Expression of Comic Categories in the Vocal Cycles of the Second Half of the 20th Century
Doctoral student: Eglė Kižytė-Ramonienė
Supervisors: Prof. Irena Armonienė, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Audra Versekėnaitė
Department: Accompanying Piano
Duration: 2010–2014
Abstract
Eglė Kižytė-Ramonienė
Comic elements such as satire, irony and parody have not been widely analysed in musicology although they can be often found in the works of many composers (for instance, Dmitry Shostakovich, Francis Poulenc, Feliksas Bajoras, etc.). Usually these elements are associated with humour but their function is not only to make one cheerful or laugh as they hide deeper meanings encoded in the implications of the works of music. An analysis of such specific works entails several major problems such as the use of definitions established within the context of literary studies in musicology and correct interpretation of terms as the works of music usually contain examples of the synthesis of several comic forms (e.g., satirical parody, parody-grotesque, satirical irony, etc.). This research aims to define the concepts of satire, irony and parody, their interrelations and possible ways of expression in vocal cycles of the 20th century created by Lithuanian and foreign composers such as Satires (Pictures of the Past), Op. 109, Five Romances on Texts from the Magazine Krokodil, Op. 121, by Shostakovich; Triolets by Zita Bružaitė, Three Satirical Pictures by Vytautas Barkauskas, Banalités by Poulenc, Carnival by Bajoras, Cow Ate Hay by Anatolijus Šenderovas, etc. The analysis of these specific works is aimed at revealing how satire, irony and parody change the language of music and other components (compositional, stylistic, thematic, etc.) of the work and how they affect the performance and interpretation of the work.
