Cote Mavra had shown continued progress toward a more

 

2‘ I gor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 58.

‘7 Stravinsky further explained that Mavra was “dedicated to the memory of composers, not one
of whom, I am sure, would have recognized as valid such a manifestation of the tradition they created,
because of the novelty of the language my music speaks a hundred years after its models ﬂourished.

’8 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 103.

29 Stephen Walsh, The Music of Stravinsky, p. 122.

29

formal architecture, more regular, periodic rhythm and more tonally based
harmony. But the piece that best exempliﬁes this “classiﬁcation” is Pu/cine/Ia
(1919/20). An abrupt departure from nearly anything Stravinsky had done for
some time, Pu/cine/la, an “action dansante," as he put it, was based on the music
of Pergolesi and very much a recollection of many of the formal ideals and
performance practices of the eighteenth century. By now Stravinsky had settled
in France. Having totally severed ties to Russia and established roots in Western
Europe, he very likely felt the need to do the same musically. The idea of
Pulcine/Ia was presented to Stravinsky by Diaghilev. He had obtained several of
Pergolesi’s little or completely unknown manuscripts on recent trips to Italy and
subsequently gave them to Stravinsky.3o The manuscripts were quite fragmented
and the job was more than simply compiling or editing. In choosing a focus for
the project Stravinsky asked himself:

Should my line of action be dominated by my love or by my respect for

Pergolesi’s music? Is it love or respect that urges us to possess a woman?

Is it not by love alone that we succeed in penetrating to the very essence of a

being? But, then, does love diminish respect? Respect alone remains barren

and can never serve as a productive or creative factor. In order to create,

there must be a dynamic force, and what force is more potent than love? To

me it seems that to ask the question is to answer it.31

The work on this project helped Stravinsky to begin thinking about the

“unexplored possibilities,” as he put it, “in the use of certain classical devices and

forms.”2 Furthermore, he revealed that his work on Pulcinella led him to a new

 

3° Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 85.

3‘ Ibid., p. 86.

3’ Stravinsky later returned to the musical material from Pulcinella in two other works. Some was
adapted for his Suite for Violin and Piano of 1925. He also published two versions of a Suite Italienne,
based on material from the Pergolesi transcriptions. The ﬁrst version, for cello and piano, was in five

30

appreciation of eighteenth-century classicism and to “a new style of composition
distinguished by certain classical features.”33
Pu/cine/la was my discovery of the past, the epiphany through which the
whole of my late work became possible. It was a backward look, of course --
:2:.§l‘r8t of many love affairs in that direction — but it was a look in the mirror
The music of Pulcine/Ia is itself still basically Pergolesi. Stravinsky took
some liberties in regards to the manipulation of phrase lengths and harmonic
rhythm, but no signiﬁcant alterations were made. Of note is the fact that each
movement is scored for a different combination of instruments, demonstrating
that Stravinsky was continuing his current practice of writing in concertante
groupings. Interestingly, because of Stravinsky’s separation from the Russian
Ballet during the war, Diaghilev and others were not aware of this change of
principles concerning instrumentation. ln Pu/cine/Ia they were expecting a work
for large forces, similar to Stravinsky’s earlier works for the company. When the
ﬁnished product arrived, they actually had to revise choreography in accordance
with the designated chamber orchestra of only 33 players.35
While the more classically-based music of Pulcine/Ia demonstrated an
increased focus and control of the form, rhythm, harmony, and overall structure
of his music, it was also signiﬁcant in its reﬂection of Stravinsky’s ideals

regarding his desire for greater control of the performance of his music. After

Pu/cine/Ia, Stravinsky’s output of works for the stage declined sharply. Partially

 

movements and written for cello and piano. Two years later Stravinsky, in collaboration with the violinist
Samuel Dushkin, produced the six-movement Suite Italienne for violin and piano.

3 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 248.

34 I gor Stravinsky and Robert Craft, Expositions and Developments, p. 248.

31

through his experiences with the Pergolesi production, Stravinsky had begun to
form the opinion that “a perfect rendering can be achieved only in the concert
hall, because the stage presents a combination of several elements upon which
the music has often to depend.” This was a turning point for the composer in that
in an apparent fear of the misinterpretation of his music, he was demonstrating a
growing desire to exert stricter authority over his materials, rather than having to
compromise for staging, choreography, etc. This new focus on restraint meant
an obviously signiﬁcant change in Stravinsky’s music in comparison to that of
years past. Whereas just a few years earlier he had produced the ritualistic
music transmitting the vigor of spring and the “aspirations and frustrations” of a
puppet (Petrushka), he was now asserting that music was, “by its very nature,
essentially powerless to express anything at all, whether a feeling, an attitude of
mind, a psychological mood, a natural phenomenon, etc.”

Stravinsky wanted the music to be the focus, and nothing else. Any emotion
should be held in the sound experience: in the music and nothing more. He
would later say that what is most important to the clarity of a musical work is the
elimination of the “Dionysian elements which set the imagination of the artist in
motion... they must be properly subjugated before they intoxicate us, and must
finally be made to submit to the law. Apollo demands it.”6 Further
representative of his substantial reversal from his earlier primitivistic, senso-
stimulative works, Stravinsky also stated...

I am thus brought face to face with the eternal conﬂict in art between the
Apollonian and the Dionysian principles. The latter assumes ecstasy to be

 

3‘ Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 87.
36 I gor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, pp. 80, 81.

32

the ﬁnal goal — that is to say, the losing of oneself - whereas art demands
above all the full consciousness of the artist. There can, therefore, be no
goubt as to my choice between the two.

Stravinsky felt that if music did seem to express or portray something that
it was simply illusion and not reality, and he began making a concerted effort to
provide little to no opportunity for misinterpretation or “unauthorized expression”
of his music.38 Once again remembering the control that he was choosing to
assert at this point through his works by moving away from the stage and into the
concert hall, Stravinsky was now critical of the music of the romantics. “Musically
extraneous elements that are strewn throughout their works,” he said, “invite
betrayal.”39 He would later go even further in his criticism, singling Wagner
himself out while reﬂecting upon a performance of Parsifa/ that he had attended
in Paris. “It is high time,” he said, “to put an end, once and for all, to this
unseemly and sacrilegious conception of art as religion and the theatre as a
temple.”‘°

By the time he composed the Octet Stravinsky had completed a transition
in his compositional practices, formal designs, and orchestrational preferences
that had begun nine years earlier. What began out of necessity became an
entirely new philosophy of composition. He had begun writing for smaller forces
upon separation from his homeland simply because he lacked the resources that

had been made available to him through the Russian Ballet for the huge earlier

productions such as Le Sacre and Petrushka. This experience led to a

 

37 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 92.

38 Ibid., p. 88-93.

39 Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 125.

4° Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1936), p. 39.

33

realization that smaller ensembles allowed for a greater clarity, not only in the
expression of text, but also in regards to pure precision. From here Stravinsky
began to gravitate toward wind instruments and piano to further reﬁne his music.
As his orchestrational practices evolved, so too did the clarity of the musical
forms he created. Stravinsky ultimately began to look back to forms and
techniques of classic eras of the past, a practice most clearly demonstrated in
Pu/cine/Ia. By the early 19203, when he began work on the Octet, Stravinsky
had established himself in a position from which he would be considered perhaps
the most important and inﬂuential ﬁgure in the neoclassic movement in music of
the early and middle twentieth century.

Views and deﬁnitions vary to some degree regarding exactly what
neoclassicism means in music. Certainly Stravinsky’s own feelings regarding the
label, and of the status of his name and work being connected with the perceived
movement are inconsistent at best. He acknowledged the importance of an
awareness of, and grounding in the past, but made it perfectly clear that he did
not feel that he should have been singled out as any sort of revolutionary ﬁgure.
“I was made a revolutionary in spite of myself,” he said. “Revolution is one thing,
innovation another... there are so many other words better adapted to designate
originality...Art is by essence constructive. Revolution implies a disruption of

”‘1 To ﬁrmly understand the concept of neoclassicism, and more

equilibrium
precisely, what part Igor Stravinsky played in its twentieth-century evolution, it is
important to ﬁrst examine some of the deﬁnitions and practices in neoclassicism

surrounding Stravinsky’s own contributions.

34

An exact, all-encompassing deﬁnition of neoclassicism is difﬁcult because
it is so diverse in actual application. The word neoclassic in itself creates a
certain degree of ambiguity, implying a return to the practices of the classic
period. This is not necessarily the case. To some, like Debussy for example, the
term was equated more with French classicism, which was concerned with the
music of the Baroque.42 The term has been frequently met with a certain degree
of disdain. For some time, music critics used the term néo-c/assicisme in a
negative light. Much later, Milton Babbit, in his 1971 memoirs, called the label
“neoclassicism” a “meaningless slogan, an advertising gimmick in the marketing
of modern music.”43 In the early twentieth century there were terms spreading
around Europe to explain what was occurring in art and music. Around 1920,
Ferrucio Busoni contributed the idea of a “young classicism” (iunge Klassizitat).“
Martha Maclean Hyde deﬁnes neoclassism as, “an impulse to revive or restore
an earlier style that is separated from the present by some intervening period,”
or, “when two different period-styles confront each other.” She asserts that early
twentieth century composers were, “rejecting a prevailing period style
(romanticism) in the name of restoring another?“

As mentioned above, the “classicizing” directions and tendencies in music

of the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries were quite broad and

 

4‘ Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 10- 13.

‘2 Ludwig Frnscher, “The Old in the New,” Canto d ’amore: Classicism in Modern Art and
Music, 1914—I935, (Basel: Paul Sacher Stiftung, 1996), p.64.

‘3 Martha Maclean Hyde, “Neoclassic and anachronistic impulses in Twentieth Century Music.”
Music Theory Spectrum, Vol. 18, No. 2 (fall, 1996), pp. 202.

44 Ludwig Finscher, “The Old in the New,” p. 65.

45 Martha Maclean Hyde, “Neoclassic and anachronistic impulses in Twentieth Century Music.”
pp. ZOO-204.

35

divergent. The practice of simply transcribing and adapting compositions written
in true classical style was very common. There was also music that alluded to
techniques and forms of past times with new turns and stretches and
unpredictable variations. Some of the greatest composers of the day were very
actively practicing many of these trends. Camille Saint-Saens’ always
considered himself a “classicist,” striving for the ideals of “clarté, simplicité, and
precision.” In discussing his Symphonie Class/qua (1917), Serge Prokoﬁev
stated that, “It seemed to me that had Haydn lived to our day he would have
retained his own style while accepting something of the new at the same time.
That was the kind of symphony I wanted to write: a symphony in the Classical
style.”46

For his part, Stravinsky had a slightly different take on the practice of
looking back to inspire the new. Perhaps what made him such an acknowledged
leader in neoclassicism was his ability to make his own decisions based on past
practice while still moving forward. Stravinsky considered the study of the past
as more of a “hypothesis” that some artists used as a source of inspiration. He
stated that his own experiences showed him that stimulus from the past can be
used as an effective impetus to set forth creative thought."’7 He was able to take
forms and techniques of prior times and use them simply frameworks for his own
innovations. Within those parameters Stravinsky “bent” the traditional rules of
tonality, harmony, structure, etc., to make the music his own. This is what has

come to be known as true neoclassicism. “One must live in one’s own time,”

 

‘6 Ludwig Finscher, “The Old in the New,” p. 64.
47 I gor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 26.

