Browsing by Author "Theron, Marlise"

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    The Solo Cadenza as Vehicle for Self-Expression: A Case Study of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-12) Theron, Marlise; Nell, Mario; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Department of Music.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Cadenzas are commonly considered to be vehicles of technical excellence, musical insight, stamina and artist personality. They provide opportunities for the soloist to demonstrate their musical merit to the audience, and offer a multitude of possibilities for self-expression and creativity in the performance of a concerto. Even though cadenzas were originally created by the artists who performed them, today they are largely limited to a few ‘concert favourites’ that have been composed by 19th-century musicians. This is a missed opportunity: original cadenza-writing not only immerses the performer more thoroughly in the music, but affords them the opportunity to impress personal and unique ideas on the work. Moreover, prospective cadenza writers have been left to their own devices. Apart from a select few treatises from the 18th century, no definitive and contemporary set of criteria exists to provide pedagogical guidance for cadenza-writing. This study aims to address this gap in cadenza-writing literature by proposing a basic, step-by-step cadenza-writing approach that seeks to render the process more accessible for first-time writers. To support the proposed approach, Ludwig van Beethoven’s (1770-1827) Violin Concerto (Op. 61) is used as case study. A selection of the concerto’s published cadenzas, taken from the contributions of a diverse group of composer-performers, provides valuable cadenza-writing insights that prepare the performer for their own writing process. The approach is further supported by comprehensive literature on the nature of an effective cadenza, a biographical overview of Beethoven and his Violin Concerto, and detailed analyses of both the Violin Concerto and selected cadenzas. Subsequently, the new cadenza-writing approach is constructed from these historical and analytical findings, and supported by the author’s own three cadenzas to Beethoven’s Violin Concerto. The major contribution of this approach lies in helping to unlock the tools of self-expression and consummate artistry in musicians through the medium of cadenza-writing, and in providing contemporary writing guidance for instrumentalists of all types where, previously, resources have been extremely limited and outdated.