Voices Piano Sonata: An Original Composition

The Voices piano sonata is a very special composition to me. Writing this work gave me an opportunity to explore my own voice as a composer, but it goes deeper than that. Each of the three movements in the piano sonata Voices is based on a theme written by a female composer in music history. So in a sense, this music combines voices from the past with my voice from right now to create a unified piece of art.

Voices Piano Sonata

You can get the sheet music here! And for a heads up, any time I reference a time mark in this post it refers to this video.

The idea for the piano sonata first came in October of 2018. I very much admire women composers, especially the ones who were unable to fully explore their musical abilities due to their genders. At the time, I had 6 months before my 45-minute concert at Oregon State University, so I thought it would be a unique challenge to compose a piano sonata incorporating themes from other female composers to present at the concert.

Once I came up with the basic structure of the work, it was fun to try and fit all of my ideas together. I finished writing the sonata about a month before the concert, which gave me plenty of time to polish the pianistic aspects of the piece for the performance.

Let’s break down each movement.

Fanny (0:07)

The first movement of Voices, called “Fanny”, is based on a sweet little piano piece by Fanny Mendelssohn (1805-1847). Composed in 1850, Mendelssohn’s Song for the Piano Op. 8 No. 3 combines a gentle yet orchestral-sounding accompaniment with a nostalgic, longing melody.

“Fanny” from the Voices piano sonata is the most “classical” movement of the work for a few reasons. Not only did I approach writing the music with a more “classical” mindset (I channeled my inner Beethoven and Chopin for this one), but I also wrote it this movement in sonata form.

Sonata Form in “Fanny”

Sonata form is made up of a specific formula: the exposition, the development, and the recapitulation (or recap).

The movement begins with the exposition (0:07), or the initial presentation of the thematic material – the start of Mendelssohn’s theme in D-flat Major. A few changes to the accompaniment support my reworking of the second half of the melody. 0:40 finds us in a brief key shift to B-flat minor with a complimentary melody. (It stays in touch with Mendelssohn’s, but this one is completely original). Keys change rapidly, shifting the mood before arriving at the second new theme (1:08). This theme is marked by dotted rhythms, dramatic chords, trills, and a slightly quicker tempo before cadencing in A-flat Major. The exposition is then repeated at 1:49.

The development, where the musical themes are developed and explored, begins at 3:39 (still in A-flat Major). Notice how the theme opens similarly to the exposition, but before you get too settled it starts changing. The harmonies turn darker, the texture thickens, and the melody starts shifting and changing. 4:13 pulls in the second, dotted theme and turns it into a waltz-of-sorts that alternates with the dramatic chords and trills and abrupt dynamics and key changes. The music builds in intensity until it spirals out of control and has exhausted every last emotion.

The recapitulation (5:47), where the themes return to their original key in their original form (it’s literally a recap of the beginning), finds us back in D-flat Major with Mendelssohn’s song. This movement concludes at 7:56, where it leads straight into the second movement of the sonata.

Hildegard (7:56)

“Hildegard” is a chant-like movement based on the hymn Ave generosa (ca. 1140) by Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179). This movement is centered in the key of G-sharp minor (the enharmonic relative of A-flat). Here’s a beautiful version of Ave generosa for comparison:

There are two main themes that occur in “Hildegard”: a chant section based on Ave generosa, and an original chorale theme. This movement is a lot more free in nature compared to “Fanny”, but it does follow the form ABA’B’A”B”. It incorporates ancient Gregorian chant ideas with contemporary harmonies and moods. I did take liberties with the rhythm, as Hildegard’s music was not often rhythmically notated. The chant sections alternate with the chorale theme, each rendition building in intensity before fading away into nothing.

In the first iteration – 7:56 for the chant and 8:52 for the chorale – the themes are sparse. Rhythmically, not much is going on aside from the moving melodies over sustained harmonies. 9:35 introduces the second round, where counterpoint and other moving lines help support the melodies. The themes even move between hands this time. The final and most intense rendition of the themes begins at 11:01. The two themes are supported by many different voices flowing and coming together to create a burst of light and color.

I really liked this movement, so I added some background strings and made a music video for it.

Clara (13:11)

The final movement, “Clara”, takes inspiration from Clara Schumann’s Romanze in B minor (1856). Schumann’s work is melancholic; the slowly descending bass line pushes against the rising theme, supported by wishful harmonies. The middle section breathes some sunshine into the work, but overall this piece is haunting and gorgeous.

“Clara” is written in ABA’ form. In the A section (13:11), I sped up Schumann’s left hand descending line from her Romanze and overlayed it with a modified (and also sped up) version of the opening bars of the right hand theme. This creates a contrast with Schumann’s work. Instead of being melancholy and sad, “Clara” is full of fiery, spiraling energy. The left hand takes over the melody at 14:05, and the chromaticism drastically increases leading into the B section.

The B section begins at 14:47. The music here takes a dramatic turn, completely getting rid of the melody and using minimalism to create waves of sound. These dynamic swells and bursts combine polyrhythms with dissonance and lush harmonies.

The A’ section (16:48) repeats the A section while throwing in elements of the B section (such as the polyrhythms at 17:09). A final burst of minimalist energy interrupts the spiraling themes at 17:44, leading to a final sigh of Schumann’s descending bass line.

I hope you enjoy Voices. This work is a means of exploration, a way to add my compositional voice to that of composers from the past.