An Explanation of Anomalous Hexachords in Four Serial Works by Igor Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky\u27s precompositional process was so methodical that his move to serialism is no surprise. After becoming acquainted with the music of Schoenberg and Webern, Stravinsky was moved to experiment with serial techniques. He rejected many of the conventional approaches developed by the serial architects, only to adopt the technique at its basic form—the use of a series of pitches—and cultivate it into his own compositional style. Stravinsky continued to refine his style throughout his serial period (1951–1966) as each composition grew increasingly more serial than the last. For each work composed after 1960, Stravinsky constructed rotation arrays, a serial technique he adopted from Ernst Krenek. These arrays consisted of a twelve-tone row partitioned into hexachords, with each hexachord rotated to create five additional permutations per hexachord. These permutations were then transposed so that the first pitch of the original hexachord was retained for each permutation. This operation was performed on four series forms: prime, inversion, retrograde, and inversion of the retrograde (favored by Stravinsky over the traditional retrograde inversion form). It is from his rotational arrays that Stravinsky systematically chose hexachords to compose A Sermon, a Narrative, and a Prayer (1961); The Flood (1962); Abraham and Isaac (1963); and Requiem Canticles (1966). Though his precompositional charts are very specific in determining pitch application, it is difficult to account for the use of some hexachords that are found in these works but not found in Stravinsky\u27s charts, as the hexachords do not explicitly appear in the charts. Many analysts have glossed over these incongruities. For instance, Joseph Straus mentions very little about these “anomalous hexachords” in Stravinsky\u27s Late Music (2001); and Claudio Spies completely ignores the hexachords in question. In this paper I will identify these anomalous hexachords and attempt to explain their derivation from Stravinsky\u27s charts

EXPOSING CORRUPTION IN PROGRESSIVE ROCK: A SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS OF GENTLE GIANT’S THE POWER AND THE GLORY

English progressive rock band Gentle Giant is catalogued under the progressive (or “prog”) rock genre for a variety reasons, including unique instrumentation, virtuosity, and interesting/unconventional musical attributes. The complexity of their music is often warranted by the sophisticated concepts behind their albums and the deep messages of their songs. The Power and the Glory (TPatG), Gentle Giant’s sixth studio album, is a concept album that emphasizes the rise and corruption of power. What makes their music, especially TPatG, worthy of scholarly attention beyond the simple examination of the compositional techniques employed is the way in which the message of their compositions is conveyed, and how that message is interpreted. In this project, I investigate the elements that contribute to this album’s theme via semiotic analysis. I begin by exploring the discipline of semiotics as a method for analysis. Largely applied to language and literature, semiotic analysis has been recently adapted and applied to music study. Jean Molino’s method proposes a tripartite model for the analysis of music: analyses at poietic, neutral, and esthesic levels. A poietic level analysis examines the circumstances of the music’s creation, including origination, composition, production, and performance. Situating Gentle Giant among their contemporaries and TPatG among the band’s discography by outlining their history (both personal and professional) illuminates the conditions under which the album was generated and produced. An analysis of the neutral level defines the musical “trace,” or those quantifiable elements of the music (i.e., objective elements such as pitch, rhythm, etc.). These structures are explained in light of their usage throughout history and their impact on the album’s overarching theme of the corruption of power. An esthesic analysis describes the reception and interpretation of the music. I examine the socio-cultural impact the album has made and the influence it has had on musicians throughout the years. Molino’s tripartite method of analysis supports a comprehensive understanding of Gentle Giant’s TPatG, not solely musically by examining its structures, but socio-culturally as a part of the progressive-rock culture and, indeed, the broader music industry of the 1970s