36

Stravinsky said. “Even if I wanted to relive the past, the most energetic strivings
of my misguided will would be futile.”‘°
While he was not terribly fond of the label neoclassicism, Stravinsky came
to ﬁrmly believe in the importance of an awareness of, and respect for one’s
roots. He said that tradition is necessary to progress. Quoting Brahms in his
Harvard lecture series, Stravinsky explained, “a method is replaced: a tradition is
carried forward in order to produce something new.” He continued in his own
words saying that, “tradition thus assures the continuity of creation.”49
Implying that music had reached a crossroads in the twentieth century,
Stravinsky acknowledged the contemporary listener's need for a “completely
different approach to music.” He asserted that harmonic novelty had been
exhausted, allowing for further exploration of rhythm, rhythmic polyphony, and
melodic and intervalic construction. lmportantly, however, he acknowledged that
in advancing music, while we may be able to do more with rhythm, sound, and
structure, we must also keep in mind that evolution does not negate that from
which we evolved.50 “Judge the tree by its fruits then, and do not meddle with the
roots.”51
Igor Stravinsky was neither the ﬁrst nor the last composer to look to prior
times for inspiration, but he was perhaps the most adept at using this inspiration

to create original expressions within a new vocabulary. While this vocabulary

was based in an established system, Stravinsky was able to rethink its syntax,

 

‘8 Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the F arm of Six Lessons, p. 82.

‘9 Ibid., p. 57.

5° Robert Craft and Igor Stravinsky, Conversations with Igor Stravinsky, p. 126.
5‘ Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 49.

37

placing it within a new framework in ways that elevated it to new levels. In his
words, composers found themselves challenged with “a new logic of music that
would have appeared unthinkable to the masters of the past. And this new logic
has opened our eyes to riches whose existence we never suspected.”52

Having established the evolutions through which Stravinsky and his music
passed in the years leading up to his neoclassic period, a discussion may now
continue with the positioning of his Octour pour instruments a vents as the work
in which they all came together for the ﬁrst time. A series of adjustments in
practice and taste that began through the necessity of available resources and a
concern with textual transmission eventually evolved into new orchestrational,
formal, and compositional phiIOSOphies.

Following its 1922 premiere, Mavra was considered something of an
aberration. Stravinsky explained that critics regarded it as undeserving even of
any further scrutiny. But on his part, Stravinsky acknowledged Mavra as the
realization of many of his musical ideas, to be more completely developed in the
Octet.53 In this sense, then, the Octet can now further be placed as the pivotal
work from which sprang Stravinsky’s further neoclassical works such as the

Concerto for Piano and Winds.

 

‘2 Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, p. 35.
’3 I gor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 103.

38

CHAPTER THREE
THE OCTET FOR WINDS

HISTORY, BACKGROUND, AND INSPIRATION

An understanding has now been reached of both Stravinsky’s early
musical education and compositional career and of his progressive evolution in
orchestrational, instrumental, formal, and compositional preferences and
techniques. Vlﬁth this in mind, the Octet can now be asserted as the work that
represents the point at which all of these transitions came together for the ﬁrst
time. While select works from the approaching years can be pointed to as
demonstrating inclinations in one or more areas, to this point there is not one
work that can be seen as an embodiment of them all.

Histoire du Soldat was discussed in the previous chapter as one example
in which Stravinsky began showing an interest in smaller ensembles.
Symphonies of Wind Instruments and the single-act opera Mavra were
designated as demonstrating the composer’s new allegiance to wind instruments.
These two, along with Song of the Nightingale, were shown to have illustrated
the development of Stravinsky’s so-called concertante method of orchestration.
In Pulcinel/a and Mavra, there were the indications of his “look back” to forms,
styles, and techniques of centuries past: his ascent into neoclassicism. In the
following discussion and analysis it will be asserted that the Octet for Wind
Instruments was the composition in which all of these tendencies came together,
making it the pivotal piece in Stravinsky’s body of work between approximately

1913 (the premiere of Le Sacre du Printemps) and 1930.

39

Work on the Octet began in late 1922 in Biarritz, a small coastal village in
southwestern France, and was completed in Paris in May of 1923. It was
subsequently published by Edition Russe de Musique in 1924 and dedicated to
Vera de Bosset, who would later become Stravinsky’s second wife. The ﬁrst
performance of the Octet was conducted by the composer himself on 18 October
1923 at a Koussevitzky Concert at the Paris Opera House. A revised edition was
published by Boosey & Hawkes in 1952, though the changes are not drastic.1

Interestingly, Stravinsky provides two slightly discrepant accounts of the
initial inspiration for the Octet and of the circumstances which led to his choice of
instrumentation. In his autobiography he states that he began to write the music
for both the Octet and Symphonies of Wind Instruments,

without knowing what its sound medium would be - that is to say, what
instrumental form it would take. I only decided that point after ﬁnishing the
ﬁrst part, when I saw clearly what ensemble was demanded by the
contrapuntal material, the character, and structure of what I had composed.2

The composer later described the genesis of the Octet as having actually
sprung from a dream.

The Octour began with a dream, in which I saw myself in a small room
surrounded by a small group of instrumentalists playing some attractive
music. I did not recognize the music, though I strained to hear it, and I could

not recall any feature of it the next day, but I do remember my curiosity — in
the dream — to know how many the musicians were. I remember, too, that

 

1 Changes in the 1952 version (as listed on p. 313 of Eric Walter White’s Stravinsky: The
Composer and His Works ): sixteen bar repeat in the “ﬁnale” is written out with appropriate renumbering

in the score; metronome marking of 9:189 is replaced with J5 =16O in Variation D; Three notes have been

altered in the clarinet part one bar before the f ugato; various misprints are corrected; the numbers of the

movements are omitted, but the letters of the variations are retained; the French directions (tre’s sec, tre’s

court, etc.) have been dropped; a number of small changes are made in the interest of clear accentuation

and better balance; there is some rebarring in the flute bridge passage leading from the fugato to the Finale.
2 Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 103.

after I had counted them to the number eight, I looked again and saw that
they were playing bassoons, trombones, trumpets, a ﬂute, and a clarinet. I
awoke from this little concert in a state of great delight and anticipation and
the next morning began to compose the Octour, which I had had no thought
of the day before, though for some time I had wanted to write an ensemble
piece — not incidental music like the Histoire du Soldat, but an instrumental
sonata.3 -

Two statements within the latter quote are signiﬁcant to the present
discussion. First, Stravinsky’s recollection of discovering the combination of
instruments heard in his dream was notable relative to his new allegiance to wind
instruments. Second, and perhaps more momentous, was the ﬁnal sentence in
the quotation, in which Stravinsky says, “I had wanted to write an ensemble piece
— not incidental music like the Histoire du Soldat, but an instrumental sonata.”
Two important issues to this discussion are illustrated through the previous
quote. First, Stravinsky is acknowledging his desire to move away from stage
works, in which his music was a part of a whole, more toward the concert hall
where his music would be the entire focus. Second, he also touches upon the

neoclassic element of the Octet's importance when speaking of an “instrumental

sonata.”

INSTRUMENTATION

The Octet is set in three movements: “Sinfonia,” “Tema con Variazioni,”
and “Finale.” It is scored for the exact instrumentation that Stravinsky took from
his dream: one ﬂute, one B-ﬂat clarinet, two bassoons, one trumpet in C, one

trumpet in A, one tenor trombone, and one bass trombone. Further discussion of

 

3 Robert Craft, Dialogues and a Diary, (New York: Doubleday, 1963), Reprinted in E. W.
White’s Stravinsky: The Composer and his Works, (Berkeley, CA: Univ. of California Press, 1966), p. 271.

41

the instrumentation and contemporary performances of the Octet should include
the issue of Stravinsky’s choice of trumpets. As just mentioned, the group of
eight instruments includes two trumpets: trumpet in C and trumpet in A. The fact
that trumpet in A is an instrument which is rarely seen anymore presents the
dilemma of what to use in substitution - another trumpet in C or one in B-ﬂat.
The choice is fairly clear, since upon examination of the entire part, one ﬁnds that
there is an instance where the written part goes below the standard range of C
trumpet. While the tessitura is low and the transposition often puts the music in
unusual keys with some awkward valve sequences, the music does in fact fall
entirely within the range of the B-ﬂat trumpet.4

The instrumentation of the Octet is somewhat unusual, essentially
establishing four pairs of like instruments. This is reminiscent of works discussed
in the previous chapter, such as Histoire du Soldat, The Wedding, and Song of
the Nightingale. In these works Stravinsky was attempting to establish speciﬁc
and representative genera of sound. An even closer comparison can be made
between the Octet and Symphonies of Wind Instruments, in which Stravinsky
essentially appointed instrumental groupings that were more like familial “choirs.”
Here in the Octet, the group of eight instruments has been divided into four pairs
of like instruments, with the ﬂute and clarinet functioning as one pair. Going one
step further, each of the pairs of instruments in the Octet, with a few exceptions,
is generally assigned a given role throughout the work (accompaniment, etc).

For instance, the ﬂute rarely plays accompanying material. Rather, it usually

 

4 The A trumpet part begins on a concert E—natural in the ﬁrst measure of Variation A in the
“Tema con Variazioni”: below the standard range of the C trumpet.

42

plays the more active melodic lines in transitional passages or contrapuntal
material to main themes. The bassoons generally carry most of the
accompanying material. The setting of prominent melodic and thematic material
is often designated to the trumpets, especially in the ﬁrst two movements. The
clarinet and trombones are very often used for reinforcement. The bass
trombone is almost entirely an accompanying instrument. At times the ﬁrst
trombone carries thematic material and at others, accompaniment. The clarinet
often supports either the ﬂute or bassoon, but occasionally does present
independent material.

Along with manipulating the speciﬁc roles or functions of individual
instruments or pairs of instruments, Stravinsky also explored various doubling
techniques in his orchestration. Speciﬁcally within the “Sinfonia” are displayed
three prominent approaches to the reinforcement of primary material. There are
actually very few times when an entire melodic passage is doubled. Rather, it is
much more common to see a designated phrase reinforced through doubling,
either in unison or in octave unison. Even more striking is when Stravinsky
makes use of multiple combinations within a single passage, as in example 1. In
this excerpt, from the ﬁrst movement of the Octet, the composite presentation of
the second theme is played in the ﬁrst trombone. During this mere ten
measures, the trombone’s melody is doubled in three individual fragments, ﬁrst

by the clarinet and then in two separate segments by the ﬁrst bassoon.

