JAVS Spring 2007

"' - • . . • ' • . . . . . "' .. . ..

Thuama." 17 In Example 11 18 , note that in the second measure the pitch G is repeated during the word thuama. The representation of the syllabic formation of the word in the music - two quarter notes for two syllables - is clear. This also occurs in measures 8, 10 and 16 on the words choiche, 'annsacht, andgaoithe. This technique is very characteris tic of Irish folk song and is found in many of the pieces in the O'Sullivan collection. Another example of this style of writing to echo reiteration of pitches within the Irish language can be found in a purely instrumental collection of pieces in the Bunting collection. Originally for harp, 'Tts a Pity I Don't See My Love (Example 12) 19 mimics the same idea of text set ting, certain pitches reiterated to represent their syllabic suucrure. The downbeats in this piece often reiterate the same pitch, reminis cent of the same style ofwriting for voice. It is important to remember that Bunting assembled the collec tion from the last generation of

Example 8

Example 9

Example 10

and the bardic tradition ofsung poetry common in Ireland and folk song. The Irish language itself requires that there be reiteration of pitches in a rhythm; and, as the Irish language contains many stressed vowels there is also a tradi tion ofan internal rhyme struc ture. In traditional Irish folk song, the pitch recurrence sometimes corresponds to a specific spoken or sung word, or meter of that word . One example of this occurs in the folksong, "Tdim Sinte Ar Do

In this work, Bax seems to use the roll more often than the grace note. Examples of this ornament occur in both the piano and viola part. A prime example of this ornament is in the viola line in m302 (Example 10). Breathnach refers to the subtle transformation of thematic materi al by an Irish fiddler as "Variation." According to Breahrnach this type of ornamen tation, "when combined with superior powers of execution, makes the supreme player, the vir ruoso."16 The use of "Variation" is present in the Concert Piece and occurs in measure 3 with a variant based on the rhythm in rn272. M20 is a variant of m I 0 , with the last beat of m20 changed from two eighths to four sixteenth notes. The themes Bax uses throughout are themselves are very Irish in their construction because of the components shared by the themes

t"W"'m ~an ·l'ar do_ thuam·a · do gheou wm do_

sh1or me. Da mbeadhbarr do dim

II

... sgar- famn leal

1s

"ann- sachl, 1s

II

am domh- sa...... lw lea~ T a_ bol-a fuar no ere

Example 11

Example 12

JOURNAL OF THE AMI;.RI<:::AN VIOLA SOCIET'( 22