Neither

Morton Feldman (1926-1987) is, along with John Cage, arguably the most important composer of the American avant-garde after World War II; his work ranges from the graphically notated scores of the 1950s to the pattern compositions of the 1980s, which, like his second string quartet from 1982, can last up to five hours. The development from his earliest independent compositions to the reduced works of his final years is traced in full here for the first time in a musicological study, with the main emphasis of the investigation lying on the works of the 1980s. Particular importance is attached not only to the consideration of all of Feldman's published works, but also to a complete evaluation of Feldman's written and oral statements about his work. For this purpose, a large amount of previously unpublished material was consulted, including notes, essays, and, in particular, Feldman's lectures given in Europe and overseas in the 1980s, only a small portion of which has been published to date.

A major focus of the study is on non-musical influences on Feldman's work, such as abstract expressionist painting, Turkish nomadic carpets, medieval memory art, and the work of Samuel Beckett, which are discussed in detail in relation to Feldman's work. The opera Neither, created in collaboration with Beckett, is analyzed in detail as the pivotal point for Feldman's turn to his subsequent pattern compositions. Concepts and issues that were particularly important for Feldman's works of the 1980s, such as the "instrumental image" and "music as an art form," are discussed in separate chapters. For the first time, Feldman's long pattern compositions are examined in depth, both in terms of compositional technique and their theoretical implications; in addition, his late work, composed from 1984 onwards, is distinguished from his earlier pattern compositions in a separate chapter.

The appendix contains a detailed biography of Feldman and a catalogue of works expanded to include compositions found in his estate, a list of Feldman's published and unpublished writings, lectures and interviews, and a discography.

contents

free shipping within Germany