43

Example 1: “Sinfonia”, mm. 128-137.

The second technique, illustrated in example 2, is one in which Stravinsky
emphasizes a passage by simply reinforcing just a fragment, or multiple
fragments within a composite melodic segment. Here, the composite line in the
ﬂute is being reinforced by the ﬁrst trumpet. The initial three notes of this
aggressive restatement of the ﬁrst theme are doubled at the octave and each of
the successive accented syncopations in the ﬂute composite are bolstered one

octave below by the trumpet.

Example 2: “Sinfonia”, mm. 63-68.

Finally, as demonstrated in example 3, the composer may only reinforce a
single punctuating note or notes at the close of a phrase or statement, in
essence strengthening its resolve. In this passage, the clarinet and bassoon
engage in a playful exchange based on a newly introduced motive. The
bassoon, in essence, answers the clarinet’s chromatic statement with more
disjunct ﬁgures, but the entire exchange is emphatically punctuated in measure

100 as the two angrily sound the closing ﬁve-note ﬁgure in unison.

Example 3: “Sinfonia”, mm. 95-100.

These various methods of doubling demonstrate some of the ways in
which Stravinsky has achieved dynamic contrasts, both gradual and sudden,
through orchestration. The result is generally a much more abrupt and dramatic
change, not only in regards to the actual magnitude of sound, but also in the
many diverse textures and timbres that are correspondingly made available.
Stravinsky was keenly aware of the limitations that might be presented by this
small ensemble, and his methods of orchestration were put in place to
compensate for the inherent inadequacies of the chosen ensemble.

I remember what an effort it cost me to establish an ensemble of eight
wind instruments, for they could not strike the listener’s ear with a great
display of tone. In order that this music should reach the ear of the public
it was necessary to emphasize the entries of the several instruments, to
introduce breathing spaces between the phrases (rests), to pay particular
care to the intonation, the instrumental prosody, the accentuation — in
short, to establish order and discipline in the purely sonorous scheme...5

Each of these three modes of orchestrated dynamics is exhibited
throughout the ﬁrst movement of the Octet. In the ensuing discussion of its
consequent work, the Concerto for Piano and Winds, it will be seen that these

three methods, especially the third, were all developed and used much more

frequently and to much greater affect.

45

Once again, it has been shown that in the years leading up to his
composition of the Octet for Winds, Stravinsky’s style had been evolving in
regards to key compositional traits, including the size of the ensemble, choice of
instrumentation, and now orchestrational technique. But to truly accomplish the
stated purpose of this document, which is to assert the Octet as the pivotal work
of this period, the ﬁnal piece to be placed in the puzzle is the completion of the
composer’s progression to neoclassicism. This can best be shown through close
examination of form, structure, and compositional technique in the Octet’s three

contrasting movements.
FORM AND ANALYSIS

The Octet is a highly contrapuntal work that utilizes a tremendous variety
of compositional techniques. Stravinsky makes use of direct imitation and a very
notable fugue section, extensive employment of ostinato, and repetition and
alternation of thematic material and melodic fragments. All of this is key, in this
highly sophisticated work, to the effective uniﬁcation of form. Stravinsky himself
may have explained this most succinctly shortly after completing the composition
of the Octet.

Form, in my music, derives from counterpoint. I consider counterpoint as the
only means through which the attention of the composer is concentrated on

purely musical questions. Its elements also lend themselves perfectly to an
architectural constructions

 

5 I gor Stravinsky, Autobiography, p. 9.
6 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 311.

46

 

This is an interesting statement in light of the overall importance of form in
establishing the Octet as focal within the body of Stravinky’s work during this
period. Form is central to the designation of the Octet as the pivotal work in the
composer’s progression to neoclassicism. The ﬁrst movement will be shown to

clearly imply classical sonata form. The second movement, a theme and
variations with a ritornello, is notable simply in that it marks the ﬁrst time in an
original composition that Stravinsky included a theme and variations.7 Finally,
the third movement, which is in a rondo form with an abrupt coda, is reﬂective of
his look back to the greatest of all Baroque masters.
The third movement grew out of the lugato (the second movement’s ﬁnal
variation), and was intended as a contrast to that high point of harmonic
tension. Bach’s two-part Inventions were somewhere in the back of my mind
while composing this movement. The terseness and lucidity of the inventions
were an ideal of mine at the time, in any case, and I sought to keep those
qualities uppermost in my own composition.8

Earlier discussion of neoclassism can be recalled before proceeding to an
analysis of the individual movements of the Octet. Ideas were presented in these
discussions of reviving and restoring earlier styles, or more importantly, of
alluding to earlier techniques and forms with new and sometimes unexpected
tampering. This is exactly what Stravinsky displayed in the Octet. Within the

accepted framework of referential classical and baroque forms, he stretched

boundaries and adapted systems, in the end making them his own. In his

 

7 There is, in fact, a theme and variations in the earlier Pulcinella, but in this case the variations
are simply adaptations of the originals which were attributed to Pergolesi. In the Octet, the “Theme and
Variations” was placed in the role of a contrasting middle section, as it would be later as well in, in the
Concerto for two pianos.

47

autobiography, Stravinsky asserted that freedom is actually born within borders
and limits (the boundaries of a fugue or sonata-allegro, for instance). In total
freedom he said there is only arbitrariness and randomness. Total freedom in
music causes it to lose its focus and bearings. Quoting Leonardo da Vinci,
Stravinsky stated, “Strength is born of constraint and dies in freedom.”9

Once again, the opening “Sinfonia” strongly implies classical sonata form.
So reminiscent of Haydn, the movement commences with a slow introduction
that lasts forty-one measures, and leads to the beginning of the actual exposition,
which is in a new, faster tempo. The slow introduction to a typical Classic period
movement in sonata form was used, in part, to prepare and strengthen the tonic
of the movement. It would generally anticipate the central key of the movement,
in this case E-ﬂat, by ﬁrst establishing the tonic and then emphasizing its
dominant in preparation for the resolution provided at the opening of the
exposition.

The following examples show that, as in a classical sonata form
movement, the opening of the “Sinfonia” in Stravinsky’s Octet also serves to
prepare the movement’s tonic. The introduction is structured roughly in an ABA
form, in which the “B” section (mm. 5-36) is much longer than the two
surrounding “A” sections (mm. 1-4, mm. 37-41). Most of the more substantial
middle section is very chromatic in nature, but the outer sections of the
introduction clearly assert the dominant, both through individual notes and

vertical sonorities. The tonic itself is not actually resolved until the initiation of the

 

8 Robert Craft with Igor Stravinsky, Dialogues, (Berkely: University of California Press, 1982),
p. 39, 40.

exposition at measure 42, marked “Allegro Moderato.” The opening “A” section
of the introduction is presented in example 4. It is made up of two short phrases,
both two measures in length. The two phrases, very similar in their construction,
function as antecedent and consequent and both serve to focus the ear on B-ﬂat.
The antecedent phrase opens with the trumpet in C sounding the pitch alone,

and the consequent phrase concludes with a root-position B-ﬂat major triad.

Example 4: “Sinfonia”, Opening “A” section, mm. 1-4.

The ﬁrst eight measures of the “B” section (mm. 5-12) further strengthen
the polarity of B-ﬂat. While the bassoons maintain what amounts to a dominant
pedal, the ﬂute and clarinet are continuously vacillating to and from D-natural and
F-natural combinations, which, of course, combine with the bassoon pedal to
maintain the music’s emphasis upon a B-ﬂat major triad. Beginning in measure
twelve, the music becomes much more chromatic, straying from its initial tonal
focus. It is much more smoothly ﬂowing and contrapuntal than the somewhat

mechanical sounding opening four measures. The harmonic focus returns in

 

9 Stravinsky, Autobiography, pp. 76, 77.
49

measure 34 when the trumpets and trombones commence a progression of
dominant chords that lead to the beginning of the ﬁnal “A” section in measure 37.
This time, however, rather than sounding a B-ﬂat, as at the beginning of the
movement, the opening trumpet pitch here is an A-natural. This is set up in
measure 36 by the ascending aeolian scale in E. The ensuing progression that
is established with the addition of the bassoons over the sustained A-natural then
ultimately leads to a diminished chord ('“d‘m/v in E-ﬂat) at the beginning of
measure 39, and then ﬁnally a resounding dominant chord at the fermata in the

introduction’s closing measure.

 

Example 5: “Sinfonia”, “B” section and closing “A” section of introduction, mm. 5-
41.

The remainder of the ﬁrst movement is marked “Allegro Moderato,” and it

leaves no doubt that its inspiration is a classical sonata-allegro form model, a

51

at I;

model which Stravinsky established in his Harvard lectures as the “richest” of

musical forms from the standpoint of development.”10

It is complete with an
opening exposition that introduces primary and secondary themes, an
intervening developmental section, and a clear recapitulation and code.
However, Stravinsky takes the existing prototypical sonata-allegro form and
bends it somewhat, making it his own. Once again, this inclination to utilize
stimulus from the past to provoke new creative endeavors was, in prior
discussion of neoclassicism, one of the traits that placed Stravinsky amongst the
leaders of the movement.

In comparing the form of the “Sinfonia” to that of classical sonata form,
there clearly are areas that can be seen to have been manipulated or stretched.
These can be addressed from the standpoint of tonal organization, most
speciﬁcally in the exposition, thematic exposure in the development, and the
reintroduction of themes and the question as to exactly where the recapitulation
begins.

Stravinsky discussed the importance of tonal centers in his Harvard
University lecture series, referring to them as vehicles through which a speciﬁc
order or form can be constructed in music.11 In classical sonata-allegro form, the
most important tonal centers are undoubtedly the tonic and dominant. The
exposition generally moves from tonic to dominant and the recapitulation usually

does just the opposite in bringing closure to the movement. In the Octet,

however, rather than modulating from l-V, Stravinsky modulates only a half-

 

1° Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music in the Form of Six Lessons, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1942), p. 41

52

 

 

step’s distance. After spending a relatively brief time in the tonic key, the music
modulates down from E-ﬂat to D. Also, whereas in traditional sonata form, once
the dominant has been established in the exposition, it usually remains the tonal
focus into the development, here the emphasis on D is tenuous at best. It is
established with the introduction of the second theme, but becomes blurred
almost immediately after this initial statement.

Example 6 displays the ﬁrst theme of the “Allegro Moderato section.” The
theme itself is somewhat transient and its real anchor is its ﬁrst three pitches, a
falling minor third and rising minor seventh. After its ﬁrst full statement in the ﬁrst
trumpet, it is presented in canon beginning in measure 49, and then is not heard
again in its entirety until the recapitulation. For the remainder of the ﬁrst theme

section, the emphasis is mostly on its opening three-note fragment.

