An Analysis and Interpretation of Camille Saint-Saëns' Sonata for Clarinet and Piano in E flat Major,Op. 167

• Main Authors: Wang, Chuan Chang, 王傳璋
• Other Authors: Huang, Jia li
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/17403758763285572695

碩士 === 臺北市立教育大學 === 音樂學系教學碩士學位班 === 99 === Charles Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) is an influential composer who paved the way for the development of 20th century French music. He founded the National Society of Music that nurtured many contemporary French composers as well as raised the international prominence of French music. Saint-Saëns’ earlier works were strongly influenced by Romanticism. However, in his later works, Saint-Saëns turned to classicism with emphasis on balance, objectivity, and symmetry. This transformation made Saint-Saëns one of the pioneers of Neo-classicism. In 1921, the last year of his life, Saint-Saëns devoted himself to creating three separate sonatas for oboe, clarinet, and bassoon. Not only were the three completed sonatas unique when compared to other French schools of music during this period, they also started a wave of solo instrumental works by French composers. Therefore, Saint-Saëns’ three sonatas have had significant influence on the development of woodwind repertoire. “Sonata for clarinet and piano, op.167” was titled in a custom of Classicism but composed in the music style of Romanticism. Its delicate, tuneful melodies and rich harmonies distinguishes Saint-Saëns’ unique musical style. This paper explores of the above works in five chapters. Chapter I is the introduction that includes the purpose of this thesis. Chapter II describes Saint-Saëns’ life, and the relationships between the foundations of Romanticism and Saint-Saëns’ unique compositions. Chapter III analyses Saint-Saëns’ sonata, op.167, along with a discussion of its musical form, structure, harmony, and musical languages. Chapter IV, presents insights on the performance of this piece. Lastly, Chapter V provides the conclusion.