Vayo, Faculty Advisor, David

Wolff, D. Christopher

English

Digital Commons @ Illinois Wesleyan University

Illinois Wesleyan UniversityDigital Commons @ IWUJohn Wesley Powell Student ResearchConference 1995, 6th Annual JWP ConferenceApr 22nd, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM'Til Death Do Us Part: The Composition andProduction of a Contemporary Lyric OperaD. Christopher WolffIllinois Wesleyan UniversityDavid Vayo, Faculty AdvisorIllinois Wesleyan UniversityFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/jwprcThis Event is brought to you for free and open access by The Ames Library, the Andrew W. Mellon Center for Curricular and FacultyDevelopment, the Office of the Provost and the Office of the President. It has been accepted for inclusion in Digital Commons @ IWU bythe faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@iwu.edu.©Copyright is owned by the author of this document.Wolff, D. Christopher and Vayo, Faculty Advisor, David, "'Til Death Do Us Part: The Composition and Production of aContemporary Lyric Opera" (1995). John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference. 1.http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/jwprc/1995/posters/1'TIL DEATH DO US PART: THE COMPOSmON AND PRODUCTION OF A CONTEMPORARY LYRIC OPERA D. Christopher Wolff and David Vayo*, School of Music, IWU 'Til Death Do Us Part is a two-act lyric opera, with an original libretto, composed between ·1991 and 1995. The work is written for seven principal vocal roles, several minor roles, a small chorus, and a pit orchestra of twenty-six musicians. The one hour, forty-five minute production consists of fifteen major arias and duets, three large choral pieces, five recitative sections, three incidental segments and a few purely instrumental compositions. The individual recitatives and arias are primarily influenced by contemporary concert music, but also reflect my interest in jazz and popular musical styles. The composition of this piece allowed me to explore the dramatic and musical interpretation of text, large scale musical form, and the utilization of drama as a model of expression. I created recurring themes, motives, and harmonic progressions, in order to unify the work so it was complete in itself rather than a number of musically unrelated pieces held together only by the libretto. 'Til Death Do Us Part has also provided me with multiple opportunities to interact with and learn from student and faculty performers. Working on such a large scale project has brought me to a greater understanding of orchestration, harmonic language, and melodic contour, as well as contemporary notation and performance techniques. I look forward to producing this opera, so that I can not only hear, evaluate, and learn from a performance of my work, but also share it with others. The work is scheduled for its premiere performance on Saturday, May 6, 1995, at 7:30 p.m., in Westbrook Auditorium, IWU. 

\u3cem\u3e\u27Til Death Do Us Part:\u3c/em\u3e The Composition and Production of a Contemporary Lyric Opera

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\u3cem\u3e\u27Til Death Do Us Part:\u3c/em\u3e The Composition and Production of a Contemporary Lyric Opera

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