Example 6: “Sinfonia”, First theme, mm. 42-48.

The transition from E-ﬂat to D begins at rehearsal number 8 (measure 511.
Simply noting that at this point the key signature is eliminated in all parts might
reveal that something is about to occur. It is not an indicator of a specific
modulation in itself, but does coincide with the tonal shift to come. The opening
three notes of the ﬁrst theme are developed ﬁrst in descending sequence, setting
up the ﬁrst implication of a D tonality at measure 63. Here, the ﬂute reasserts the

ﬁrst theme in syncopation while the second trumpet simultaneously sounds the

 

 

‘1 Ibid.

53

theme in its original form a minor sixth below. Over the next six measures
(example 7), each of the eight individual parts remains within the notes of the D-
major scale. This section closes in measures 69 and 70 with the ﬁrst trombone
resolutely sounding a sustained D-natural, leading directly to the movement’s
second theme area. The question that next arises is whether the music has now
arrived in D Major or D Minor.

As discussed above, during the measures involved in example 7 every
instrument stays entirely within the notes provided by the D Major scale.
However, in measure 69, while every other instrument resolves to a D-natural
during the ﬁrst beat, the ﬂute actually ends on an F-natural, implying D Minor.
The ensuing rising bassoon ﬁgure begins as well with a simultaneous D and F-
natural. This is actually not so uncommon in Stravinsky’s music. He creates a
clear tonal focus, but within that perceived boundary stretches and blurs to a
certain extent. This will be discussed further in presentation of the second
movement and the use of the octatonic scale.

The second theme (example 8) is then presented for the ﬁrst time at
measure 71. As in the initial voicing of the ﬁrst theme, the second theme is ﬁrst

performed in its entirety by the ﬁrst trumpet.

Example 7: “Sinfonia,” mm. 63-70.

Example 8: “Sinfonia”, Second theme, mm. 71-76.

The next statement of the second theme is interesting in that it further
blurs the music’s tonal center. Comparing once again to classical sonata-allegro
form, in which the music would normally solidify the presence of the dominant,
here the music does nothing of the sort. Not only does the key of D (substitute
for the dominant) become weaker, but the key center strays in two entirely
different directions. In fact, the music of this section is bitonal, with two keys
presented separated by a ﬁfth. Here in measures 82-86 (example 9), the theme

is played in A-ﬂat while its isometric accompanying material suggests D-ﬂat.

55

 

Example 9: “Sinfonia”, mm. 81-86.

The development section begins at, or around, rehearsal number 13
(measure 87). Like the classical sonata model, the development here is tonally
unstable. It is often freely chromatic and dissonant and implies multiple tonal
centers, including C, G, E and B-ﬂat. Also, as in its classical inspiration, this

development section introduces new material (example 10).

Example 10: “Sinfonia,” development motive, mm. 101-103.

An important question is exactly when the development gives way to the
recapitulation. A convincing argument could be made for two different answers:
the ﬁrst placing the beginning of the recapitulation at measure 128, and the other
placing it at measure 152. Both positions hinge upon one’s interpretation of the
reappearance of the second theme in measures 128-138. Traditionally, in the

development section of a movement in sonata form, not only is there tonal

 

instability and frequently introduction of new material, but also a working out, or
rehashing of previous material. Then in them theuho’me key is then
reestablished and the two themes from the exposition are revisited. Once again
using classical models as a reference, two possibilities become available. In the
majority of classical era compositions that make use of sonata allegro form, the
recapitulation begins with the return of the ﬁrst theme. There are some,
however, that are structured in more of an arch-form. In this model, the
recapitulation generally returns to the second theme ﬁrst, then the ﬁrst theme.

Whichever position one takes in regards to this movement, there is some
characteristic that is left incomplete when compared to classical models. In
choosing the arch-form model, marking the beginning of the recapitulation at
measure 128, one could justify this saying that this is the reinitiation of the
thematic material from the exposition. The second theme is sounded here,
followed by the ﬁrst theme in measure 152. The problem is that the
recapitulation normally begins in the tonic key. In measure 128, the statement of
the second theme is in E, not E-ﬂat.

The argument for placing the recapitulation at measure 152 is based on
the fact that this is where the ﬁrst theme reappears and the music returns to the
tonic key. The use of the second theme in measures 128-138 is simply
designated as the aforementioned rehashing of previous material within the
context of the development. Unfortunately, placing the recapitulation here brings
up two problems. First, if the recapitulation begins at measure 152, there is only

a recapitulation of the ﬁrst theme, with no appearance at all of the second.

57

 

Second, this makes the recapitulation section extremely brief, a mere twenty-
three measures.

The answer as to which choice is more logical might just come by
reminding ourselves of the original discussion of Stravinsky and neoclassicism
and how he manipulates and stretches the classical forms with which he is
working, to enable his own creation. Also remembering the key scheme of a
half-step from the exposition might provide the ﬁnal piece of the puzzle.

In the exposition, rather than modulating from tonic to dominant,
Stravinsky moved only one half-step, from E-ﬂat to D. Identifying the
recapitulation at measure 128 might be more correct because it allows for the
completion of the focus on harmonic motion of a half-step. The second theme is
written here in E, and lasts until measure 138. The transition back to the primary
material and home key, a distance of one half-step, begins at measure 145. The
ﬂute and clarinet sound a G-sharp Major triad, but this tonality quickly dissolves
as a chromatic descent carries the music directly to measure 151, where the
bassoons arpeggiate an E-ﬂat major triad. The ﬁnal vertical chord of measure
151 is a dominant chord in E-ﬂat, ﬁrmly setting the stage for the reappearance of
the ﬁrst theme. This scenario also allows for a more substantial recapitulation,
lasting from measures 128-166. A brief coda then closes the movement from
measures 167-175. It is bright and dynamic, beginning with an imitative setting
of the ﬁrst theme. Example 11 illustrates that while the meter changes ﬁve times
in only nine measures, the music essentially maintains its original duple meter

pulse throughout.

 

Example 11: “Sinfonia,” Coda, mm. 167-175.

The second movement, “Tema con Variazioni,” is unique in a few ways. It
has already been stated that this was Stravinsky’s ﬁrst use of this form in an
original composition. The movement consists of a theme and ﬁve variations, in
which the ﬁrst variation actually returns twice beyond its initial insertion, used as
something of a ritomello.12 The overall layout of the movement, then, is the

following.

 

Theme - Var. A - Var. B - Var. A - Var. C - Var. D - Var. A - Var. E

 

 

 

Stravinsky explained that the process of creating the theme and variations

did not actually begin with the theme as it is seen in the ﬁnal product. “The Tema

59

 

of the second movement was derived from the waltz (Variation C); after I had
written the waltz I discovered in it an ideal subject for variations. I then wrote the
‘ribbons of scales’ variation (Variation A) as a prelude to each of the other
variations?” Furthermore, he spoke of the great emphasis that he placed on the
relationships of each variation to the original theme. “In writing variation,” he
said, “my method is to remain faithful to the theme as a mel_og_y — never mind the
rest! I regard the theme as a melodic skeleton and am very strict in exposing it in
the variations.”14
This movement also clearly displays Stravinsky’s use of two speciﬁc pitch
class sets. First is the octatonic scale. Example 12 shows the octatonic scale on
which the theme is based. Its use, or more precisely, the misinterpretation of its
use, has led some to describe parts of this movement as bi-tonal. In fact, in the
course of the following analysis, it will be shown that this is not necessarily the

case. The use of the octatonic scale, at times alone, and at times in combination

with diatonic accompaniments is probably responsible for the misunderstandings.

 

 

0,1,3,4 0,1384

 

Example 12: Octatonic scale on which the “Tema con Variazioni” is based.

 

‘2 With the exception of some varied cadential material, Variation A is identical in each of its three
appearances.

‘3 Igor Stravinsky and Robert Craft, Dialogues and 0 Diary, reprinted in William Pope Edwards,
“The Variation Process in the Music of Stravinsky,” (PhD Dissertation, Indiana University, 1974), p. 8.

‘4 Paul Henry Long, Stravinsky: A New Appraisal of His Work, (New York: W. W. Norton and
Company, Inc., 1963), p. 61.

 

 

Example 12 also illustrates that the octatonic scale is a symmetrical
collection. By bisecting its eight-notes, the two resulting tetrachords can each be
reduced to [0,1 ,3,4] sets based on integer notation. These collections are not
only central in the construction of the theme itself, but will also be presented as a
unifying device within the movement as a whole.

The theme is fourteen measures long, and as demonstrated in example
13, can be segmented into several [0,1,3,4] set presentations. Two of these
presentations involve an added pitch and there is one instance of two of the
segments overlapping. The theme as a whole may be divided into two similar
segments, making it an A - A’ binary. The ﬁrst segment lasts through the ﬁrst
eight measures and maintains the melody in octaves in the ﬂute and clarinet. In
the second segment the melody begins in the second trumpet and is completed

by the ﬁrst trombone.

Example 13: [0,1,3,4] segmentation of the second movement’s theme.

The established tonality is centered around D. The theme could easily be
mistaken as being bitonal, because the melody is based on the octatonic

collection that does not include a D~natural, while the accompaniment is mostly

61

 

set within the conﬁnes of the diatonic collection which is D-minor. However,
Stravinsky frequently asserts the leading-tone in D (C-sharp) throughout these
opening fourteen measures to further strengthen this key, and he closes the
thematic statement with a second-inVersion D-major triad. This closing chord
serves both in tonic and dominant functions. It supports the underlying tonal
focus of D, and sets up a stronger resolution to a unison D with the beginning of
Variation A in measure ﬁfteen.

Variation A is divided into four distinct sections, each with its own unique
treatment of the fragment of the theme to which it corresponds, and each
transposed by an interval of a second. In each section, the varied melodic
material is nearly masked by the ﬂorid moving lines above it. The ﬁrst section,
from measures 15-18, is a relatively literal presentation of the ﬁrst four measures
of the theme. The only variation is that the ﬁrst note is displaced down by one
octave and the ornamentation has all been removed. In the ﬁnal measure of this
section, the bassoons establish the ostinato accompaniment of alternating
[0,1 ,3,4] octatonic fragments that will last for the duration of the next section,
from measures 19-22. Here, the varied theme is much more subtly presented, in
the soft, staccato off—beats sounded in the ﬂute, clarinet, and trumpets. Both of
these ﬁrst two sections are transposed up a minor-second from the original
melody.

Measures 23 and 24 correspond to the ninth and tenth measures of the
theme. Like the opening section of the variation, the theme is sounded in

accented notes on the downbeats with all ornamentation removed. The

62

 

transposition in these two measures, however is down a minor-second. The ﬁnal

 

two measures of Variation A actually correspond to the ﬁnal four measures of the
theme. The material is transposed up a major—second and overlapped into a
diminished metric space (example 14). The variation closes with an A-natural/E-
ﬂat augmented-fourth sounding between the bassoons and the clarinet, setting

up a modulation to E at the beginning of Variation B.

