Jeanine Rueff Sonata: Paula Cebrián Puig
Jeanine Rueff Sonata: Paula Cebrián Puig
Jeanine Rueff Sonata: Paula Cebrián Puig
2018
Master Program Degree Project
Institution of Classical Music
1. Introduction 1
2. Background 2-3
3. Aim 4
4. Method 4-5
5. Execution&Analysis 5- 32
6. Discussion 31-33
7. References 34-35
1. Introduction
The history of the saxophone can be traced back over 150 years.
Although that seems a long time, the saxophone is one of the
newer instruments in the musical world. It was invented by
Antoine-Joseph Sax (Adolphe Sax) on the 20th of March of
1846 1. He was an excellent instrument designer and a talented
musician (he played the flute and the clarinet) from Belgium.
After that, many composers started writing music for
saxophone, using the saxophone as a solo instrument and
sometimes with a symphony orchestra. But, unfortunately, the
saxophone is not seen very often in the orchestra yet.
The idea came to me because last year I played this Sonata and
I found the fact of doing the analysis as a challenge. I have
never analyzed any dodecaphonic piece and, moreover, it is an
opportunity to play it better and being more knowledgeable
about the piece.
1
In order to do this, I looked for information about Jeanine Rueff,
Daniel Deffayet and the style of the work (the twelve-tone
technique). I did the analysis of the piece and I tried to discover
if she had used some series or if she had just written it in a free
form. Eventually, I carried out a technical and an interpretative
performance in my final exam.
The question I aim to answer is, “Did the composer use some
dodecaphonic series in the piece or did she write it in a free
form?”
2. Background
I was born in Valencia, Spain and my grandfather was the only one
in my family who knew something about music (he played the
piano, and he had studied music for 5 years). Although, at the
beginning I was not very motivated to study music, he encouraged
me and, nowadays, I am very happy with this decision.
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rock and contemporary too. The saxophone is definitely a very
versatile instrument.
When I finished the high school and I had to choose a university
degree, my options were music studies (classical saxophone) or a
physical education (PE) degree. I finally decided to stay in music
studies, so I applied for my bachelor at the “Conservatorio Superior
de Música” in Valencia. These were really good years, and I learned
a lot. Moreover, I met really nice people there and, during my last
year, I began to think about doing my Master Degree abroad. I did
this in order to improve as a musician mainly, and to have the
opportunity to know other cultures, other people lifestyles and other
languages.
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3. Aim
4. Method
4
The different steps I followed to do the research of the work
were:
5. Execution&Analysis
5
most associated with a group of composers whose figurehead was
Arnold Schoenberg and which also included the influential composers
A n t o n We b e r n a n d A l b a n B e r g . B u t t w e l v e - t o n e
compositional techniques and ideas associated with such techniques
were very influential for many great composers, and serial and twelve-
tone music is still being written today. Much of this music shares
similar axioms, outlined below, but composers have used these basic
ideas to cultivate entirely original approaches3”.
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Beethoven, Schubert and Chopin. The general time designations
are Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern….
But it does not mean that Classical music is not still being
composed nowadays, although it is far different than when it
was created several hundred years ago4.
For instance, Alfred Desenclose (1912-1971) is an example of a
classical saxophone composer and he belongs to the 20s.
This essay from The New York Times talks about the founder of
atonality briefly:
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where their research, to call it in this way, was interesting to
other composers mainly5 ”.
5.3.1 Biography
Jeanine Rueff 6 was born in Paris and she
studied at the Conservatoire de Paris
with Tony Aubin, Henri Challan, Jean,
Noël Gallon and Henri Busser. In 1948,
she won the second place in the Grand
Prix of Rome with Odette Gartenlaub.
Rueff worked since 1950 as an assistant in the
saxophone class of Marcel Mule and in the clarinet class of
Ulysse Delecluse at the Conservatoire of Paris. In 1960 she
became a teacher of Solfège sight singing, and from 1977 to
1988 she taught harmony.
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Pierre Max Dubois, and Jacques Ibert, and the recording was
done on a CD. In 1999, she provided some concert pieces for
bass trombone in the program of the Concours International of
Trombone in Guebwiller. Rueff passed away on 22 September
1999, and the saxophone quartet Ledieu 2000 gave a concert in
her memory.
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- Quinze études, for Bb Clarinet
- Vingt Leçons de solfege
- Études d´intervalles, 18 leçons de solfege
5.4.1 Biography
7started
Daniel Deffayet
studying solfege when he
was 7, violin at the age 8
years, and saxophone at 12.
Entranced by the warmth
and beauty of the
saxophone's tone quality,
which he heard through the
recordings of Marcel Mule
in the 1930s, Deffayet began
to study the instrument with Mule in 1938. When the class of saxophone
was established in 1942, and Mule appointed the professor at the Paris
Conservatory (C.N.S.M.*), Deffayet was a member. In the Spring of
1943, he won the First Prize for Saxophone, First Named. He also was
graduated in Chamber Music (1944, J. Benvenuti's class), violin (1945,
A. Tourret's class), and harmony (M. Durflé's class).
saxophone/193-biografia-daniel-deffayet-ingles
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Martinon, Monteux, Leinsdorf, Paray, Villa-Lobos, Fricsay, Cluytens,
Munch, and Ozawa. Since 1966 until his death in 1988, Herbert von
Karajan called him to be his accredited saxophonist for important
recordings and to play solos with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He
has also played regularly with several Parisian orchestras, including the
Orchestre National, Opera, Philharmonique, and many others.
