Virgil Thomson and Kenneth Koch: Text setting in the songs "Mostly About Love"
Item
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Title
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Virgil Thomson and Kenneth Koch: Text setting in the songs "Mostly About Love"
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Identifier
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d_2009_2013:12be26501dc4:10328
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identifier
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10210
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Creator
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Thorne, Mary,
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Contributor
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Norman Carey | Sylvia Kahan
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Date
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2009
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Music | Musical performances | American music | Kenneth Koch | poetry | songs | Twentieth century | Virgil Thomson
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Abstract
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The songs of Virgil Thomson, a major musical figure in twentieth-century America, go largely unsung. As a composer, Thomson took special care in setting words to music. This is evident in his more popular works, the operas set to librettos by Gertrude Stein, Four Saints in Three Acts (1928) and The Mother of Us All (1947). The success of these works supports the importance of a close examination of Thomson's song repertoire.;This study examines four songs by Virgil Thomson set to poetry by Kenneth Koch. These four songs comprise the set Mostly About Love (1959): "Love Song," "Down at the Docks," "Let's Take a Walk," and "A Prayer to Saint Catherine." My approach utilizes the writings of Virgil Thomson and focuses on his use of "word-groups" discussed in his book Music With Words: A Composer's View. I examine the poetry of Kenneth Koch and the collaboration between Thomson and Koch. I provide a poetic and musical analysis to offer insight into the relationship between words and music in these songs. The purpose of this study is to reveal the lasting value of these songs, encourage their performance, and bring attention to Thomson's song literature.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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2009_2013.csv
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degree
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D.M.A.
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Program
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Music
