Abstracts Category : Other

A conductors guide to the Magnificat in C, TWV 9:17 by Georg Philipp Telemann

by Daekwang Kim

The purpose of this study is to investigate Georg Philipp Telemanns Magnificat in C (TWV 9:17) and to create a guide for performance of the composition. The liner notes for the recording from 1964, acknowledge that The Latin Magnificat in C is the more extended and elaborately scored of Telemanns settings, yet the work remains virtually unknown today. Thus, my thesis will shed light on this little-known work, while also preparing conductors and musicians to perform this rewarding piece. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach (16851750) and George Frideric Handel (16851759), Telemann was one of the leading German composers and instrumentalists in the first half of the 18th century. He is regarded as a significant link between the late-Baroque and early-Classical styles, representing the galant style and the pre-classical style in Germany. He was also probably the first composer to write a viola concerto, which is the concerto in G major (TWV 51:G9).This study will be comprised of three major sections. First, I will present Telemanns background information: his biographical information (Chapter One), his compositional style with special attention to the choral compositions (Chapter Two), and historical background and liturgical use of the Magnificat (Chapter Three). Secondly, I will analyze Telemanns Magnificat in C using the manuscript of the work, a facsimile of which the University of Illinois Music and Performing Arts Library owns on microfiche, and the only edition of the piece, published in 1995 by Editions Armiane (Chapter Four). In my compositional analysis, I will consider various musical features, instrumentation, treatment of the texts, texture, harmony and rhythm, and other compositional devices. Third, I will compare several musical features of Telemanns Magnificat in C to J. S. Bachs Magnificat in D (BWV 243). I also consider two settings of German Magnificat, Meine Seele erhebt den Herren, by Telemann (TWV 9:18) and Bach (BWV 10) (Chapter Five). Finally, I will perform Telemanns Latin Magnificat in C and German Magnificat (excerpts) as my research project recital. The performance of the Latin Magnificat in C is especially significant because it will possibly be the concert premiere of the work in America.Advisors/Committee Members: Megill, Andrew (advisor), Megill, Andrew (Committee Chair), Solya, Andrea (committee member), Coleman, Barrington (committee member), Macklin, Christopher (committee member).