A Study of Selected Clarinet Music of Brian Israel

It is the goal of this document to bring to the attention of the public the compositions of Brian Israel, an American Jewish composer who died of leukemia in 1986 at the age of 35. This document contains a biography of the composer, information on where to obtain the scores, texts to the poems of Kenneth Patchen, as well as a study of three, selected clarinet works, which trace his compositional development. The Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, a neo-classical work, is representative of his early style, using classical forms with non-traditional harmonies. It is comprised of three movements, Allegro assai, Andante, and Vivace. The chamber work Lovesongs, Lions, and Lullabyes, for soprano, clarinet, and piano, is a progressive work that experiments with text painting, chord splitting, mode mixture, and an increasing harmonic language, and is inspired by the poetry of Kenneth Patchen, a World War II poet. There are four movements to this work: "O, sleeping falls the maiden snow," "O when I take my love out walking," "The lions of fire," and "I have lighted the candles Mary." The Concerto for Clarinet and Wind Ensemble is a textless, programmatic work that uses chromatic fragments and displaced octaves to represent the timeline known as the Final Solution. This work contains three movements that have been titled, Crystal Night, Coronach, and Liberation, that further direct the program. Each work is described in structure, harmonic texture, harmonic language, and interpretation.

Grantor dc:publisher

University of North Texas

Year dc:date

2004

Author dc:creator

• Cifelli, Cheryl

Contributors dc:contributor

• Scott, John C, 1947-
• Brothers, Lester
• Gillespie, James

• Israel, Brian, 1951-1986 Instrumental music.
• Brian Israel
• voice
• clarinet music
• neo-classical work
• Kenneth Patchen

Statement dc:rights

• Public
• Copyright
• Cifelli, Cheryl
• Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.

Language dc:language

English

Identifier

oclc: 57581055
https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc4630/
ark: ark:/67531/metadc4630

OAI identifier oai:identifier

info:ark/67531/metadc4630