Example 14: Overlapping melodic presentation in ﬁnal two measures of
Variation A.

The march-like Variation B is divided into three sections and expands on
the melody of the original theme. The ﬁrst section, which lasts from measures
27-34, makes more use of repetition to extend its melody. The ﬁrst phrase of the
theme, sounded by the second trumpet in measures 29-33, is extended simply
through several reiterations of the ﬁrst two notes. Measure 34, which serves to
link the ﬁrst section to the second is notable in that it makes structural use of the
referential [O,1,3,4] set. The four notes sounded in octave unison by the ﬁrst
trumpet and ﬁrst trombone reduce to [0,1,3,4], and serve as transitional material
leading into the new section at measure 35.

The second section, which spans measures 35-45, is more an expansion

of the dotted-rhythm motives established in the previous section, and the

63

 

thematic material is more subtly placed. There are, however, literal insertions of
material from the theme. The clarinet plays a descending ﬁgure in measure
thirty-six, which is an untransposed restatement of the ﬁfth and sixth measures of
the theme. Example 15 shows that in measures 41-45, while the ﬂute and
clarinet are serving as the melodic voices, the actual theme is set as a counter-
line in the ﬁrst tmmpet. In closing this section, Stravinsky uses repetition to help
modulate back from E to D. The rising four-note motive played by the clarinet

' and second trumpet in measure 45 is a transposition of the same motive played

one measure earlier by both trumpets.

Example 15: Variation B, mm. 41-45.

The ﬁnal section of the variation returns to the use of short downbeat
accompaniment, but the melody is now presented through a very legato
exchange between the two trumpets. Variation B closes in measure ﬁfty-six with

a ﬁrm vii° - l cadence in D before the ﬁrst return of Variation A.

 

Variation C is the aforementioned waltz from which the original theme was
taken. Stravinsky uses the techniques of octave displacement, transposition,
repetition, elongation, and rhythmic development to relate the material from this
variation to that of the original theme. However, he remains true to his statement
regarding the theme as a “melodic skeleton.” Several illustrations of the

processes in this variation are shown in example 16.

Example 16: Excerpts from Variation C compared to corresponding material
from the theme.

65

 

Variation C is the only variation (except for the ﬁnal variation) that is not
immediately followed by a return of Variation A. It moves directly into Variation
D, which begins with a dance-like, three-part eighth-note ostinato played by the
bassoons and clarinet. Like Variation B, this variation may also be divided into a
three-part (A-B-A) form. Also like Variation B, the outer sections contain more
literal treatments of more extended passages of the thematic material, while the
middle section is somewhat more abstract. The important differences are in the
variation techniques used, and in the fact that the theme is never stated in its
entirety in Variation D. Instead, this variation shows some use of interjections of
material that are based on a much more isolated fragment of the theme.

After an eight-measure introduction, the ﬁrst phrase of the theme is very
clearly stated in slight rhythmic augmentation, from measures 131-141. It is
voiced in octave unison in the two trumpet parts for the ﬁrst seven measures and
a third octave is added above in the ﬂute in measure 138. Interestingly, the
melody is untransposed, but the tonal focus is now A, rather than D. Example 17
shows that after this very legato presentation, the texture is abruptly interrupted
by a frantic clarinet ﬂourish through measures 146-148. It is punctuated by the
ﬁrst trumpet and ﬁrst trombone sounding, in accented quarter-notes, the climbing
three-note motive taken from the seventh measure of the theme, consisting of a
rising augmented-fourth followed by a rising minor-third. Moreover, in the
following measures, the ﬂute answers the clarinet’s outburst with one of its own,
the ﬁrst part of which also consists of repetitions of this very same three-note

motive.

 

Example 17: Variation D, mm. 146-153.

The B section begins in measure 156 and lasts until measure 175. It
involves new material and travels through new key areas. At measure 156, the
arpeggiated bassoon ostinato from the beginning of the variation is re-initiated,
this time in F rather than A. Then, beginning in measure 161, the tonality
becomes much less stable, modulating nearly constantly until a resounding
cadence in A closes the section on the second beat of measure 175.

The third and ﬁnal section begins in measure 176. The two-part bassoon
ostinato is identical to the beginning of the variation, but the clarinet part has
been altered. As in the ﬁrst section, the melodic presentations are much more
legato and sustained, as well as more literally connected to the theme. The
music remains in A to the close of the variation and then moves directly to D for

the third appearance of Variation A.

67

 

 

The ﬁnal variation, Variation E, is a fugue. Stravinsky openly took great
pride in this variation, and the vision that he had of it is itself a microcosm of the
concepts that have been presented in relation to some of his orchestrational
techniques which came to a head in this work. His concertante writing has been
addressed from the aspect of his frequent division of the ensemble into distinct
families. In the following statement, Stravinsky himself revealed that this was
exactly his plan for the fugue. “The ﬁnal, culminating variation, the fugato, is my
favourite episode in the Octuor,” he said. “The plan of it was to present the
theme in rotation by the instrumental pairs - ﬂute /clarinet, bassoons, trumpets,
trombones — which is the idea of instrumental combination at the root of the
Octuor and of my dream.”15

The subject is simply an untransposed version of the ﬁrst eight measures -
of the original theme. It is altered only by octave displacement, a few note
deletions, and by inverting the ﬁnal interval of the passage (Example 18). The
texture of the variation is one of steadily intensifying counterpoint to a set
juncture, and then a sudden tapering to the ﬁnal six measures of the variation,
which also serve as the introduction to the Octet’s “Finale.” The harmonic

language is far more chromatic than any of the previous variations, but this also

subsides as the transition is made into the “Finale.”

 

‘5 I gor Stravinsky and Robert Craft Dialogues and (1 Diary, pp. 39, 40.

68

 

Example 18: Variation E, Fugue subject.

The subject is presented ﬁve times. The ﬁrst two are very literal, but from
there Stravinsky began to take liberties. These took the form of beginning the
subject in one voice of a “family” while completing it in another. The ﬁrst two
presentations are stated entirely in one voice, ﬁrst in the ﬁrst bassoon and then
transposed up a ﬁfth in the clarinet, in measures 220-224 and 224-228
respectively. In measure 230, however, the ﬁrst trumpet begins the subject, but
the second trumpet completes it in measures 233 and 234. The same technique
is used for the fourth statement, but this time the material is actually passed
between two families rather than between two members of the same family. The
ﬂute and clarinet begin the subject in octave unison, but it is the ﬁrst trumpet that
completes the composite in measures 237 and 238.

The texture becomes most dense in the ensuing six measures, leading
into the ﬁnal presentation of the subject, which begins in measure 245. Example
19 illustrates that the subject material in this last statement is itself divided into
four smaller fragments and involves three of the four appointed instrumental
families. The completion of the subject is then the material that is used as the

basis of the cadenza-like transition initiated in measure 248 which ultimately

69

takes us to the bassoons’ introduction to the “F inale.” As a ﬁnal integrative
presentation of the [0,1,3,4] collection, the material sounded in the clarinet in
measure 251, and handed to the ﬂute in the following measure to initiate the

linking to the “Finale,” is built on this pitch set.

Example 19: Variation D, ﬁnal presentation of the fugue subject, mm. 245-249.

It is little secret what Stravinsky’s stimuli were in writing the ﬁnal
movement of the Octet. He had openly professed his joy in the “rediscovery” of
sonata form in the ﬁrst movement, and the investigation of the theme and
variations and fugue is clear in the second. In further reﬂection upon the
composition of the Octet, Stravinsky also spoke of the inspiration of the
“tersenesss and lucidity of Bach’s two-part inventions.”16 The “Finale” is a

testament to Stravinsky’s contrapuntal skills. Melodic and motivic material are

 

1" I gor Stravinsky and Robert Craft. Dialogues and a Diary, Reprinted in Martha Maclean Hyde’s
“Neoclassic and anachronistic impulses in Twentieth Century Music,” p. 212.

70

 

manipulated in two, three, and four-part counterpoint and in imitative settings.
Furthermore, Stravinsky uses a brief portion of a section in the middle of the
piece to foreshadow the stunning coda at its closing.

Texturally, the “Finale" is truly driven by syncopation and ostinato. There
is virtually always an accompanying ostinato, either in the form of a cyclic scalar
pattern or through a variety of isorhythmic units. The result is a relentless
momentum that carries the music from opening to close. Formally, this is a
distinct example of classical ﬁve-part rondo form (A-B-A-C-A) with a coda. While
the form is very straightforward, Stravinsky “makes it his own” through the ﬁlter of
the harmonic language for which he had become known. While much of the
movement is tonal, at times Stravinsky also displays the use of mode mixture,
meshing of octatonic and diatonic systems, and even polytonality.

The movement begins with the bassoons in a playful tvvo-part invention-
like counterpoint. They are then joined at the upbeat to measure thirteen by the

clarinet. 17

The key center of this opening “A" section is ultimately revealed to be
A, but this is not entirely apparent until its cadence in measure 37. Example 20
illustrates that this opening passage is an example of the combination of the

relative keys C and A that avoids choosing a single focus until its very end. The
accompanying ostinato pattern played by the second bassoon is a simple cyclic

scalar presentation in C, rising and falling a total interval of a tenth. Next

addressing the eventual tertiary material in the clarinet, its rising and falling

 

‘7 Where the “Sinfonia” and “Tema con Variazioni” are scored for B-ﬂat clarinet, the “Finale”
asks for a clarinet in A. The performer is given ample time to make the instrument switch over the course
of the thirteen—measure “cadenza” that closes the ﬁnal variation of the second movement, as well as the
opening eleven measures of the third movement.

71

scalar patterns are also seemingly in C. The melody in the ﬁrst bassoon,
however, appears to associate with both C and A. Despite sporadic chromatic
alterations, it could be argued that at times the voice-leading implies both keys,
as in measures ﬁve and six, and measures fourteen and ﬁfteen, before the

deciding cadence in measure 37.

Example 20: “Finale,” mm. 1-37.

The ﬁrst “B” section begins in measure 38 and lasts twenty-two measures.
The melodic material sounded by the second trumpet contrasts that of the “A"
section in that it is sustained and legato. It too is propelled a great deal by

ostinato. It opens and closes with cascading eighth-note accompaniments,

72

 

 

similar to the second bassoon’s in the previous section. There is effective use of
imitation and sequence. Harmonically, however, Stravinsky stretches into
bitonality and the intermingling of octatonic and diatonic pitch collections. In
example 21, after the initial reinforcement of the focus upon A, the tonality seems
to diverge. While the second bassoon, second trumpet, and bass trombone
seem to move through the key of F in measures 40-42, the clarinet and ﬁrst

bassoon apparently hover around C.

Example 21: “Finale,” mm. 40-42.

