Degree Name
Master of Music
Department or Program
Music
Abstract
This document includes information regarding the repertoire on my graduate recital; including An die Musik, Auf dem Wasser zu singen, Du bist die Ruh and Gretchen am Spinnrade, by Franz Schubert; “Let the Bright Seraphim” from George Friderick Handel’s Samson; Claude Debussy’s Fêtes galantes pour Madame Vasnier; Try Me Good King: The last words of the wives of Henry VIII, by Libby Larsen; and “Měsíčku na nebi hlubokém” from Antonin Dvorak’s Rusalka. I researched the lives of the composers; when applicable, the larger works the pieces are from; the lives of those to whom the pieces were dedicated and their relationships with the composers; the poets involved; and various interpretations of the pieces.
The purpose of this document is to provide a better understanding of the repertoire to be performed through knowledge of the experiences of the composers, as well as the reasons and situations surrounding why and when the works were composed; in order to enhance the listener’s understanding of the works as they are heard.