Out of the

Michelle Pritchard

The late Nineteenth Century saw the emergence of the viola from the ‘engine room’ of the orchestra to a solo instrument in its own right, due to champions such as English violist Lionel Tertis. The viola’s rising status paved the way for collaborations between violists and composers, resulting in an expansion of a relatively limited repertoire and placing higher demands on the performer. Through theoretical and practical based research, I identify the roles and responsibilities of the classical violist when collaborating with living composers. At the centre of my practical investigations were collaborations with four composers in the realisation of new works and exploration of pre-existing works by three composers, as part of a cross-departmental/cross-cultural collaboration. These collaborations highlight the importance of a high level of musicianship and an ability to communicate with and without the instrument. Artistic and intellectual exchange through open communication results in mutually beneficial outcomes and a deeper connection with the music. Additionally, these collaborations reveal that the viola is still emerging as a solo instrument, needing further experimentation and exploration. The final aspect of my research is the curation of a lecture-recital series showcasing these new compositions, anchored with works from the standard and lesser-known repertoire. The future aim is to perform and record these new works in order to reach a wider audience. Successful collaborations contribute to the generation, promotion, and contribution to the classical viola repertoire and the status of the instrument itself now and into the future. Bio Michelle Pritchard is an Australian violist, violinist and pedagogue, studying her Master in Classical Music (Viola) with Ásdís Valdímarsdottír at The Royal Conservatoire, The Hague. In Australia, Michelle studied with Alex Todicescu, Sydney Conservatorium. Later with Jeremy Williams, obtaining an Associate of Music Diploma with Distinction, and a Graduate Diploma of Professional Music Performance Practice through the University of Tasmania. Specialising in chamber music, Michelle established a concert series in Sydney. She has toured Europe as recitalist and as a member of the Hourglass Ensemble. Additionally, she founded ‘Eisteddfod on the Mountain’ in the regional area north of Sydney

Summary of findings for Chapter One

Tertis, like Dean fulfilled many roles as violist and collaborator.

Lionel Tertis’s roles can be summarised as follows:

1. Viola soloist, great mastery and skill.

2. Interpreter of music.

3. Arranger/transcriber/composer- expanding the viola repertoire.

4. Collaborator- he worked alongside composers in the realisation of new works and performed with composers. He was responsible for helping create new repertoire for viola, although not all of this repertoire has become part of the standard repertoire today.

5. Communicator- not only with the composers in collaborations, also as teacher and lecture –recitalist.

6. Promoter- he performed the compositions that came from these collaborations and helped these works reach a wider audience.

7. Teacher- he taught at The Royal Academy, and was its first viola professor. He helped train a generation of viola players who could in turn promote the instrument. He also wrote several texts giving advice to musicians.

Brett Dean’s Roles can be summarised as:

1. Viola soloist great mastery and skill

2. Interpreter- of music.

3. Composer- creating new music.

4. Collaborator- working with musicians in the creation of new works.

5. Communicator- through collaborations.

6. Performer- he is an active performer.

With his mastery on the instrument Dean is an outstanding role model, contributing to the rise of the status of the viola. His Viola concerto is an often performed work. Dean mostly performs his own compositions.

The responsibilities that come with these roles as violist and collaborator can be summarised from Tertis’s autobiography as follows:

Enlarge the repertory of the viola
Choose works that can be related to
Encourage composers to write for the viola, not against it
Perform new music, live
Play with expressiveness and a beauty of sound (in today’s commissioned works, this is not always a pre-requisite, more of a historical aesthetic).
Strive to grasp the ideas of the composers the violist is collaborating with
Faultless intonation
Great technical ability and fine musicianship
Practice

Brett Dean- a summary of the responsibilities he has that go hand in hand with his roles.

Takes the responsibility of being a composer seriously.
"Stay fit" regime on viola for efficient practice skills
Does not feel a responsibility to protect nor favor the viola
Performs live
Be willing to accept feedback
Bow control- The bow should be used like the "breath"
Artistic and intellectual exchange in collaboration
Writing chamber music is important as it helps him to hone his skills in instrumental writing
Write tangible melody lines but explore different soundscapes as well
Write music that is emotionally engaging
To have a good overview of the elements that make up a piece of music

From these examples, I can draw the following conclusions. Violists wishing to collaborate with living composers need to have a high level of skill on the instrument. It is therefore our responsibility to practice, to develop the skills needed in order to be able to interpret music and communicate both with and without our instrument. This means being organised and prioritising our time, and practising regularly.

Dean also highlights the importance of composers collaborating with performers, especially when composing works for an instrument that they cannot play. I take from this that as violists we can raise composers’ awareness and knowledge of our instruments about what is possible and what is not.

Although Tertis’s choice of composers with whom to collaborate may not be to everyone’s taste today, I do not believe that the works he commissioned should be forgotten. If we, as violists resonate with lesser-known historical works it is our responsibility to learn them and promote them. As previously discussed, my experience with Bowen’s and Bax’s works has been very positive. It is also important to keep an open mind when looking at composition for the first time. Tertis for example, passed up the opportunity to play concertos by Walton and Hindemith, yet these works have become standard repertoire today.

As performers, both Tertis and Dean have raised the status of the viola, due to their mastery of the instrument. NEXT>

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