Continuing to example 22, as the ﬂute and clarinet move into new,
imitative material in measure 43, the music changes, both texturally and
harmonically. The music is now based on simultaneous presentations of each of
the possible octatonic collections. The eight notes played by the second
bassoon in measures 44and 45, for example, are members of a single octatonic
scale, and the three-step sequence performed by the ﬁrst bassoon in measures
45-47 is all drawn from the octatonic scales. At the same time, the material in

the ﬂute and clarinet move from one collection to another, but are still

73

 

 

‘.I

~

 

octatonically based until emerging chromatically back to the scalar eighth-note

ﬁgures which return in measures 49-55.

Example 22: “Finale,” Octatonic integration within “B” section, mm. 44-48.

The second “A” section is slightly varied in comparison to the ﬁrst. It
begins just as in the opening of the movement, but this time when the clarinet
drops back out of the texture for the second time, it is the two trumpets that
recapitulate the main thematic material from measures 80-91, rather than the two
bassoons. The material has been altered slightly, closing this “A” section in
somewhat different fashion and the music becomes less stable tonally as it
progresses toward the “C” section, which begins in measure ninety-two.

Three notable introductions in this section are the syncopated foretelling of
the coda’s material, the initiation of new, isorythmic ostinato accompaniment, and
the presentation of new thematic material in two different forms. Example 23
illustrates the isorhythmic ostinati played by the clarinet and ﬁrst bassoon
beginning in measure ninety-two. The clarinet performs a repeating three-note
pitch sequence within the framework of a four-count rhythmic setting. At the

same time, the eighth-notes in the ﬁrst bassoon part cycle through a rotation

74

within a rotation. The top two notes remain ﬁxed, but the bottom note rises and
falls chromatically between G-natural and B-ﬂat. Example 24 displays the two
syncopated forms of the new thematic material. The ﬁrst statement begins in
measure 109 and lasts through measure 116. The second statement of this
material spans measures 117-124 and involves some use of octave

displacement in the last two measures.

Example 23: “Finale,” clarinet and bassoon ostinati at opening of “C” section.

Example 24: “Finale,” “C” section theme presentations, mm. 109-124.

The ﬁnal “A” section begins in measure 128. The theme is initially in the
ﬁrst trombone, and then passed to the second trumpet in measure 136. Rather
than the light and springy eighth-note dance feel of the prior “A” sections, 1

however, this time the melody is rhythmically augmented and set in legato ‘

75 i

 
 

 

quarter-notes. Not only is the melody augmented, but so too is the basic
accompaniment (Example 25). The clarinet does revisit its cheerful
accompanying ﬁgures in measures 133-135, but then retreats back to simple

chromatic quarter-note gestures from there.

Example 25: “Finale,” ﬁnal “A” theme presentation in rhythmic augmentation.

The transition to the coda begins in measure 148 and is built on
boisterous interjections in the trombones of the ﬁrst phrase of the “A” theme. A
ﬁnal procession begins in measure 154, followed by a starkly deceptive coda,
beginning in measure 160. In a subdued syncopated, jazz-like style, the ﬂute
and clarinet play melodic material over steady seventh chords in the brass,
setting up a singing, hocketed trumpet duet which ultimately carries to the work’s
close and the full ensemble’s resolving C chord.

The Octet was not only the completion of Stravinsky’s progressions
through instrumental preferences, orchestrational practices, and formal and
compositional techniques. It was also a representation of those characteristics
that made him so central a ﬁgure in the neoclassicism of the 19208. There are
clear references to the rhythmic devices and harmonic language for which

Stravinsky had become known over a decade earlier, such as the fusion of

76

 

 

 

diatonic and octatonic systems. Earlier in this chapter it was mentioned that in his
Harvard lectures, Stravinsky quoted Leonardo da Vinci in asserting that borders
and limits in fact enable freedom rather than restricting it. He continued in his
own words, stating, “A mode of composition that does not assign itself limits
becomes pure fantasy.”18 The induction of the classically inspired formal
frameworks into the composer’s existing musical vocabulary resulted in a pivotal
and inﬂuential work within the wind repertoire.

The mounting of the Octet’s premiere performance was an anxious
experience. The style of the music was somewhat outside of the realm of the
performing musicians’ experience and Stravinsky was admittedly limited in his
technique and abilities as a conductor, but the composer was ultimately quite
pleased with the resulting performance.19

Interestingly, the score of the Octet was later used for two ballet
productions in New York in 1958. The New York City Ballet used it ﬁrst, and then
the American Ballet Theatre employed the music under the title Agn'smene.”
The immediate inﬂuence of the Octet, though, was as inspiration for Stravinsky’s
next great neoclassic wind work. Koussevitsky was so pleased with the success
of the Octet that he then invited Stravinsky to write another work for one of his
concerts in the 1924 season. Stravinsky suggested a piano concerto.
Koussevitsky went one step further and proposed that the composer himself play

the solo part for the premiere. So was born the Concerto for Piano and Winds.

 

‘8 Ibid., p. 63.
‘9 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and his Works, p. 313.
2° Ibid., p. 314

77

 

 

CHAPTER FOUR

THE CONCERTO FOR PIANO AND WINDS

FROM THE OCTET TO THE CONCERTO

Igor Stravinsky’s Concerto for Piano and Wnds was born out of the
success of his Octet for Winds. In many ways, it also represents the continuation
of the formal, orchestrational, and compositional characteristics that were
realized in its immediate predecessor. The Concerto is an obvious continued
example of Stravinsky’s professed predilection for writing for winds, now with the
added concentration upon piano. Considering that Stravinsky’s original training
was on piano, it is curious that in the ﬁfteen years prior to the composition of the
Concerto, he had written relatively little for the instrument.1 “Having again used a
wind ensemble for chamber music in the Octour," he said, “I later undertook the
composition of my concerto, which, as regards color, is yet another combination
—- that of piano with a wind orchestra reinforced by double basses and timbals.”2

Beyond the choice of instruments, in the Concerto Stravinsky
demonstrates the further evolution of orchestrational techniques, speciﬁcally the
orchestration of dynamics and concertante writing mentioned in earlier chapters.
The addition of the solo instrument allowed for opportunities to institute new
textures and treatments, including various approaches to the reinforcement of
melodic material as well as the integration of the solo instrument into the
ensemble setting. The Concerto is written for a larger ensemble than was the

Octet, so it also provides for additional variation on the idea of instrumental

 

' Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, p. 107.

78

 

 

“families.” Finally, it is, of course, the next powerful manifestation of the

composer’s re-interpretation of classic forms and styles.

BACKGROUND

Like the Octet, the Concerto was composed at Biarritz, from mid 1923 to
April, 1924.3 It is dedicated to Madame Natalie Koussevitzky and originally
published by Edition Russe de Musique.4 It was ﬁrst performed at a
Koussevitzky Concert on 22 May 1924 at the Paris Opera House, conducted by
Serge Koussevitzky and with Stravinsky as soloist. It seems that the ﬁnal stages
of the Concerto’s composition were done somewhat frantically. In a letter to
Ernest Ansermet, dated 28 March 1924, Stravinsky wrote, “Imagine that I must
ﬁnish the last part of my Concerto, learn to play the whole piece on the piano,

and perform gloriously at the premiere on May 15!”5

Note that the date given by
Stravinsky in this letter is a full week prior to that of the Koussevitzky Concert at
which the Concerto’s recognized premiere was given. In truth, Stravinsky gave a
private performance of the work on the earlier date at the Princess Edmond de
Polignac’s home. Stravinsky played the solo part, and a reduction of the
orchestral score was played on a second piano by Jean V\ﬁener.6

Not only were the ﬁnal stages of the work’s composition somewhat

frenzied, but the public premiere apparently provided an anxious moment as well.

 

1 Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, p. 104.

3 The completed score is dated “Biarritz, 21 April 1924.

4 The original published printing was in 1924, but the publishing rights were later obtained by
Boosey & Hawkes.

5 Igor Stravinsky, Selected Correspondence, Vol. 1., Edited by Robert Craft, (New York: Alfred
A.Knopf Publishing),.p. 179.

79

 

 

 

 

While Stravinsky’s playing was evidently outstanding, he supposedly suffered an
awkward memory lapse. “After ﬁnishing the ﬁrst movement and just before
beginning the Largo which opens with a passage for solo piano,” he recalled, “I
suddenly realised that I had completely forgotten how it started. I said so quietly
to Koussevitzky, who glanced at the score and hummed the ﬁrst notes. That was
enough to restore my balance and enable me to attack the Largo.”7

As mentioned above, the Concerto was scored for a much larger wind
ensemble than was the Octet, here for twenty-four instruments plus solo piano.
The instrumentation includes one piccolo, two ﬂutes, two oboes, one english
horn, two clarinets in A, two bassoons, four horns, four trumpets in C, three
trombones, tuba, timpani, and string-bass. Like the Octet, it is set in three
movements (fast-slow-fast). Also like its immediate predecessor, the Concerto’s
opening movement makes use of a slow introduction leading to a lively allegro.

While the previous chapter involved a detailed presentation and analysis
of the Octet, focusing upon placing it as the work that represents the completion
of Stravinsky’s evolution from Le Sacre, etc. to neoclassicism, the present
chapter has slightly different objectives. This discussion focuses on three areas.
Through a more descriptive and comparative analysis it aims to illustrate those
methods and techniques that Stravinsky carried, and even further developed,
from the Octet to the Concerto. First, the Concerto is an obvious continuation of
the composer’s neoclassic rediscovery of the past, and a brief examination of

form and sequence in its three movements will explore those manifestations.

 

" Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 318.

 

Next, it becomes clear what orchestrational techniques Stravinsky maintained
and developed. One of these is the concertante style exposed in both of the
previous two chapters, in which he frequently manipulated designated families of
instruments. Finally, in adding the solo piano to the wind orchestra, Stravinsky
displayed innovative treatments of the interaction between the solo instrument
and the ensemble, both in the orchestration of dynamics and motivic

development.

COMPARATIVE AND DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS

Something that is immediately apparent in the ﬁrst movement of the
Concerto is the concentration on dotted rhythms, reminiscent of the French
overtures of the Baroque. In interviews published in Robert Craft’s
Conversations with Igor Stravinsky, the composer reﬂected, explaining that,
“Dotted rhythms are characteristic eighteenth-century rhythms. My uses of them
in these and other works of that period, such as the introduction to my piano
Concerto, are conscious stylistic references. I attempted to build a new music on
eighteenth-century classicism using the constructive principles of that
classicism... and even evoking it stylistically by such means as dotted rhythms.”8

As in the Octet, the more lively main body of the movement is preceded by

a slow introduction. Just as in its predecessor, this introduction is structured in a

three-part binary (A—B-A) form in which the much shorter outer “A” sections

 

7 I gor Stravinsky, Chroniques de Ma Vie, reprinted in Eric Walter White’s Stravinsky: The
Composer and His Works, p. 318.
8 Robert Craft, Conversations with Igor Stravinsky, p. 21.

