Identifier
etd-1110103-111641
Degree
Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)
Department
Music
Document Type
Dissertation
Abstract
Madrigali: Six “Fire-Songs” on Italian Renaissance Poems, by Morten Lauridsen, was written for the University of Southern California Chamber Singers and published in 1987. The cycle has enjoyed much success. It has been recorded commercially six times and has been heard at the prestigious American Choral Directors Association Conventions. However, until now, sixteen years after the cycle’s composition, a much-deserved, comprehensive assessment of the cycle has not been attempted. The cycle is a set of six Italian Renaissance poems that involve the image of fire as an element of Romantic love. This metaphor was often used by the highly emotional poets in the late sixteenth-century. Upon initially communicating with Lauridsen, I learned that there is much to discuss about the “Fire-Songs.” A thorough study of the cycle has confirmed the composer’s sentiments. This cycle, with its careful attention to text, sophisticated construction, emulation and synthesis of Renaissance and contemporary compositional techniques, and performance implications, provides much material for exploration. Essential elements in the discussion are pertinent facts in Lauridsen’s biography and a thorough study of each piece in the cycle, including text consideration; conductor’s analyses; Renaissance elements; and performance considerations. After offering items in Lauridsen’s biography, the document addresses commonalities among pieces in the cycle, to include the four main discussion elements, text, analysis, Renaissance elements, and performance considerations. Frequently used terms are defined, such as Mannerism and augenmusik. Then, a detailed account of each discussion element as it pertains to each piece ensues, complete with musical examples, analysis tables, and tables outlining ranges and tessituras. The cycle has proven to be worthy of such an involved study. The result of Lauridsen’s efforts is a complex, but not fussy, Renaissance-inspired, but not derivative, setting of the dramatic, emotional poetry. As a result, Madrigali may well prove to be a staple in the choral repertoire for many years to come.
Date
2003
Document Availability at the Time of Submission
Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.
Recommended Citation
Raybon, Jr., C. Leonard, "An old form newly clothed: exploration and conductor's analyses of Morten Lauridsen's Madrigali: Six "Fire-Songs" on Italian Renaissance Poems" (2003). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 2919.
https://repository.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/2919
Committee Chair
Sara Lynn Baird
DOI
10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.2919