Since that time, Deffayet has collaborated with Leduc publishing house,
transcribing certain works for saxophone. Deffayet and Vandoren have
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had a relationship since Deffayet was 21, when the company was
managed by Robert Vandoren.
Finally, he was died in 2002.
Sony)
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5.5 Analysis of the piece
FIRST MOVEMENT:
3 Sections
A-B-A’ Form
The climax of the first movement appears at the 94 bar in the first
section (F # 4).
The second section is divided in two parts. One begins in piano with
very rhythmical motives, and the other one starts in forte and legato,
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The third section begins in forte and two tones and a semitone
higher compared to the beginning.
This topic that I called B appears in the first and the third
section, beginning in piano and raising the intensity little by
little until the music ends up with a very strong dynamic. The
8/16 creates an irregular rhythm.
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After that, I am going to show the original serie (O) used in the
first movement, and I am going to develop the retrograde (R),
the inversion (I) and the retrograde - inversion (RI).
Retrograde Serie
!
Inverted Serie
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SECOND MOVEMENT
52 Bars
ABC Form
The second section shows the climax of the movement (bar 28),
also the note F # 4 is very strong.
It is a very sensitive and expressive movement which you have
to play a C2 and a B1 in a very soft dynamic, fact that makes
unnecessary to master the low register of the instrument.
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Third Section: bars 34 -52 FINAL PART, forte
!
Then, I am going to show the original series (O) used in the
second movement, and I am going to develop the retrograde (R),
the inversion (I) and the retrograde - inversion (RI)
Original Serie
Retrograde Serie
Inverted Serie
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THIRD MOVEMENT
308 Bars
A-B-A’ Form
It finish as it starts, in F.
The first section has two parts, the first rhythm (A) in piano and
the second in forte and legato (B). There is a great quantity of
quarter note triplets in this second part and a remarkable amount
of big intervals, including some of them in a 14th.
Topic A
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Topic B
The third section uses the motives of the first section but in a
different order. First, topic B and then, topic A, ending with a
coda. This coda is based on themes from topic A.
19
Original Serie
Retrograde Serie
Inverted Serie
Retrograde-Inversion Serie
5.6 Piece
20
IISECTION
SECTION
I PART ORIGINAL SERIE
II Subpart
II PART I Subpart
II Subpart
18
21
TOPIC b
Progression
II SECTION Topic b
I PART I Subpart
19
22
Progression
II PART II Subpart
III SECTION
+ IV I Subpart
I PART
II Subpart
20
23
II PART
TOPIC b
As at the beginning 8ª
21
24
I SECTION
I ISECTION
SECTION ORIGINAL SERIE
I SECTION
1 ST
Resolution II SECTION
+ TEMPO
Progression CLIMAX
III SECTION
22
25
I SECTION
ORIGINAL SERIE
I PART (I Subpart)
Progression
(II Subpart)
II PART
II PART (I Subpart)
(II Subpart)
23
26
9ª
(III Subpart)
II SECTION
(I Subpart)
(II Subpart)
24
27
(III Subpart)
(II Subpart)
(III Subpart)
II PART
25
28
II PART (I Subpart)
(II Subpart)
CODA
26
29
5.7 Conclusion
The movements do not have any title, but they were written as
“Allegro, Adagio and Prestissimo". The used register includes
from "B 1" to "F # 4”.
Definitely, the Sonata shows a high technic level, some wide
intervals, a difficult execution of low notes in piano and a
complex variation of measures for the saxophone player; that
fact, offers you the opportunity to show your virtuosity (in the
third movement especially).
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Musically, the saxophonist should pay special attention to the F
# 4, present at the climax points of each movement. It is obvious
that these notes are the highest points, since there is a slow build
before each motive, and they are interpreted in fortissimo each
time they appear. In addition, the character and the rhythm are
very important for the performance and allow the listener to be
“awake” during the entire piece.
In my opinion, a lot of saxophone players are the most part of
the time practicing technique and reading scores without paying
attention to other details hidden in the piece, as the musicality.
6. DISCUSSION
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have been written free form or using some series (original,
retrograde, inverse and retrograde-inverse). I wrote them in the
structure because I wanted to check if she used them or not.
In that case, she wrote free form, using only a serie at the
beginning of each movement only and developing it (changing
the notes, using other measures, dynamics and tempo), in the
first and third movements specially.
In the first movement, the original serie appears twice
identically [I Section (I Part) and III Section (II Part)]. In II
Section (I Subpart) only some motives of it appear. In III
Section (I Subpart) she used this serie but with two tones and a
semitone.
However, in the second movement the prime form appears at the
beginning only. She did not use the serie anymore but we can
see how in the III Section she used the same structure but with
other notes.
In the third movement, she used the same serie 4 times exactly
[I Section (I Part) and (III Section (II Part)]. And, at the end, she
did not use the same serie but she put the same structure.
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me the breathing, the tempo, the character and the necessary
sound to play the piece very well.
The advantage of this thesis was to get an excellent
interpretation too.
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7. REFERENCES
• Books:
• Webs:
34
https://historiadelamusica.wordpress.com/2011/04/27/el-
atonalismo-y-el-dodecafonismo/ [ Accessed January 2017]
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