Esther
Scliar (1926-1978) was a modernist Brazilian pianist, composer and
conductor . She was born in the southern state of Porto Alegre. Her early years
were spent in Uruguay, but due to her mother’s being deported from the
country for political reasons, the Scliars moved back to Brazil, in 1931. In
the same year, her mother deserts the family – a loss from which the then
five-year-old Esther would never recover, and which partially accounts for her
melancholy mood throughout her life. She and her sister were then given
to their uncle to raise them. This was during a period of political upheaval in
Brazil – i.e. under the dictatorial phase (1937-1945) of President
Getúlio Vargas tenure (1930-1945). The new household nurtured a very musical
environment, and there Esther prematurely let show her musical traits. She
started her piano classes in 1934, with Eva Kotlhar. In 1945, she graduated
from the Institute of Fine Arts of Porto Alegre (Instituto de Belas Artes de
Porto Alegre).
After graduating, Scliar taught
piano and started studying composition. Later, she studied harmonics,
counterpoint and composition in Rio de Janeiro with H.J. Koellreuter and in
Venice with H.Scherchen. In her trip to Italy, she meets a group of young
Brazilian composers comprised by Eunice Katunda, Geny Marcondes and Sonia
Born. There, she starts conducting. In Milan, she attends a course in
Dodecaphonic Composition[1].She
also attended the Congress on Dodecaphonic Music in Switzerland.
Back in
Brazil in 1949, she worked as a pianist and started a career as musical theory,
harmony and composition teacher at the Villa-Lobos Instutute (Instituto
Villa-Lobos). In 1950, she enters a state of emotional fragility and attempts
suicide for the first time.
Throughout
her career as composer, Scliar writes music for choir, voice and piano, piano
pieces, movie and theatre soundtracks, music on the works of many poets and
some chamber music (including the Movimento de Quarteto for
string quartet and the Imbricata for flute, oboe and piano). In 1978 she
prematurely dies, committing suicide at the age of 51.
In the
Piano Sonata (1977) - I Movement, notice the influence of dodecaphonic
serialism and Brazilian themes.
Performed
by Fanni Lowenkron. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpE7L8TdrLM
References:
1.Articles:
HOLANDA,
Joana Cunha de Holanda and GERLING, Cristina Capparelli. 'Eunice Katunda e
Esther Scliar no contexto do Modernismo Musical Brasileiro'. Revista UFG,
vol.6 no.2. Goiânia, Editora Universidade Federal de Goiás, 2006.
2. Websites: Esther Scliar - Madrigal Nova Harmonia (http://www.madrigalnovaharmonia.com.br)
[1] Dodecaphony (or twelve-tone
technique, or twelve-tone serialism) is a compositional technique devised by
composer Arnold Schoenberg. It is deemed as a type of serialism (see post of
October 21, 2012) derived from integral serialism. In this method, all 12 notes
of the chromatic scale are sounded as often as one another in a single work,
through the use of tone rows (ordering of the 12 pitches). Therefore, the
pieces are composed in a way that prevents them from being in a certain key.
Dodecaphonism was an influencial trend followed by numerous composers in the XX
century.
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