Exposition

On Bartok's violin duets (last edited: 2019)

Joseph Puglia
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About this exposition

Bartók's 44 Duos for two violins were written to introduce techniques and musical approaches to beginning violinists. However these pieces along with other pedagogical works of Bartók also helped serve a larger purpose. In the beginning of the 20th century, western classical music reached a turning point where composers were searching for new means of expression. This led to a variety of different approaches both musically and socially. To find a unique voice, Bartók sought to combine folk music and art music, and by doing so, educate a wider public. Since folk songs were an untapped source of material, were based on simple scales that were easy to sing, and fit in with already developing historical trends of nationalism and pride of country, they were the perfect way to create completely new musical material through already familiar means. The Duos were a good introduction of this style at the time for beginning violinists and amateur musicians. Today the role of the 44 Duos has changed, but their status as staples of the repertoire for young violinists remains the same. The pieces have a huge untapped pedagogical application and though there are many other ways to introduce Bartók's style and concepts to a wider public, they still serve as one of the best ways to teach various techniques and methods of performing Bartók's music. The Duos focus on many techniques of articulation for young violinists. A study of the performance practice of musicians who were close to Bartók and the performance practice of Hungarian folk musicians themselves will also show us that these articulations were sometimes performed in ways very different than those we are used to. Perhaps most importantly, the Duos serve as an introduction to the parlando-rubato style – a much more subjective way of experiencing rhythm which is more free than modern tastes usually allow. This feeling for rubato has its roots in folk music which was by nature unwritten music, and finds application not only in Bartók's music, but also in other pieces, such as the music of Kurtág.
typeresearch exposition
date23/01/2019
last modified21/10/2019
statusin progress
share statuspublic
licenseAll rights reserved
urlhttps://www.researchcatalogue.net/view/558604/558605


Copyrights

nameExample 1 - fairy tale
copyright2018
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nameExample 2 - for children
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nameExample 3 - duo 11 - different modalities
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nameExample 4 - Sorrow beginning
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nameExample 5 - cradle song parlando
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nameExample 5 - duo 33 parlando
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nameExample 7 - duo 6 chigirigiri
copyright2018
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nameExample 8 - duet 31 marcato
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nameExample 9 - duo 16 - dots
copyright2018
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nameExample 10 - duo 44 theme
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nameExample 11 - duo 35 - slurs with dots
copyright2018
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nameExample 12 - Kurtag parlando
copyright2018
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nameKurtag fermata
copyright2018
licenseAll rights reserved
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nameRumanian dances, two notations
copyright2018
licenseAll rights reserved
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