81

 

surround a more substantial inner section. The “A” sections are entirely centered
around a beautiful horn choir, although the ﬁnal section is substantially
abbreviated. The opening “A” section takes up the ﬁrst twelve measures, while
the closing “A” is merely four measures in length. The middle “B” section lasts
sixteen measures, from measures 13-28.

Most striking, however, is the clear division of the entire introduction into
alternating instrumental “choirs” (Example 1). From the inception of the “B”
section, at measure thirteen, there is a steady progression of statements by the
different instrumental families, from a double-reed choir to a brass choir in

measures 15-18, back to the horns, and then again to the double-reeds.

82

Example 1: Movement I, Introduction, mm. 13-22

The “Allegro” begins in measure 33. Similar to the ﬁnal movement of the
Octet, it is driven by intense syncopation. The music is very aggressive and
often percussive, reﬂecting a style reminiscent of the toccatas of Baroque

masters such as Handel and Bach. The large-scale form of the body of the

83

..
”eh.

 

movement is ternary. Example 2 illustrates a setting mid-way through the
exposition that is a further representation of Stravinsky’s passion for the
contrapuntal music of Bach. In this excerpt the subject is presented in the form

of a three—part invention.

Example 2: Movement 1, “Allegro” subject, mm. 69-86

The treatment of the subject material in this work Is interesting in its
variety. There is diversity in the manners in which the wind instruments
accompany, interact with, and reinforce the piano’s melodic material. It is also
very common for the solo instrument to be integrated into the full orchestral
texture, literally becoming a part of the ensemble itself. This is demonstrated
throughout the Concerto. It is rarely the case that the musical material is
contrasted from solo to ensemble, but rather, contrasting sounds, textures, and
timbres of similar material are shared and developed between the two entities.
Examples 3a-c illustrate some of these techniques. Example 3a shows part of

the introduction of secondary thematic material in the exposition of the ﬁrst

movement. The piano states it over relatively sparse accompaniment in the ﬁrst
oboe, english horn, and later the ﬁrst clarinet. ln Example 3b the same material
is developed in a more assertive and syncopated setting, in which the horns and
upper woodwinds assume much more leadership. Finally, in Example 3c, the
ﬁnal presentation of this material before the piano launches into the solo
invention seen in Example 2, the composite melodic material is sounded in the
ﬁrst trumpet. The woodwinds vigorously reinforce the emphasis on the offbeats,
while the piano is actually relegated to the accompanying role, simply performing

technical arpeggiated ﬁgures.

Example 3a: Mvt. I, mm. 50-54

85

 

 

Example 3b: Mvt. I, mm. 59-63

Example 3c: Mvt. I, mm. 64-69

The ﬁnal piano cadenza in the ﬁrst movement, beginning in measure 252
is an extended recollection of the metrical device used earlier by Stravinsky in

the coda that closed the “Sinfonia” of the Octet (Example 4). For most of the ﬁrst

 

 

section of the cadenza (mm. 252-282), Stravinsky establishes a fairly regular
rotation of 3/8, 2/8, and 3116 meters. In the latter section (mm. 283-312), it is
interjections of 3/8 measures into a scheme of 2/4 and 3/4 measures. As in the
Octet, the driving sense of downbeat pulse is maintained through these constant
shifts. This time, however, Stravinsky displaces the pulse several times by a
single subdivision, never allowing the listener to entirely forget the feeling of
syncopation that has propelled this movement from the very initiation of the
“Allegro.”

The cadenza tirelessly winds its way to a grand pause between measures
312 and 313 before the beginning of the coda. Where the brief coda at the end
of the Octet’s opening movement completed its governing sonata form, basing
itself on the main thematic material from the “Allegro Moderato,” this coda rounds
the movement off by returning to the music from the slow introduction at the start
of the entire work. The noticeable difference is that this time, the piano

participates.

Example 4: Mvt. I, close of ﬁnal piano cadenza, mm. 297-312

 

 

The slow and rich second movement of the Concerto is marked “Largo”
with a tempo indication of sixteenth-note=84. Its beautiful and expressive melody
over vertical and broken chord accompaniments might easily be seen as a look
back to the majestic nineteenth-century nocturnes and character pieces by the
likes of Chopin. Stravinsky revealed that while writing this movement, “Some
pages of the manuscript disappeared mysteriously one day, and when I tried to
rewrite them I found I could remember almost nothing of what I had written. I do
not know to what extent the published movement differs from the lost one, but I
am sure the two are very unlike.”9

The second movement is divided into three distinct sections (A-B-A’),
articulated at each division by a starkly contrasting piano cadenza. These
cadenzas are important from two views. First, this structure is somewhat
suggestive of that of the middle movement from the previous year’s Octet.

Recall that in that movement, the “Tema con Variazioni," Variation A was used in
a quasi-ritornello role. This “ribbons of scales” variation linked each of the other
variations. In the Concerto, the piano cadenzas are not so much in place to
function as ritornelli, but do resemble the primary variation from the Octet in that
they involve contrasting dynamic and technical ﬂourishes that clearly set apart
their surrounding sections. The cadenzas are also notable for the fact they are
really the two isolated interjections in which the piano fully functions as a solo or
feature voice. Beyond those two passages, the keyboard is treated as an
integrated member of the ensemble. More often than not, in fact, it actually

serves as an accompanying instrument.

 

9 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 316.
88

 

 

 

Examination of this movement also reveals the following points of interest.
First, it is immediately apparent that Stravinsky has maintained and developed
the orchestrational concepts of isorhythmic ostinato and the division of the
ensemble into distinct families or choirs. In regards to the latter, it is interesting
that the bassoons have now been tied in with the brass-choir, creating an even
more pronounced timbral contrast. The addition of the bassoon and contra-
bassoon to the brass further enriches the darker quality of this grouping, while
their removal from the woodwinds serves to lighten and enhance this opposing
texture.

An illustration of the ostinato technique mentioned above is seen in the
beginning of the second theme area (Example 5). Beginning in measure 45, the
melodic material in the ﬁrst oboe is played over a tri-level accompaniment in the
english horn and piano. The left hand Is seen simply rocking back and forth on
an eighth-note diad, but the right hand of the piano and english horn have

developed three and four-note isorhythmic ostinati, respectively.

Example 5: Mvt. II, mm. 45-50

Midway through this movement, Stravinsky also reveals to us that the

main thematic material from the opening movement is to be used as a common,

89

unifying thread throughout the entire composition. Beginning in measure 53, the
ﬁrst ﬂute joins the ﬁrst oboe in the second statement of the subject for this middle
section. The accompaniment remains in the piano, but the english horn takes on
new material, subtly countering the melody with an extended gesture that recalls

the toccata from the ﬁrst movement (Example 6).

Example 6: Mvt. 2, English Horn counter-line, mm. 53-63

Finally, just as the ﬁnal measures of the Octet’s second movement served
to move seamlessly into the “Finale," so too does the closing of the Concerto’s
middle movement transition directly into its closing movement. This closing
passage is much shorter than that of the Octet and follows a slightly different
path in preparing the third movement. Where the Octet closed its second
movement by establishing the new tempo and style, the Concerto remains in the
manner and tempo set forth by the “Largo” indication. It links the two movements
through common cadential material. Example 7 demonstrates that the sensitive
ﬁnal cadence of the second movement of the Concerto is exactly the same as
the opening cadence of its third movement, differentiated only by the tempo and

a change of mode.

Mvt. ll, ﬁnal progression Mvt. Ill, opening progression

Example 7

The Concerto’s ﬁnal movement reestablishes several of the techniques
and textures from the ﬁrst movement. Some of the similarities are relatively
obvious, while others are somewhat less pronounced. Mid—way through the
movement, we also see the next example of Stravinsky’s attraction to the fugue
that so prominently manifested itself the previous year in the Octet.

In the third movement of the Concerto, the music returns to a more
agitated and aggressively syncopated style. The piano material is very technical,
and at times even mechanical sounding. A focus upon dotted rhythms is also
reasserted in the outer sections of the movement. The division of the

accompanying ensemble into a variety of families or choirs is clearly maintained

91

 

 

and manipulated to create contrasting textures and timbres throughout.
Furthermore, the connection of all three movements through the use of material
from the original toccata subject of the ﬁrst movement is made complete.

The opening ﬁfty-ﬁve measures might very well be considered an
extended introduction. The tone is nearly frantic in nature, alluding in fragmented
and distorted forms to the movement’s main subject material. This material is not
presented in its entirety until measure 56 (Example 8). VIﬁthin a matter of
measures, however, this subject’s relation to that of the toccata from the ﬁrst

movement becomes absolutely clear.

Example 8: Mvt. Ill, Main subject

After this initial assertion of the subject material, it is then successively
restated three more times in various forms, almost insinuating a theme and
variations within the movement. The ﬁrst, beginning in measure seventy, is a
recollection of the more fragmented presentation from the opening of the
movement. The second, from measures 89-101, is a quite literal restatement of
the theme in the solo piano. The third begins in measure 102. Through
interjections of contrasting material, it stretches all the way through measure 143
and sounds the subject in rhythmic augmentation in a thickly voiced woodwind

choir.

92

 

   

 

After a brief, but very angry sounding transition, the fugato begins in
measure 147. The piano serves only to provide technical underpinning, as each
of the subject’s statements is in the winds. Interestingly, the presentation of the
rather stately subject of this fugue bares curious resemblance at times to the
imitative ﬁnal presentation of the main thematic material at the end of the Octet.
After the fugue, the remainder of the movement draws quite obvious references
to the end of the Octet. Beginning at measure 168 is a buoyant, syncopated
section that is undoubtedly pulled directly from the coda of the Octet. It is an
equally engaging change of style, and the material in the winds is nearly exactly
that which is found in the Octet.

In the ﬁnal three sections following the fugue, Stravinsky not only wraps
up just the movement, but also brings the entire work full circle. In the ﬁrst of
these sections, marked “Agitato,” beginning at measure 176, the piano angrily
revisits the presentation of the movement’s main thematic material from its
introduction. After sixteen measures, and a dramatic crescendo to a powerful
ensemble exclamation in measure 195, the very slow dotted-rhythm material
from the very opening of the Concerto beautifully returns. This carries directly to
a brief coda, which completes the musical cycle of the work by playfully spinning
to the close using material drawn from the toccata of the ﬁrst movement.

While the Concerto is perhaps not as literal in its adhesion to actual
classical forms as was the Octet, it is clearly a continuation of many of the
orchestrational, structural, and compositional ideals that the Octet represented.

What's more, it was not in any way the completion of Stravinsky’s concentration

on the principles for which these two great works stood. In his Autobiography,
Stravinsky explained that, “After the Octour and the Concerto, my interest was
completely and continuously absorbed in thoughts of instrumental music pure
and simple, untrammeled by any scenic consideration.”10

Following the Concerto, Stravinsky continued writing for the piano,
producing both his Sonata and Serenade in A for solo piano in 1924. The latter
was dedicated to his wife. He continued in the use of a recapitulation as a potent
unifying device in both of these works, but perhaps in the interest of even greater
variety, avoided the literal repetition that was seen in the opening movements of
both the Octet and Concerto.11

During the several years prior to the premiere of the Concerto,
Stravinsky’s efforts had admittedly not been focused on honing his skills as a
solo performer. This performance, the ﬁrst of many, was to revitalize this
supplementary career for more than the next dozen years. In fact, during the ﬁve
years following the 1924 Koussevitzky Concert performance, Stravinsky
maintained the sole rights to the performance of the Concerto, and did so over
forty times on tours through Denmark, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany,
Holland, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Hungary, Austria, Yugoslavia, England,
France, and The United States.12 He appeared as soloist as well in his
Cappn'ccio (1929) and Concerto for Two Solo Pianos (1935).13 In one ﬁnal

connection shared with the Octet, in 1960, under the title Treize Chaises, the

 

1° Igor Stravinsky, An Autobiography, pp. 114, 115.

‘1 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: A Critical Survey, pp. 110-112.

‘2 Ibid., p. 110.

‘3 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 317.

94

 

 

score to the Concerto was used for a ballet produced by the BUhnen der Stadt

Ktiln.14

 

‘4 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 319.

95

CONCLUSION

THE POSITION OF THE OCTETAND CONCERTO IN MODERN DAY
WIND PERFORMANCE PROGRAMS

The years surrounding Stravinsky’s composition of Symphonies of Wind
Instruments, Octet for Winds, and Concerto for Piano and Winds were some of
his ﬁnest in regards to his writing for wind instruments. While after the Concerto
he maintained a relatively strong concentration on composing for piano, his
production for winds trailed off somewhat. In 1942 Stravinsky published his
Circus Polka in versions for orchestra and wind-band. He did the same in 1944
with his Scherzo a la Russe. The Ebony Concerto, dedicated to Woody Herman
was published in 1945, and Mass for mixed chorus and double wind quintet
appeared in 1948. In 1952 Stravinsky produced the Cantata for soprano, tenor,
female chorus, and a very small instrumental ensemble of two ﬂutes, one oboe,
one english horn, and one cello. In that same year, as discussed in an earlier
chapter of this document, Stravinsky re-orchestrated his Concertino for String
Quartet (1917) for ten winds and two string instruments. After the pivotal Octet
and Concerto, however, Stravinsky never again put forth a work for wind
instruments that has earned the level of acclaim or had the kind of impact on the

literature for winds that these two works of the early 1920s did.

 

 

 

In the years to come, Stravinsky gradually moved from the interests he
had displayed in the classic forms and techniques of centuries past into the world
of serial music. He acknowledged great respect and admiration for the work of
Arnold Schoenberg, Alban Berg, and Anton Webern. In fact, in the summer of
1955, Stravinsky said the following in tribute to the late Anton Webern.

The 15th of September, 1945, the day of Anton Webem’s death, should be a
day of mourning for any receptive musician. We must hail not only this great
composer but also a real hero. Doomed to a total failure in a deaf world of
ignorance and indifference he inexorably kept on cutting out his diamonds, his
dazzling diamonds, the mines of which he had such a perfect knowledge.‘
In the continued evolution in compositional style and practice represented in his
transition out of neoclassicism and into serial music, Stravinsky also
demonstrated a reincorporation of works for larger ensemble. He did produce
signiﬁcant compositions for smaller groups of instruments, but in contrast to his
more intimate neoclassical compositions during the years surrounding the Octet
and Concerto, the musical texture of several of Stravinsky’s central serial works
was often much denser, as in Agon (1953) and Threni (1957).

Unfortunately, the impact of Stravinsky’s Octet and Concerto for piano and
winds did not resonate in the world of the concert band and wind ensemble in the
United States until several decades later. As the ﬁrst half of the twentieth century
came to a close, the programming philosophies in the wind departments at the
American college and university level were still wrapped up in a tradition that was
centered on the large “symphonic band.” Consequently, many of the signiﬁcant

works for ensembles of a reduced instrumentation were overlooked. In a paper

entitled “The Wind Ensemble Concept,” Donald Hunsberger illustrated the
prominent mid-century programming aesthetic by reproducing printed concert
programs from performances by some of the most highly respected university
band programs in the United States. Two of these programs are seen below.
These performances highlighted mostly marches, orchestral and operatic
transcriptions, and popular music for large-scale ensembles. There was very
little of what might be termed “art music” that was originally written for winds, and

there was certainly no utilization of any sort of music for reduced instrumentation.

University of Illinois Concert Band
Mark Hindsley Conductor
Sixty-ﬁrst Anniversary Concert, March 20 and 21, 1951
University Auditorium

Overture to Tannhauser Richard Wagner
Second Movement from Symphony No. 1, “Nordic” Howard Hanson
Salome’s Dance from Salome Richard Strauss
Masquerade Suite Aram Khatchaturian
Intermission
“Tap Roots,” from the motion picture Frank Skinner
Suite for Concert Band Gerald Kechley
Les Preludes Franz Liszt

Mark H. Hindsley, conducting

Unveiling of a portrait of Albert Austin Harding, Director Emeritus, University of
Illinois Bands

Finale from Death and Transﬁguration Richard Strauss
University of Illinois March John Philip Sousa
Albert Austin Harding, conducting

 

1 Eric Walter White, Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works, p. 134.

98

 

University of Michigan Symphony Band
William D. Revelli, Conductor
Hill Auditorium, February 26, 1952
Sigurd Rascher, Saxophonist

Homage March Wagner
Symphonic Poem - The Universal Judgment De Nardis
“Meditation” from the Opera Thais Massenet
Featuring the Flute Choir
Concert March - A Step Ahead Alford
Aria from Bachianas Brasilieras No. 2 Villa Lobos
Intermission
Toccata and Fugue in D minor Bach
Introduction and Samba Whitney
Sigurd Rascher, saxophone soloist
Overture to the Opera Colas Breugnon Kabalevsky
Tmmpet and Drum Land

Barbara McGoey, drum soloist
Paul VIhIlerth, trumpet soloist
“Rag” from Suite of Old American Dances Bennett
Michigan Rhapsody Arr. By Werle2

This document has endeavored to show that in the transitional years
leading up to Stravinsky’s composition of the Octet, a series of events,
associations, and experiences combined to affect change and growth in the
composer’s music. It was just so in the 19503 that a combination of forces
sparked literal upheaval within the Western wind world. To that point the fact that
the concert band had been more or less stamped with a rigid and standardized
instrumentation meant not only that it was at a severe disadvantage in its ability

to encourage the development of new literature intended for winds, but also that

 

2 Donald Hunsberger, “The Wind Ensemble Concept,” published in The Wind Ensemble and its
Repertoire: Essays on the Fortieth Anniversary of the Eastman Wind Ensemble, (Rochester, NY:
University of Rochester Press), p. 11.

that existing works for various reduced groupings of wind instruments were
neglected.

The ideals surrounding the founding of the Eastman Wind Ensemble in
1952, the creation of the American Wind Symphony Orchestra in 1957, and the
inﬂuence of the individuals involved in their creations has since changed the
landscape of the wind ensemble. The new individuals that began to move into
positions of inﬂuence in the wind conducting profession began demanding more
at an artistic level, and the concept of the wind ensemble provided a vehicle
through which much of this could be accomplished.

A new concentration on the ﬁnest music for diverse, rather than
standardized wind genres emerged. The intent was to provide composers with a
ﬂexible ensemble through which they could communicate their art and introduce
quality new literature into the wind repertoire. A bi-product of this new emphasis
on ﬂexible instrumentation was that it also allowed for a great deal of the music
that had already been written to be uncovered. Stravinsky’s Octet, Concerto for
piano and winds, Symphonies of Wind Instruments, and the many other quality
chamber-wind and wind ensemble works by composers of years past, those that
had lay dormant for so many years were ﬁnally able to resurface. As a
consequence, in contrast to a concert program like the ones seen above, within a
few short years it was possible to ﬁnd a performance like the one illustrated

below.

Eastman Wind Ensemble
March 25, 1956, Kilbourn Hall

Mozart, W. A. Serenade in B-ﬂat No. 10, K. 361
INTERMISSION

Stravinsky, lgor Octet for VIﬁnd Instruments
INTERMISSION

Stravinsky, lgor Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments

Richard Woitach, Piano
Rogers, Bernard Three Japanese Dances

Charlene Chadwick, Mezzo-Soprano
Frederick Fennell, Conductor3

Since that time, literature for chamber-wind and wind ensemble has
become a central part of the programming practices in performing wind
departments in American colleges and universities, and has even reached out
and woven its way into many public school music departments. This rich and
varied repertoire has helped to elevate the concert band and wind ensemble to
artistic stature unprecedented in their history. In regards to Stravinsky’s
contribution and the enduring position of his Octour pour instruments a vents and
Concerto for piano and winds, the results of a recent survey on the repertoire for
chamber-winds and wind ensemble establishes both works as amongst the most
highly regarded in the existing body of literature.

In his doctoral dissertation, John L. Baker surveyed hearty four hundred

directors of bands at American colleges and universities, asking them to evaluate

 

3 Donald Hunsberger and Frank Cipolla, The Wind Ensemble and its Repertoire: Essays on the
F ortieth Anniversary of the Eastman Wind Ensemble, p. 231.

101

over four hundred musical works based on established criteria for artistic merit.4
When the results were analyzed there were but three of four hundred and seven
works that were deemed by all contributors as being of the highest possible merit
and belonging in the core performing repertoire. Of these three works, two were
written by Igor Stravinsky: L’Histore du Soldat and Octour pour instruments a
vents.5

Not only can the Octet and the ensuing Concerto be discussed as pivotal
works within the overall production of their composer, but also as integral works
within the core body of the performing repertoire for the mixed-wind ensemble.
They are important not only in their high artistic and musical merit, but also in
how they represent crucial evolutions within two worlds. First, they represent the
completion of an intriguing unfolding in the life and work of their composer.
Second, they contribute to, and stand for much of that which the concert wind

world has now become.

 

4 Stravinsky’s Concerto for Piano and Winds was not included in the repertoire listing for the
Baker survey because the investigator chose to limit the sampling to music written for ensembles of no
more than sixteen instruments. The Concerto is written for and ensemble of twenty—four.

5 John L. Baker, “Mixed—Wind Chamber Ensembles and Repertoire: A Status Study of Selected
Institutions of Higher Learning,” (PhD Dissertation, The Florida State University), p. 106.

102

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_______. Dialogues. Berkely: University of California Press, 1982.
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